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Tucson Schools Must Teach Culturally Relevant Courses

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Tucson Schools Must Teach Culturally Relevant Courses

Tucson Schools Must Teach Culturally Relevant Courses

TUCSON, Ariz. -- A federal judge ruled Wednesday the Tucson Unified School District must begin teaching culturally relevant courses in its schools.

The court order comes from a case now more than 30 years old. In it, Judge David Bury ruled that TUSD must offer courses in the history and experiences of blacks and Latinos.

The school district must also reduce the racial disparities in the disciplining of black and Latino youth versus their white counterparts.

Supporters of the district’s Mexican-American Studies program that the state of Arizona outlawed in 2010 had hoped that the judge’s decision would force the state to allow the courses to be offered again.

But the judge ruled that while he mandates culturally relevant courses, they should still comply with state law.

Fronteras Desk senior editor Michel Marizco is an award-winning investigative reporter based in Flagstaff.