Education just got a little bit woker.

If you have a kid who’ll be entering California’s university system in two years, you’ll be glad to know they’re destined for greater enlightenment courtesy of the state’s University Board of Trustees.

On Wednesday, the board passed a new general education requirement ensuring all undergraduate students — that’s approximately 430,000 youngsters — will take social justice courses in order to graduate.

Alternately, they can dive into ethnic studies.

A few of the topical offerings: “police reform, disparities in public health and the economics of racism.”

As reported by The Daily Wire, CSU Chancellor Timothy White’s psyched:

“[It will] empower our students to meet this moment in our nation’s history, giving them the knowledge, broad perspectives and skills needed to solve society’s most pressing problems.”

It’s a relief to know all that’s broken will be fixed, but for now, some socially-minded seers are less than impressed with the board’s move: Technically, the mandate fulfills an Ethnic Studies requirement, which traditionally involves the quartet of, per the Wire, “African American studies, Native American studies, Latino American studies, and Asian American studies.”

However, students can avoid those and instead take — as relayed by The LA Times — “classes in Jewish or Muslim studies, LGBTQ studies or social justice, including courses on social change and social movements in the U.S., historical and cultural perspectives in disability studies, and health disparities in urban communities.”

Speaking to Inside HigherEd, California Faculty Association President Charles Toombs said the whole thing’s horse puckey:

“How the board can look at anyone with a straight face and say that an Ethnic Studies requirement can be fulfilled without ever having to take a course in Ethnic Studies is beyond believable. Given how oppressive the CSU’s resolution is, no one will be surprised to hear that the CSU refused to consult with the CSU Council of Ethnic Studies, the faculty experts in Ethnic Studies or the CSU Academic Senate.”

CSU trustee board member Silas Abrega — who voted against the measure — agrees:

“This is not a requirement for ethnic studies.”

Clash of the Titans — in the left-wing zeitgeist, which reigns supreme: ethnic studies or social justice?

Either way, young skulls full o’ mush at CSU may not have a choice — offerings might be limited to only the Fab Four.

From TDW:

According to The Los Angeles Times, the lower chamber of the California legislature plans to approve or reject a different ethnic studies mandate, originally passed last year, following changes in the Senate. If this legislation is approved, and then signed by the governor, it will supersede the CSU’s requirement and further narrow the scope of courses back to the core ethnic studies fields.

However, [CSU Chancellor White] believes the legislature should avoid superseding the board of trustee’s requirements with its own, more narrow requirement, reports Time Magazine.

So there ya go. Sit on the edge of your seat, and wait to find out.

In the meantime, I’m still trying to figure out what’s happened to school in general. It ain’t exactly the system of yore.

In the blur of the pandemic and riots across America…and amid uncertainty over whether Fall 2020 will see any sort of normal academic year, we may have forgotten how such a thing usually looks.

A gentle reminder, my socially-conscious friends — education used to be about “reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic.” These days, we’ve got a bit of this:

• A cancellation of The Vagina Monologues because it excludes women who don’t possess vaginas (here)
• The installment of an abortion-drug vending machine at Yale (here)
• A banning of expensive coats because they’re unfair (here)
• A banning of mean speech at the University of Montana (here)
• A banning of personal prom transportation in the name of equity — plus a forced bus ride (here)
• A cancellation of a Disney musical because it’s racist (here)
• A barring of Chick-fil-A, against the literal vote of students — because it’s not politically “progressive” (here)
• The arrest of a teen for exposing himself to a child, courtesy of a high school’s genderless restroom (here)

Viva La Educación!!

-ALEX

See more pieces from me:

All About the Benjamins: Ice Cube Says Hollywood Owes Black Entertainers Reparations

Near-Naked Nurse Goes From COVID Caretaker to Telling Russians How Hot It’s Gonna Be

#Throwback Thursday: A Robber’s Master Plan Leaves Him Trapped in a Phone Store ‘Til the Cops Come Calling

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