New York Assembly Bill A04638 Latest Draft

   
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 4638 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN ASSEMBLY February 4, 2025 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. LEE -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. BICHOTTE HERMELYN, BRAUNSTEIN, BURDICK, COLTON, DE LOS SANTOS, EPSTEIN, GLICK, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, HEVESI, KIM, MAMDANI, McDONOUGH, PAULIN, RAGA, RAJKUMAR, RAMOS, REYES, ROZIC, SHIMSKY, SHRESTHA, SIMON, TAGUE, ZACCARO -- read once and referred to the Committee on Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to requiring public elementary schools and high schools to provide instruction in Asian American history and civic impact The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new section 801-b 2 to read as follows: 3 § 801-b. Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander histo- 4 ry and civic impact curriculum or instruction. 1. The commissioner shall 5 establish Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander 6 history and civic impact curriculum or instruction for school districts 7 in accordance with the department's existing learning standards for 8 social studies. The contents shall be age appropriate and shall be 9 developed according to the needs and abilities of students at successive 10 grade levels to provide robust Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and 11 Pacific Islander history and civic impact curriculum or instruction, 12 alongside community-based organizations and subject-matter experts, and 13 shall be dissemenated to schools and districts. The contents shall 14 include, but shall not be limited to, curriculum or instruction in the 15 following: 16 a. The history of diaspora of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and 17 Pacific Islanders in New York and the Northeast; 18 b. The movements and policies that impacted the Asian American, Native 19 Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities in the United States; 20 c. The contributions made by the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and 21 Pacific Islander communities in government, the arts, humanities, EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD01669-04-5 
 A. 4638 2 1 science and the economic, cultural, social and political development of 2 the United States; 3 d. The structures and historical events that have limited or harmed 4 the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander and other histor- 5 ically marginalized communities especially as it pertains to the civil 6 rights movement; and 7 e. The solidarity between Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific 8 Islander and other historically marginalized communities especially as 9 it pertains to the civil rights movement. 10 2. Schools may include the above materials as components of its 11 history or social studies curriculum, or any other way the school deems 12 appropriate. 13 3. The commissioner shall develop professional development training 14 materials instructing teachers and school administrators on curricular 15 implementation and shall annually update such recommendations concerning 16 implementation. 17 4. Within one year of the effective date of this section, and annually 18 thereafter, the commissioner shall deliver a report to the governor, the 19 legislature, the temporary president of the senate, the senate minority 20 leader, the speaker of the assembly, the assembly minority leader, and 21 both the senate and assembly committees on education, and shall share 22 the report on the department's website, outlining the capacity of vari- 23 ous school districts to implement the curriculum required by this 24 section and the most pressing needs of school districts regarding 25 resources and support in curriculum implementation. The report shall be 26 informed by an annual, public solicitiation of feedback from schools and 27 districts regarding the opportunities and challenges of implementing the 28 curriculum in existing social studies courses, as well as student learn- 29 ing outcomes. The report shall include, but not be limited to: 30 a. the number of schools that implemented the curriculum pursuant to 31 this section and whether those schools serve student populations in 32 urban, suburban or rural areas; 33 b. the number of teachers and administrators who engaged with profes- 34 sional development resources pursuant to subdivision three of this 35 section; 36 c. the total number of kindergarten through grade twelve students in 37 the state who engaged with the curriculum; 38 d. and any other efforts of school districts to implement the curric- 39 ulum required by this section or recommendations to assist school 40 districts regarding resources and support in curriculum implementation. 41 § 2. This act shall take effect on the first of July next succeeding 42 the date on which it shall have become a law.