ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – On Thursday, Georgia Senate Democrats took a stand by writing a letter to State Superintendent Richard Woods regarding changes to the AP African American Studies course.
The letter accused Woods of treating the AP African American Studies course unfairly compared to other AP courses.
The senators requested a meeting with Woods to discuss why this course is being handled differently.
Senator Nikki Merritt has called for an emergency board meeting to overturn Woods’ decision to cut funding for the AP course.
Merritt argued that the current course code is merely an introduction and does not match the rigor of the AP curriculum.
Merritt expressed frustration, saying, “If you’re going to label it just as an African American Studies class, that’s not enough. We need to understand why this AP course is being treated differently from others.”
Earlier this week, the Associated Press reported that the Georgia Board of Education decided not to fund the new Advanced Placement course in African American Studies.
According to the source, this decision led some school districts to cancel plans to offer the course to high school students.
On Wednesday, Superintendent Richard Woods addressed the situation by offering state funding for African American Studies courses but not for the AP curriculum.
His statement explained, “An African American Studies course code has been available since 2020.
Districts using this code will get state funding. They can teach the AP course standards using this code if they wish and students can take the AP exam.
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I had concerns about endorsing the full AP course. My stance is that districts should use the existing code to develop their own curriculum or use AP course standards if they choose.”
Woods’ reasons for his decision remain unclear. Governor Brian Kemp has also reached out to Woods with questions about the funding decision.