Faculty at Princeton are working to establish an Asian American Studies certificate program by September, reports the Daily Princetonian.
A certificate program at Princeton is similar to a minor at other universities and will allow students to supplement their major with an additional concentration. It’s been a project in the works for at least two decades. In 1996 students staged a 35 hour sit-in to demand the establishment of a program.
“I know that our faculty is working hard on developing the curriculum for a certificate, and that the administration is very supportive,” said Judith Ferszt, Program Manager of American Studies. “Everyone’s goal is to have a certificate in place by September 2018.”
According to the Princetonian, this is all part of an effort to turn American Studies into a full-fledged program with a collaborative center that would house Asian American and Latino Studies.
African American Studies was created at the university in 1970 followed by Women’s Studies in 1982.
“It’s a battle. It’s a constant battle. Everything is a battle,” said English Professor Anne Cheng, who has been at the forefront of the movement since she arrived at Princeton in 1997. “When I get tired, I think about my students. It’s an obligation that we have to our students to provide the opportunity.”
Work to develop a curriculum, finding sources of funding and establishing a physical space for a collaborative center remains a work in progress.
Ferszt promised if the September deadline for an Asian American Studies certificate program is not met, it will happen a bit later.
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