African and African American Studies
Interdepartmental Undergraduate Program
Undergraduate Study
African and African American Studies, a cross-disciplinary program in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, offers students the opportunity to explore the African Americans’ experience and African American contributions to American culture. Students in the program analyze and learn about African American experiences through the study of history, literature, art, religion, and society. They gain knowledge and develop skills and sensitivities to help them function effectively in today’s diverse society.
African and African American Studies at Iowa State University is an expanding program. Most of the courses in the program satisfy general education requirements in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the human relations requirement for teachers, and the university’s diversity requirement. Students can minor or even design their own Interdisciplinary Studies major with an emphasis in African American Studies. Relevant courses are offered through other departments.
A minor in African and African American Studies requires six courses in the program with a minimum of 18 credits, including AF AM 201 Introduction to African American Studies and AF AM 460 Seminar in African American Culture. The remaining credits must come from at least two departments, with at least two courses taken at the junior level or above. Independent study and internship opportunities are available for credit, but do not count in the minimum requirements for the minor.
Graduate Study
Several courses are open for nonmajor graduate study. See listings for more information.
Courses primarily for undergraduate students
AF AM 201. Introduction to African American Studies.
(3-0) Cr. 3.
F.S.
An interdisciplinary introduction to the study of African American culture. Includes history, the social sciences, literature, religion, and the arts, as well as conceptual frameworks for investigation and analysis of the African American experience.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 330. Ethnic and Race Relations.
(Cross-listed with SOC). (3-0) Cr. 3.
F.S.SS.
Prereq: SOC 130 or 134
Analysis of ethnic and race relations, particularly in America; emphasis on the sociology and psychology of race and ethnic relations.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 334. African American Religious Experience.
(Cross-listed with RELIG). (3-0) Cr. 3.
F.
Prereq: Prior course work in Religious Studies or African American Studies recommended
Examination of the African American experience from the perspective of black religion and the black church, with attention to political, economic, and social, as well as spiritual, concerns.
Nonmajor graduate credit.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 347. African American Literature to 1960.
(Cross-listed with ENGL). (3-0) Cr. 3.
Prereq: ENGL 250
Intensive study of African American writing, possibly including slave narratives, Harlem Renaissance works, literature of social protest, and forerunners of contemporary works that reveal key thematic, stylistic, and historical range of the literature.
Nonmajor graduate credit.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 348. Contemporary African American Literature.
(Cross-listed with ENGL). (3-0) Cr. 3.
Prereq: ENGL 250
Intensive reading in literature by African Americans from 1960 to the present.
Nonmajor graduate credit.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 350. Women of Color in the U.S.
(Cross-listed with W S). (3-0) Cr. 3.
S.
Prereq: 3 credits in Womens' Studies or African American Studies
Economic, social, political and cultural roles of Women of Color in the U.S. Includes literary, philosophical, and artistic expressions. Myths and realities explored.
Nonmajor graduate credit.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 353. History of African Americans I.
(Cross-listed with HIST). (3-0) Cr. 3.
S.
Prereq: Sophomore classification
Examines African roots of black culture and the African American experience in the United States from the colonial period through the Civil War. Topics include Atlantic Slave Trade, slavery and American identity, abolition, the emergence of Black Nationalism, and black participation in the Civil War.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 354. History of African Americans II.
(Cross-listed with HIST). (3-0) Cr. 3.
S.
Prereq: Sophomore classification
Explores African American political thought and political action from Reconstruction to the present. Topics include rise of Jim Crow segregation, urban migration, Garvey movement, Harlem Renaissance, Depression and world wars, Pan-Africanism, civil rights, Black Power, and black feminism.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 460. Seminar in African American Culture.
(3-0) Cr. 3.
S.
Intensive study of a selected topic in African-American Studies in one or more disciplines. Selected readings of various authors, movements, eras, or genres. Primary and secondary source materials.
Nonmajor graduate credit.
Meets U.S. Diversity Requirement
AF AM 490. Independent Study.
Cr. 1-3.
Repeatable, maximum of 3 times.