Public Act 102-0044
 
HB0376 EnrolledLRB102 02811 CMG 12819 b


  
    AN ACT concerning education.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  
 
 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended  by adding Section 
27-20.8 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/27-20.8 new)
    Sec. 27-20.8. Asian American history study.
    (a) Beginning with the 2022-2023 school year, every public 
elementary school and high school shall include in its 
curriculum a unit of instruction studying the events of Asian 
American history, including the history of Asian Americans in 
Illinois and the Midwest, as well as the contributions of 
Asian Americans toward advancing civil rights from the 19th 
century onward. These events shall include the contributions 
made by individual Asian Americans in government and the arts, 
humanities, and sciences, as well as the contributions of 
Asian American communities to the economic, cultural, social, 
and political development of the United States. The studying 
of this material shall constitute an affirmation by students 
of their commitment to respect the dignity of all races and 
peoples and to forever eschew every form of discrimination in 
their lives and careers.
    (b) The State Superintendent of Education may prepare and 
make available to all school boards instructional materials, 
including those established by the Public Broadcasting 
Service, that may be used as guidelines for development of a 
unit of instruction under this Section. However, each school 
board shall itself determine the minimum amount of 
instructional time that qualifies as a unit of instruction 
satisfying the requirements of this Section. 
    (c) The regional superintendent of schools shall monitor a 
school district's compliance with this Section's curricular 
requirements during his or her annual compliance visit. 
    (d) A school may meet the requirements of this Section 
through an online program or course.