Africana Studies at the University of New Orleans

Mission Statement

The Africana Studies Program at the University of New Orleans exists to encourage the study of and teaching about the Black Experience in the United States and the American hemisphere in the context of the world experience of African peoples. Africana Studies is for all students. This undergraduate Liberal Arts interdisciplinary minor consists of courses in social sciences, humanities, language and culture, the arts, and community planning and development. Students are introduced to methods of analysis and synthesis and tools of social problem-solving that prepare them to assist local communities (be they rural, urban or suburban) to become more self-reliant and to participate in the global economy.

The minor combines academic and professional knowledge that are major components of the curriculum requirements for an academic degree. A wide range of courses are offered each semester in African American History and Literature; Social and Behavioral Studies, including the experiences and perspectives of women and political dimensions of the Black Experience, Jazz Studies and other art forms. Through cooperative arrangements with other institutions in the city, courses are also available in African Civilizations, African and African American Religion and Philosophy and Black Performing Arts.

Africana Studies includes the history, cultural experiences, intellectual and creative production of people of African descent and their achievements in the arts and sciences, mathematics, technology and invention. The program focus incorporates a Black Perspective that critically engages other theoretical positions, including critical questions raised in scholarship about the representation of the Black Experience in the academic disciplines and popular culture. Thus, Africana Studies encompasses a body of general intellectual history, academic scholarship in the social sciences and the humanities, as well as the application of research findings in addressing poverty, racism, joblessness and other structural barriers and social arrangements which limit the full participation of Black men, women and youth in American society.

In keeping with UNO's role, scope and mission as an urban university and with the social concerns of this field of study, this program also exists as a resource to the metropolitan community that we serve. That is, Africana Studies at UNO aims to deepen the appreciation of the African heritage of New Orleans and the African presence in the US, the Americas and in the world. This includes study of those interactions between African descent peoples and others in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa that have produced shared and distinct cultural traditions. Through such study and resulting appreciation of Africanity in particular, and cultural diversity more generally, this program exists to assist students, faculty and the communities we serve to gain a more truthful, grounded and sophisticated understanding of cultural similarities and differences viewed as assets.

Within this mission, the Africana Studies Program at UNO has these priorities and longer-term goals:

1. To offer a minor in African Studies and to encourage the development of courses that are an integral part of the UNO curriculum and elements of courses that examine the Black Experience in the Americas and the world experience of African peoples.
2. To encourage the study of African languages and to offer other courses and learning opportunities that increase the knowledge base of all UNO undergraduate, graduate and international students and to prepare them to function effectively in a multi-cultural/multi-racial society, including students in the colleges of Business, Education, Engineering, Science, and Urban and Public Affairs.
3. To encourage "service-learning" through local and international community partnerships, especially in Africa and the Americas, which link field research, community service, and the curriculum and by establishing academic credit for such study, research and service.
4. To support research, scholarship and creative production, particularly that which contributes to the alleviation of pressing social problems. A related priority is to publish a series of occasional papers on the Black Experience as well as domestic and international policy issues, especially that related to research and community action.
5. To create an atmosphere within the university and the community in which current issues and social policy can be thoughtfully discussed. A related priority is to provide a forum in which all UNO faculty and students can share research and discuss critical issues in the field and in the community and interact with scholars from across the country and from other countries.
6. To offer workshops, performances, colloquia, lecture and film series, conferences, institutes and training programs for the campus community and the public (e.g., teachers, parents, students, artists, scholars, international visitors, human service professionals and others) that promote an understanding and appreciation of the African American heritage, cultural diversity and positive community change.
7. To offer a non-credit Africana Studies Community Education Certificate Program as a service to the community for individuals with a general interest in the field and related topics.
8. To offer a five-year Master's Degree in Africana Studies and Community Planning.
9. To establish an Africana Studies Institute to coordinate linkages with other UNO academic programs and community resources. UNO programs include, for example, Jazz, Women's, Latin and Caribbean Studies, Asian, and Environmental Studies, Urban and Public Affairs, the Entrepreneurship Certificate Program, and the Marcus B. Christian Archives in the Earl K. Long Library. Community resources include the Center for African American Studies at SUNO, the Amistad Research Center at Tulane, and the African/American Studies and Culture Unit of the Orleans Parish Public Schools.

Course Requirements for the Minor in Africana StudiesAn undergraduate minor in Africana Studies may be obtained by any student with a major in one of the Social Science or Humanities Concentrations and by completing 19 hours that include the following required courses:

*ENGL 2071 African-American Literature I 3 cr
Writings of African Americans to 1939

*ENGL 2072 African American Literature II 3 cr
Writings of African Americans since 1939

HIST 3351 Afro-American History 3 cr
The history of African Americans from African origins to 1860

HIST 3352 Afro-American History 3 cr
The history of African Americans from 1860 to the present

URBN 4030 Intro to Social Planning 3 cr
Investigation of operational approaches to social planning

A&S XXXX Proseminar in Africana Studies 1 cr
Proposed New Course

ELECTIVES (Courses also recommended as electives in the major):

ANTH 1292 Anthro of Louisiana 1 cr

ANTH 3351 Africa 3 cr Race and cultures of Negroid Africa; vestiges of African cultures in the Americas

ANTH 4440 The Anthropology of Religion3 cr

DRCM 3400 The Black Experience on Stage and Screen 3 cr
Intro and survey of the media image of Black Americans in the entertainment media

ENGL 2378 Intro Women's Literature 3 cr

ENGL 4093 Studies in Black Literatures 3 cr
Topic will vary

ECON 4266 Urban Economics 3 cr
Economic foundation of cities, racial discrimination, poverty

FA 4210 African and Oceanic Art 3 cr
A study of the arts of Sub-Saharan Africa and the Oceanic areas of Polynesia, Melanesia, Micronesia and the Australian Aborigine (previous to or independent of Westernization)

GEOG 2401 Geography of Louisiana 3 cr

GEOG 2406 Geogrpahy of US South 3 cr

HIST 1010 Intro to African-American History 3 cr

HIST 2315 Conquest, Slavery and Diaspora 3 cr

HIST 2602 The Black Presence in Louisiana 3 cr
A study of the role of African Americans in the development of Louisiana (New course title)

HIST 3552 Afro-American History 3 cr
The history of Black American 1860 to present

HIST 4406 Caribbean Civilization 3 cr

HIST 4551 Afro-American Slavery 3 cr
A study of the origins and the political, economic and social structure of slavery in the European colonial empires of the western hemisphere with special emphasis on the British empire and the US

HIST 4552 Black Movements and Messiahs 3 cr

HIST 4926 New Orleans Ethnic Studies for Teachers 3 cr

MUS 2205 Jazz Profiles 3 cr
Historical study of major jazz figures from the New Orleans period until the present day; principal innovators of each era

PHIL 1200 Social Ethics 3 cr

PHIL 2203 Philosophy and Feminism 3 cr

PHIL 2701 Religions of the East 3 cr

POLI 2158 Issues in Black Politics 3 cr
A survey of Black political movements in the US with emphasis on contemporary problems. Special attention given to black ideologies, styles of political participation and leadership development.

POLI 4657 Black Political Thought 3 cr
Analysis of the works of major writers who have strongly influenced the development of black politicsin the US

POLI 4650 Blacks and the New Southern Politics 3 cr
Political awareness among Southern Blacks, the influence of industrialization, urbanization and black political leadership; regional variations in political integration

PSYC 2120 Adolescent Psychology 3 cr

SOC 2881 The City 3 cr

SOC 2994 Minority Peoples in America 3 cr
Survey of principal American racial and ethnic minorities; special emphasis on causes and consequences of prejudice and discrimination

SOC 4130 Sociology of Women 3 cr

SOC 4152 Social Welfare Institutions 3 cr

SOC 4178 Occupations and the Urban Labor Force 3 cr

SOC 4881 The Urban Community 3 cr
Analysis of major subcommunities and subcultures in any large, urban complex; ethnic and racial groups, etc.

URBN 4000 The New Orleans Metro Region 3 cr

URBN 4001 Comparative Urban Planning 3 cr

URBN 6010 Planning for Neighborhood and Smaller Communities 3 cr

URBN 6140 Citizen Participation/Urban Delivery Systems 3 cr