Arkansas Orders Credits Be Withheld for AP African American Studies in High School

In education news, Arkansas officials told high schools not to offer Advanced Placement African American Studies, warning students would not receive credit for taking the course. Republican governor and former Trump spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued an executive order in January banning what she called “indoctrination and critical race theory in schools.”

One school affected by the move is Little Rock’s Central High, where some 100 students were enrolled in the course this school year. Central High was home to the “Little Rock Nine,” nine Black students who in 1957 tested the landmark Brown v. Board of Education ruling that ordered the desegregation of schools. On their first day, they were met with angry white mobs and National Guard members. President Eisenhower was forced to order federal troops to escort the students for the remainder of the year.