Schools in Georgia can now use state funding to offer the College Board’s Advanced Placement African American Studies course following a reversal of the state school superintendent’s decision to make the course ineligible for state funds.
On Monday, Superintendent Richard Woods, a Republican elected official, said he did not recommend the new interdisciplinary course for state approval. This prevented schools from accessing state funds for the course and required them to use local funds. In a statement late Wednesday, though, Woods said schools can use state funding for AP African American Studies, so long as schools use the same course code designed for a state course on the same topic.
“When I reviewed the AP course, I had concerns about the state endorsing the totality of the course,” Woods said. “It’s my position that districts should use the existing course code—which offers them the flexibility to develop their own curriculum based on local priorities, or to use standards from the AP course if they choose and in consultation with their communities.”
Woods did not elaborate on his specific concerns about the course.
The state-level back and forth marks another tumultuous chapter in the national rollout of the College Board’s newest course officially launching this fall after a two-year pilot. States with legislation restricting instruction on the topic of race—including Florida, Arkansas, and South Carolina—have created complications for schools seeking state support for the course.
Woods’ updated announcement on Wednesday came after the state’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp sent him a letter asking for details on the initial decision to reject the course for state funding.
“Though my office does not have any role in these recommendation decisions or approval of curricula, I along with others within my administration would like to learn more about what went into the decision not to recommend this course for approval,” Kemp wrote.
The College Board did not respond to Education Week’s request for comment on the updated decision. The nonprofit previously reported that 33 schools in Georgia participated in the course pilot last school year.
In a post on the social platform X late Wednesday, Democratic state Sen. Nikki Merritt expressed continued concern for the course following Woods’ reversal by acknowledging that the state did not create a separate course code for AP African American Studies as it does for other AP courses.
“The state is saying districts can use the same code that is used for the standard intro to African American Studies class. No other AP class is treated this way. Why is this class different? Paying for it was only part of the issue,” she wrote.
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