Story at a glance
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed the bill into law Monday.
- The measure defines ethnic studies as focusing on Native Americans, African Americans, Asian Americans and Latina and Latino Americans.
- The university system, however, had been opposed to the bill arguing it would set a “dangerous precedent for legislative interference” with the curriculum and viewed it as a legislative overreach.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Monday signed a bill that will require students at California State University (CSU) to complete an ethnic studies course in order to graduate.
AB 1460 requires all students enrolled on all 23 CSU campuses to take one three-unit class in either Native American studies, African American studies, Asian American studies or Latina and Latino studies. The requirement applies to California State University students who enter as freshmen in the 2021-22 school year.
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The measure was proposed by Assemblymember Shirley Weber (D-San Diego) and passed by the state legislature last year.
“This bill reflects 50 years of student, faculty, and community advocacy for curriculum reflective of and responsive to our diverse state,” Weber tweeted Monday following the signing of the bill.
The California Faculty Association called the signing of the bill a historic moment, noting that the law will make California the first state to mandate ethnic studies as a university graduation requirement.
The university system, however, had been opposed to the bill arguing it would set a “dangerous precedent for legislative interference” with the curriculum and viewed it as a legislative overreach, according to the Associated Press (AP).
The bill will now overrule reforms approved by the university’s Board of Trustees last month that required students to take an ethnic studies course, but also included social justice courses on a wider selection of marginalized communities, including Jewish, Muslim and LGBTQ+ groups, according to the AP.
CSU estimated that the new measure could cost the university system about $16.5 million per year.
Opponents of the bill in the state Senate argued it wouldn’t include studies of other ethnic groups that have faced oppression and would put a financial burden on campuses already strained due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The university system includes more than 481,000 students.
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