Welcome to
ES Resources
Welcome to
ES Resources
Created by Educators, for Educators
ESResources.org is an initiative led by Jewish Federation Los Angeles to support the implementation of California’s Ethnic Studies mandate, legislation (AB 101), and the Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC). Recognizing the value of robust Ethnic Studies education, JFEDLA is committed to providing resources that help K-12 teachers effectively teach diverse, Ethnic American cultures, histories, narratives, and experiences. This website was created by educators to support their peers.
Welcome to
ES Resources
Welcome to
ES Resources
Created by Educators, for Educators
ESResources.org is an initiative led by Jewish Federation Los Angeles to support the implementation of California’s Ethnic Studies mandate, legislation (AB 101), and the Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC). Recognizing the value of robust Ethnic Studies education, JFEDLA is committed to providing resources that help K-12 teachers effectively teach diverse, Ethnic American cultures, histories, narratives, and experiences. This website was created by educators to support their peers.
About ESResources.org
Special thanks to our growing list of partners who support our efforts to strengthen K-12 Ethnic Studies and California’s Ethnic Studies graduation requirement. These partners include Brotherhood Crusade, Catalyst California, Equality California, FACE (Faith & Community Empowerment), HOLA (Heart of Los Angeles), LA vs Hate, LA84 Play Equity Fund, SoLa Impact, and many others.
Register for ESResources.org to gain broad understandings of AB 101, the ESMC, and ESResources.org’s role in advancing Ethnic Studies in California.
Ethnic Studies has become a vital part of California’s education system, significantly influenced by Assembly Bill 101 (AB 101) and the Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC). ESResources.org provides valuable resources and support for K-12 teachers in this educational movement.
AB 101: A Landmark in Educational Legislation
AB 101, authored by Assemblymember Jose Medina and signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom in October of 2021, mandates Ethnic Studies as a graduation requirement for all high school students in California. This legislation ensures that students graduate with an understanding of diverse cultures, histories, and narratives. The requirement takes full effect in the 2029-30 school year, with all school districts required to offer Ethnic Studies classes starting in the 2025-26 school year.
The Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC)
The ESMC is a comprehensive educational framework developed under the supervision of the State Board of Education (SBE) and the Instructional Quality Commission (IQC), and initiated by AB 2016, authored by Assemblymember Luis Alejo. The curriculum includes a preface, six chapters, and 33 sample lessons covering content across diverse racial and ethnic groups. It aims to build social consciousness and knowledge among young Californians and to foster a more informed and engaged citizenry. Approved by the SBE in March of 2021, the ESMC serves as the model for Ethnic Studies content development in K-12 education across the state.
Resource Selection Criteria
All resources on ESResources.org adhere to stringent criteria to ensure alignment with AB 101 and the ESMC. The criteria include:
- Adheres to the intent of AB 101, the guardrails within the legislation, and the ESMC.
- Currently used by one or more public school district in California.
- Includes accurate and up-to-date information.
- Promotes civic engagement, civic responsibility, and collective empowerment.
- Is inclusive and supports diverse users.
- Encourages cultural understanding and core Ethnic Studies concepts such as equality, justice, race, ethnicity, and indigeneity.
- May include information on the Third World Liberation Front (TWLF) and its historical significance.
- Promotes critical thinking and analysis.
- Engages with a range of disciplines beyond traditional history and social sciences.
- Accessible for teachers with varying educational backgrounds in Ethnic Studies.
- Is free of antisemitic content, anti-Israel bias, and biases against any group based on race, ethnicity, religion, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, or other diverse backgrounds.
Comprehensive and Searchable Resources
ESResources.org offers a dynamic and continually growing bank of Ethnic Studies materials for teachers, categorized and searchable in three main ways:
- By Racial and Ethnic Group: Categories are African American Studies, Asian American Pacific Islander Studies, Chicana/o/x and Latina/o/x Studies, Native American Studies, General Ethnic Studies, and Interethnic Bridge Building, which includes resources in Arab American Studies, Armenian American Studies, Jewish American Studies, and Sikh American Studies.
- By Resource Type: Resource categories include curricular websites, museums, visual media, experiential learning, current events, lesson plans .
- By Highlighting the ESMC: The entire Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum is on ESResources.org, and all resources on the site align with the ESMC, ensuring comprehensive coverage of racial and ethnic group categories and promoting social consciousness and democracy. The ESMC sample lessons are separated into numbered, user-friendly, downloadable lessons on the site.
Involvement Opportunities
ESResources.org encourages educators to expand learning opportunities in Ethnic Studies by recommending new resources for inclusion on the site. Teachers can click the “+ Add A Resource” button to suggest learning materials, which are evaluated by the ESResources.org Teacher Advisory Board for adherence to AB 101 and the ESMC. Public high school teachers in California can apply for grant funding of up to $500 per semester to enhance their Ethnic Studies classroom. These grants support the development of inclusive and comprehensive Ethnic Studies courses.
Ethnic Studies: For All Students
Ethnic Studies developed from a movement of students at San Francisco State University and UC Berkeley in the late 1960s called the Third World Liberation Front. This movement advocated for the creation of Ethnic Studies programs to teach the history, culture, and narratives of marginalized groups. Moving into the present day, AB 101 promotes the representation and narratives of students from all backgrounds. Studies show that Ethnic Studies coursework boosts achievement for students of all races and ethnic backgrounds. By affirming the identities and contributions of marginalized groups, Ethnic Studies helps students see themselves as part of the narrative of the United States, fostering engagement in interethnic bridge building.
Defining Ethnic Studies
The History-Social Science Framework for California K-12 public schools defines Ethnic Studies as “an interdisciplinary field encompassing history, literature, economics, sociology, anthropology, and political science. It emerged to address content missing from traditional curricula and encourage critical engagement. Ethnic Studies empowers students to engage socially and politically and to think critically about the world. Courses document the experiences of people of color, enabling students to create counter-narratives and develop a more complex understanding of the human experience. Central to any Ethnic Studies course is the historic struggle of communities of color, considering the intersectionality of identity, to challenge racism, discrimination, and oppression and interrogate systems that perpetuate inequality.”