Department of History, Political Science, Geography, and Africana Studies

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Adebayo Oyebade, Ph.D., Department Chair
410 Hubert Crouch Hall (Graduate Building)
Telephone 615-963-5506

Purpose

The Department of History, Political Science, Geography, and Africana Studies seeks to expand students’ awareness of their world, its history, and its political institutions. The Department offers general education courses for all students of the University, minor concentrations in each of its four disciplines, and full undergraduate degree programs in History and Political Science.

Admission and Retention

The undergraduate degree in History is a Bachelor of Arts degree, which means that History majors complete at least one foreign language at the intermediate level. The undergraduate degree in Political Science is a Bachelor of Science degree and does not include the requirement of a foreign language. Students pursuing either degree must obtain a grade of C or better in all courses used to satisfy major requirements. The minor in Geography consists of 18 hours, including physical, systematic, and regional geography courses. The minor in Africana Studies consists of 18 hours. The minimum grade point average for receiving a baccalaureate degree is 2.0.

Pre-Law Studies

Although any major is acceptable for law school, Political Science and History are the most popular majors among all students entering law school. Our classes provide excellent preparation for law school, both for Political Science and History majors, as well as for students in other disciplines considering law school. Students interested in law school should take courses that help to develop their analytical and communication skills. In addition to Political Science and History courses, upper-level courses in English, Philosophy, and Business are highly recommended. Students who are interested in law specific courses should consider the following Political Science courses: POLI 4210 - Judicial Process (3) ; POLI 4300 - Introduction to American Law (3) ; POLI 4310 - Constitutional Law: The Federal Government and Separation of Powers (3) ; POLI 4320 - Constitutional Law: The Bill of Rights (3) ; POLI 4340 - Legal Research and Writing (3) ; and POLI 4350 - International Law (3) . Students interested in pursuing law school should meet with TSU’s pre-law advisor, who can be reached at cbarwick@tnstate.edu, as soon as possible.

Teacher Licensure

The curriculum for this program includes the University’s general education requirements, the requirements for the major, and a series of professional education courses culminating in a student teaching internship during the senior year. Majors in History and Political Science who wish to seek teacher licensure for grades 6-12 in History or Government apply in writing to the College of Education for admission to the Teacher Education Program, usually during their sophomore year. Applicants must have a cumulative grade point average of 2.75 or better and must pass the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators tests. Students who have previously earned a score of 21 on the ACT or Enhanced ACT, or a combined score of 1020 on the verbal and mathematical portions of the SAT, are exempt from the Praxis Core. Admission to the Teacher Education Program is a prerequisite to all upper-level courses in the professional education curriculum. For a complete description of admission and retention requirements for the Teacher Education Program, see the College of Education section.

The College of Education employs the Ready2Teach program of the Tennessee Board of Regents Teacher Education Redesign Initiative. Ready2Teach requires residency in K-12 schools during the senior or final year (fall and spring) of undergraduate teacher licensure programs. The residency year includes Residency I during the fall semester and Residency 2 during the spring semester. Residency 1 will include methods courses and 100 hours of field study in K-12 schools. Residency 2 requires a full semester (14 weeks) of student teaching. Residency 1 will only be offered in the fall, while Residency 2 will only occur in the spring. All students are required to pass the edTPA Assessment to receive licensure, which is an externally graded portfolio of a student’s work during Residency 2. This assessment is being adopted by multiple states and makes licensure in Tennessee more easily transferable to other states. These initiatives apply to all undergraduate teacher education candidates pursuing teacher licensure. Students are required to seek advisement regarding their licensure programs as early as possible during their academic career at Tennessee State University to ensure that all prerequisite courses and Praxis exams are complete in preparation for Residency. The advisor is Dr. Andrew Patrick (apatric2@tnstate.edu).

Accreditation

The teacher licensure programs in the Department are approved by the Tennessee Department of Education. The University’s teacher education program is accredited by the National Council on the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and is undergoing accreditation from the Council for Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP).

Programs

• History, B.A. or B.S.
• History, Teacher Certification Licensure for Grades 6-12, B.A. or B.S.
• Political Science, B.S.
• Political Science, Teacher Certification in Government Licensure for Grades 7-12, B.S.

• Africana Studies Minor
• Geography Minor
• History Minor
• Political Science Minor

Courses

• AFAS 2010 - Introduction to Africana Studies (3)
• AFAS 2020 - Survey of Africa (3)
• AFAS 2030 - African Diaspora: Cultures, Communities and Nations (3)
• AFAS 2110 - Cultural Anthropology of Africa (3)
• AFAS 3000 - African Male: Identity, Culture, and Expressions (3)
• AFAS 3050 - African Female: Identity, Socialization, and Status (3)
• AFAS 3100 - Psychological Impact of Enslavement and Colonization (3)
• AFAS 3400 - African Spiritual Philosophy I (3)
• AFAS 3600 - African Extended Family (3)
• AFAS 3620 - The African-American Family (3).
• AFAS 3650 - The African-American Community (3)
• AFAS 3800 - African Spiritual Philosophy II (3)
• AFAS 3850 - Caribbean Societies and Modernization 3
• AFAS 3950 - The Great Debate: Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X (3)
• AFAS 3990 - Field Studies
• AFAS 4000 - Political Economy of African Studies (3)
• AFAS 4120 - Classical African Civilizations (3)
• AFAS 4320 - Spiritual Empowerment-Transformation (3)
• AFAS 4400 - Special Topics in Africana Studies 3
• AFAS 4600 - Independent Studies and Research (3)
• AFAS 4900 - Senior Project (LGBTQ Black Politics & Theory) (3)

• GEOG 1010 - World Regional Geography I (3)
• GEOG 1020 - World Regional Geography II (3)
• GEOG 3010 - Physical Geography I (3)
• GEOG 3020 - Physical Geography II (3)
• GEOG 3100 - Cartography (3)
• GEOG 3150 - Online Studies in Geographic Information Systems (3)
• GEOG 3200 - Geographic Information Systems Applications in Intelligence Studies (3)
• GEOG 3500 - Weather and Climate (3)
• GEOG 3710 - Geography of the United States and Canada (3)
• GEOG 3720 - Geography of Mexico and the Caribbean (3)
• GEOG 3730 - Geography of South America (3)
• GEOG 4000 - Geography of Latin America (3)
• GEOG 4100 - Geography of Asia (3)
• GEOG 4120 - Geography of Africa (3)
• GEOG 4250 - Historical Geography of the United States and Canada (3)
• GEOG 4300 - Social Geography (3)
• GEOG 4440 - Cultural Geography (3)
• GEOG 4640 - Environmental Geography (3)
• GEOG 4650 - Geospatial Issues in Environmental Security (3)
• GEOG 4700 - Political Geography (3)
• GEOG 4750 - Economic Geography (3)
• GEOG 4850 - Urban Geography (3)
• GEOG 4990 - Special Topics in Geography (3)

• HIST 1000 - Global Culture in History (3)
• HIST 2010 - American History I (3)
• HIST 2011 - Honors American History I (3)
• HIST 2020 - American History II (3)
• HIST 2021 - Honors American History II (3)
• HIST 2030 - History of Tennessee (3)
• HIST 2040 - Introduction to Public History (3)
• HIST 2060 - World History I (3)
• HIST 2070 - World History II (3)
• HIST 2700 - The African American Experience (3)
• HIST 3000 - Intro to Ethics in Public History 3
• HIST 3010 - Europe, 1648-1789 (3)
• HIST 3020 - Europe, 1789-1871 (3)
• HIST 3030 - Europe, 1871-1945 (3)
• HIST 3040 - Europe since 1945 (3)
• HIST 3050 - History of Intelligence (3)
• HIST 3100 - American Women’s History to 1890 (3)
• HIST 3110 - American Women’s History 1890 to the Present (3)
• HIST 3120 - Black Women’s History (3)
• HIST 3185 - Cooperative Education (3)
• HIST 3186 - Cooperative Education (3)
• HIST 3200 - History of Mexico (3)
• HIST 3310 - Colonial and Revolutionary America (3)
• HIST 3320 - The Early Republic, 1789-1836 (3)
• HIST 3330 - The Late Republic, 1836-1860 (3)
• HIST 3340 - Civil War and Reconstruction (3)
• HIST 3350 - United States 1877 to 1920 (3)
• HIST 3360 - United States 1920 to 1945 (3)
• HIST 3370 - America Since 1945 (3)
• HIST 3380 - The Cultural History of the United States (3)
• HIST 3500 - History Workshop (3)
• HIST 3630 - History of Science and Technology (3)
• HIST 3680 - Black Nashville (3)
• HIST 3690 - Economic History of the United States (3)
• HIST 3710 - Teaching of History and Social Science (3)
• HIST 3810 - Modern Chinese History (3)
• HIST 3840 - Ancient History (3)
• HIST 3860 - The Middle Ages and Renaissance (3)
• HIST 3880 - Renaissance and Reformation (3)
• HIST 3950 - History of the Modern Middle East (3)
• HIST 4000 - History Seminar (3)
• HIST 4100 - America Behind Bars (3)
• HIST 4110 - Law and Society in Medieval England (3)
• HIST 4210 - Diplomatic History of the United States (3)
• HIST 4220 - Diplomatic History of the United States (3)
• HIST 4225 - The United States and the Middle East (3)
• HIST 4226 - World War I Global Perspectives (3)
• HIST 4230 - Literature and History of Medieval England (3)
• HIST 4240 - History of Feminism (9)
• HIST 4250 - American Social and Intellectual History (3)
• HIST 4260 - American Social and Intellectual History (3)
• HIST 4320 - Vital Topics in History (3)
• HIST 4325 - Vital Topics in U. S. History 3
• HIST 4326 - Vital Topics in World History 3
• HIST 4500 - Senior Project (3)
• HIST 4510 - Colonial Latin American History (3)
• HIST 4520 - Contemporary Latin American History (3)

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