Undergraduate Courses
Courses for Fall 2012
CAS AA103 A1 Introduction to African American Literature- Mary Anne Boelcskevy
Examines political, cultural, and historical roots of the African American experience through readings in African American literature. Carries humanities divisional studies credit in CAS.
MWF- 10:00- 11:00 am
CAS AA 207 A1 Introduction to Race and Ethnic Relations-Don Gillis
TR- 2:00- 3:30 pm
Social definition of race and ethnicity. The adjustment of different ethnic groups and their impact upon U.S. social life. How prejudice and discrimination create class identities and how caste relations have affected patterns of integration during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Also offered as CAS SO 207.
CAS AA 305 A1- Toni Morrison’s American Times- Mary Anne Boelcskevy
MWF 9:00-10:00 am
Examines four of the Nobel Laureate’s novels, using primary and secondary materials to construct historical contexts and critical perspectives.
CASAA310- History of the Civil Rights Movement
Description: History of the African American Struggle for Racial Equality and democracy from the turn of the century through the 1960′s. Use is made up of the most recent scholarship memoirs, documentary films.and the oral history accounts. Also offered as CAS HI 299. This course cannot be taken for credit in addition to the course with the same title that was previously CAS HI 378.
CAS AA 316 African Diaspora Arts in the Americas – Cynthia Becker
MWF 2:00-3:00 pm
Study of the transmission of African artistry to the United States, Haiti, Cuba, and Brazil. Half of the course concentrates on the history of Kongo, Fon and Yoruba visual and performing arts. The second half considers their influence on Caribbean architecture, Santería and Vodun performances and dress, as well as carnival masquerading in the Caribbean and New Orleans.
CAS AA 371 African American History- Linda Heywood
MWF 10:00-11:00 am
The history of African Americans from African origins to present time; consideration of slavery, reconstruction, and ethnic relations from the colonial era to our own time. Also offered as CAS HI 298.
CAS AA 388 A1 Black Radical Thought- Allison Blakely
TR-2:00-3:30 pm
Black radical thought in America, Europe, and Africa since the eighteenth century through writings of abolitionists, leaders of revolutions and liberation movements, Black nationalists, and Black socialists. Emphasizes the global nature of the “Black World” and its role in world history. Also offered as CAS HI 361.
Spring 2013 Courses
CAS AA 207 Introduction to Race and Ethnic Relations -Don Gillis
MWF3:00-4 pm
Social definition of race and ethnicity. The adjustment of different ethnic groups and their impact upon US social life. How prejudice and discrimination create class identities and how caste relations have affected patterns of integration during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Meets with CAS SO 207
CAS AA 304 Introduction to African American Women Writers-Professor Mary Anne Boelcskevy
MWF 1-2
Surveys the writing of African American women writers from slavery to the present and explores the African American female literary tradition in the context of black history and culture.Meets with CAS EN 370
CAS AA 380 Blacks in Modern Europe -Professor Allison Blakely
Readings from recent scholarly books on Blacks in Britain, France, Germany, and Russia, as well as related primary materials revealing the evolving image of Blacks in European history, folklore, religion, art, and literature.Meets with CAS HI 360
CAS AA 382 History of Religion in Pre-Colonial Africa-Professor John Thornton
TR 12:30-2 :00 am
The study of the development of religious traditions in Africa during the period prior to European colonialism. An emphasis on both indigenous religions and the growth and spread of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam in the continent as a whole. Meets with CAS HI 382, CAS RN 382
CAS AA 385 Atlantic History- Professor John Thornton
TR 3:30pm-5:00pm
Examines the various interactions that shaped the Atlantic World, connecting Europe, Africa, and the Americas between 1400 and 1800. Begins by defining the political interaction, then emphasizes cultural exchange, religious conversion, and the revolutionary era.Meets with CAS HI 385
CAS AA 489 The African Diaspora in the Americas – Linda Heywood
Thursday- 3:30-6:30 pm.
African American history in an international framework. Examines development of racial categories in early transatlantic trade, Black participation in armed conflict, diverse Black communities in the twentieth century. Also offered as CAS HI 489.
CAS AA 490 Blacks and Asians: Encounters Through Time and Space- Ronald Richardson
Thursday 2:00-5:00pm
African American History in Global and Comparative Perspective. African American history in an international framework. Examines development of racial categories in early transatlantic trade, Black participation in armed conflict, diverse Black communities in the twentieth century. Also offered as CAS HI 489.
Course: CAS AA 502 Topics in African American Literature- Mary Anne Boelcskevy
Description: Topic for Fall 2012: Higher Education in African American Literature. Examines portrayals of higher education in African American literature, focusing on print versus cultural literacy, formal versus informal education, and the relationship of acquiring knowledge to political action. Authors include Cooper, Washington, Du Bois, Larsen, Ellison, and Walker, among others. Also offered as CAS EN 587.
CAS AA 507 Literature of the Harlem Renaissance -Mary Anne Boelcskevy
Wednesday 2:00-5:00pm
A study of the major writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Explores how they proclaimed a renewal of racial consciousness and cultural pride, and how they challenged racial and cultural barriers in American society.Meets with CAS EN 377
CAS AA 580 History of Racial Thought- Allison Blakely
Wednesday 1:00-4:00pm
Study of racial thinking and feeling in Europe and the United States since the fifteenth century. Racial thinking in the context of Western encounters with non-European people and Jews; its relation to social, economic, cultural, and political trends.Meets with CAS HI 580