Georgia attorney general says Black studies course can be taught under racial teaching law exemption

ATLANTA (AP) — A new Advanced Placement course in African American Studies doesn’t violate Georgia’s law against teaching divisive racial concepts because the law exempts AP and similar college-level courses taught to high schoolers, Georgia’s attorney general said.

Attorney General Chris Carr, a Republican, wrote this determination in a letter Friday to state Rep. Will Wade, a Dawsonville Republican who authored the 2022 measure.

Georgia’s Superintendent of Schools Richard Woods has also requested an opinion from Carr on the issue, after Woods had refused to recommend the course for approval by the state Board of Education because he thought it broke the law.

Wade said Tuesday that he hoped Woods will reverse his decision and recommend the course.

“I really hope that Richard will make a decision as soon as possible and alleviate the concerns of Georgia students, teachers and parents,” Wade said in a phone interview.

Some districts have declined to teach the course without state approval.

Woods has faced not only attacks from Democrats, but pointed questions from Republican Gov. Brian Kemp.

A Woods spokersperson declined comment but said the superintendent may discuss the situation again.

The Advanced Placement course drew national scrutiny in 2023 when Florida’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would ban the course in his state. In June, South Carolina officials also refused to approve the course. South Carolina said individual districts could still offer it.

The College Board is a nonprofit testing entity that offers Advanced Placement courses across the academic spectrum. Students who score well on an exam can usually earn college credit. The board has said the course is based on academic scholarship and doesn’t seek to indoctrinate students.

Carr’s letter notes that the law requires teachers to instruct “in a professionally and academically appropriate manner and without espousing personal political beliefs.” But other than that, he noted the law’s text specifically exempts AP courses.

“Other than those limitations, the statutory language as enacted excludes advanced placement, international baccalaureate and dual enrollment coursework by its express terms,” Carr wrote.

Woods had been saying that districts could teach the AP material and get state money by listing it as an introductory African American studies course approved by the state in 2020. Woods took that position after earlier saying districts would have to teach the course using only local tax money. But when he declared that he believed the course was illegal, Woods said he believed districts could expose themselves to legal challenges by teaching the AP material using the introductory course.

Georgia’s 2022 ban on teaching divisive racial concepts in schools, based on a now-repealed executive order from President Donald Trump, prohibits claims that the U.S. is “fundamentally or systematically racist.” It mandates that no student “should feel discomfort, guilt, anguish, or any other form of psychological distress because of his or her race.” So far, 18 states have passed such bans.

Under the law, if people allege a violation and it isn’t resolved locally, they can appeal to the state Board of Education. The board could order a corrective action plan, and a district could lose exemptions from state rules if it didn’t comply. Districts rely on those exemptions to set policy locally.

Woods, who is white, said he was particularly concerned about how the course presents the concept of intersectionality. That’s a framework for understanding the effects of overlapping systems of discrimination or disadvantage. For example, Black women may face compounding disadvantages because of their race and gender.

Intersectionality is one of 74 required topics in the course.

The Atlanta, DeKalb County and Cobb County school districts have all said they will offer the course in some high schools even if Woods doesn’t recommend it. But Gwinnett County, the state’s largest district, has said it won’t offer the course. That is because students wouldn’t get the credit that an approved AP course brings in deciding whether a student qualifies for the HOPE Scholarship merit program.