Racial and ethnic
Undergraduate

Racial and Ethnic Studies

The minor in Racial and Ethnic Studies addresses how racial and ethnic categories are created, maintained, and transformed. Students will learn about race and ethnicity from different scholarly perspectives to develop a deeper understanding of these phenomena--an expectation that is essential part of a Catholic liberal arts education at Assumption.

The minor in Racial and Ethnic Studies uses interdisciplinary and comparative frameworks to understand the underlying social, cultural, and historical circumstances that impact the formation of racial and ethnic categories. As the United States becomes more racially and ethnically diverse the minor in Racial & Ethnic Studies pairs well with other majors and minors across Assumption, as employers in a wide range of fields appreciate graduates who understand these changes and work within increasingly diverse workforces.

Learning Objectives

  • Learn about scholarship that explains the formation, representation, and transformation of racial and ethnic categories in specific social and historical contexts.
  • Explore research that addresses the historical origins of the modern idea of race and of ethnic identities in the United States and other nations.
  • Examine how race and ethnicity shape contemporary socio-economic opportunities and outcomes, and are represented in different cultural genres such as literature, art, music, and visual media.
  • Address how questions of race and ethnicity relate to justice and social change through social movements, activism, and other forms of civic engagement in the US and abroad.
Program Contact
Steven D. Farough, Ph.D

Steven D. Farough, Ph.D

Associate Professor of Sociology, Director of Racial and Ethnic Studies
508-767-7242 Kennedy Memorial Hall - Room 214
Apr 16
2024
Senior Seminar Graphic Design Show
12:00 AM - 11:59 PM
D'alzon Library, Assumption University
May 11
2024
The Baccalaureate Mass
5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Plourde Recreation Center, Assumption University Campus
May 12
2024
The Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
DCU Center, 50 Foster Street, Worcester

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Program Curriculum

  • Minor Requirements:

    Students must complete a total of six courses, three of which must be taken beyond the student’s major requirements as specified in Assumption’s policy on the “double counting” of courses. Of the six courses, students must fulfill the following requirements to complete the minor:

    ●      One gateway course (HIS: 270 or SOC:  216)

    ●       One course in elective Literary and Artistic Perspectives on the Question of Race and Ethnicity area

    ●      One course in elective Historical and Social Scientific Perspectives on the Question of Race and Ethnicity area

    ●      Three courses in any of the elective areas

  • Electives:

    Literary and Artistic Perspectives on the Question of Race and Ethnicity

    ENG 287: Literature by American Women of Color

    ENG 379: Postcolonial Literature

    ENG 380: Images of Race in American Literature and Culture

    ENG 387: Survey of African American Literature

    CLT 256: Latino Voices

    LAS 200: Introduction to Latin American Studies

    MUS 125: World Music

    MUS 126: Global Pop

    SPA 231: Survey of Latin American Literature

    SPA 380: Latin American Chronicles

     

    Historical and Social Scientific Perspectives on the Question of Race and Ethnicity

    CRM 130: Introduction to the Criminal Justice System

    GLS 108: World Population Issues

    GLS 112: Introduction to Global Studies

    HIS 254: North American Indian

    HIS 255: From Contact To Casinos: Interactions With Indians In North America

    HIS 258: Colonial America

    HIS 269: The African American Dream

    HIS 359: Revolutionary America 1763-1815

    HIS 369: Civil War and Reconstruction in the US

    PSY 218: Cultural Psychology

    SOC 122: Social Problems

    SOC 206: Sociology of Urban Life

    SOC 232: Social Inequality in Society

    SOC 218: Social Movements

    WMS 385: Women of the World

     

    *SOC 216 and HIS 270 can be counted as an elective if students want to take both courses.

    *There is potential for other special topics courses to count towards an elective requirement for the minor. The Chair of the program must be contacted for approval.

     

    Course Catalog

Faculty

Steven D. Farough, Ph.D
Steven D. Farough, Ph.D
Director of Racial and Ethnic Studies Associate Professor of Sociology Director of Racial and Ethnic Studies
John Frederick Bell, Ph.D.
John Frederick Bell, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of History
Shahara B. Drew, Ph.D.
Shahara B. Drew, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Practice of English
Cinzia Pica, Ed.D.
Cinzia Pica, Ed.D.
Chair, Department of Health and Human Services Director of the Women’s Studies Program Professor, Human Services
Smriti Rao, Ph.D
Smriti Rao, Ph.D
Department Chair, Economics, Finance and Accounting Professor of Economics Global Studies Program Director

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