Some students have defended the course and its modifications.
Kerry L. Haynie, a political science professor at Duke who served on the committee that developed the course, stated the College Board had despatched him a replica of Florida’s letter, in addition to its response. “I have told you over and over and over again, not one time was there any discussion of Ron DeSantis, or any political pressure, when the committee met, not once,” Dr. Haynie stated. “I don’t assume that what’s in that letter is accurate.”
But different students, troubled by the modifications, questioned whether or not the course could possibly be thought of true to African American research.
“With key concepts and thinkers now sidelined, the new curriculum lacks the intellectual heft and moral urgency that students in Florida — and students everywhere — need and deserve,” wrote Matthew Guterl, a professor of Africana and American research at Brown University, in an e-mail to The New York Times.
Joshua M. Myers, a professor of Africana research at Howard University who served on the course’s 2021 writing staff, additionally criticized the course’s ultimate model.
“I think these changes are convenient,” Dr. Myers stated in a statement final week to The Hilltop, Howard’s pupil newspaper. “They align with the College Board’s mission, which is to make the course salable. But do they align with the mission of Black studies? I don’t think so.”
Nelva Williamson, who teaches a pilot model of the course in Houston, stated she may proceed to show her college students about intersectionality and reparations, even when these ideas are minimized within the course’s official framework.
“This is a great opportunity for students to learn, to take a deep dive into the history and culture of the African diaspora,” stated Ms. Williamson, who teaches on the Young Women’s College Preparatory Academy, a public college whose college students are primarily Black or Hispanic. “It’s something that’s much needed and much wanted.”