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African & African American Studies

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Welcome to the African and African American Studies Department!

AFAM courses are exciting, challenging and offer students (from all racial and ethnic backgrounds) the opportunity to hear and discuss important content, essential to Africa and the African American experience, in a constructive learning environment. Students are exposed to different theoretical approaches, typically taught in Black Studies. All students should emerge from the program with a clearer understanding of African-centered thought, as well as alternative paradigms articulated within the discipline.

In the 1960s, at the inception of the Black Studies discipline, Black Studies serviced both the campus and the community. Here at OU, we aim to facilitate dialogue between those on campus and in the community via education and civic engagement.

African & African American courses are stimulating, thought provoking, and interdisciplinary. Courses in this program offer students from all racial and ethnic backgrounds the opportunity to hear and discuss important content, essential to Africa and the African American experience in a constructive learning environment.

Summer 2024 Courses

The following courses will be offered online:

  • Africa and the Diaspora (AFAM 2113-995, CRN: 26081)
  • African American Health Issues (AFAM 4423-995, CRN: 18912)
  • Intro - African & AFAM Studies (AFAM 2003-995, CRN: 21551)
  • Intro to African Aesthetics (AFAM 3133-995, CRN: 22869, and CRN: 23456)

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Clara Luper

Photo of Clara Luper

Clara Mae Shepard Luper was born in 1923 in rural Okfuskee County, Oklahoma. Her father, Ezell Shepard, was a World War I veteran and laborer, and her mother, Isabell Shepard, worked as a laundress. As a child, she was raised in Hoffman, Oklahoma.  She went to high school in the all-black town of Grayson, Oklahoma. In 1944, she received a B.A. in mathematics with a minor in history from Langston  University. In 1950, Luper was one of a group of black students who integrated the University of Oklahoma, where she received an M.A. in  History Education in 1951.

In 1957, as Clara Luper worked as a history teacher at Dunjee High School (east of Oklahoma City), she also became the advisor for the Oklahoma City NAACP Youth Council. At this time, she was deeply influenced by the  success of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Known as the “Mother of the Oklahoma Civil Rights Movement,” from  1958 to 1964, Luper mentored members of the NAACP Youth Council during its campaign to end the  segregation of public accommodations in Oklahoma City through sit-ins, protests and boycotts. While instrumental in leading the fight to end  segregation in Oklahoma, Luper also led campaigns in Oklahoma City to gain equal banking rights, employment opportunities, open housing and voting rights. 

 


 

Career Opportunities

Majoring in African and African American Studies challenges students with a high level of critical thinking encouraging the growth of knowledge beyond the bounds of the traditional college program. Learning about and tackling important societal issues such as poverty and healthcare provides an understanding that will allow a graduate to stand out to potential employers.

Graduates of the program have continued to graduate study, and/or have been employed in the following areas:

  • Education
  • Historical Studies
  • Journalism
  • Law
  • Business Administration
  • Social Justice and Community Activist Organizations 
  • Local and State Politics
  • Nonprofit Organizations
  • Social Services
  • Creative Arts and Digital Media
  • Archives and Museum Studies
  • and more.....

All students should emerge from the program with a clearer understanding of African-centered thought, as well as alternative paradigms articulated within the discipline.