Last school year in Fresno, Duncan Poly High School students in Gabriel Perez’s ethnic studies class discussed how hip-hop and rap music originated from young African American artists highlighting their lived experiences, which were often characterized by social issues such as poverty, gang violence and racism.
Credit: Lasherica Thornton / EdSource
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All high school students, starting with this year’s freshmen class, were expected to be required to take an ethnic studies class in order to graduate.
But the implementation of the “ethnic studies mandate” is contingent on being funded. There was no funding for it in this year’s state budget.
At the heart of the stalled mandate is a yearslong debate over what ethnic studies is and how it should be taught.
This year, all California public schools were expected to adopt a high school graduation requirement teaching ethnic studies classes on the history, contributions and struggles of California’s African Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans and Native Americans.
But around the state, some students are in ethnic studies classes; others are not. And for those who are in ethnic studies classes, the curriculum can vary.
One reason for this patchwork is Gov. Gavin Newsom. He excluded money for ethnic studies from the 2025 state budget, effectively killing the mandate due to a provision in the 2021 law, Assembly Bill 101, that made it contingent on full funding.
The governor has not explicitly stated why full funding for ethnic studies was not in the budget. But the lack of funding for the mandate is just the latest twist as state education leaders, school districts, teachers and parents have spent years wrestling over how ethnic studies should be taught in the classroom. California school districts are now figuring out how to proceed: Make ethnic studies optional? Still require it? Pause implementation? Many are undecided about what to do next.
“Districts are frustrated over the lack of funding and indecision or contradictions from the state,” said Steve Tietjen, the Merced County superintendent of schools.
Opposing views on how ethnic studies should be taught
Teaching ethnic studies in California schools has a long history, starting with the nation’s first College of Ethnic Studies at San Francisco State in 1968 after advocacy by the university’s Black students was followed by a student strike.
Since then, some school districts have begun implementing ethnic studies. A 2016 law required the development of a state model curriculum, which was drafted in 2019 by ethnic studies academics hired by the California Department of Education.
That draft was sharply criticized by some as academic jargon and dismissed as “ideological.” Among the critics was the California Legislative Jewish Caucus, which condemned its “failure to meaningfully acknowledge antisemitism.”
By the time Newsom signed Assembly Bill 101 into law in 2021, making California the first state with ethnic studies as a graduation requirement starting with the class of 2029-30, a new model curriculum, which addressed some critics’ concerns, had been drafted and adopted. Model curricula are advisory. Districts can develop their own as long as they abide by “statutes, regulations, and court decisions” detailed in the official guidance.
But what should be taught as ethnic studies at the local level continues to be disputed.
Embedded into the field of study is the teaching of how systemic and social constructs intersect with people’s gender, class, immigration status and other such identities. This is often the piece opponents point to when they argue that ethnic studies is ideological or political, adding that the problem is not ethnic studies itself, but rather, curricula they say are biased and discriminatory.
“It’s a very simplistic worldview, and it doesn’t really help in developing students’ critical thinking skills,” said Lauren Janov, a legal consultant for the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism, an organization that argues the state’s model curriculum remains based on political ideology.
Ethnic studies advocates maintain that contention over the curriculum boils down to misinterpretations about ethnic studies.
“Where a lot of the pushback comes is just worrying about how this class truly opens young folks’ minds to what is going on in the U.S., but particularly in their own communities,” said Carrie Jackson, assistant principal at Cordova High School in Sacramento County, who led her district’s curriculum development while completing a doctoral dissertation on ethnic studies implementation.
Over the past four years, state money has gone to districts to create curriculum and train teachers. But the contention has only deepened. Even in places where ethnic studies have been taught for years, there’s been a rollback. Two weeks before school was set to begin this year, the San Francisco Unified School District paused its ethnic studies curriculum that had been in place since 2010.
Timeline of ethnic studies
1968: The Black Student Union and a coalition of student groups at San Francisco State University began a five-month strike that resulted in the nation’s first College of Ethnic Studies.
1990: Berkeley High School becomes the first school district to mandate ethnic studies as a graduation requirement.
2014: El Rancho Unified in Southern California mandates ethnic studies as state legislators and the L.A. Unified school board debated similar measures.
2016: AB 2016 is signed into law, requiring the development of an ethnic studies model curriculum.
2018: Guidelines are approved for new state model curriculum.
January 2019: AB 331 is introduced, seeking to mandate ethnic studies as a graduation requirement.
May 2019: First draft of an ethnic studies model curriculum is introduced; parental, political pushback follows.
August 2020: Newsom approves AB 1460, requiring ethnic studies in the California State University system.
September 2020: Newsom vetoes AB 331, which would have mandated ethnic studies as a graduation requirement.
Late 2020: Bill to require ethnic studies is reintroduced as AB 101.
March 2021: California adopts its ethnic studies model curriculum.
July 2021: The California Community Colleges system adopts ethnic studies requirement.
October 2021: AB 101 is signed into law, making California the first state to make ethnic studies a graduation requirement for the class of 2029-30, though it would be contingent on being fully funded.
2023: A letter written by Brooks Allen, education adviser to the governor and executive director of the State Board of Education, advised school districts that some vendors “have begun promoting curriculum for ethnic studies” that “may not meet the requirements of AB 101.”
February 2025: AB 1468, which would require restarting the state’s ethnic studies curriculum process, is introduced.
June 2025: Annual state budget adopted without full funding for AB 101.
Districts try to make sense of the stalled mandate
Jackson’s district, Folsom Cordova Unified, piloted ethnic studies as an elective for two years. The district kept it optional this year, but will mandate it next year, and has pre-allocated funding for four professional development days ahead of permanent implementation, Jackson said.
In Northern California, Glenn County educators began preparing for the mandate in 2022. They developed hundreds of lessons, with schools offering ethnic studies as core electives or as an integration into existing courses, said Kendra Tyler, a Glenn County regional director leading ethnic studies development in 11 rural counties.
About half of California’s 150 northernmost districts are continuing their plans to offer the elective or integrated course, Tyler said. For example, two districts in Trinity County are integrating ethnic studies into English classes. But others, especially the smallest districts where a lack of funding is more keenly felt, have paused or dropped ethnic studies altogether, Tyler said.
Tietjen, the Merced County schools superintendent, said the lack of funding is causing confusion.
“What will happen to the students who are in their freshman year and miss the opportunity to have the course planned into their high school program?” said Tietjen. “This impacts both college- and career-track students and leaves them wondering when or if they will have to drop a course to take ethnic studies in the future.”
In Los Angeles County, teachers are still trained under a program that Elaina Garza, a coordinator with the county Office of Education, said continues into this year — but schools pay for training material costs, a potential challenge in the coming months.
“In a time when budgets are shrinking, districts are having to make choices over where they send teachers for professional development. Ethnic studies is one of a host of priorities that districts have this year,” Garza said.
She said that many districts she works with — especially those that have spent years designing courses — will continue with their ethnic studies programs. Others are on hold, largely due to staffing issues and, at times, pressure from people who oppose ethnic studies.
The Stockton Unified School District mandated ethnic studies two years ago without relying on state funding, said Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez. The district currently offers core elective classes, like “Intro to Ethnic Studies” and “Filipino Studies,” and has incorporated ethnic studies into required subjects, such as English.
“When people say it’s a funding issue, I actually believe that’s likely an excuse to not implement,” Rodriguez said, noting that districts can integrate ethnic studies into existing courses without spending additional money.
In Fresno Unified, the state’s third-largest school district, students must take a two-semester ethnic studies course, a requirement implemented two years ago.
In recent years, universities and community partners have readily provided professional learning and other resources to districts preparing for the ethnic studies mandate. Now, Carlos Castillo, the district’s chief academic officer, said he worries those areas will suffer.
“I think the biggest concern that we’ve heard is: ‘How will ethnic studies teachers be supported in this work?’” he said.
Caught in the middle of the debate over ethnic studies are educators who have worked years toward implementation and say they just want to move forward.
“The key here is that when courses are developed and the community is really involved, there’s a difference between what perception is of what ethnic studies is and then what ethnic studies actually is,” said Garza, from Los Angeles County. “We have to be sure that we are presenting curriculums in an honest, authentic and non-partisan manner.”