Three days after she finished a summer training course to teach advanced placement African American studies, Gwinnett County, Georgia, teacher Mallory Fannin said she found out she would not be teaching that class.
“I’ve already been planning, creating. My students were already in my roster,” she said. “Letters were going out soon. We start work tomorrow, and I just found out Monday that I’m not teaching a course, and I don’t know what class that I will be teaching looking forward.”
Some 33 Georgia schools offered AP African American studies as part of a pilot program during the last school year, according to the College Board, which administers advanced classes that can boost high schoolers’ GPAs and earn them college credits if they score well on an exam. Following the pilot, state Superintendent Richard Woods opted not to recommend the course for state approval.
Republican Gov. Brian Kemp joined a chorus of teachers, students and Democrats in questioning Woods’ decision. In a letter to Woods obtained by the Recorder, Kemp questioned what went into the decision.
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