EMU Today

YPSILANTI –A new academic program that seeks to equip students with resources for understanding the implications of living in a multiracial, democratic and diverse society was approved by the Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents today (June 22).

The Master of Arts in Africology and African American Studies – the first program of its kind in Michigan – is designed to prepare students from any cultural background for professional and academic careers in relevant areas, by offering a combination of practical and theoretical training.

Rhonda Longworth, provost and executive vice president of academic and student affairs, said, “We are excited to introduce a strong program that speaks to the intellectual traditions, cultural contours, and philosophical and social issues that comprise the African American community.”

The program provides Eastern’s academic community with a two-year graduate curriculum that prepares students for administrative positions in industry, government, finance, social work, healthcare, and various community organizations. It also supports students who plan to engage in a life-long scholarly development of the discipline as teachers, professors, researchers, or creative artists.

Students will be able to choose a complementary focus from among the participating disciplinary programs/departments based on their vocational orientation or undergraduate degrees. 

Core courses will include Foundational Issues in Africology and African American Studies, African Philosophical Thought and Aesthetics, Theory and Analytical Methods in Africology, and Researching Black Communities. 

The Africology and African American Studies scholarship is comparable to that found in advanced academic programs in other disciplines. 

“With that said, the innovative stance of this program’s faculty is that applied and cross-disciplinary orientation sets the program apart, and reflects the University's commitment to interdisciplinary teaching, excellence, and diversity,” Longworth said. 

The program will begin in 2019.

About the Department of Africology and African American Studies

The mission of the Department of Africology and African American Studies is to provide robust and critical programs of study, research and service on the African world experience, including a particular focus on the life and culture of people of African descent in the Americas. The department pursues its mission by cultivating successive cadres of students imbued with community consciousness and equipped with intellectual tools for shaping the world of the present and the future, community engagement and pertinent careers.

About Eastern Michigan University

Founded in 1849, Eastern is the second oldest university in Michigan. It currently serves 20,000 students pursuing undergraduate, graduate, specialist, doctoral and certificate degrees in the arts, sciences and professions. In all, more than 300 majors, minors and concentrations are delivered through the University's Colleges of Arts and Sciences; Business; Education; Health and Human Services; Technology, and its graduate school. EMU is regularly recognized by national publications for its excellence, diversity, and commitment to applied education. For more information about Eastern Michigan University, visit the University's website.