Africana & Latin American Studies Major, African American Studies Emphasis

Coordinator Simmons

The African American experience in the United States has been the result of a complex history spanning four hundred years on enslavement, racial violence, segregation, and discrimination. This concentration not only focuses on African Americans’ resistance to those manifest injustices, but it also examines their significant contributions to the economy, society, and culture of the United States, as well as their achievements in politics, education, art, science, and in the economy. Some of the major themes studied are slavery and abolition; the politics of race and racism; black leadership, the civil rights movement, and the continuing struggle for social justice; as well as social and cultural phenomena like the Harlem Renaissance and the rise of a black middle class.

For more information about the program, honors/high honors, transfer credit, etc., visit the Africana and Latin American studies program page.

Major Requirements

The requirements for the ALST major with a concentration in African American studies are as follows:

Required Courses

Four African American Studies Electives

Should be chosen in consultation with the coordinator. Of the four electives, at least two courses must be at the 300 level or higher.

African American Studies Electives

200- or 300-Level Elective

One additional 200- or 300-level elective must be selected from any area of the program outside of the student’s primary concentration.

Senior Capstone Seminar

UNST 410 - Seminar: Area, Regional, and Global Study

is the senior capstone seminar and is required for all majors. In the event that

UNST 410

is not offered, students may substitute another seminar in consultation with the coordinator and the program director.