In 2012, Timothy Yu published, “Has Asian American Studies failed?” in the Journal of Asian American Studies. Yu’s article interrogated the failure of Asian American Studies as a field to significantly impact the public discourse on race in the United States. In 2025, several states across the nation now have mandates requiring the teaching of AAPI histories and/or Asian American studies in response to the anti- Asian and Asian American violence that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet many teachers in the states with Asian American history/studies mandates still do not teach about Asian America in any substantive way, from kindergarten through twelfth grade. Therefore, in this panel, we ask, “Why has Asian American Studies failed to impact K-12 education?”

An obvious answer to this question is the lack of engagement of Asian American studies scholars with K-12 educators and public schools in ways that might shift educators’ professional development through collaborations to build Asian American content knowledge. The presenters in this panel are educators who highlight the tensions and possibilities that exist when Asian American Studies is made available to K-12 students and teachers, with attention to how it can disrupt the curricular status quo and transform U.S. public education, particularly east of California. If our organization is truly committed to working toward a more liberatory collective future as stated in the 2026 call for proposals, we must recognize the vital role of K-12 schools and teachers in this effort.