To authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to eligible entities to carry out educational programs that include the history of peoples of Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander descent in the settling and founding of America, the social, economic, and political environments that led to the development of discriminatory laws targeting Asians, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders and their relation to current events, and the impact and contributions of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders to the development and enhancement of American life, United States history, literature, the economy, politics, body of laws, and culture, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMs. Meng (for herself, Ms. Ansari, Ms. Barragán, Mr. Bera, …
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill requires all federally-funded K-12 American history education programs to include the history of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. It amends multiple sections of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to mandate this inclusion in curriculum standards, teacher training, and national educational assessments.
Who Benefits and How
Educational publishers and curriculum developers benefit by gaining new markets for AANHPI-focused textbooks and teaching materials. The Smithsonian Institution's Asian Pacific American Center gains an expanded role in providing resources to educators nationwide. Professional development providers gain new business opportunities from teachers needing training in this content. Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities benefit from greater cultural recognition and more accurate historical representation in schools.
Who Bears the Burden and How
State and local education agencies receiving federal grants face new compliance requirements to revise curricula and ensure AANHPI history is included. School districts must update textbooks and materials, which may require additional spending. Teachers need professional development to teach content many were not trained in. Teacher preparation programs at universities must update their American history courses to include this material.
Key Provisions
- Amends Section 2231 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to require that American history grant programs include Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander history
- Requires the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center to provide educational programs and resources for teachers and students, expanding its role beyond traditional museum functions
- Mandates that the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) include AANHPI history in its U.S. history assessments
- Applies to all federal grant recipients for American history education, civics education, and teacher professional development programs
- Establishes detailed Congressional findings documenting historical discrimination against AANHPI communities, including the Chinese Exclusion Act, Executive Order 9066, and other immigration restrictions
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Mandate inclusion of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander history in federally-funded K-12 American history education programs
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Amend existing education statutes to mandate inclusion of underrepresented histories in federally-funded programs, leveraging existing grant structures and assessment frameworks"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities (cultural recognition)
- Educational publishers and curriculum developers (new market for AANHPI-focused materials)
- Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (expanded role in educator resources)
- K-12 educators seeking comprehensive American history resources
- Students receiving more inclusive education
Likely Burden Bearers
- State and local education agencies (curriculum revision requirements)
- Teachers (need for professional development on new content)
- School districts (potential costs for new textbooks and materials)
- Grant applicants (additional compliance requirements for federal funding)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "congress"
- → United States Congress
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Education
- "smithsonian_apac"
- → Smithsonian Institution Asian Pacific American Center
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Includes diverse communities from Asia, Pacific Island Territories (Guam, American Samoa, Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands), and all Pacific Islands including Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. South Asian American history dates to late 1700s; Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander history predates the founding of the United States.
Page Act of 1875 (restricted Asian women), Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, Gentlemans Agreement of 1907 (halted Japanese immigration), Immigration Act of 1917 (barred Asia-Pacific zone), Immigration Act of 1924 (national origin quotas), Executive Order 9066 (Japanese incarceration), Immigration Act of 1965 (family unification and skills-based migration), Refugee Act of 1980
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology