The Africana Studies department at Rowan University hosted its spring kick-off event at the Chamberlain Student Center last Tuesday to inform students about the department and create interest in taking classes within the field of study.
The gathering, held in the upstairs conference room at the student center, featured a breakdown of the various courses within the field of study and testimonials from students who have taken those courses.
“It’s a niche major, so obviously we want to draw people to the major, minor, and the CUG (Certificate of Undergraduate Studies), so that they can be a part of the program,” said Professor Cherita Harrell, a writing arts associate teaching professor and the coordinator of the Africana Studies program.
Professor Harrell spoke before a group of more than a dozen students, providing an overview of the program and its five foundational courses and two capstone courses. Program faculty in attendance gave some additional insight into some of the courses that they teach.
“With Hip-Hop, we’re going to look at a various amount of factors in terms of how hip-hop shaped into what it is now,” said Professor Kevin Anglade, who provided details on the Hip Hop Culture: Music, Lifestyle, Fashion, and Politics elective course. “And I’ll also have a few goodies where I’ll be having some people from the industry chime in to you all through Zoom and talk to you all.”
Among other courses offered in the program are African American History, which recently received a grant to take students and faculty to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. One special component of the program also discussed at the event was the International Model African Union, a simulation conference held each spring that gives students the opportunity to represent one of the African Union member states.
“The delegates [attending the Model AU], as we say, have discussions and, potentially, political conversations about how do they go about solving the political, sociocultural, and economic matters or affairs of the Model AU,” said Professor Anglade.
Students currently majoring in Africana Studies also spoke to attendees about their experiences in the program. One of those students was Denis Abaine, a sophomore double-majoring in Africana Studies and history. Abaine, who is originally from Uganda, spoke in part about the contrast in what he learned at Rowan and what he was taught in his homeland.
“When I came, I really liked [American] history. I didn’t plan on being an Africana Studies major,” Abaine said. “Just one class inspired me, and I wanted to learn more about Black people [in the United States]. When I was back in Uganda, we usually learned more about the White community.”
Inesha Rivera, a junior majoring in psychology, was also inspired by what she learned and shared her experience.
“You kind of end up finding yourself, miraculously, as a black person,” said Rivera. “It feels kind of foreign being in those classes, just being in those classes, being in such an intellectual environment, and everything that you see has got color to it.”
Overall, the program faculty wants all prospective students looking into Africana Studies to know that there are courses that cater to them and places where they can look for academic nourishment that they might not find anywhere else.
“There are courses that are here that are diverse, that connect to their lived experiences, that allow them to be in spaces where they can be seen, where they can question things,” said Professor Harrell. “There’s a community here, there’s a space that will intellectually challenge them, while also giving them space to confront some of the things they’re seeing in society.”
Students interested in the Africana Studies program can visit Suite 208 in Bunce Hall for more information.
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