African American Studies is a multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary field examining the histories, cultures, and political and social engagements of people of African descent in the United States. Courses offered through the African American Studies certificate program encourage students to explore a broad range of historical and contemporary issues impacting native-born African Americans as well as African, Caribbean, and Afro-Latin American immigrants to the USA. Our courses address transformations in the social, political, gender, sexual, religious, and ethnic identities of people of African descent, meanings of race and family, social justice movements and activism, literature and cultural expression, and the nature of diaspora in the Black experience.<br>African American studies is the cornerstone discipline of Ethnic Studies, both in the history of our university and in the larger movement for inclusive educational frameworks in the United States. As a field, it has developed a tradition that weds incisive critical thinking, creative problem solving and a commitment to applied approaches that benefit the larger society beyond the walls of the university. <br>An African American Studies certificate prepares students to work with racially and ethnically diverse communities in the United States or abroad in a wide variety of careers, including teaching, higher education administration, community organizing, community and government service, journalism and the media, environmental science, non-profit administration, global economics, health care, legal services, library science, music, publishing, and research.