Department of Pan African Studies
Welcome to Kent State University's Department of Pan-African Studies (DPAS). The Department is located in Oscar Ritchie Hall (ORH), an academic building named in honor of the first African-American Professor employed in the state of Ohio's system of Higher Education.
Oscar Ritchie Hall is the hub of academic life for African-Americans and other students at Kent State. ORH is student-friendly and student-centered, containing a modern computer lab with broadband Internet accessibility; student lounges and meeting places; lecture halls, classrooms, the Uumbaji Art Gallery; the Center for Pan-African Culture; the African Community Theater; the Institute for African-American Affairs; and faculty and staff offices.
Mission
The Department of Pan-African Studies has a dual mission. Its academic mission is to offer a comprehensive, holistic, Afrocentric academic curriculum grounded in the knowledge base, cultural norms, traditions, and general experiences of the diverse groups of people of African descent, who are found on the continent of Africa and throughout the African Diaspora. The DPAS curriculum is multidisciplined and interdisciplinary. DPAS offers a major and minor that cuts across the humanities, fine arts, and social sciences. Also, the Department of Pan-African Studies provides support to the Liberal Education Requirement (General Education) Curriculum with faculty and its core courses.
To visit the Department of Pan-African Studies website click here
Oscar Ritchie Hall is the hub of academic life for African-Americans and other students at Kent State. ORH is student-friendly and student-centered, containing a modern computer lab with broadband Internet accessibility; student lounges and meeting places; lecture halls, classrooms, the Uumbaji Art Gallery; the Center for Pan-African Culture; the African Community Theater; the Institute for African-American Affairs; and faculty and staff offices.
Mission
The Department of Pan-African Studies has a dual mission. Its academic mission is to offer a comprehensive, holistic, Afrocentric academic curriculum grounded in the knowledge base, cultural norms, traditions, and general experiences of the diverse groups of people of African descent, who are found on the continent of Africa and throughout the African Diaspora. The DPAS curriculum is multidisciplined and interdisciplinary. DPAS offers a major and minor that cuts across the humanities, fine arts, and social sciences. Also, the Department of Pan-African Studies provides support to the Liberal Education Requirement (General Education) Curriculum with faculty and its core courses.
To visit the Department of Pan-African Studies website click here
