A Look Inside the Creation of a New Asian American Studies Curriculum

In the last three years, at least five states have passed legislation requiring schools to incorporate the lived experiences of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders into the curriculum. Connecticut’s law, passed in May 2022, required the new curriculum be implemented by the 2025-26 school year.
Throughout 2023, a group led by a University of Connecticut professor that also included high school teachers and students developed model lessons and professional development plans that set the foundation for the curriculum. They delivered it to the state in January.
Here, a high school teacher who’s piloting a dual high school and college credit course shares what she’s teaching, why it matters to her students, and how it can be a model for the rest of the state.