To authorize the Secretary of Education to award grants to eligible entities to carry out educational programs that include the history of peoples of African descent in the settling and founding of America, the economic and political environments that led to the development, institutionalization, and abolition of slavery and its impact on all Americans, the exploration and expansion of America, impact on and contributions 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
IntroducedMrs. Beatty (for herself, Ms. Adams, Ms. Barragán, Mr. Bishop, …
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill requires that all federally-funded American history education programs explicitly include Black history as an integral component. It amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and the National Assessment of Educational Progress Authorization Act to mandate that wherever these laws reference "American history," that term now legally includes Black history - from the African diaspora and slavery through civil rights and contemporary contributions.
Who Benefits and How
Educational publishers and curriculum developers that create Black history materials gain expanded market opportunities, as schools receiving federal grants must now incorporate this content. The Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture receives explicit statutory recognition as an educational resource provider, likely increasing its partnerships and visibility. Teacher training and professional development companies benefit from demand for educators to update their instructional capacity in Black history topics.
Who Bears the Burden and How
State and local education agencies applying for federal education grants face new compliance requirements - they must demonstrate that their American history programs include Black history components to remain eligible for funding. School districts need to update curricula, potentially purchase new materials, and retrain teachers. Traditional curriculum providers that lack robust Black history content may face barriers to entry in the federal grant ecosystem. The Department of Education and National Assessment of Educational Progress administrators must implement and monitor these new requirements.
Key Provisions
- Amends Section 2231 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act to require Black history inclusion in American history grant programs
- Modifies Section 2232 to mandate Black history in teacher training, professional development, and educational partnerships focused on American history
- Updates Section 2233 to require Black history in civics education programs
- Amends the National Assessment of Educational Progress Authorization Act to ensure Black history is included in national history assessments
- Explicitly names the National Museum of African American History and Culture as a federally-recognized educational resource provider
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
Requires Black history to be explicitly included in American history and civics education programs funded under federal education laws
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Mandate inclusion of Black history in federally-funded American history education by amending existing education statutes to explicitly require it"
Likely Beneficiaries
- K-12 students receiving more comprehensive history education
- Educational publishers and curriculum developers creating Black history materials
- Teachers and educators who receive training and resources on Black history
- National Museum of African American History and Culture (receives explicit recognition as resource provider)
- Historically marginalized communities gaining representation in education
Likely Burden Bearers
- State and local education agencies required to update curricula
- School districts needing to retrain teachers
- Grant applicants to federal education programs (must include Black history components)
- Entities that prefer traditional curricula without explicit diversity requirements
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Education
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
References to 'American history' in federal education programs now explicitly include Black history as an integral component
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