University of Tennessee-Knoxville Chancellor Donde Plowman recently announced the addition of the Department of Africana Studies.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Board of Trustees unanimously approved a new strategic vision that included the creation of the Department of Africana Studies, which has a 50-plus-year history as a storied program within the College of Arts and Sciences.” I am pleased to share that the Board of Trustees unanimously approved our new strategic vision. The vote was an endorsement of the tremendous care, thought, and innovation that people across this campus invested in crafting a shared vision for our future. I am so proud of this work and excited to begin implementing this vision.” –Donde Plowman. Chancellor
The program trains students from different backgrounds to explore and understand these and other relevant issues by using a variety of intellectual tools including critical interdisciplinary and multicultural approaches, theories, and comparative methodologies. Africana Studies offers general and specialized training in majors and minors to help prepare global productive and responsible citizens. The program trains students to become lifelong learners prepared for further educational opportunities, but to be equipped with creative and critical thinking skills needed to succeed in an evolving job market.
In addition to classroom training, Africana Studies offers students the opportunity to study abroad (currently, in Ghana, South Africa, and Uganda). Students also participate in extracurricular activities such as conferences and colloquia and interact with scholars from various disciplines within the UT staff, as well as national and international guests scholars.
Students enrolled in the Africana Studies Program will be introduced to rigorous collaborative research done by guest scholars committed to critical interdisciplinary social justice, which prepares students for the demands of an increasingly diverse global environment.
For more information on the history of Africana Studies at UT Visit 50+ Years of Africana-Studies at UT. Chair Africana Studies Program Shayla C. Nunnally, Ph.D.