African American Studies (Bachelor of Arts)
Department of Sociology and Anthropology

St. Clair Drake Center for African American Studies

Courses offered in the program are designed to enable students enrolled in any of the five university colleges to pursue undergraduate sequences for enrichment or specialization in African American Studies. Most courses offered through the St. Clair Drake Center for African and African American Studies are interdisciplinary in nature and may be used to satisfy general education requirements as well as electives.

Objectives

The objectives of the African American Studies Bachelor of Arts degree are:

1. To provide a fundamental understanding of those economic, social, cultural, and political forces in Africa, Europe, and North and Latin America that have shaped the lives of African peoples within the African Diaspora, c. 1400 to the present.

2. To provide a center for research and creation of materials that illustrate the problems and development of peoples of African descent in a variety of historical institutional settings—from slavery to freedom—in contemporary United States, South America, and the Caribbean. Presently, the focus is Chicago metropolitan history, including urban and suburban enclaves and the famed Black Metropolis.

3. To maintain a focal point for knowledge about and interest in Africa by providing accurate, up-to-date information on selected topics.

4. To provide a basic understanding of unique problems of African Americans in contemporary American life and an opportunity to work toward solutions to those problems.

5. To place the African American man and woman in proper perspective in American society and to show how each has contributed to the basic characteristics of American society.

6. To develop an expanding curriculum and a sound base for continuing research.

Students whose primary interests are in African American subjects are encouraged to take courses in African history and politics. Interested students should consult with the director of the Drake Center as early in their academic careers as possible.

Major In African American Studies

With the approval of the program director, students may select 21 semester hours from the African American Studies courses listed below, and nine semester hours from courses in African history and politics.

African American Studies Undergraduate Minor

The curriculum enhances and strengthens the academic backgrounds of students seeking employment as social workers, teachers, or community service agency staff persons. Students should consult the program director as early as possible for required sequences.

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