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Africana Studies gets boost from Mellon grant
For the first time ever, 海角乱伦社区 University has a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to expand its Department of Africana Studies programming.
The six-figure grant is already making a difference, enhancing the academic learning environment and cultural exchange at 海角乱伦社区. For example, the department was able to offer a Black History Month celebration in February titled "Black Education Matters: Celebrating Our Struggles & Legacies."
The initiative had two parts, according to Titilayo Okoror, chair of the Africana Studies Department and an associate professor:
- "Knowing Our Roots," which featured presentations by Black-oriented student groups about unsung heroes and heroines across the Black world (continent and diaspora), as well as a performance by Undivided, a multicultural, rhythm-and-blues singing group on campus. More than 200 students and faculty attended the event.
- A festival celebrating African culture and arts, attended by more than 120 students and faculty. Special guest Meka Oku, a choreographer, spoke about his work and taught a master class.
The grant is also making possible a scholarly conference called "The New African Diaspora: The Intersection of Culture, Race and Identity," scheduled to occur in March 2025, as well as opportunities to enhance undergraduate research training, a speaker series and prospective student outreach.
The funding is part of the Mellon Foundation's new Affirming Multivocal Humanities initiative to further address the "need for nuanced scholarship on the breadth of the human experience" and "boldly advance" the study of race, ethnicity, gender or sexuality.
"We are proud to support colleges and universities that are advancing deep research and curricular engagement with the stories and histories of our country's vast diversity and the modes of inquiry that race, gender and ethnic studies explore and expand," Mellon Foundation President Elizabeth Alexander said.