Program Goals
The primary goals of the African and African American (AFAM) Studies Program are to provide students with a comprehensive, quality, multicultural educational experience and the opportunity for a creative and intellectual experience based upon the critical and systematic study of the life, thought and practice of African peoples in their current and historical development.
The Importance of a Minor in AFAM
Through its interdisciplinary and multicultural approach to scholarship and learning, the AFAM Program seeks to contribute to students' self-awareness and attempts to broaden their perspectives in ways that allow them to understand the world in its diversity and complexity. It not only fosters intellectual and academic growth and excellence, but also inclusiveness and the development of multicultural leaders and community activists through its focus on African and African American constituencies and communities, their conditions and contributions, and on human agency and social change.
Although the Program focuses specifically on the experiences of Africa and African Americans, it is not just for African and African American students. The Program’s broad vision and goal of inclusiveness not only acknowledges the relation of African and African American peoples within multicultural and global communities, it also cultivates a respect for the multiracial and multicultural character of the common world humanity. The program offers courses that cross academic disciplines and that are intellectually and conceptually far-reaching for all students' intellectual, academic, civic and professional growth and development.
Career Opportunities in African and African American Studies
Students who minor in African and African American Studies can go on to pursue careers in:
- Advanced graduate studies
- International affairs
- Education
- Social work
- Urban planning
- Community organizing
- Legal and professional careers
- Training
- Communications and media
- Writing
- Teaching
- Theatre
- Dance
How to declare a Minor
To declare a minor in African and African American Studies, students should contact the AFAM Coordinator, Chielozona Eze, at c-eze@neiu.edu or at (773) 442-5807 to discuss your interests, needs and program requirements.
