Twenty-five years ago Friday, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial planes. Two hit the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers in New York City, one struck the Pentagon and a fourth crashed in a field in Pennsylvania after passengers and crew fought back against hijackers. They may have kept the terrorists from hitting either the Capitol or the White House.
It was a tragic and historic day, the worst attack ever on American soil and the deadliest terrorist attack in world history.
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And yet, it’s not taught in every U.S. public school.
Federal law requires no instruction about 9/11. Only a handful of states do.
In most states, the decision about whether to teach students about the pivotal event of the 21st century in America is largely left to local school districts and teachers.
9/11 education in public schools
Thirty-six U.S. states do not legally mandate 9/11 curriculum as part of statewide educational standards. Just 14 states legally require it to be taught, although requirements vary.
In Arizona, the state designates Sept. 11 as “9/11 Education Day.” Under current law, which was updated in 2025, public schools serving grades 7 through 12 must provide age-appropriate instruction about the attacks.
Other states, however, get more specific. In Florida, Sept. 11 is designated as “9/11 Heroes’ Day.” On that day, or the observation day if 9/11 falls on a weekend, middle and high school students enrolled in the required civics and U.S. government courses must receive at least 45 minutes of instruction.
The instruction must include the historical context of global terrorism, a timeline of Sept. 11, the heroism of first responders and civilians, the humanitarian response to the attacks, the global response that followed, and the balancing act between civil liberties and security.
And then there are states like New York, where 9/11 appears in state education resources and standards but isn’t specifically required by state law.
In fact, a bill currently before the New York Legislature would add the attacks to the state’s required courses of instruction in patriotism and citizenship. The bill’s sponsors say 9/11 is not currently required teaching in New York schools.
New York’s current protocol is similar to Nebraska’s. There, state law says schools need “the discussion of noteworthy events pertaining to American history or the exceptional acts of individuals and groups of Americans,” and lists 9/11 as an example. However, there’s no specific requirement that 9/11 be taught in every school and district.
“I would point out that even in our state, we do not provide instruction or curriculum; we provide the standards of what should be taught at what grade level and let districts decide how best to teach that to their students,” a spokesperson for the Nebraska Department of Education told Straight Arrow.
States without mandates
Most states, however, have no such standards or requirements. These include Wisconsin.
“Wisconsin is a local-control state, meaning things like curriculum, policies and instruction are developed at the local level by local school boards and not the Department of Public Instruction,” a spokesperson for the department told Straight Arrow. “The DPI does not have the authority to mandate specific points of discussion/instruction, so it looks different all across the state from district to district.”
The spokesperson said, however, that the Wisconsin State Legislature designated a public school observance day for 9/11.
In California, things look very similar. A 2021 state law encourages public schools to hold a moment of silence, but decisions on how to teach the tragedy are made at the local level.
Should federal law require 9/11 instruction?
In Congress, Rep. Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., has sought to expand instruction about 9/11, introducing a House resolution several times over the past few years.
“For tens of millions of young Americans, and for future generations who were not there to see it, we have a responsibility to preserve the memories of the fallen, the heroism we witnessed, and the national security failures that left our country vulnerable to attack,” Garbarino said in a news release last year.
He added that Americans made a promise to “Never Forget” in 2001 — but noted the handful of states that require 9/11 to be taught in schools.
“My goal is to make that number fifty, so every child in America grows up understanding the lessons of that day and the sacrifices that followed,” Garbarino said.
His resolution, however, would mainly encourage states to pass mandates. Federal law explicitly bans the U.S. Department of Education and any federal official from controlling school curriculum.
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