FIU African and African Diaspora Studies

M.A. Program

African-New World Studies

Master of Arts in African-New World Studies

The M.A. in African-New World Studies provides interdisciplinary, graduate level training with three areas of emphasis: 1. Pedagogy of the African Diaspora, 2. National and Transnational Policy Analysis, and 3. Cultural Studies. This M.A. program develops scholars with specific skills, research methodologies, principles, and knowledge which will lead to professional positions in a range of fields as it simultaneously prepares them for further study at the doctoral level. The M.A. in African-New World Studies is international in orientation; as such, its geographic reach is Africa, the Caribbean, North and South America, Europe and Asia. Conceptually, it embraces the African Diaspora. FIU provides one of the few truly international, multidisciplinary M.A. models among African Studies programs, departments and centers nationally. The M. A. in African-New World Studies is organized to develop research interests and models, advance knowledge, and develop interactive and comparative relationships with similar programs which pursue the life, cultural and social formations, economics, education, language, expressive and performing arts, governmental and other institutional systems, of peoples of African descent wherever they exist. The M.A. in African-New World Studies provides students with some specific skills, knowledge and resources to:

1. Work in specific programs and units related to African communities in Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, the United States, Europe, Asia; international organizations; multi-cultural curriculum development and teaching and other educational contexts; race and social and public policy; journalism and other fields.

2. Prepare students to use and develop theoretical, analytical, and methodological approaches to critical issues such as those pertaining to race and ethnicity in all their manifestations; development and underdevelopment; technology; relations of domination and power; environmental policies; health and wellness; issues of self-determination and mutual cooperation, and all aspects of aesthetic / creative expression.

3. Create new knowledge through research and close study of relevant communities and disseminate this knowledge to the various communities we serve.

4. Understand and confront the unique socioeconomic problems facing communities of Africa and the African Diaspora.

5. Develop skills that incorporate the following theoretical and analytical frameworks into an intellectual, policy, and research agenda: a) "Resistance and Struggle," b) "Nationalities and National/Post National Identities," C) "Migration and Identity/Geographical Repositioning," d) "History, Culture, Performative and Expressive Modes," and e) "Schooling, Pedagogical and Instructional Practices, and Educational Policies”, and “Development”.

Admission Requirements

Each applicant to the African-New World Studies Graduate Program must complete an online graduate application form and arrange to send transcripts of all prior college (undergraduate and graduate) work and official reports of the Graduate Records Exam (GRE) and TOEFL (if applicable) to the FIU's Office of Graduate Admissions. Each applicant should also send a separate letter of application to the director of the African-New World Studies Graduate Program, along with copies of the above material. The letter of application should include a statement expressing the applicant's academic and professional objectives and the choice of the applicant for enrolling in either one of the three areas of specialization. Applicants are strongly encouraged to include examples of academic or other relevant professional work that may support their application. Applicants must request two letters of recommendation from professors able to comment on their academic ability. The letters of recommendation should be sent directly to the Director of the African-New World Graduate Program.
The application file must be complete before the African-New World Studies Graduate Committee will consider the applicant for admission. The deadline for receipt of application--including all supporting materials and letters of recommendation--is March 15th. To be admitted into the African-New World Studies Graduate Program a student must meet the University's graduate admission requirements, which can be found in Florida International University's Graduate Catalog and the following minimum standards:

1. Applicants must have a baccalaureate degree from an accredited college or university.

2. Applicants must have an undergraduate grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or higher and a combined score of 1000 or higher on the verbal and quantitative sections of the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Applicants must submit both grade transcripts and GRE scores for consideration. The student must also have a GPA of 3.5 on any previous graduate work.

3. Applicants should request that two letters of recommendation from individuals able to judge a student's academic potential be sent directly to Graduate Director of African-New World Studies, Florida International University, Academic One-162, 3000 North East 151st Street, North Miami, Florida 33181.

4. Applicants are encouraged to submit examples of written work and other supporting materials.

5. International graduate student applicants whose native language is not English are required to submit a score for the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) or for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). A total score of 80 on the IBT TOEFL or 6.3 overall on the IELTS is required.

Financial Aid

Each academic year a limited number of graduate students are hired as graduate assistants. Graduate assistantships are allocated on a competitive basis and typically pay a substantial portion of tuition expenses and provide a stipend. To be considered for an assistantship the applicant must make such a request in writing to the Graduate Program Director. The Graduate Program Committee will make the awarding of teaching assistantships. Students receiving an assistantship are required to perform approximately 20 hours of teaching and research related duties per week and are required to participate in a one-hour seminar related to teaching.

Graduation Requirements

Candidates must obtain a grade of “B” or higher in all courses and achieve a cumulative average of at least 3.0 (based on a 4.0 scale) and present a satisfactory internship (with research paper) or thesis. A Thesis committee or an Internship Research Project committee composed of at least three FIU graduate faculty members will guide the student through successful completion of the thesis or internship (with research paper).
The FIU faculty eligible to serve in a Thesis or Internship Research Project committee are the faculty members who have achieved graduate faculty standing from the office of the Dean of the University Graduate School at FIU. Other non-FIU faculty not identified in that list may be considered to serve on a committee based on research, identified interest, and publications (see the Graduate Director or Director of ANWS) upon approval of the Dean of the University Graduate School.
Before the end of a student's first year in the program, he/she should form a thesis or internship research project committee. This committee will consist of a Chairperson and two additional members. The Committee Chairperson and one other committee member must be Graduate Faculty of the African-New World Studies Program. The remaining committee member will generally be a graduate faculty member at FIU, although with the approval of the Committee Chairperson and the Graduate Director, the third member may come from outside the ANWS Program ("Core Faculty") or University. Internship Research projects as well as Thesis research are usually performed during the first summer of enrollment in the program. Internships Research Projects are options available to students who specialize in any of the three M.A. tracks – Cultural, Pedagogy of the African Diaspora, National and Transnational Policy Analysis. Internships projects are ALWAYS accompanied by a research paper of at least 25 pages.
The thesis will be between 70 and 100 pages. The research paper linked to an internship generally will be between 25 and 50 pages.
A thesis or research paper may be based on secondary or primary sources. In any case it will be based on scholarly sources defined by particular disciplines. While thesis and research papers need not be based on original data collected by the student, they must be rigorous and original. By rigorous, we mean that the thesis/research paper must be tightly argued and logical, well-written and well-organized. By original, we mean that the thesis cannot simply summarize the arguments or work of others. It must have the student's unique interpretation, which should be cogent--given the data under consideration.

Required Credits (for all Specializations)

Three (3) credits [core course], six (6) credits of thesis/research project or internship and twenty-seven (27) credits selected according to one’s specialization. (See below for specifics for specialization requirements).

Total: 36 credit hours
Core Course (For all specializations)

AFA 5002

African-New World Studies: Theory and Methods Graduate Seminar (offered every Fall semester)

Language Requirement (For all specializations)
Students will be asked to demonstrate proficiency in a language according to the nature of their internship or thesis/research project and professional interests. Credit hours earned in meeting language requirement will not count towards the 36 credit hours required for the degree.

AFA 6920

Graduate Colloquium

Students must register for one credit for three consecutive semesters and attend all symposia, conferences, colloquia, and lectures sponsored by the program and write response papers on each event to be submitted to the Program Director.

Specializations

I. Pedagogy of the African Diaspora

Liaisons – Linda Spears-Bunton, (English Education), College of Education & Mohamed Farouk, (Social Studies Education), College of Education

This specialization addresses the need for multi-cultural education with a specific emphasis on training personnel to be knowledgeable about African and African Diaspora materials. The national and international rise of multi-cultural studies and interests in the area of education makes this program marketable to a range of educational interests. Targeted as well to meet the needs of teacher training in light of the Florida State Legislation (s233.061) which mandates the teaching of African American history across the curriculum, our students will be prepared to play leadership roles in the development of an international consciousness of educational contexts, facilities, curricula, inside and outside of the United States. This specialization will help students teach and develop instructional materials in the area of urban education as well as for other students of different ethnicities; facilitate transmission of pedagogical materials on the African Diaspora; and develop cross and intra-cultural methodologies. Students must display cultural and linguistic fluency. Students in this specialization may participate in an Internship with an appropriate institution/organization that will culminate in a Research Project for 6 credit hours.

Thesis or Internship (6 credit hours)

Required Courses (6 credit hours)

AFA 5107	Teachers’ Institute
AFA 6325	Pedagogy of the African Diaspora: Literacy, Culture, Race & Gender Issues

Students must take three courses (9 credit hours) from the list below based on availability of faculty and courses. Students should consult with the graduate program director since new courses are frequently added and special topic courses sometimes concern the African Diaspora.

EDF 5820	Latin American Education
EDF 5821	African Educational Systems: A Comparative Approach
EDF 5881	Foundations of Bilingual Education
LAE 5465	Adolescent Literature
LAE 5466	Multicultural Perspectives in Language & Literature
LIN 5603	Language Planning: Linguistic Minority Issues
SSE 6394	Social Studies in Other Nations
SSE 6925	Workshop in Social Studies Education

From the list below, students must take three courses (9 credit hours). Students may take no more than one course in one given discipline.

LIT 5359	African Diaspora Women Writers
LIT 5358	Black Literature and Literacy/Cultural Theory
LIN 5934	Pidgins and Creoles
LIT 5487	Major African-American Writers
LIT 6934	Black Literature & Cultural Theory
AFH 5905	Readings in African History
AFH 5935	Topics in African History
INR 5086	Islam in International Relations
INR 5255	Seminar in African Development
INR 6936	Seminar in Inter-American Politics
FRE 5508	La Francophonie
HAI 5235	Haitian Creole Seminar
HAI 5xxx	Haiti, Language and Culture
SPW 6368	19th Century Spanish-Caribbean Literature
SPN 5536	Afro-Cuban Culture
MUH 5025	History of Popular Music in the United States
MUH 5067	Music of the Caribbean
CPO 6206	Seminar in African Politics
REL 5122	African-American Religion
REL 5372	African Spirituality
REL 5384	Rasta, Voodoo, Santeria
REL 5488	Theology and Liberation Movements
ANG 5397	Advanced African Diaspora Cultures and Performativity
ANG 5396	Representation of Africa and Africans in Films
ANT 6319	The African Diaspora: Anthropological Perspectives
SYD 6705	Race and Ethnicity
SYP 6734	Seminar: Ethnic Minority Aging in U.S.
WOH 5236	The Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Making of the African Diaspora, 1441-1807
WOH 5237	The African Diaspora Since the End of the Slave Trade

II. National and Transnational Policy Analysis

Liaison - Valerie Patterson, (College of Social Work, Justice, and Public Affairs) & Dionne Stephens (Psychology & African-New World Studies)

Courses will focus on the examination and analysis of National and Transnational Policies relevant to African people in Black urban and rural communities, national and international contexts. Emphasis will be placed on a) leadership training for governmental and non-governmental agencies; b) the development of economic policies, competencies, structures, and strategies for economic development; c) the examination of environmental issues, health policies, wellness and a variety of community practices; and d) the evaluation of current policies that affect black communities internationally. Students in this specialization may participate in an Internship with an appropriate institution/organization that will culminate in a Research Project for 6 credit hours.

Thesis or Internship (6 credit hours)

Required Courses (12 credits)

AFA 5600	National and Transnational Policy Analysis: Africa and the Diaspora (must be taken in the fall of the 2nd year of enrollment after PAD 5256 and URS 6028)
SYA 6305	Research Methods I
PAD 6053	Political, Social & Economic Context of Public Administration
URS 6028	Policy Analysis & Program Planning (Prerequisite: PAD 5256)

Students must take two courses (6 credit hours) from the list below based on availability of faculty and courses:

CPO 5325	Politics of the Caribbean
CPO 6206	Seminar in African Politics
INR 5087	Ethnicity and the Politics of Development
INR 5255	Seminar in African Development
INR 5607	International Relations and Development
INR 6056	Environment and Development
INR 6089	International Relations and Human Rights
SYD 6705	Comparative Analysis of Ethnicity and Race
SYD 6236	International Migration and Refugees
SYP 5447	Sociology of International Development
SYP 6306	Comparative Social Movements
INR 5315	Foreign Policy Analysis

Students must take two courses (6 credit hours) from the list below based on availability of faculty and courses. Students should consult the graduate program director since new courses are frequently added, and special topic courses sometimes concern Africa and the African Diaspora.

LIT 5359	African Diaspora Women Writers
LIT 5358	Black Literature and Literacy/Cultural Theory
LIN 5934	Pidgins and Creoles
LIT 5487	Major African-American Writers
LIT 6934	Black Literature & Cultural Theory
AFH 5905	Readings in African History
AFH 5935	Topics in African History
INR 5086	Islam in International Relations
INR 6936	Seminar in Inter-American Politics
FRE 5508	La Francophonie
HAI 5235	Haitian Creole Seminar
HAI 5xxx	Haiti, Language and Culture
SPW 6368	19th Century Spanish-Caribbean Literature
SPN 5536	Afro-Cuban Culture
MUH 5025	History of Popular Music in the United States
MUH 5067	Music of the Caribbean
CPO 6206	Seminar in African Politics
REL 5122	African-American Religion
REL 5372	African Spirituality
REL 5384	Rasta, Voodoo, Santeria
REL 5488	Theology and Liberation Movements
ANG 5397	Advanced African Diaspora Cultures and Performativity
ANG 5396	Representation of Africa in Films
ANT 6319	The African Diaspora: Anthropological Perspectives
SYD 6705	Race and Ethnicity
SYP 6734	Seminar: Ethnic Minority Aging in U.S.
WOH 5236	The Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Making of the African Diaspora, 1441-1807
WOH 5237	The African Diaspora Since the End of the Slave Trade

III. Cultural Studies

Liaisons – Jean Rahier, (Sociology/Anthropology & African-New World Studies), & Augusto Soledade, (Dance)

Students working in this area will be exposed to the study, research, practice and performance, and analysis of cultural formations in the African Diaspora. Interdisciplinary in structure, fields such as dance, music, literature, art, cinema studies, language, science, and other related areas will be studied. Students will critically analyze issues of a) colonialism, global imperialism, and capitalism and their effects on Africans and peoples of African descent internationally, and b) strategies, traditions and methods of resistance to the same. Courses will involve comparative studies of African communities in Africa, the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America, and Europe, and other areas of the African Diaspora will be examined; critical reading of cultural manifestations, identities, and practices; analysis of dynamics between traditions and social transformations.

Thesis or Internship (6 credit hours)

Required Courses (15 credit hours)

ANT 6319	The African Diaspora: Anthropological Perspectives
LIT 5487	Black Literature and Cultural Theory
REL 5384	Rasta, Voodoo, Santeria
LIN 5934	Pidgins and Creoles
WOH 5236	The Transatlantic Slave Trade and the Making of the African Diaspora,1441-1807

From the list below, students must take three courses (9 credit hours) based on availability of faculty and courses. Students may take no more than one course in one given discipline. Students should consult with the graduate program director since new courses are frequently added, and special topic courses sometimes concern the African Diaspora.

LIT 5359	African Diaspora Women Writers
LIT 5487	Major African-American Writers
LIT 6934	Black Literature & Cultural Theory
AFH 5905	Readings in African History
AFH 5935	Topics in African History
INR 5086	Islam in International Relations
INR 6936	Seminar in Inter-American Politics
FRE 5508	La Francophonie
HAI 5235	Haitian Creole Seminar
HAI 5xxx	Haiti, Language and Culture
SPW 6368	19th Century Spanish-Caribbean Literature
SPN 5536	Afro-Cuban Culture
MUH 5067	Music of the Caribbean
CPO 6206	Seminar in African Politics
REL 5122	African-American Religion
REL 5372	African Spirituality
REL 5488	Theology and Liberation Movements
ANG 5397	Advanced African Diaspora Cultures and Performativity
ANG 5396	Representation of Africa in Films
SYD 6705	Race and Ethnicity
SYP 6734	Seminar: Ethic Minority Aging in U.S.
WOH 5237	The African Diaspora Since the End of the Slave Trade

Course Descriptions

Definition of Prefixes
AFA-African-New World Studies

AFA 5002 African-New World Studies: Theory and Methods (3). A study of the major ideas, thinkers, theories, and communities of African Diaspora scholarship. Research methodology in African Diaspora Studies. Prerequisites: Graduate standing or ANWS Certificate.

AFA 5107 Teaching the African-American Experience. (3). Teachers Institute on literature, culture, history, politics designed to meet Florida State Teachers Certification requirements. Includes instruction on pedagogy, practical teaching methods, and FCAT.

AFA 5341 Health Issues in the African World (3). Examination of the history of the biomedicine system and its relationship to African populations, and the evolution of this relationship with respect to disease in the contemporary world. The course is organized to promote awareness of the impact of culture, ethnicity, racism, class on public health research.

AFA 5600 National and Transnational Policy Analysis: The African Diaspora (3). Analysis of national and transnational policies as they directly relate and impact the African Diaspora. Prerequisite: Graduate Standing.

AFA 5932 Special Topics in African-New World Studies (3). An examination of different features of African-New World Studies not normally offered in the basic curriculum or otherwise offered. May be repeated. Prerequisite: Graduate Standing.

AFA 5934 Special Topics in Black Transnationalism (3). A course designed to give groups of students special studies in the black experience transnationally. Prerequisite: Graduate Standing.

AFA 6905 Independent Study (0-6). Student generated research projects in African-New World Studies. Independent investigation, reports on individual and assigned reading with ANWS core and affiliated faculty.

AFA 6920 African-New World Studies Graduate Colloquium (1). Colloquia, symposia, lectures, conferences presented by faculty, visiting scholars, and graduate students on topics of current research interest. May be repeated with departmental approval. Prerequisites: Graduate standing, graduate advisor approval.

AFA 6940 Community Project/Internship Research in African-New World Studies (1-6). Qualitative and quantitative research using a variety of sources. Research projects conducted in the field by students under faculty supervision. May be repeated with departmental approval. Prerequisites: Graduate standing, graduate advisor approval.

AFA 6971 Thesis Research in African-New World Studies (1-6). Quantitative and qualitative research using a variety of sources, e.g. primary and secondary documents, filed research under faculty supervision. May be repeated with departmental approval. Prerequisites: Graduate standing, graduate advisor approval.

LAH 5465 Peoples, Culture and Politics of Haiti (3). Advanced study of the cultures and history of the Haitian people from Africa to the New World, including life, cultures of the Indians of the Caribbean: Taino, Arawak and Caribs.