The Department of African American Studies is a multidisciplinary department engaged in critical analyses of current and historical sociological, economic, political, psychological and cultural issues concerning the African Diaspora and Africa. The course offerings and research interests of the African American Studies faculty help ensure that criminal justice and public service education and policy recommendations developed at John Jay College are broadly conceived and integrate the socioeconomic and cultural context of crime, law, and law enforcement. The broader mission of the Department of African American Studies is to engage in research, teaching and public policy that serve the needs of Africa and the African Diaspora. Over the past 400 years, peoples of African descent have made seminal contributions to the evolution of western civilization. The Department offers an African American Studies Minor and an African American Studies Program where students can participate in a field of study that involves issues of far reaching national and international significance and consequence. The program offered by the Department of African American Studies enables students to understand the experiences of the peoples of Africa and those of African descent to better understand themselves, their communities and their fellow human beings. Students of African American Studies receive an education that prepares them as citizen-scholars for both graduate study and professional careers in law, law enforcement, and the administration of justice.