The concentration has four central goals: (1) to offer students a structured program in the study of Africa and the African diaspora, (2) to help students explore the variety of cultural types and formations in the African diaspora, (3) to expose students to the connections between African studies and African-American studies, and (4) to promote curricular and extracurricular interest in and awareness of the cultures of the African diaspora for the campus as a whole.
The program in African diaspora studies consists of (1) AFDS 110 Introduction to African Diaspora Studies; (2) 1 unit of foundation courses (.5 unit in African studies and .5 unit in African-American studies); (3) 1.5 units of advanced courses (in no fewer than two departments); and (4) a .5 unit senior-level seminar course.
Courses approved for AFDS Senior Seminar Credit:
AFDS 410 Between Womanism and Feminism
ANTH 471 Ethnomedicine: Africa
ENGL 487 The Mulatto in American Fiction
ENGL 488 Richard Wright and Toni Morrison
SOCY 422 Topics in Social Stratification
SOCY 440 Blackface: The American Minstrel Show
SOCY 463 Intersection Theory
HIST 411 The Civil Rights Era
Each spring, the director of the concentration, in consultation with Crossroads, the program's advisory committee, will determine the courses offered during the upcoming academic year that will fulfill the various program requirements. Courses counted toward a student's major may be counted toward concentration requirements. For a complete list of courses fulfilling the various requirements, students should consult the African diaspora studies Web site on the Kenyon Web site.
Students who wish to declare a concentration in African diaspora studies should consult with the program director.
For First-year and New Students
We offer two distinct introductory courses to orient students to the interdisciplinary nature of African Diaspora Studies at Kenyon College. These courses are AFDS 108: The Crossroads Seminar and AFDS 110: Introduction to African Diaspora Studies. Each course places a distinct emphasis upon critical thinking, oral presentation, and critical writing as integral components of the learning experience. The objective of each course is to introduce students to the wide range of approaches which exist to develop a firm grasp of African Diaspora Studies as it currently exists, as informed by past events, and as history continues to unfold.
Transfer Credit Policy
Transfer credit may be applied toward fulfilling the 1.5 units of required advanced coursework. Students planning to study abroad should seek approval of transfer credits, in advance, from the director.