Peace Through Education

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CORONAVIRUS / COVID-19 UPDATES

For everyone’s safety, many faculty and staff members are continuing to work remotely. We are still available to assist you during our normal office hours, and recommend reaching out via email to get in touch.

Looking for the latest campus updates on Coronavirus/COVID-19? The #UARK website has the most up-to-date information at https://health.uark.edu/coronavirus/.

Please note: Guidance from the CDC, Arkansas Department of Health and university may change rapidly given the fluidity of the situation.

CELEBRATING 50 YEARS OF ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE,
SOCIAL CONSCIOUSNESS AND GLOBAL EXPERIENCES

The African and African American Studies Program (AAST) at the University of Arkansas is an interdisciplinary program that expands on the core disciplines of a traditional liberal arts education. We explore the legacy of the African diaspora and African descended people's global experiences. We strive to advance social consciousness, promote equity, and support the highest level of academic excellence through critical and global thinking in the classroom and beyond. 

RQUEST INFO ABOUT AAST >LEARN MORE ABOUT AAST > READ STUDENT PROFILES >

 

Diversity ambassador students 

Undergraduate Second Major

There are a number of benefits to gain in pairing your core discipline with a second major in AAST.

View Requirements

 

AIM conference speaker 

Graduate Certificate

A number of graduate students complement their course of study with a graduate certifcate in African and African American Studies.

View Requirements

AIM participants  

AAST Minor

Consider taking a few AAST classes to round out your course load!

View Requirements



Dr. Valandra


MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR

Dr. Valandra

As we celebrate our 50th anniversary this year, the African and African American Studies program will continue to solidify its value as an integral asset to the University of Arkansas. You're invited to join in the celebration -- we have a number of special events in store over the course of the year. You can also learn a little about our history as a program at the University of Arkansas. 

 

RELIVING THE 2019 CIVIL RIGHTS BUS TOUR

 

The 2019 Civil Rights Bus Tour gave our students the opportunity to explore the origins, history, and legacies of the modern civil rights movement at many of the sites where this history was made. The experiential dimension of exploring and touring historical sites such as the Edmund Pettus Bridge, National Civil Rights Museum, Center for Civil and Human Rights, or the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church deepened participants understanding of the people, moments, events, and places that were vital to the Civil Rights Movement.

The heart of this experience was not the six-day bus tour during the Spring Break week, but the intentional conversations and reflection that happened prior and after the trip. We learned much from the transformational experience of viewing, engaging, exploring various sites, and interactions with people at places vital to the Civil Rights Movement.

DR. CAREE BANTON PUBLISHES NEW BOOK

Dr. Banton with colleagues at book celebration. Dr. Banton with husband at book celebration. 

In celebration of the release of Dr. Caree Banton's new book "More Auspicious Shores," African and African American Studies, the Honors College, and the history department co-hosted a book reception in her honor. 

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BOOK

 

News

Feature Story

Dedication ribbon cutting

Two residence halls in the Northwest Quad were named to honor University of Arkansas professors Margaret Clark and Gordon Morgan.

The first two African American professors at the University of Arkansas both began teaching in 1969. “Combined, Clark and Morgan put in 72 years on this campus,” Steinmetz said. “72 years of nurturing students, mentoring students, teaching students.”

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