1979: The Intercollegiate Department of Black Studies
In 1979, the Black Studies Center (BSC) became the Intercollegiate Department of Black Studies and the Office of Black Student Affairs (OBSA). The organizational change addressed some of the administrative issues with the center, particularly the status of BSC faculty. The academic affairs and the social affairs of the Center were divided among two organizations, in the hopes that OBSA and and the Department of Black Studies (later changed to Africana Studies) would better meet the needs of Black Students. Similarly, the Chicano Studies Center became the Intercollegiate Department of Chicana/o Latina/o Studies, and Chicano Latino Student Affairs.
This flyer announces a picnic being hosted by the Black Studies Center (BSC) in 1979. Given the year, this event may have been one of the last BSC events before its transition to the Africana Studies Department. It is important to recall that while the Black Student Union's gains included changes to curriculum and admissions, the BSC also provided a place for students of color to socialize.
This bulletin from the Black Studies Center, issued in May 1979, announced that the Black Studies Center (BSC) was to become the Intercollegiate Department of Black Studies (later changed to Africana Studies) and the Office of Black Student Affairs as of July 1, 1979. The change followed persistent administrative difficulties with the Center; the object of the reorganized department was to integrate BSC faculty into the five Consortium colleges. After ten years of the BSC, minority studies and spaces in Claremont went in a new direction.