The U.S. Department of Education on Monday, Oct. 26, opened investigations into Palo Alto Unified, San Francisco Unified and North Monterey County Unified school districts over ethnic studies activities called "Wheel of Power/Privilege" and "Mapping My Identities."
Why it matters: The department says violations of the federal law involved can lead to enforcement action and the possible loss of federal funding.
What the department alleges
The department says the activities asked students to list personal information, including sexual orientation, gender identity, mental and physical health conditions, family economic status and race. It says students were then asked to work out their "privilege status," the Associated Press reported.
The probe will look at whether the districts violated the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment, a 1978 law that requires parental notice and written consent before students are surveyed on protected topics. The department also alleges the districts weren't responsive when parents asked to review course materials.
Palo Alto's response
Superintendent Jason Glass told Palo Alto Online the district will fully cooperate and has started reviewing its own practices.
"Both of our high schools have confirmed that students are not asked to complete the 'Wheel of Power/Privilege' or 'Mapping My Identities' activities named in the Department's letter," Glass wrote. He said the wheel appears in the syllabus only as a teacher example, labeled as such.
Context
California at first required schools to offer ethnic studies starting in 2025-26. The requirement hasn't been enforced because the state hasn't funded it, the AP reported. San Francisco Unified did not immediately comment.