The African American Studies and Research Program is a multidisciplinary unit at the University of Kentucky that seeks to promote the interest and knowledge of the African diaspora experience through quality teaching, research, and service. Program faculty and students conduct research on the implications of race, class, gender, culture, politics, and law incident to people of African descent. The curriculum is aimed at providing students with a fundamental and diverse understanding of the African diaspora. Because of its multidisciplinary approach, the Program provides opportunities for faculty and students to gain service-learning experiences within the local, Commonwealth, and global communities.

Sonja Feist-Price

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 30, 2008) − The future of African American Studies and Research Program (AASRP) is filled with endless possibilities as we move forward in new directions.  AASRP has a legacy of strong leaders who have made significant and invaluable contributions to the University of Kentucky, and the larger Commonwealth community.

Dr. Doris Y. Wilkinson, Distinguished Professor of Sociology, founded AASRP in 1992 and served as the director for four years.  She developed the historic Black Women’s Conference, which is now in its 15th year, and the Carter G. Woodson Lecture Series, both of which remain staples of the program.  To this day, Dr. Wilkinson works diligently to ensure the ongoing success and growth of AASRP.   Without Dr. Wilkinson’s clear vision, commitment, and determination, AASRP would never have become the strong program that it is today.

AASRP benefited greatly from the eight year (1996 – 2004) directorship of Dr. Gerald Smith, Associate Professor of History.  Dr. Smith secured adequate physical space and fiscal resources required for the continued growth and development of AASRP.  He also enhanced its local, state, and national visibility through his contributions as a co-editor on volume VI of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project at Stanford University, and the Kentucky Encyclopedia of African Americans (in press).

In 2000, Dr. Lynda Brown Wright, Associate Professor of Educational & Counseling Psychology, served as the acting director and later the associate director (2001 - 2004) of AASRP.  Among other administrative duties, Dr. Brown Wright served as the chairperson of the Annual Black Women’s Conference.  She achieved great success with enhancing the visibility, attendance, and participation of this conference.

It is on the shoulders of Drs. Wilkinson, Smith, and Brown Wright that I stand ready, willing, and eager to embrace the challenges and rewards that are before me.  I enthusiastically embrace this responsibility.

·	College of Arts and Sciences
·	The President's Commission on Diversity
·	Department of History
·	Department of English
·	Women's Studies Program
·	UK Graduate School