Ethnic Studies is offered to students grades 9 through 12 at Willits Unified School District, instructing students “to apply in-depth analysis to contemporary issues and collectively pose creative, self-affirming solutions in a variety of ways to promote agency through grassroots community advocacy and civic engagement. This course is intended to help build inter-ethnic understanding and socio-cultural bridges in an increasingly more multicultural and multiethnic nation, which is imperative to creating a just society.”

Students will “engage a range of disciplines beyond traditional history and social sciences, including but not limited to: visual and performing arts, English language arts, economics, biology, gender & sexuality studies, etc.”

Notably, the guidance states: “In K-12 education it is imperative that students are exposed to multiple perspectives and taught to think critically and form their own opinions. Ethnic studies highlights the importance of untold stories, and emphasizes the danger of a single story.”

Key terms include: Disenfranchise, gender, implicit bias, intersectionality, rebellion, land acknowledgement, white privilege, marginalize, microagressions, othered/othering, and privilege.

The guidance also states that there are purposeful academic language and terminology, including intentional respellings, to challenge various forms of oppression and marginalization such as “herstory” or “hxrstory” to challenge a perceived gendered stem in “history.”

One activity instructs students to “explore privilege and oppression in the context of immigration and express understanding through a written letter.”