African American and African Studies
Marvin Chiles, Program Director
The African American and African Studies (AAST) program offers the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees. The program is designed to give students an essential core of basic knowledge and analytical skills, while providing an opportunity to specialize in one of two emphasis areas: African American Studies or African Studies. The African American and African Studies major requires a total of 39 credit hours in African American and African Studies courses, including 21 credit hours of core coursework, 12 hours of coursework evenly distributed between selected upper-division social science and humanities courses, and a minimum of six credit hours of upper-division coursework in African Studies. African American and African Studies majors are also required to take AAST 105H/HIST 105H.
Students can earn either the BA or BS degree. The BA program requires a foreign language through the intermediate level (202). Students seeking the BS degree must demonstrate beginning language proficiency (102). Consistent with Old Dominion University's Career Advantage Program (CAP), students majoring in African American and African Studies have the opportunity to participate in an appropriate field internship.
Bachelor of Arts Program
Bachelor of Science Program
Minor
African American and African Studies as a Second Major
Students who find themselves especially interested in African American and African Studies but who already have a major may fulfill their upper-division general education requirements by selecting African American and African Studies as a second major. Such students must complete the same departmental requirements as those majoring solely in African American and African Studies, but may count up to five African American and African Studies cross-listed courses taken for their other major toward their African American and African Studies major as well. For instance, a student majoring in both sociology and African American and African Studies may apply five courses, such as SOC 337, and SOC 436 toward the foundation courses, and SOC 323, SOC 426, SOC 444, taken toward their sociology requirements, as three electives for their major in African American and African Studies.
BA or BS to MBA (Master of Business Administration) Linked Program
The linked BA/MBA or BS/MBA program is an early entry to the MBA program of study. The early-entry program is designed for well qualified non-business undergraduate ODU students to start their MBA program prior to completing their undergraduate degree. Well qualified non-business undergraduate students may take MBA-level courses as early as three semesters prior to graduation and count up to 12 graduate credits toward their undergraduate degree. Students participating in the early-entry program must earn a minimum of 150 credit hours (120 discrete credit hours for the undergraduate degree and 30 discrete credit hours for the graduate degree). Early-entry program students should carefully consider their undergraduate degree program requirements when planning their course of study. Students in the early-entry program work in close consultation with the MBA Program Office and should refer to information in the Strome College of Business section in the graduate catalog to develop an individualized plan of study based on the required coursework.
BA or BS to MPA (Master of Public Administration) Linked Program
The linked BA/MPA or BS/MPA program provides qualified Old Dominion University undergraduate students with the opportunity to earn a master's degree in public administration while taking credits in the MPA program as an undergraduate student. The program is designed for highly motivated students with the desire to immediately continue their education after the bachelor's degree. The program is especially relevant to individuals seeking to work (or currently working) in the public or non-profit sectors, but is suitable for students from any undergraduate major. Graduate courses may be taken during the fall and spring semester of the student's senior undergraduate year. Up to 12 graduate credits can count toward both the undergraduate and graduate degree and can meet upper-level General Education requirements. After receiving the undergraduate degree, a student will continue with the MPA program, taking MPA courses until completing the required 39 credit hours. Students in the linked program must earn a minimum of 150 credit hours (120 discrete credit hours for the undergraduate degree and 30 discrete credit hours for the graduate degree).
Requirements for admission to the graduate program can be found in the School of Public Service section of the Graduate Catalog. For additional information, please contact the School of Public Service in the Strome College of Business.
Courses
African-American Studies (AAST)
An interdisciplinary examination of the African American experience in America. The course examines the historical and contemporary conditions of African American people. It also explores the various modes of artistic expression, values and philosophical underpinnings of African American culture.
This course offers students a critical approach to interpreting the history of Africa. A fast-paced survey of African history, it affords students a grounding in the major themes of African history. The course focuses on the major economic, social, and political institutions of Africa, past and present, and explores how historical developments assist comprehension of present-day Africa.
Required of all history and secondary education social studies majors. Recommended prior to upper-division course work. Examines methods of historical research and primary and secondary source analysis, inclusive of internet usage. Explores historiography and historical writing. Introduces students to issues in the philosophy of history.
Covers the design and implementation of quantitative and qualitative methods of inquiry in social sciences.
This course examines historical social movements in Africa such as economic, ethnic, women's, political, and religious social movements. This course will also link micro-level, meso-level, and macro-level implications for the social structures and cultures of various African nations and communities.
This course is intended to familiarize students with the struggles, advances, and setbacks of African peoples for state-building and socioeconomic development during the colonial and post-independence eras.
This course is an introduction to social research methods. The primary purpose of this course is to survey the major research designs and research techniques that are the core of contemporary approaches used to study social phenomena as well as the lives and experiences of African Americans. Ethical implications of social research and data analysis will also be covered.
Examination and explanation of minority families' lives in relationship to other societal institutions and historical developments. The course focuses on issues of minority families and places these issues in a sociological framework, e.g., stratification, poverty and gender.
The course examines African-American history from the African background through the Civil War. Emphasis is placed on an analysis of African-Americans' role in the political, economic, social and cultural life of the United States.
Individual practical experience in community-based organizations, public bureaucracies, administrative agencies and other organizations and firms. Student can gain exposure in the not-for-profit and profit sectors.
This course surveys the political, social and cultural history of colonial and post-independent Africa. Major themes include colonization and resistance, anti-colonial movements, social and cultural transformations, urbanization and popular culture and post colonial challenges.
These courses are open to majors and non-majors. Ethnic studies majors may take these courses to satisfy requirements for the concentration. These courses will appear in the course schedule, and will be more fully described in information distributed to all academic advisors.
These courses are open to majors and non-majors. Ethnic studies majors may take these courses to satisfy requirements for the concentration. These courses will appear in the course schedule, and will be more fully described in information distributed to all academic advisors.
This course examines Africana philosophical and theoretical thought as it pertains to issues of race, labor and production. Through an examination of the social and economic legacy of slavery and colonialism, this course investigates how systems of exploitation have influenced the underdevelopment of Africa, the Caribbean and North America in its contribution to Western Capitalism.
Examines the political activities which resulted in the passage of the nation's second Civil Rights policy, the 1960 and 1964 Civil Rights Acts, the 1965 Voting Rights Act and the 1968 Fair Housing Act. The course will analyze the underpinnings, leadership, and political strategies of the Civil Rights Movement.
This course is designed to introduce students to the historical and contemporary experiences of “Blackness” as it has been constructed, contested and affirmed in various historical, political and narrative contexts. Embracing the theme of duality, the course examines what it means for a culture and people to be both integral to and excluded from the American political and social community. This is a writing intensive course.
The study of the process of and responses to the oppression of racial, religious, ethnic, and national minorities in a variety of countries within a historical and comparative perspective. Special emphasis given to American minorities and especially African Americans.
This course will examine the intersectionality of race, ethnicity, crime, justice and the operation of the criminal justice system and will critically assess controversial issues surrounding race, ethnicity, crime, and justice. Students will discuss contemporary social justice issues as they relate to race, ethnicity, crime, and justice. The theoretical frameworks that explain the intersection between race, ethnicity, crime and justice will be examined. The course will also investigate the broad range of policy issues and recommendations impacting communities of color and the administration of criminal and social justice.
This course examines the impact of diversity, culture, and ethnic origin in criminal justice organizations. The course is designed to better prepare students to meet the challenge of diversity in criminal justice organizations.
This course examines the issues and perspectives related to the psychological evolution of African Americans in the United States. Particular emphasis is placed on exploring the discipline of psychology from an Afrocentric focus.
In this course, students examine how media culture - both historic and contemporary - contribute to the intersectional production of race in the United States. A guiding question will be: How do media and popular culture - as texts, practices, industries, and sites of identity formation and pleasure - construct race? Although students will theorize the politics of representation, they will also work to situate texts within a larger historic, political, and discursive context in order to assess the type of cultural work they perform.
This course will introduce students to the key concepts involved in developing and executing an interdisciplinary research project. Students will read and interpret research literature, execute a research project, write a final research paper, and present research findings in a professional setting.
This course focuses on a variety of selected topics in African American Studies. These courses will appear in the course schedule, and will be more fully described in information distributed to all academic advisors.
Students are exposed to opportunities to conduct independent research and/or study in areas focused on the political, social and cultural experiences of people of African descent in the U.S. and the African Diaspora.