PENNSYLVANIA — Senators Maria Collett (D-12 Montgomery) and Nikil Saval (D-1 Philadelphia) have shared a memorandum in support of a bill that proposes new curriculums and materials catered towards the AAPI community. The legislation encourages schools to integrate these resources into their teachings. The senators revealed their proposal during an AAPI Heritage Month celebration at the capitol yesterday.
“I’m committed to working with AAPI communities in my district and across the Commonwealth to ensure they feel safe and have access to the resources they need to thrive,” said Senator Collett. “This legislation is a critical first step to addressing prejudices before they take root and ensuring our education system reflects all of our peoples’ histories.”
Senator Saval added: “This legislation will begin to make visible the lives of Asian Americans so that all of us can see—in each other’s experiences—our shared hopes, our shared struggles, and our shared joys. It will begin to make visible that Asian American history is, simply, American history, stretching back further than the formal beginnings of the United States.”
The companion legislation to Representative Patty Kim’s HB 779 would mandate the Department of Education to integrate AAPI history and contributions into the American society curriculum and equip schools with relevant AAPI materials. Additionally, the bill requires the State Board of Education to commission a study on the adequacy of AAPI instruction in schools across Pennsylvania. The ultimate goal is to ensure our students receive a comprehensive understanding of AAPI history and social contributions.
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