Minor in Critical Pacific Islands & Oceania Studies

Using an interdisciplinary approach, students will apply indigenous epistemologies and methodologies to the study of Native Pacific Islander communities in diaspora. Themes include racialization, ethnicity, cultural formations, community health, colonization, immigration, and sexual identities.

Program Learning Outcomes

  1. Evaluate the methods of inquiry and analysis used by the social and behavioral sciences in the study of racial, ethnic, and cultural formation.
  2. Apply indigenous epistemologies to understand the contemporary and historical narratives of Pacific Islander communities.
  3. Develop strategies to improve health, wellness, and life-long learning specific to Pacific Islander communities.
  4. Create networks and partnerships that apply theories of social change, history, and contemporary practices to grassroots social justice work in Pacific Islander communities.
  5. Build media content literacy that expands knowledge of ethnographic representations of Pacific Islanders.

Critical Pacific Islands & Oceania Studies, Minor — 15 units

Introductory Courses (6 units)

RRS/ETHS 100Introduction to Ethnic Studies3
RRS/AIS 103Introduction to Pacific Islander Studies3

Core Courses (9 units)

RRS 303Health and Wellness among Pacific Islanders3
RRS/SOC 410Grassroots Organizing for Change in Communities of Color3
RRS/AIS 433Pacific Islanders in Film: Re-Presenting Oceania Through an Indigenous Lens3