Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Ethnic Studies topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Orange Unified outlines Ethnic Studies rollout under AB 101, plans pilot in 2025–26
Summary
District staff presented an Ethnic Studies implementation plan required by Assembly Bill 101 (2021), including stakeholder engagement, a three-year timeline with a pilot in 2025–26, teacher training, multiple delivery options (in-person, Apex online, dual enrollment), and plans to integrate local histories (including Ramirez) into curriculum.
Orange Unified School District staff presented a district plan for implementing Ethnic Studies to comply with Assembly Bill 101, which requires a one-semester ethnic studies course for high school students and makes ethnic studies a graduation requirement beginning with the class of 2030.
Dr. Whitmer and Lisa Green of Educational Services summarized evidence that ethnic studies increases student engagement and academic outcomes and outlined a three-year implementation timeline: course development and stakeholder engagement this year; a pilot in spring 2026; and full implementation for the 2026–27 school year. The district’s current Apex Ethnic Studies course (an asynchronous online option approved in 2018) will remain an option while an in-person semester course is developed.
Staff said the district will establish an Ethnic Studies Steering Committee, partner with the UCI History Project and Santiago Canyon College for dual-enrollment opportunities, and create a community advisory process. They noted the state provided funding for course development; ongoing course offerings would be managed within existing section allocations and staffing resources.
Student speaker Nadia Flores described her experience taking an ethnic studies course through the Early College Academy and urged implementation, saying local history ‘‘shows students that these events didn’t just happen somewhere else, they happened in our hometown.’’ Trustees asked about curriculum design to avoid a 'tourist' approach, teacher qualifications (history/social science credential for the one-semester core course), pilot size and format (in-person pilot versus online Apex options), and plans for professional development. Staff said teacher training and community input will be central to course quality and equity.
What’s next: the district plans to finalize a draft course in fall 2025, select pilot teachers, run a pilot in spring 2026, collect feedback, revise the course, and return to the board for adoption following the pilot.
