(a) The commission shall develop, and the state board shall adopt, modify, or reject, a model curriculum in Hmong history and cultural studies. The model curriculum shall be developed with participation from representatives of Hmong advocacy, community, social, and cultural organizations; faculty of Hmong studies programs at universities and colleges; and local educational agencies. A majority of the individuals with whom the commission consults shall be teachers of kindergarten or grades 1 to 12, inclusive, who have relevant experiences or educational backgrounds in the study and teaching of Hmong studies. The model curriculum shall identify the ways in which the model curriculum aligns with, and is supportive of, the common core academic content standards and of the goals of the curriculum framework in history-social science adopted by the state board in 2016.

(b) The model curriculum shall include examples of courses offered by local educational agencies that have been approved as meeting the A–G admissions requirements of the University of California and the California State University, including, to the extent possible, course outlines for those courses.

(c) The model curriculum shall address, but shall not necessarily be limited to, all of the following:

(1) The history of the Hmong people who lived in Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, and China.

(2) The history of the Hmong migration to the United States and California, as well as other parts of the world.

(3) Cultural beliefs, practices, and traditions of the Hmong people, including, among other things, Hmong New Year celebrations, marriages, newborns, and funerals.

(4) Contributions of the Hmong people to California and the United States.

(5) The contributions and sacrifices of the Lao-Hmong and other Southeast Asians who served in the “Secret Army” in Laos, which was funded by the United States Central Intelligence Agency.

(d) The commission shall hold a minimum of two public hearings in order for the public to provide input on the model curriculum. The public hearings required by this subdivision shall be held pursuant to the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code).

(e) The commission shall provide a minimum of 45 days for public comment before submitting the model curriculum to the state board.

(f) On or before December 31, 2022, the commission shall submit the model curriculum to the state board for adoption, and the state board shall adopt, modify, or reject the model curriculum on or before March 31, 2023.

(g) If the state board modifies the model curriculum submitted by the commission, the state board shall explain, in writing, the reasons for the modifications to the Governor and the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature.

(h) If the state board modifies the model curriculum, the state board shall, in a meeting conducted pursuant to the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act (Article 9 (commencing with Section 11120) of Chapter 1 of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code), provide written reasons for its modifications. The state board shall not adopt the model curriculum at the same meeting at which it provides its written reasons, but, instead, shall adopt these modifications at a subsequent meeting conducted no later than July 31, 2023.

(i) If the state board rejects the model curriculum, the state board shall transmit to the Superintendent, the Governor, and the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature a specific written explanation of the reasons for the rejection of the model curriculum.

(j) Following the adoption of the model curriculum, the Superintendent shall post the model curriculum on the department’s Internet Web site for use on a voluntary basis by educators.

(k) Beginning in the school year following the adoption of the model curriculum, local educational agencies are encouraged to use the model curriculum to provide instruction in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive.

(l) Beginning in the school year following the adoption of the model curriculum, each local educational agency maintaining any of grades 9 to 12, inclusive, that does not otherwise offer a standards-based Hmong studies curriculum is encouraged to offer to all otherwise qualified pupils a course of study in Hmong studies based on the model curriculum.

(m) It is the intent of the Legislature that local educational agencies submit course outlines for Hmong studies for approval as A–G courses.

(n) For purposes of this section, “local educational agency” means a school district, county office of education, or charter school.

(o) The implementation of this section is subject to the receipt of grants, donations, or other financial support from private or public sources for its purposes, including, but not limited to, an appropriation in the annual Budget Act or another statute.

(Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 686, Sec. 4. (SB 895) Effective January 1, 2019.)