The Alliance for African Partnership (AAP) in partnership with the Black Faculty, Students & Administrators Association (BFSAA) , MSU African Studies Center (ASC) and the Diversity Research Network (DRN) are launching the Diverse Black Africa (DBA) program, a pilot program to foster new collaborations and strengthen existing ties between Black (African diaspora) faculty and academic staff at Michigan State University (MSU) with colleagues based at African universities in the AAP consortium.
The focus of the DBA program is to strengthen existing ties and foster new collaborations between a diverse group of Black faculty and academic staff at MSU and those from African universities in the AAP consortium. The expected outputs from DBA will include a combination of strategic travel exchanges, jointly authored refereed journal articles and policy briefs, joint teaching, participation in virtual dialogues, conferences and dissemination events, as well as submission of grant proposals to further research agendas. The most important outcomes are to increase understanding and perceptions of Africa and the diaspora, increase contributions towards strengthening research, teaching, and outreach capacity and increasing the numbers of internationally engaged Black diaspora faculty (and their students), while advancing their careers.
The four partner units will provide a strong, collective voice and leadership to establish and support the program. The target group or primary audience of the DBA program are Black African diaspora faculty and academic staff at MSU, specifically those of African descent from the Americas who are born in the US, Canada, Caribbean, and Latin America.
The DBA program was funded by a Creating Inclusive Excellence Grant (CIEG), and received additional support from the Alliance for African Partnership, African Studies Center, the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and the Black Faculty, Staff and Administrators Association.
Africa GPS:
Inaugural cohort of scholars selected
COIL Faculty Fellows Program:
2nd cohort announced
AAP Bridge:
Connect and
collaborate online
Transforming Institutions Strategic Funding:
2024 grantees
