Originally called the Afro-American Studies Program, this program developed out of
the Civil Rights Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s.
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College of Liberal Arts
Conceived as an interdisciplinary program, it drew faculty principally from the College
of Liberal Arts. The program initially was offered as a concentration requiring 42
units. However, in 2002, the African American Advisory Committee re-examined the program,
and the high number of requirements, and decided to reduce the required units to 21,
changing the concentration to a minor. Simultaneously, it expanded its scope and title
to African and African American studies. The objective was to attract more students
and broaden its curriculum to the African Diaspora, thereby including courses on continental
Africa and the Caribbean, in addition to North America.
Why Study African and African American Studies?
The African and African American studies minor offers students the opportunity to
study, in-depth, the historical and social experiences and cultural contributions
of Africans and people of African descent in a global perspective. It also provides
a critical perspective on race in American Society. An interdisciplinary program concentrating
mainly in the humanities, the curriculum of the African and African American studies
minor offers students the opportunity to customize their course work by exploring
a range of subjects in various disciplines. Students must complete 21 units for the
minor.
Internships & Careers
The program offers research and writing skills for careers in:
education
psychology
government
law
criminal justice
social work
counseling
public health
museum and archival work
internal relations
In the past, students minoring in African and African American Studies have completed
internships at the Howard County Center of African American Culture, Columbia, Maryland.
For additional information about internships and careers please visit the Towson University Career Center. You may also contact the director of African and African American Studies.
