Florida Senate - 2021 SB 1962 By Senator Cruz 18-00061-21 20211962__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to educational instruction on African 3 American history; amending s. 1003.42, F.S.; revising 4 the required instruction relating to African-American 5 history to include certain information on present-day 6 racial injustices and hardships; requiring the 7 Department of Education to contract with the 8 Commissioner of Education’s African American History 9 Task Force in developing a specific framework for such 10 instruction; requiring the task force to submit its 11 recommendations to the commissioner and the State 12 Board of Education by a specified date; requiring each 13 school district to annually certify, beginning on a 14 specified date, that it has met certain requirements; 15 providing an effective date. 16 17 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 18 19 Section 1. Paragraph (h) of subsection (2) of section 20 1003.42, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 21 1003.42 Required instruction.— 22 (2) Members of the instructional staff of the public 23 schools, subject to the rules of the State Board of Education 24 and the district school board, shall teach efficiently and 25 faithfully, using the books and materials required that meet the 26 highest standards for professionalism and historical accuracy, 27 following the prescribed courses of study, and employing 28 approved methods of instruction, the following: 29 (h) The history of African Americans, including the history 30 of African peoples before the political conflicts that led to 31 the development of slavery, the passage to America, the 32 enslavement experience, abolition, and the contributions of 33 African Americans to society; and the present-day racial 34 injustices and hardships that African Americans face, including, 35 but not limited to, disparities within the various social 36 structures. Instructional materials mustshallinclude the 37 contributions of African Americans to American society. The 38 department shall contract with the Commissioner of Education’s 39 African American History Task Force in developing the specific 40 framework for the instruction required by this paragraph. The 41 task force shall submit its recommendations to the Commissioner 42 of Education and the State Board of Education by March 1, 2022. 43 Beginning January 1, 2023, and each January 1 thereafter, each 44 school district shall certify and provide evidence to the 45 department, in a manner prescribed by the department, that the 46 requirements of this paragraph have been met. 47 48 The State Board of Education is encouraged to adopt standards 49 and pursue assessment of the requirements of this subsection. A 50 character development program that incorporates the values of 51 the recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor and that is 52 offered as part of a social studies, English Language Arts, or 53 other schoolwide character building and veteran awareness 54 initiative meets the requirements of paragraphs (s) and (t). 55 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.