Harford County school board denies AP African American Studies course

Harford County Public School students will not have the option to take AP African American Studies next year. After piloting it at three high schools during the 2023-2024 school year, the board of education voted against it becoming a permanent course in the district. (Credit:Unsplash/Ivan Aleksic) By Megan SaylesAFRO Business Writermsayles@afro.com After piloting AP African American Studies during the 2023-2024 school year, the Harford County Board of Education (BOE) has denied a request to make the elective course permanent. Board members voted 5-4 to end the class during a meeting on June 24.The decision comes after the College Board course faced political attacks, largely initiated by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who blocked the course in 2023. It also follows action from a number of states to ban critical race theory.& The Harford County NAACP Branch has since expressed its disapproval of the decision and asked the BOE to reconsider.& “We watched the Harford County Board of Education strip away student’s right to learn about African American history because the majority of the board, who are not people of color, decided that real history isn’t positive or uplifting enough,” President Vicki Jones told the AFRO. “Slavery was real. It was ugly...