Author: Cordelia Kenney
After an online petition created by Former Black Student Alliance (BSA) President Brandi Locke ’13 acquired several hundred signatures last February, student support for the creation of a Black/Africana Studies major seems to have simmered.
Dean Jorge Gonzalez, who has been with the college since 2010, said that the slow process in the creation of a major has been an issue on the table every year since he has been at Occidental. In an article published last February about the petition, Gonzalez indicated that the creation of a new major is no quick, easy process, but that the College is invested in its construction.
“The academic world moves slowly because we are very, very careful about what we do,” Gonzalez said in the article. “The fact that it doesn’t happen in a month doesn’t mean that the college lacks an interest in it. The fact that it takes two years is precisely because the College wants to get it right.”
Although students and faculty have demonstrated a commitment to creating the Black/Africana Studies program, most new majors usually begin as a minor, as was the case with the Latino/Latina Studies major introduced in Fall 2012. The administration can more easily assess the student body’s interest in the subject if it begins as a minor. If sizable interest is demonstrated, the minor can be expanded into a major.
According to Gonzalez, the creation process normally starts with conversations between students and faculty. Both groups must then collaborate to create a cohesive curriculum and develop the structure of the major. The faculty brings this proposal to Gonzalez and continues to work through conversations with department chairs to work out any issues in methodology or structure, according to Gonzalez. The Academic Planning Committee (APC) then reviews the proposal, makes suggestions for revisions and sends the proposal back to the faculty. The entire faculty then votes to form a majority opinion and from there, the major is either declined or pushed forward in the process.
“The APC takes its job very seriously,” Gonzalez said. “There is no administrative barrier to getting the program going.”
Submitting the proposal is the first stage of the process. The administration cannot move forward in the process without it.
“Unfortunately there has not yet been a concrete proposal, but I am eager to see a complete [one],” Gonzalez said. “My recommendation is to get students and faculty to come together.”
Gonzalez expressed his confidence in the success of the program, so long as enough support can be gathered to push it forward in the proposal process. He further recommends looking at similar programs at other comparable colleges to assess what works and what does not work.
“Fortunately, we already have enough courses for a robust program,” Gonzalez said.
As of Wednesday, the petition is [still live] and requires 126 more signatures to reach BSA’s goal of 500. But more than signatures are required to effectuate this program. As Gonzalez indicated, the inception of new programs is no small deal. The creation of a new major can cost a considerable amount including the hiring of new faculty.
“We don’t want to create 150 programs that are all underfunded and small,” Gonzalez said. “At least for a minor, we seem to have enough resources at the College to make it happen.”
Although both faculty and students have vocalized passion and dedication for a Black/Africana Studies program, the success of the major at Occidental appears to require them to work pragmatically.
“This is a topic very dear to me and I hope that we can achieve some success with it,” Gonzalez said.
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