Program Requirements

American Ethnic Studies

The American Ethnic Studies minor is an interdisciplinary program focusing on the rich cultural heritage of peoples of color in the United States as well as the body of scholarship and theory that has emerged around global and national issues of race and ethnicity. One focus of the program is the study of the broad historical, social, cultural traditions, and dynamics of race and ethnicity in America as a foundation for the exploration of more specialized topics.

College offerings cover a broad range of topics, primarily in the humanities, but also in contemporary areas of social, political and economic development. These include history, anthropology, art history, rhetoric and communications, politics, religion, sociology, and literature. A major focus of the program is the comparative experiences of various communities of color within the traditional Ethnic Studies categories: American Indians/Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, African Americans, Latinos/Latinas.

Requirements for the American Ethnic Studies Minor (5 Credits)

Core courses (2 credits)

AES 150 Introduction to American Ethnic Studies
AES 330 Theory and Methods in American Ethnic Studies

Elective Courses (3): NOTE: at least two of these courses must be at the 300-level or higher and no more than two of these courses can be drawn from the same department.

AES 144 Topics in American Ethnic Studies
AES 344 Advanced Topics in American Ethnic Studies
AES 354 Racial Justice Movements in the U.S.
AES 491 (W) Independent Study in American Ethnic Studies
ANTH 090X (IT) Native North American Film
ANTH 211 (IT) Folklore
ANTH 231 (TH; US) Native North American Cultures
ANTH 303 Museum Studies Seminar
ANTH 351 (AR) Indigenous Peoples, Human Rights, and the Environment
ENGL 116 (IT; W) Topics in American Literature*
ENGL 242 (W) The Essay*
ENGL 253 (IT) Diversity in American Literature
ENGL 337 African American Literature I: Slave Narratives and Early African American Literary Tradition
ENGL 338 African American Literature II
ENGL 344 Major Authors*
ENGL 354 The Novel*
ENGL 357 Ethnicity and Race in American Literature
HIST 131 (TH) Historical Inquiry*
HIST 259 American Jewish History
HIST 262 American Women's History
HIST 306 History Through Biography*
HIST 307 American Immigration History
HIST 342 Studies in American History*
HIST 361 African American History 1619-1865
HIST 362 African American History 1865-present
IDS 205 Chemawa Indian School Partnership Program
IDS 209 Cross Cultural Communication (.5)
IDS 343 Field Studies in Chicago
POLI 303 (AR) Topics in Political Theory
POLI 379 Latinos in U.S. Politics [Crosslisted with LAS 379]
REL 214 (TH) Religion in America
REL 252 Soul Food: Eating and Drinking in Western Religion
RHET 232 (AR) Persuasion, Propaganda and the Mass Media*
RHET 244 (AR; IT) Latino/Latina Voices in the U.S.
RHET 350 Topics in Rhetoric and Media Studies*
SOC 114 (US) Race and Ethnic Relations
SOC 332 Urban Sociology
SOC/ANTH 358 Topics in Sociology/Topics in Anthropology*

* Selected Topics Only

Faculty

Ellen Eisenberg, Dwight and Margaret Lear Professor of American History, Chair
Sammy Basu, Associate Professor of Politics
Michael Chasar, Assistant Professor of English
Nathaniel Cordova, Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Media Studies
Seth Cotlar, Associate Professor of History
Rebecca Dobkins, Associate Professor of Anthropology
Emily Drew, Assistant Professor or Sociology and American Ethnic Studies
Leslie Dunlap, Assistant Professor of History
Lynn Makau, Assistant Professor of English
Frann Michel, Associate Professor of English
Pamela Moro, Professor of Anthropology
Cindy Koenig Richards, Assistant Professor of Rhetoric and Media Studies
Belinda Rincon, Assistant Professor of English
Charlie Wallace, Chaplain and Associate Professor of Religious Studies