The American Jewish Committee welcomed a federal court ruling on California’s newly enacted law protecting public school students from bias and discrimination in the classroom. It took effect on Jan. 1.
U.S. District Court Judge Noel Wise denied a legal challenge seeking to block Assembly Bill 715, ruling that the state has the authority to regulate instruction in public schools. “As public school education belongs to the government, the government may regulate [teachers’] speech to accord with the government’s educational goals,” Wise wrote.
The decision upheld AB 715 as constitutional, rejecting claims that it violates teachers’ free speech rights. The law bars educators from injecting personal beliefs or bias into instruction and strengthens protections for all students, including Jewish students, against discriminatory curricula and teaching practices.
“Judge Wise’s ruling affirms that constitutional law aligns with common sense,” said AJC CEO Ted Deutch, adding that public schools should be “welcoming to all, including Jews, and must not be used as platforms for teachers to express individual political views.”
“Bias and discrimination that can lead to outright antisemitism have no place in California,” added Deutch.
AB 715 was passed unanimously by the California Legislature in Sept. 2025 and signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Oct. 7, 2025.
It “works in tandem with Senate Bill 48 to establish a new office of Civil Rights within the California Department of Education,” according to the AJC statement, noting that “this office will include an Antisemitism Prevention Coordinator alongside coordinators addressing other types of discrimination.”
The law also directs schools to consider the U.S. National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism, including its reference to the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s (IHRA) working definition, when addressing antisemitism.
AJC submitted a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the law and thanking California’s attorney general, Rob Bonta, for defending AB 715 in court.
“We are grateful for today’s ruling,” said Seth Brysk, AJC’s Northern California director. “Now schools must ensure they comply with these nondiscrimination mandates.”
