The Pan-African Studies Effect and Its Impact on Undergraduate Students.

Black students enrolled in predominantly White colleges and universities (PWCs) have historically had difficulty persisting and graduating at the same rate as their White counterparts. In constructing services for Black students in their transition to college, institutions have overlooked the academic programs designed to support Black students and their intellectual and interpersonal development and thereby positively impacting their retention and graduation rates. At the University of Louisville, the growth and development of the Department of Pan-African Studies (PAS) over the past 40 years has contributed to the "Black Studies Effect." This article examines the empirical research on students who have taken courses in or graduated from PAS and its impact on their academic performance, rate of persistence, and racial identity formation from the theoretical viewpoint of resiliency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]