Introduction of the Combating Implicit Bias in Education Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, today I introduce the Combating Implicit Bias in Education Act. This bill would create a $30 million grant program for schools to train teachers, principals and other personnel on implicit bias with respect to actual or perceived race, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. This bill aims to reduce the effect of implicit bias on school discipline, academic achievement, and academic attainment.

In 2019, a report by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights found that students of color with disabilities received far more severe and frequent punishment than their white counterparts. In 2017, the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality released a report finding that people disproportionately think of Black girls as more adult-like and less innocent compared to their white counterparts. This bias has been linked to harsher treatment of Black girls in schools.

Under this bill, the Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences would evaluate and report on the effectiveness of the training.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support this bill.

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