Interested in joining our program?

Download our program sheet for course requirements, Undergraduate Minor details, and other info.

Program-Specific Courses:

1. A117-A118-A119 Basic Arabic I II III (3-3-4 cr)
   Introductory language course in modern standard Arabic as in contemporary literature, newspapers, and radio.  Focus on grammar, reading, script, conversation, elementary composition and culture.
2. A150 Survey of the Culture of Black Americans (3 credits)
   An introduction to the traditions, life and experiences of Africans in the United States. The course utilizes learning resources from a variety of disciplines including history, literature and the social sciences.
3. A200-250 Intermediate Arabic (3-3 cr)
   Grammar, reading, composition, conversation, and translation, using materials from classical, medieval, and modern literary Arabic.
4. A202 The West & the African Diaspora (3 credits)
   An introduction to Western Europe's and America's perceptions of Africa and Africans. The primary focus of the course is on the image of Africans and their New World descendants as constructed by European and American intellectuals.
5. A255 The Black Church in America (3 credits)
   This course discusses the history of the black church from slavery to the present with emphasis on the church's role as a black social institution, its religious attitudes as expressed in songs and sermons, and its political activities as exemplified in the minister-politician.
6. A303 Topics in Afro-American Studies (1-3 credits)
   This course is devoted to the study of selected individuals, groups, events or issues in Afro-American Studies. The course may be occasionally, but not always coordinated with symposia and/or conferences hosted by the Afro-American Studies Program.
7. E310 Cultures of Africa (3 cr)
   An ethnographic survey of culture areas and societies of sub-Saharan Africa.
8. A352 Afro-American Art II: Afro-American Artists (3 credits)
   A survey of the artistic traditions and movements of Africans in the New World, from chattel slavery to the present through an exploration of the art and lives of resident and expatriate African American artists.
9. A 369 The African American Experience (3 credits)
   This course covers important contemporary economic issues facing African-Americans. It focuses, as a requisite to understanding present-day conditions, on the historical backgrounds that helped to shape the contemporary African American experience. Those who wish to register for this course may also register using INTG I-300 (Integrator).
10. A402 Seminar in Afro-American Studies (3 credits)
    Prerequisite: Junior standing, with nine credit hours in Afro-American Studies courses. Capstone course devoted to intnsive discussion and analysis of the current status and future prospects of African Americans in politics, society and the economy.
11. A440 History of the Education of Black Americans (3 credits)
    This course focuses on the education of Black Americans and its relationship to the Afro-American experience. Trends and patterns in the education of Black Americans as such relate to the notions of education for whom and for what.
12. A495 Individual Readings in Afro-American Studies (1-3 credits)
    This arranged course between individual students and instructors allows students to investigate topics of special interest to them which are not covered in the regular Program curriculum or that students wish to pursue in greater depth. It may be repeated once for credit.

Other African American Studies Courses Offered Throughout the University:

1. A131-A132 Beginning Arabic (5-5 credits)
   Modern standard Arabic as used in contemporary literature, newspapers and radio. Gramar, reading dictation, composition, penmanship, conversation, translation are also an important part of the course.
2. E336 African American Culture (3 credits)
   An anthropological exploration of the ethnohistory of African American culture. Specific focus is on the culture, politics, gender, language, health practices, and values of African Americans. A secondary aim of the course is to examine contemporary issues which impact the African American family.
3. G310 Social Speech Patterns (3 credits)
   Prerequisite: G205, G206 or consent of instructor. Study of the relationships between language, society and culture. The influence of social factors such as age, gender, race, class, and education on language use are discussed within a framework of various linguistic theories and methodologies. Reasons for positive and negative evaluations of different varieties of English are also investigated.
4. F354 African American Folklore/Folklife/Folk Music (3 credits)
   African American culture examined in relation to the history and social experience of Africans in the United States. Folklore, folk music, and oral historyare used as a means of illuminating the complexity of African American culture and history. May be repeated once when topics vary.
5. A355 (HIST A355) Afro-American History I (3 credits)
   History of blacks in the United States. Slavery, abolitionism, Reconstruction, and post-Reconstruction to 1900.
6. A356 (HIST A356) Afro-American History II (3 credits)
   R: A355. 1900 to the present. Migration north, NAACP, Harlem Renaissance, postwar freedom movement.
7. L370 Black American Writing (3 credits)
   A critical study of significant works by twentieth century African American authors such as Zora Neal Hurston, Jean Toomer, Richard Wright, Ralph Ellison, Imamu Baraka, and Toni Morrison.
8. L406 Topics in African American Writing (3 credits)
   Specialized course focusing on specific genres, time periods or themes in African American literature. Topics may include twentieth century African American women's novels, male identity in African American literature or African American autobiography. May be repeated once for credit with a different focus.
9. M393 History of Jazz (3 credits)
   This course uses Jazz as a means to better understand the history and culture of the United States by examining the influences, styles and major performers and composers from Armstrong and Ellington to Coltrane and Marsalis.
10. M394 Black Music in America (3 credits)
    A study and exploration of the lives and music of black performers, composers, teachers, and orcestra leaders in the United States. Special emphasis is devoted to black music's social impact on American society and popular culture.
11. R461 Race & Ethnic Relations (3 credits)
    Prerequsite: R110 or consent of instructor. Comparative study of racial, ethnic and religious relations. Focus is on patterns of exclusion and inclusion of minority groups by majority groups. Theories of intergroup conflict--prejudice and discrimination--and of corresponding methods to reduce such conflict are also discussed.

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