While some major ethnic study programs continue to work on
departmentalization, other programs on campus are working to expand
on a smaller scale, and educate the campus about cultural issues on
a more global level.
Two of the four major ethnic studies ““ Interdisciplinary
Program for Asian American Studies and the César E.
Chávez Center for Interdisciplinary Instruction in Chicana/o
Studies ““ are attempting to achieve departmental status.
Meanwhile, other ethnic communities have only begun to get
recognized in the curriculum.
The South Asian minor was recently granted by the Academic
Senate, with the help of many student organizations on campus,
including Sangam and the Indian Student Union.
“We are such a large population on campus that it’s
good for us to finally be represented, and for our culture to be
represented, and for students to finally learn about our
culture,” said ISU President Radha Tilva.
“The minor got approved at the start of this year but the
process had been going on for the past four years and possibly
prior to that,” Tilva said.
Students will be able to minor in South Asian studies beginning
in the winter quarter.
The success of the passing of the South Asian studies minor
demonstrates how the already established ethnic study research
centers and academic programs influence the inception and expansion
of smaller interdepartmental programs.
The four major ethnic study research centers include the
American Indian Studies Center, Asian American Studies Center,
Chicano Studies Research Center, and the Ralph J. Bunche Center for
African American Studies; all were established in 1969.
The ethnic interdepartmental programs of these centers stemmed
from their respective research centers, which offered initial
support for the programs.
Similar to these research centers, the UCLA International
Institute has several organized research units and
interdepartmental programs focusing on more international areas of
study.
Centers such as the Latin American Studies Center, African
American Studies Center and Southeast Asian Studies Center, help
provide students with an international scope in both research and
academics.
“The ethnic studies centers focus on the ethnic population
in the United States whereas international studies focus on these
studies on different parts of the world. This is more
global,” said Germán Esparza, the program manager for
the institute.
Barbara Gaerlan, assistant director of the Center for Southeast
Asian Studies, admits that the formerly established research
centers and academic programs helped in getting students to promote
a broader view of Asian studies.
“Our center grew out of a movement inside Asian American
studies to expand the curriculum at UCLA,” Gaerlan said.
Gaerlan added that students felt the creation of the program and
center were necessary to meet the needs of the growing population
of Asian Americans across the entire UC system.
The more established ethnic study centers are also looking to
accommodate a diverse population.
Currently, all four ethnic study research centers await a
decision regarding a Faculty Diversity Initiative proposal
submitted to the chancellor in February.
The proposal is aimed at further accommodating the diversity of
UCLA and the L.A. community by expanding efforts to meet the
academic and research needs of the the ethnic communities
therein.
If passed, the proposal would increase the number of faculty for
the centers, allowing for growth in research and further
distribution of the centers’ faculty to different departments
across the university.