TCNJ

19 SPRING 2023 in the department and the others cross-listed with a variety of departments, including English and sociology. These faculty members — Gloria Harper Dickinson, Donald T. Evans, and Stephen Chukumba, among others — worked for decades to strengthen the discipline at TCNJ and move it out of obscurity. The college's African American studies faculty members have typically been appointed to other areas of the college, and this split has meant slower devel- opment due to faculty commitment loads. And, because the department is interdisciplinary, the curriculum has been pieced together from various areas to provide students with broad training. Hence, two history courses — African American History to 1865 and African American History: 1865 to Present — have stood in as the introductory courses until Adair sought to change that. Over the decades, faculty shaped the classes that did exist with their expertise, such as Dickinson's focus on Black women, Chukumba's command of history, and Evans' specialty in the arts. The push for an official major started in the early 2000s, and faculty worked tirelessly until it was approved and offered in 2016. "The major represents the dream of all of those in our past who were dedicated to the significance of Black people's experiences in the story of our world," Williams says. Today, the African American studies depart- ment consists of six scholars and is the smallest depart- ment in the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at 2006 Keith and Kenny Lucas '07 learn about civil rights activist Fred Hampton in a TCNJ African American studies class. (They later turned the story into a 2021 Oscar-nominated film, Judas and the Black Messiah.) 2016 African American studies becomes a major at TCNJ. 2017 TCNJ students uncover Paul Loser's ties to segregation and launch campaign to remove his name from a campus building. It is renamed Trenton Hall. "The major represents the dream of all of those in our past who were dedicated to the significance of Black people's experiences in the story of our world." — Piper Kendrix Williams 2022 TCNJ adopts a five-year strategy that outlines the college's road map for achieving its diversity, equity, and inclusion goals. Facing page: The Library of Congress @ Flickr Commons; James Chambers '74; The Seal. This page: UPI/Wikimedia Commons; TCNJ Committee on Unity; The Trentonian; TCNJ

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