HD 6560

Black Girlhood Studies: Rememory, Representation, and Re-Imagination

Course Description

Course information provided by the 2025-2026 Catalog.

How has history shaped our notion of Black girlhood? What is our collective understanding of Black girlhood? How do we see and understand Black girls? Black Girlhood Studies is a multidisciplinary field that draws on education, literature, psychological, and sociological perspectives as tools to see and honor Black girls' lived experiences. In this graduate-level seminar course, we will systematically explore historical and contemporary social, political, and cultural constructions of Black girlhood within and beyond the United States. We will also interrogate how Black girls deconstruct and interrupt these social constructions by engaging in scholarly works, popular press articles, poetry, music, film, and novels. Throughout the course, we will make space to imagine a world where Black girls' ways of knowing, being, and experiencing the world are honored.

Last 4 Terms Offered (None)

Learning Outcomes

• Identify the principles and values under girding research and practice in Black Girlhood Studies and connect these ideas to your experiences.
• Recognize and examine the foundational concepts, theories, and methodologies in the field of Black girlhood studies and evaluate their strengths and limitations.
• Appraise and reflect on your identities, ways of knowing, and histories in relation to Black Girlhood Studies and articulate how these perspectives inform your scholarly approach and ethical commitments.
• Synthesize information from multiple sources (e.g., peer-reviewed journal articles, films, and novels) and develop scholarship that contributes new insights to your disciplinary field.
• Communicate ideas and analysis effectively to academic and lay audiences through presentations, discussions, and written work, and facilitate scholarly discourse that advances understanding of Black girls' experiences.
• Apply and relate what you learn about Black Girlhood Studies to everyday experiences, social issues, and real-world concerns.

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