Ethnic Studies Officially Departmentalized
The Daily Emerald is reporting that Ethnic Studies has, after a long campaign, been approved for departmentalization:
In a phone conversation with former ASUO President and Ethnic Studies Coalition member Emily McLain, Senior Vice President and Provost Linda Brady revealed that she had approved the departmentalization of the ethnic studies program beginning in fall 2008.
Though I’ve long been a critic of the departmentalization drive, founded as it was on feel-good spirit and assurances that departmentalization was sure to be a “good thing” for campus, I’d like to congratulate Ethnic Studies and everyone involved in the departmentalization campaign.
This is going to be a really ignorant comment, but ….
The campus already has departments for many different ethnographic groups. What, exactly, is to be gained by lumping all of these together in a single department?
And just a side-note, this is not intended to be a snarky comment at all …. I really would like to know!