African American Studies

As part of our ongoing series asking for your stories about Black history, we hear from an educator who recalls hearing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s final Sunday sermon before he was killed.

The nonprofit says Florida leaders never suggested specific changes to the new AP African American Studies course. Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state may "reevaluate" its relationship with the group.

The letter to the College Board regarding “AP classroom” the Florida Department of Education references a back-and-forth between the two entities that goes back to last year.

The College Board, which oversees Advanced Placement courses, says the revisions to the African American history course were already underway prior to Gov. DeSantis’ objections to some of the material.

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Teresa Reed, dean of the University of Louisville's School of Music and a member of the committee that developed the College Board's AP African American studies class.

The organization released the new curriculum for the Advanced Placement course after Florida rejected the pilot. The revisions removed units on Black feminist literary thought and Black Lives Matter.

The Florida Department of Education rejected the original framework for the AP African American Studies course.

On this week's Florida Roundup, we examine the state's decision to reject an Advanced Placement African American course as teachers cover up their classroom libraries, fearing they’ll run afoul of new state standards on what books students can access.

"One Governor should not have the power to dictate the facts of U.S. history," Democratic Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said of GOP Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' move to ban the Advanced Placement course.

The state’s rejection of the course has drawn national attention, including a rebuke from the Biden administration.

Attorney Ben Crump announced a potential lawsuit against the Florida governor after the state rejected a new Advanced Placement course, which the College Board now says it will revise.

WUSF would like to tell your story: Share why teaching and learning Black history is important to you, along with your concerns over the decision to reject an Advanced Placement course on African American studies.