Seton Hall students who staged sit-in near deal to revive Africana Studies program
By the end of this week, Seton Hall University student protesters who occupied the school president's office last week will know if they've won more resources for their Africana Studies program.
Students at the South Orange school protested publicly on May 3 after months of meetings with university officials following the departure of the program's director and only full-time faculty member, Kelly Harris. Harris left for a position at the University of Pennsylvania in December when he couldn't reach an agreement on a new contract.
Tensions escalated last weekend when 70 protesters, calling themselves the Protect AFAM Movement, took over the office of university President Joseph Nyre for several days. Since Monday, the students have occupied President's Hall from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., demanding a bigger investment in the program.
The students' request starts with a new full-time director to step in. Seton Hall appointed Forest Pritchett, a longtime professor at the school, as the interim director of Africana Studies in January but he is not expected to take the job permanently.
The sit-in led to a 6.5-hour meeting on Monday with Nyre and other members of the administration, according to Tawanna Brown, one of the leaders of the protest. The negotiations, which are ongoing, have brought both sides closer to finalizing an agreement, she said.
Brown, a sophomore from East Orange with a double major in Africana Studies and Political Science, said she could not reveal what is happening in negotiations or what has been agreed upon, but she added that more information is expected to come out by this weekend.
The program was established in 1970, and according to Seton Hall's website, is the oldest college Black Studies unit in New Jersey. Students are required to take 10 courses including History of African Civilization and African American History. According to Brown, there are 11 students who are declared Africana Studies majors, 168 students enrolled in Africana Studies classes overall, and nine adjunct professors that teach in the program.
Brown said protesters want to ensure the program has the resources necessary for students to fulfill majors and minors in Africana Studies. The department's work is essential, she said, in an era where conservative groups and politicians like Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis have targeted educational programs focused on Black history.
"It's important to save the program by hiring more professors equipped to teach Black studies courses because of the nationwide threat to Black studies and education," Brown said.
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The students' demands include:
Hiring three to four full-time professors with experience and recognition in teaching African Studies.
The reinstatement of the Africana Studies program as a fully funded department by spring 2024.
A full-time tenured director for the program.
Africana Studies students as liaisons with voting power on the search committee for the new director and professors.
Truthful posting of the faculty makeup and current state of classes in the program on the university's website.
Reinstatement of the Black House, a location that once existed on campus where some Africana Studies classes were taught and where Black students congregated.
A pardon for participants in the demonstrations from punishment proposed by the university.
Laurie Pine, a university spokesperson, said in an email to NorthJersey.com that the university's leadership held an "extensive and productive meeting" on Monday with student representatives and the president of the school's Student Government Association to make clear that there was no plan to close or underfund the Africana Studies program. Pine said a search committee is looking at applications to hire a tenure-track faculty member in Africana Studies, she added.
An ongoing issue
Protests over the Africana Studies program at Seton Hall aren't new.
It became a full-fledged department in 1978 as a result of student demands. There were more demonstrations in 2018 when students calling themselves the Concerned 44 conducted a 10-day sit-in. They pressed the school to dedicate full-time faculty to Africana Studies and more funding to a variety of other ethnic studies programs. The university met some of their requests, including hiring Harris as the full-time director at AFAM.
Pritchett, the current interim director, said in an interview that he will be in the role for a year, but has no plans to take it on full time because he is already serving in several other positions on campus.
He said he is in support of the students and sees a resolution of the current situation in the very near future.
"I think where we have people of good will, you get movement," Pritchett said.
Brown said she and her fellow students are also looking forward to a resolution as they are protesting and negotiating while studying for their final semester exams, which started on Wednesday.
"I know for many of us it has been a lot just being able to balance everything, but we are doing all that we can and also fighting for something that's bigger than all of us," Brown said.
Ricardo Kaulessar is a culture reporter for the USA TODAY Network's Atlantic Region How We Live team. For unlimited access to the most important news, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com
Twitter: @ricardokaul
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Seton Hall Africana Studies protest wins concessions for NJ program
