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USF is the first university in 51在线 to offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in Africana Studies. It was founded more than 50 years ago and has helped produce some of the most well-rounded professionals in disciplines around the world, such as law, public policy and community development.

The Department of Africana Studies, initially named Afro-American Studies, was founded in 1969 in response to a nationwide movement of Black students who demanded a larger presence of Black faculty and perspectives in their classrooms. Now housed within the School of Interdisciplinary Global Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences, the multidimensional program is led by faculty experts who centralize their study on the Black experience and global African diaspora.

鈥淎ll these years we have been doing the anti-racism work that people are talking about now, even as we were marginalized for doing it,鈥� said anthropologist Cheryl Rodriguez, associate professor of Africana Studies. 鈥淲e are doing the really hard work of bringing scholarship and knowledge to our students that they wouldn鈥檛 get anywhere else.鈥�

Rodriguez鈥檚 life-long research includes the preservation of Black communities鈥� history in Tampa. Her projects include collaborative works such as, 鈥淐entral Avenue Legacies鈥� with Susan Greenbaum, professor emerita in the Department of Anthropology. Together they developed a walking tour of the Central Avenue area, a former segregated business and entertainment district that was destroyed by urban renewal and highway construction.

Rodriguez is one of the most senior faculty members and previously served as department chair. She helped develop the current curriculum, which now includes studies beyond African American history.

鈥淭he work that we do is critical in providing the knowledge about the Black world and helping our students to rise above racial prejudice though knowledge and through education,鈥� Rodriguez said.

Pre-colonial Africa is revisited using neglected facts to help students challenge misconceptions and European-centric narratives. The diaspora is then examined through the lens of community development, economics, identity politics and international relations. Students gain a broader intellectual perspective on world affairs, which influences their professional careers.

鈥淭he 21st century needs a functioning global citizen with a broad perspective on world affairs and an empathetic attitude. Africana Studies produces that kind of global citizen,鈥� said , associate professor of Africana Studies.

Kissi says his goal is to correct lingering, but false impressions about African history. He teaches his students to challenge distorted facts and stereotypes about Africa and reminds them of the ancient technologies that built the Egyptian and Nubian pyramids. He also emphasizes the need to recognize the natural resources that are mined from Africa, such as coffee, rubber, coltan and palm oil.

鈥淎frica looms large in our lives as consumers of global products in an interconnected global system, and we often don鈥檛 pause to acknowledge this. Africa鈥檚 elephant tusks help produce the piano keys from which we enjoy good music. Africa鈥檚 palm oil gives us our soap, shampoos and industrial lubricants. Africa鈥檚 copper sustains Western armament industries. And, today, Africa鈥檚 coltan gives us our cellphones and make our global communications possible. Africa鈥檚 resources have long been vital to the making of our modern world. If you have no clue about these, you can easily dismiss Africa as a continent,鈥� Kissi said.

Graduates have had the opportunity to study abroad to gain a holistic understanding about the diverse Black experiences throughout the world. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, study abroad programs are currently on hold at USF.

鈥淥ne of the things I learned was how far and diverse the Black roots go in terms of African influence across the world including in the Caribbean, Central America, South America and Asia. That understanding allowed me to appreciate more the connection I had to the Black community, recognizing that we are all influenced by Africa, by African culture,鈥� said , class of 2003 and vice president for 51在线 student success initiatives at  . 鈥淲hether or not we want to acknowledge that, we are all connected.鈥�

Col贸n travelled to Cuba and Ghana and saw similarities in the ways in which Black communities experienced systemic racism.

鈥淢ore recently, I鈥檝e been able to contribute my perspective through the Africana Studies experience and lens to some of these tough conversations about race. I found myself being an ally to the Black community during this tough period. I find great joy in that,鈥� Col贸n said.

Many students in Africana Studies have double majors. Carolyne St. Louis (鈥�98) studied English and thrived in the transdisciplinary program. The McNair Scholar is now director of ethics and compliance at the .

鈥淚t informs my approach and how I speak to people about how we should approach policy,鈥� St. Louis said. 鈥淲hat I learned in the Africana Studies department is that sometimes what happens is that the color of your skin becomes the determining factor as to how you are treated. Bias in public health is still a thing. We could all be seated at a table and I could still be the only Black person and woman at the table, and so understanding race and how that perspective is important and how it will inform people鈥檚 perspective is critical.鈥�

St. Louis fondly recalls many epiphanic moments in class, such as when she learned that significantly more Black individuals died on slave ships than what鈥檚 been widely understood.

鈥淲e are not doing a really good job of having these types of discussions outside the classroom and it鈥檚 causing a lot of friction and this (department) is a good way to connect with each other and have some empathy,鈥� St. Louis said.

Iris Elijah (鈥�08) also double majored in economics and remembers being the only Black student. She said when poverty was discussed, her classmates looked to her assuming that she had first-hand experience.

鈥淚t was very isolating. It was not like that in my Africana Studies classes and I needed that. We made our own community and it felt like Africana Studies was the academic equivalent of the community where I felt safe,鈥� said Elijah, who鈥檚 now general counsel for 51在线 International University.

鈥淚f people really want to learn about an academic area that will really challenge you in terms of the understandings that you have in history, and yourself, then Africana Studies is it. It鈥檚 one of the best things I ever did at USF,鈥� Elijah said.