In 2022, the College Board announced the launch of AP African American Studies, which aims to provide an exploration of the history, culture, and literature of African Americans. “Many CCSD High Schools, including CT, Grandview, and Eaglecrest, will potentially be adding this course to their offerings over the next couple of years,” said Performance Improvement Partner for Social Studies of the Cherry Creek School District, Steven Kidd.
“Sometimes when we talk about the African American experience, it’s through two lenses. It’s Jim Crow or slavery. And it’s reductive, as opposed to looking at the experience through poetry and music and lasting legacies, and how African Americans have greatly impacted the country,” said social studies teacher, Mark Shwayder-Hughes.
Social Studies Coordinator, Scott Myers, highlighted the differences between the AP African American course compared to other AP history classes available, “In an APUSH class you have a dominant narrative of American history then you have an array of marginalized groups that you look at all those perspectives, and this would be the centering one marginalized group as the major lens to understand those historical errands,” said Myers.
Controversy arose in 2023, when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis banned the pilot course in the state leading the College Board to revise the course. “It infuriates me that in order for black history to be taught, it has to be okayed by white conservatives,” said Shwayder-Hughes. Shwayder-Hughes teaches a social studies course that, similar to AP African American Studies, covers the history of minority groups. “My hope is that as educators and as a school and as a district that we don’t privilege the group that’s always been privileged, that we privilege other voices,” said Shwayder-Hughes.
Many students have expressed interest in this course. President of the Ethnic Essence Club, Hannah Diakite, believes that students who take the course will be more open to people with different backgrounds. “I feel like if some people take the class […] they can find that sense of understanding and be exposed to something different […] it’ll open people up to just interacting,” said Diakite.
The AP and IB coordinator, Karen Slusher, speaks about her hopes for what this course will bring to students, “It really for me comes down to just helping students see that there are ways to explore content outside of the normal Avenue or pathway,” said Slusher.
