Fall 2016 Issue

Cultural Curriculum

By Erin Zagursky

William & Mary has established a new interdisciplinary program for Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) studies. The program will be coordinated through the Charles Center, which has allowed students to pursue a self-designed major in APIA studies for nearly a decade. To complete the minor, students must earn 18 credits in APIA courses, including nine credits in the core courses: Introduction to Asian and Pacific Islander Studies, Peoples and Cultures of Polynesia, Asian-American Experience, Asian Pacific American History, and Asian-American Studies. Faculty members in disciplines across campus — from anthropology and history to education and Africana studies — will teach in the program, and students will have the chance to engage in research so they can add to the existing body of APIA knowledge, including the history of Asian and Pacific Islander Americans at William & Mary.