Chicana and chicano studies
New dept. on the rise
BY LETISIA MÁRQUEZ
UCLA Today
The newly created Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies will
increase the visibility of that field not only on campus, but throughout
the community, said its chair, Reynaldo Macías. Its future
looks bright, as more and more students continue to be attracted
to the field. Hopes are also high that it will one day house graduate
programs.
Currently under review is a proposal requesting that the department
offer master’s and Ph.D. programs.
Faculty also plan to write a recommendation to name the unit after
late labor leader César E. Chávez. Lawrence Lokman,
assistant vice chancellor of university communications, said, “Chancellor
Carnesale has stated that, if, at some future date, the faculty
of the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies should ask him
to forward to the UC Office of the President and the Academic Council
a recommendation to name the department, he would be pleased to
do so.”
The César E. Chávez Center for Interdisciplinary
Instruction in Chicana/o Studies will continue its own scope of
work.
“Chicana and Chicano studies is a vibrant, dynamic, growing
field of study,” said Macías, professor of Chicana
and Chicano studies, education and applied linguistics. He is also
chair of the National Association for Chicana and Chicano Studies.
“Establishing a department of Chicana and Chicano studies
at UCLA recognizes that dynamism and growth throughout the country.”
In recent years, the field has flourished at UCLA, with the number
of students, faculty and courses rising. In 2003-04, 2,485 students
were enrolled in Chicana and Chicano studies classes, and 38 students
graduated with a major, 49 with a minor, in the field.
By comparison, in 1993-94, the first year the center was in operation,
14 students majored in Chicana and Chicano studies, and 491 students
attended classes. Currently, the department offers approximately
70 courses and has nine full-time faculty.
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