BEL AIR, Md. — Following hours of testimony and a meeting late into the night, the Harford County School Board reversed its own decision approving an AP African American Studies course for the new school year.
Just before 1:30 a.m., the board voted unanimously in favor of the course.
Board members spoke to the course's teachers who addressed their concerns.
John Mobley, a social sciences and AP African American Studies teacher at Aberdeen High School said the teachers meet often to make sure they are teaching diverse points of view and giving factual information
"As true social scientists, we always try to give a well-rounded perspective on any topic to give kids a deeper understanding and perspective on the information that is being given. There is no indoctrination on my part. We make sure that the information that is given is factual and that we use quality textbooks and other resources when we do present that information."
After hearing this, President of the Board, Aaron Poynton said, "That comes through clearly from all of you but it didn't come through from the first reading, for many of us, of the text as it came from the college board."
90 students were signed up for the class before the June vote.
Previously the board voted 5-4 against the course in its current form at their June 21st meeting, saying the curriculum needed to be reexamined.
During the 2023–24 school year, a pilot course was offered at Bel Air, Aberdeen, and Joppatowne High Schools.
The yes vote now expands the course's availability to Edgewood, Harford Technical, and Havre de Grace students.
In a statement, Superintendent Dr. Sean Bulson said:
“I really appreciate the work our curriculum team did last night and that the Board recognized those efforts; it was a lot of work to get to this place. I want to especially acknowledge the teachers who joined us last night. Their presence reiterated how much I, and my administration, respect the professionalism of our teachers and the discretion we know they use every day in the classroom. It is because of teachers like those we got to hear from, and learn from, last night, that I know our students are receiving the best education possible… and in the end, it’s our students who will benefit.”
Many people attended Monday night's meeting to support the class becoming a permanent option.
“I've reached out to students who took the course last year, many of them rising first-year college students or planning to join the U.S. armed forces. I did not hear a single, negative aspect about the course," says Leah Lucas, who is the SGA president at Aberdeen High School.
Not everyone, however, was in favor of the class being offered.
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A mother at the meeting said, “The highly politicized nature of that course is not appropriate content for high school students.”
The course is an elective and students must pay to take it, as it could be worth college credit.
Previously, board members who voted against the course felt it was divisive, and negative messages outweighed positive ones.
Nearly 700 schools piloted the course in the 2023-24 academic year, representing more than 40 states and the District of Columbia, accounting for approximately 13,000 students. A total of 60 schools participated in the first year of the pilot in the 2022–2023 academic year.
