Washington Board of Ed Looks to Expand Controversial Ethnic Studies Graduation Requirement

The Washington State Board of Education is moving closer to officially updating and expanding a 2021 resolution that established an ethnic studies graduation requirement. Board members discussed “incorporating Ethnic Studies into the legislative platform, and/or addressing Ethnic Studies through the FutureReady graduation requirements initiative,” according to the agenda for Thursday’s virtual board of education meeting. According to the board’s website, FutureReady – implemented this summer – is an initiative to update graduation requirements to better prepare students for the future. However, the increasing focus on ethnic studies in all subjects is not without controversy.