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Founded alongside BC鈥檚 鈥淏lack Talent Program,鈥� two parts of an effort to recruit talented Black students from across the country to study at this university. This program was a direct response to Father General Pedro Arupe鈥檚 1968 鈥淚nter-Racial Apostolate鈥� letter to Jesuit Colleges and universities and a consequence of discussions begun in 1967 between then BC President Michael Walsh, S.J. and Boston community leaders Mel King and Bryant Rollins.

The Black Studies Program was part of an academic initiative to bring more African American students to the university and to make its undergraduate curriculum more broadly reflect a range of intellectual and critical perspectives. With these efforts, BC became one of the first major universities in the United States to establish Black Studies as integral to its academic curriculum.

Mrs. Houston laid the groundwork for the Black Studies minor, established in 1985, and鈥搃n large part鈥揻or the structure, goals, and mission of today鈥檚 program.聽

In 1983 the Black Studies Program鈥搃n partnership with the Museum of Afro-American History and the Boston Public Schools鈥搃nitiated the first in a successful series of 鈥淏lacks in Boston鈥� conferences that examined the social, political, and cultural issues faced by the different ethnic groups and organizations that have made up Boston鈥檚 鈥淏lack鈥� community. This and other outreach efforts helped develop closer connections between BC students and the wider Boston community.

His directorship was defined by an expanded focus on the Caribbean. The 1996 鈥淏lacks in Boston鈥� Conference featured Boston鈥檚 Afro-Caribbean connections and, with Prof. Taylor鈥檚 encouragement, students and community members made greater use of the John J. Burns Library鈥檚 Caribbeana and Nicholas M. Williams Ethnological Collections on Caribbean politics and culture.

Under Professor Young鈥檚 leadership the Program grew to include faculty jointly appointed with the departments of English, History, Romance Languages and Literatures, and Theology; its network of affiliate faculty grew exponentially and the minor鈥檚 curricular offerings were expanded to approximately 40 courses per year.聽

This change reflected the minor鈥檚 broadened focus on Africa and its world-wide diaspora. Central to AADS鈥檚 renewed focus are the 鈥溌爄n African Diaspora Studies Lecture Series,鈥� highlighting new AADS research by national and international scholars and creative writers, and the 鈥溌燣ecture Series鈥� that features presentations by BC scholars.

Professor Frederick is committed to initiatives begun by Professor Cynthia Young, Professor Frank Taylor, as well as Mrs. Amanda V. Houston, while forging new connections with Boston鈥檚 African Diaspora communities, joining forces with the New England area and international Africana Studies programs, and increasing AADS鈥檚 profile within BC academic and intellectual communities.

Notable Accomplishments:

• Successfully proposed a cluster hire initiative to search for four new assistant professors in AADS in 2023-2024.
• Created the template for an AADS independent major that would go on to serve as the basis for a proposed regular major, which was approved by the Educational Policy Committee in 2023.
• Secured permanent funding for the biannual Blacks in Boston Conference from the MCAS Dean's Office.

Notable Accomplishments:

• Cultivated student engagement with social justice and the common good.
• Worked in collaboration with the core faculty and submitted the AADS major proposal, which was approved by the Educational Policy Committee as a pilot in 2019.
• Shepherded the program through the first year of the pandemic by holding virtual spaces to bring the AADS community together.
  

Lorelle Semley joined us from the College of Holy Cross where she was affiliated with the History Department and the Africana Studies Program. She became the Director of the African and African Diaspora Studies Program at Boston College in July 2023.聽 She teaches over 4,000 years of African history from ancient Egypt to the latest news. By necessity, her courses are interdisciplinary, incorporating archaeology, anthropology, literature, film, and even You Tube videos. Her own research on modern West Africa, French imperialism, gender, and the Atlantic world also draws upon diverse source materials, far-flung archives, and multiple theoretical frameworks.