To the School Governance Council of Danbury High School,

The current offering of history and literature courses are not representative of the racial and ethnic diversity of the student body at Danbury High School. The freshmen “World Studies” course is almost exclusively European history, while other courses are taught primarily from a Euro-American perspective. When people of color, women, LGBTQ folks and other people who are underrepresented in mainstream history are included, they are often added as contributions to the Euro-American narrative, rather than the threads that make up the fabric of American history and culture. Mainstream history courses also perpetuate a false narrative of racism by failing to frame it as a system of power that still determines social status in the United States.

Research has found that the dominance of Euro-American perspectives in history and literature courses lead many students of color to disengage from academic learning. It is imperative that Danbury High School offers race and ethnic studies courses not only to remedy this problem, but also because students of color deserve an education that is relevant, meaningful and affirming of their identities. It is equally imperative that all students at Danbury High School are exposed to the history and culture of people from different races and ethnicities through an anti-racist framework in order for students to be able to understand and dismantle institutional racism.

Race and ethnic studies can also provide Danbury High School an opportunity to close the academic achievement gap that exists between students of different races. In an extensive review on the value of race and ethnic studies conducted by the NEA in 2011 it was found that well-planned, well-taught courses have positive academic and social outcomes. Some of the many benefits include:

Higher academic achievement, student engagement and personal empowerment for students of color.
The development of a sense of community between students who share similar experiences.
Significant growth in literacy skills for students in literacy based courses.
An ability to bridge differences in experience and perspective between students of color and White students.
A positive impact on attitudes toward learning.

Earlier this year, Bridgeport Public Schools made race and ethnic studies a graduation requirement. We want Danbury High School to consider implementing courses that reflect the demographic make-up and experiences of its students as seriously as our neighboring city has.

Thank you.