As conservatives push against public education for immigrants without legal residency, some initiatives across the country are seeking to integrate new cultures even more into school curriculums. Such is the case of a new bill in the New Jersey state Legislature which looks to make it mandatory for Hispanic and Latino history to be taught in public schools from kindergarten through 12th grade.
New Jersey has a rapidly growing Hispanic and Latino population, accounting for about 22% of the state's 1.1 million residents according to the U.S. Census figures, making it an ideal place to integrate lessons on the contributions of the community into the curriculum, as the State Senate Majority Leader Teresa Ruiz told The Philadelphia Inquirer:
