Peace Through Education
AAST 50th anniversary
 

Celebrating 50 Years at the University 

It is with great pleasure that we welcome you to join us in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the African and African American Studies program. In the spirit of Sankofa we have the opportunity to reflect on the past and honor the legacy of many visionary unsung heroes and pioneers who paved the way to a rigorous interdisciplinary program that promotes academic excellence.


As part of our 50th anniversary programming, we are pleased to partner with the Multicultural Center to offer students faculty, and staff a spring break civil rights trip throughout the south. We are also collaborating with the History department to provide a research colloquium featuring the scholarship of our 2018 graduate certificate fellows. Other events can be found on the AAST 2019 Events Calendar.

To learn more about the history of the program watch the History Project  by Molly Kinder, Rafael Arciga Garcia, and Shani Sullivan with an interview from Dr. Gordon Morgan: 


We invite you to join us in honoring the lives of the African and African American Studies trailblazers, to whom we are indebted for their efforts to break down barriers and their contributions to the many milestones the program has experienced over the past 50 years.

TRAILBLAZERS AND MILESTONES

1871 James McGahee – First Black student admitted to the University of Arkansas

1948 Silas Hunt – First Black student admitted to the School of Law

 

** 1950s - 1970’s | Era of Civil Rights for Racial Equality and Desegregation in America **

1955 Sociology Professor Dr. Gordan Morgan joins the University of Arkansas as a graduate student

1966 - 1970 Journalism Professor Gerald Jordan joins the University of Arkansas as a student

1969 Dr. Margaret Clark joins the faculty at the University of Arkansas teaching world languages

1969 Dr. Gordan Morgan joins the faculty at the University of Arkansas

1969 University of Arkansas creates a Black Studies Advisory Committee to consider the establishment of a Black Studies program

  • Black Studies Advisory Committee releases memo to initiate a Black Studies Program
  • Black Studies program begins in the fall semester of 1969 with 19 courses offered

1970s Student Organization – Black Americans for Democracy advocate for racial justice at the University of Arkansas

1972 Dr. Margaret Clark is appointed an assistant professor of secondary education in the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas

 

** 1980s – 2000’s | Era of growing consciousness of the African diaspora movement **

1990 The Edge of Campus: Journal of the Black Experience at the University of Arkansas by Dr. Gordan D. Morgan and Izola Preston published by the University of Arkansas Press

1994 Dr. Margaret Clark is appointed associate professor of secondary education in the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas.

2004 History Professor, Dr. Charles Robinson becomes the director of the African and African American Studies Program

2004 The University of Arkansas provides an infusion of resources to support the program

  • John White Scholarship established
  • Student RSO Sankofa established
  • Ghana study abroad tour developed

2008 The Black Studies program is renamed African and African American Studies

  • African and African American Studies program grows in course offerings and expands from 3 to 80 students

2010 African and African American Studies program initiates biennial summer study abroad program in Ghana

2011 African and African American Studies program formalizes its relationship with higher education in Ghana with a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of Cape Coast

2012 History Associate Professor, Dr. Calvin White becomes director of the African and African American Studies Program

2013 First cohort of joint-appointed faculty hired: Dr. Caree Banton (History), Dr. Brandon Jackson (Sociology & Criminology), Dr. Benjamin Fagan (English), and Dr. Valandra (Social Work)

2014 AAST moves to a new office space in pace in Memorial Hall with support from Provost Gabbard and Dean Todd Shields

2014 AAST 2023 (The African American Experience) added to the University Core

2015 Online Minor in African and African American Studies is established

2015 Graduate Certificate in African and African American Studies is established

 

2015 – 2017 | Political Science Associate Professor, Dr. Pearl Dowe and Social Work Professor Dr. Yvette Murphy-Erby serve as interim directors of the African and African American Studies Program

2016 Fall Lecture Series Scholar – Dr. Alan D. Morris – “The Scholar Denied: W.E.B. Du Bois and the Birth of Modern Sociology”

2016 First AAST Graduate Fellows Research Symposium

2016 Fall Lecture Series Scholar – Dr. Alan D. Morris – “The Scholar Denied: W.E.B. Du Bois and the Birth of Modern Sociology”

2017 First Alternative Spring Break Trip to the African American National History Museum in Washington, D.C.

2017 Multicultural Education in Elementary Schools Pilot Project

2017 - 2019 | Social Work Assistant Professor, Dr. Valandra is elected director of the
African and African American Studies Program

2017 Fall Lecture Series Scholar – Dr. Carol Anderson – “One Year Later: Where We Are Now and the Cultural Context Leading Up to the 2016 Presidential Election”

2018 Sociology & Criminology Assistant Professor, Dr. Brandon Jackson is hired as the Assistant Director of Student Recruitment, Retention, and Graduation in the African and African American Studies Program

2018 Dr. Roy S. Bryce-Laporte Endowed Scholarship established

2018 Fall Lecture Series Scholar – Nikole Hannah-Jones – “Understanding Modern Day Segregation”

2019 Civil Rights Bus Tour – Little Rock, AR, Memphis, TN, Birmingham, AL, Montgomery, AL, Selma, AL, Atlanta, GA

2019 Second AAST Graduate Fellows Research Symposium

2019 The University of Arkansas Board of Trustees vote to rename residence halls B and C in the Northwest Quad in honor of Dr. Gordon Morgan and Dr. Margaret Clark respectively. 

*To date, AAST has awarded over $500,000 in scholarships 
to deserving students.