AP African-American Studies is a pilot course that was introduced to Jackson-Reed at the beginning of the school year. Taught by Ms. Mfalingundi, the class is offered at only 60 high schools across the country. The course dives into the diverse background and culture of African-Americans, covering over 400 years of African-American history, ranging from ancient African empires to the slave trade to pop culture. It is an interdisciplinary class and perspectives are examined through the lenses of art, history, legal documents, literary sources, songs, and poetry. Taking this class is a tremendous opportunity and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone, because it examines a historical angle other than that of old white men.

First off, the content is extremely unique. The course gives students insight into narratives that are rarely explored. Many other history classes fail to acknowledge the experiences of African-Americans throughout the history of America, and overlook the diversity present in the Black community. This course emphasizes the varied experiences of African-Americans through many different standpoints. 

While it has a solid foundation, the execution of AP African American Studies can definitely be tweaked. There were multiple lessons where information was presented in a way that was confusing or hard to dissect. The class is also formatted in a way where we jump from topic to topic without moving in chronological order. Personally, I think this makes the content harder to retain as dates will get mixed up in my head. However, the class has so much potential, and I hope it will become an official AP course soon.

Overall, if you are considering taking this class in the future, you should! You’ll learn about incredible things and be exposed to a history that is too often ignored. Ms. Mfalingundi makes each lesson engaging and enjoyable, and most of my classmates are genuinely interested in the topics we discuss, which makes the class that much more worthwhile. AP African American Studies is definitely a course you should check out in the future, as it is only going to get better with time.