Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H542 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3360 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 542
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Tram T. Nguyen and Steven Ultrino
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act to promote racially inclusive curriculum in schools.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Tram T. Nguyen18th Essex1/20/2023Steven Ultrino33rd Middlesex1/20/2023Bud L. Williams11th Hampden1/20/2023James K. Hawkins2nd Bristol1/27/2023David Henry Argosky LeBoeuf17th Worcester1/30/2023Jack Patrick Lewis7th Middlesex1/31/2023Michelle M. DuBois10th Plymouth2/7/2023Carmine Lawrence Gentile13th Middlesex2/10/2023James B. EldridgeMiddlesex and Worcester2/19/2023Erika Uyterhoeven27th Middlesex2/22/2023 1 of 7
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 3360 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 542
18	18	By Representatives Nguyen of Andover and Ultrino of Malden, a petition (accompanied by bill,
19	19	House, No. 542) of Tram T. Nguyen, Steven Ultrino and others for legislation to promote
20	20	racially inclusive curriculum in schools. Education.
21	21	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
22	22	_______________
23	23	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
24	24	(2023-2024)
25	25	_______________
26	26	An Act to promote racially inclusive curriculum in schools.
27	27	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
28	28	of the same, as follows:
29	29	1 SECTION 1. Chapter 29 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
30	30	2section 2XXXXX the following new section:-
31	31	3 Section 2XXXXX. (a) There shall be established and set up on the books of the
32	32	4commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Racially Inclusive Curriculum Trust Fund.
33	33	5The fund shall be administered by the commissioner of elementary and secondary education. The
34	34	6fund shall be credited with: (i) revenue from appropriations or other money authorized by the
35	35	7general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund; (ii) interest earned on such
36	36	8revenues; and (iii) funds from public and private sources such as gifts, grants and donations to
37	37	9further racially inclusive curriculum development in education and professional development.
38	38	10Amounts credited to the fund shall not be subject to further appropriation and any money
39	39	11remaining in the fund at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the General Fund. 2 of 7
40	40	12 (b) Amounts credited to the fund may be expended, without further appropriation, by the
41	41	13commissioner for the following purposes: (i) to assist with the implementation of section 1R of
42	42	14chapter 69, (ii) for the development of racially inclusive curriculum frameworks within multiple
43	43	15disciplines and within the history and social science learning standards; (iii) for the development
44	44	16of materials and resources to enable school districts to implement a racially inclusive curriculum
45	45	17in their schools, (iv) for professional development training, (v) for collaboration and sharing of
46	46	18best practices among school districts, (vi) for collaboration with institutions of higher education
47	47	19and other stakeholder organizations; and (vii) for issuing grants under the grant program
48	48	20established in subsection (c) below.
49	49	21 (c) The commissioner may expend funds from the trust fund for a Racially Inclusive
50	50	22Curriculum in Education grant program. The grant program shall be developed and administered
51	51	23by the commissioner of education for all public schools and school districts to promote a racially
52	52	24inclusive curriculum within and across school districts. All grant applications shall include: (i) a
53	53	25statement of the prospective curriculum or program and the expected impact; (ii) a preliminary
54	54	26estimate of the cost; (iii) sustainability plan of execution of curriculum or program; and (iv) a
55	55	27mechanism for determining how the proposal may be effectively replicated in other school
56	56	28districts. The commissioner of education shall, from time to time, review and make
57	57	29recommendations on the improvement of the design, oversight or implementation of the grant
58	58	30program.
59	59	31 (d) The commissioner may facilitate the granting of funds and other resources to public
60	60	32schools and school districts, state colleges and universities, and community groups. The
61	61	33commissioner will ensure that every public school and school district has the opportunity to
62	62	34apply for grants. Programs eligible for these grants shall be used for the following purposes: (i) 3 of 7
63	63	35professional development training; (ii) for the review of current curricula and standards related to
64	64	36racially inclusive teaching; (iii) for the development of educational materials; (iv) for
65	65	37collaboration with institutions of higher education and other stakeholder organizations; and (v)
66	66	38for collaboration and sharing of model curricula, resources, and best practices with other districts
67	67	39and programs in order to support replication and dissemination of effective practices generated
68	68	40through the grant program.
69	69	41 (e) In expending amounts credited to the fund, the commissioner may prioritize: (i)
70	70	42underserved communities across the commonwealth, including those public schools or school
71	71	43districts with high concentrations of economically-disadvantaged students; (ii) communities that
72	72	44have experienced an incident motivated by racial, ethnic or religious bias; and (iii) schools
73	73	45implementing a racially inclusive curriculum and education models for the first time.
74	74	46 (f) Amounts received from private sources shall be approved by the commissioner of
75	75	47elementary and secondary education and subject to review before being deposited in the fund to
76	76	48ensure that pledged funds are not accompanied by conditions, explicit or implicit, that would
77	77	49improperly shape or otherwise hinder the development and implementation of racially inclusive
78	78	50curriculum and instruction, or that would be detrimental to the neutral and rigorous teaching of
79	79	51racially inclusive teaching practices or unduly influence the direction of policies related to
80	80	52racially inclusive teaching. The review shall be made publicly available on the department’s
81	81	53website.
82	82	54 (g) Public schools and school districts awarded funds pursuant to this section shall work
83	83	55with the commissioner of education and the commission to analyze the effectiveness of their
84	84	56initiatives in accordance with assessment measures established by the commission. 4 of 7
85	85	57 (h) Annually, not later than December 1, the commissioner shall report to the clerks of
86	86	58the house of representatives and senate, the joint committee on education and the house and
87	87	59senate committees on ways and means on the fund's activity. The report shall include, but not be
88	88	60limited to: (i) the source and amount of funds received; (ii) the amounts distributed and the
89	89	61purpose of expenditures from the fund, including but not limited to, funds expended to assist
90	90	62school districts in meeting the requirements in this section; (iii) any grants provided to
91	91	63institutions of higher education and other stakeholder organizations; and (iv) anticipated revenue
92	92	64and expenditure projections for the next year.
93	93	65 SECTION 2. Chapter 69 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
94	94	66section 1T the following new section:
95	95	67 Section 1U. (a) In all public schools, instruction shall be inclusive of all racial and ethnic
96	96	68groups and shall require the teaching of accurate histories, writings, and contributions of racial
97	97	69and ethnic groups that have been historically underrepresented or marginalized, including but not
98	98	70limited to Indigenous People; African Americans and the Black and African Diaspora; Asian
99	99	71Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) and Asian Diaspora; and Latino/a/x and people with
100	100	72Latin American heritage.
101	101	73 (i) Within academic standards across multiple disciplines required in section 1D of
102	102	74chapter 69, instruction in all grade levels shall include, but not be limited to: (1) studying
103	103	75literature, books and writings by authors from underrepresented groups, as well as art, music,
104	104	76film and other works from these groups, that will provide balanced narratives with multiple
105	105	77perspectives and offer insight into their experiences and cultural identities, (2) highlighting
106	106	78people from underrepresented groups who have made notable positive contributions in math, 5 of 7
107	107	79science, humanities, the arts and other disciplines, and the impact these contributions have had
108	108	80on society, and (3) learning about and fostering understanding of the ethnic and cultural
109	109	81identities, heritage, and customs of underrepresented groups and celebrating their contributions
110	110	82to a multicultural society.
111	111	83 (ii) In the history and social studies academic standards required in section 1D of chapter
112	112	8469, instruction across grade levels shall aim to provide students an understanding of the unique
113	113	85and shared experiences of each racial group, including underrepresented and marginalized
114	114	86groups of people who may identify as having Indigenous, African, Asian, Latin, and Hispanic
115	115	87heritage in the United States. Instruction shall include, but not be limited to, analyzing and
116	116	88discussing: (1) the history of slavery and segregation and their impact on today’s society; (2) the
117	117	89impact of colonial settlement, land appropriation, western expansion, and creation of tribal
118	118	90reservations; (3) the impact of racial inequities and discriminatory and exclusionary policies and
119	119	91practices; (4) racial violence towards marginalized groups; (5) an understanding of stereotypes
120	120	92and the impact on conscious and unconscious bias; (6) the impact of U.S. immigration history,
121	121	93quotas, restrictions, and other policies; (7) other historical policies, practices and experiences and
122	122	94how they relate to current issues that are affecting racial and ethnic groups in contemporary
123	123	95society; (8) the impact of model minority myths; (9) the role that race plays in community
124	124	96diversity, geographic and economic mobility, and political and socio-economic status; (10)
125	125	97exploring trends in voter registration and civic participation relative to disenfranchised voter
126	126	98populations; and (11) pursuing opportunities to identify and debate issues relative to power and
127	127	99access, economic status, and democracy.
128	128	100 (b) A school district, charter school, approved private day or residential school or
129	129	101collaborative school shall incorporate standards for inclusive teaching of the history, writings, 6 of 7
130	130	102and contributions of underrepresented racial and ethnic groups established pursuant to section 1R
131	131	103and subsection (a) into existing curriculum including, but not limited to, language arts, history
132	132	104and social science, mathematics, performing and visual arts, science and technology, and world
133	133	105language.
134	134	106 (c) All lessons and teaching related to the curriculum must be appropriate for use with
135	135	107students of all races, religions, nationalities, genders, abilities, neurological profiles, sexual
136	136	108orientations, and ethnic and cultural backgrounds, as well as English language learners.
137	137	109 (d) In developing the framework standards pursuant to section 1R subsection (a), the
138	138	110department of elementary and secondary education shall seek input and feedback from
139	139	111community members from traditionally underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, as well as
140	140	112experts in the field of racial, ethnic, and/or cultural studies or related disciplines. Any proposed
141	141	113changes to the standards shall be publicly available with opportunities for public feedback and
142	142	114said input shall be publicly available and considered in the development of standards.
143	143	115 (e) The department shall provide professional development opportunities for educators on
144	144	116the framework standards established pursuant to section 1R and subsection (a), and create tools
145	145	117aligned with the framework to support districts in the implementation process. Subject to
146	146	118funding, the department will facilitate the sharing of model curricula and resources from experts,
147	147	119educators, organizations, and other school districts with implementation experience. Additional
148	148	120support and outreach from the department may include statewide and regional trainings,
149	149	121meetings or conferences, including opportunities for districts and other stakeholders to assess
150	150	122and share evidence-based best practices in support of racially and culturally inclusive education
151	151	123and provide feedback and recommendations to the department. 7 of 7
152	152	124 (f) Every three years the department shall hold a public review and issue a report on the
153	153	125implementation of the racially inclusive curriculum standards to ensure that instructional
154	154	126programs that include the histories, writings and contributions of underrepresented racial and
155	155	127ethnic groups are being offered in the commonwealth to students in kindergarten to grade 12.
156	156	128The general court may be petitioned to direct the commissioner of education to, subject to
157	157	129appropriation, convene a working group consisting of educators experienced in teaching
158	158	130curriculum related to racially and culturally inclusive education, experts in the field of racial,
159	159	131ethnic, or cultural studies or related disciplines, and individuals or organizations in the
160	160	132community from traditionally underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. The review shall further
161	161	133include a report on best practices and recommended improvements to the standards. Such a
162	162	134report shall be submitted to the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate and the
163	163	135chairs of the joint committee on education.