Bill Text: IL HB0376 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Chaptered

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Bill Title: Amends the Courses of Study Article of the School Code. Requires every public elementary school and high school to include in its curriculum a unit of instruction studying the events of Asian American history; contains provisions governing this instruction. Provides that the teaching of history of the United States shall include the study of the wrongful incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II and the heroic service of the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team of the United States Army during World War II.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 77-1)

Status: (Passed) 2021-07-09 - Public Act . . . . . . . . . 102-0044 [HB0376 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-HB0376-Chaptered.html

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Public Act 102-0044
HB0376 Enrolled LRB102 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.