Saving the Africana Studies program

MSU’s newest certificate program, Africana Studies, is already at risk of being lost because of low student awareness and university bureaucracy. 

The Africana Studies certificate program was confirmed to be moved from Liberal Studies to the History and Philosophy Department in February, but it has faced difficulty gaining traction since this transition, according to two members of the College of Letters and Science faculty. While faculty are making efforts to advance the program and have many ideas for where to take it, professors Katherine Johnston and Bonnie Sheehey say the university system has proven reluctant to officially integrate them.

The term Africana Studies broadly refers to an interdisciplinary approach in combining African and African American studies. The MSU website defines it as a program where students will develop the knowledge and intellectual skills to understand and appreciate the experiences of African and African Diasporic populations, to move beyond their own experiences to appreciate how they are connected to the larger global village. This field of study has been largely underrepresented at MSU and African and African American impact applies to all areas of study, according to Johnston and Sheehey.

“To me, this is a no-brainer; this is something we should have been doing for decades. This isn’t something that should be new or difficult,” Johnston said.

Sheehey and Johnston said the certificate was officially started by the Black Student Union (BSU) and a group of faculty and staff, including Program Director of Diversity & Inclusion Student Commons Ariel Donohue in Oct. 2023.

Johnston cited student awareness and faculty resources as two central issues when asked about the difficulty of implementing the certificate program. “I’m not sure enough students know about it, so we don’t have enough students signing up to show interest,” Johnston said.

Sheehey said, “We’re really just trying to get the momentum and student interest going again. This was a student-led certificate, it came from the [BSU], and because those students graduated as it was in the midst of getting approved, the program kind of disappeared. We’re trying to revive it and give it new life and we’re really hoping that students will enroll.”

“One of the issues has been that there’s some bureaucratic inertia here,” Johnston said. Both Sheehey and Johnston both said they have been going between tentative answers from their department, waiting extended periods for meetings with the Dean of the College of Letters and Science and numerous unanswered emails.

“We haven’t been officially recognized, and it’s a little frustrating because we don’t have any resources right now, or any certainty about future resources,” Johnston said. “It’s unclear to me what level of priority this program actually is to the university, so we’re just stuck waiting to hear, and it’s unclear exactly who we’re going to hear from or how we’re going to hear it.”

Both Johnston and Sheehey spoke of plans to bring in professionals in the fields of Africana Studies as speakers for the program alongside new regular scheduled courses that will qualify as necessary electives. They said their goal is to make the certificate program as straightforward and accessible as they can. They are currently in the process of updating the certificate webpage to reflect the changes being made.

“You just have to take 194D [Intro to Africana Studies] and a bunch of electives so it’s very straightforward as far as that goes. So, you just take the first one and four other classes, and those other classes usually also count toward your major, a minor or some core requirement,” Johnston said.

According to Sheehey, they are removing the Anthropology 291 course requirement from the certificate, because “a 200-level class doesn't really do much for students,” she said. 

“Things move kind of slowly, and people tend to get stuck but I’m hoping we can build enough interest and get some momentum,” Johnston said. “To me, this is a no-brainer; this is something we should have been doing for decades, this isn’t something that should be new or difficult.”

“Adding the Africana Studies certificate is the same as adding a major, minor or double-major,”  Sheehey said. Include Sheehey or  Johnston’s name and email address in signing the form under “New Department” to add the certificate. Once signed, the certificate information will show up on your DegreeWorks.

Any students interested can email Johnston at katherine.johnston2@montana.edu or Sheehey at bonnie.sheehey@montana.edu with questions. 

For more information on the certificate visit the Africana Studies certificate page on the MSU website: https://www.montana.edu/liberalstudies/africanastudies.html.