The Maryland State Department of Education is drafting new education standards.
Frederick, MD – New legislation is being implemented as the Maryland State Department of Education is working to include LGBT+ and disability civil rights history in Maryland Public School curriculums.
Last month, Maryland Delegate Eric G. Luedtke wrote a letter with 34 delegates and 13 state senators to Superintendent of Maryland Schools Karen Salmon. The letter explained the state’s need to teach the American history of underrepresented minorities.
“If you’re a kid who is LGBT or has a disability… and you never hear about people like you, what does that say about you?” Luedtke said. “We want to make sure those kids feel included.”
Luedtke said the new standards would only affect high school history curriculums.
“The specifics of what to address should be up to educators, historians and those folks, and not us legislators,” Luedtke said. “but you would think the largest focus would be on the late 20th century movements for disability rights and LGBT rights.”
Maryland State Department of Education is currently drafting new standards for Maryland schools to follow with their curriculums. The drafts will then be discussed with the school systems, revised, and later implemented.
Luedtke said the movements contribute to American history and should be included in school curriculums.
“To not teach this would be to pretend that these movements didn’t exist,” Luedtke said. “and they have existed, they have advanced rights for large groups of Americans.”
By Timothy Young