Black Studies

150 Extended Studies Building (XSB)

503-725-3472

www.pdx.edu/blackstudies

  • B.A., B.S.
  • Minor
  • Postbaccalaureate Certificate

The Department of Black Studies is an academic interdisciplinary unit within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The primary focus is in the social sciences and liberal arts. The Department of Black Studies is devoted to the exploration and analysis of the history, politics, and culture of African people in the United States, the Caribbean, and Africa. It seeks to objectively explore the black experience, to illuminate the contributions of African people to world culture, and to provide an alternative to traditional approaches to the study of world history that have bypassed the African experience.

The objectives of the Department of Black Studies include providing comprehensive learning programs aimed at greater understanding by all people of the black experience, past, present, and future.

The Department of Black Studies seeks to expose students from all cultural, religious, and ethnic backgrounds to academic experiences beyond those generally found in traditional college curricula.

The program will provide students with a general historical background of the black experience in Africa and the Western hemisphere, as well as provide detailed examination of cross-cultural and multi-ethnic dynamics in the contemporary social-political context.

In addition, this program will enhance the students ability to function in current job markets that serve multi-cultural and multi-ethnic populations, particularly where the black experience is crucial. It will also give students a competitive advantage in obtaining careers in those areas and within communities that interact with African, African American, and Caribbean cultures.

Degree Maps and Learning Outcomes

Admission requirements

Black Studies B.A./B.S.

Black Studies Minor

Black Studies Certificate

Center for Black Studies

Black Studies Minor

Requirements

To earn a minor in black studies a student must complete 28 credits (12 credits of which must be taken in residence at PSU), to include the following:

Two courses chosen from: (8)

BSt 203Introduction to African American History

4

BSt 204Introduction to African American History

4

BSt 206Introduction to Caribbean Studies

4

BSt 211AIntroduction to African Studies

4

BSt 221Introduction to African American Literature

4

Three courses chosen from (12)

BSt 302African American Experience in the 20th Century

4

BSt 305African History, Before 1800

4

BSt 306African History, 1800-Present

4

BSt 362African Prehistory

4

BSt 412Oregon African American History

4

BSt 413Slavery

4

BSt 414Racism

4

BSt 419African American Women in America

4

BSt 421African American Writers

4

BSt 424African American/African Culture in Cinema

4

BSt 430African American Political Thought

4

BSt 440Caribbean Studies

4

BSt 470African Art

4

BSt 484African American Community Development

4

Eight adviser-approved credits chosen from related courses within departments in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

8

Total Credit Hours: 28