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CSULB adopts two new minors to become available in fall 2013

Cal State Long Beach is opening its doors a little more to new branches of study by adding two new minors to its list: one in global migration and another in queer studies.

The Academic Senate approved the minors at its meeting Thursday, and the minors are scheduled to become available for students next fall.

Global migration, to be offered through the College of Liberal Arts, is designed to prepare students for working with migrant populations, according to Heather Rae-Espinoza, department chair of global migration.

 “Instead of focusing on one particular ethnic group, this minor will encourage a comparative perspective across migrant groups,” Rae-Espinoza said.

Rae-Espinoza said that students have already expressed interest in the minor and its practicality, as it complements majors such as sociology, international studies and human development.

“I can see its usefulness,” Nate Degour, a sophomore English literature and creative writing major, said. “It would be a good emphasis to further understand whatever the person’s major may be.”

Alongside the new global migration program, the Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies has adopted a minor in queer studies. Jennifer Reed, WGSS advisor and department chair of queer studies, said that declaring a minor in queer studies will be possible in 2013, however classes are available for students this year.

Students have expressed interest in the subject, but some are confused by the usefulness of the minor. However, they also said that today’s evolving society has created need for a focus on queer studies.

“It’s about time,” Jay Pagala, a sophomore hospitality management minor, said.

Christina Chavez, a sophomore social work major, said that she can understand why the new minor was added.

“You could tie that in with a political science [major or minor] if you want to focus on helping or learning about a specific group,” she said.

Some students who were interviewed, however, were confused by the minor’s functionality. Hernan Lozada, a sophomore civil engineering major, said he is unsure about the purpose of the program.

“The name is pretty derogatory,” Lozada said. “I think that a lot of homosexuals would want to study this to learn about themselves, but the name may drive them away.”

However, according to the Office of Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Concerns website, the term “queer” is preferred by many members of the LGBT community because it acts as a more general “umbrella term” that covers all sexual minorities.

“The goal of the program is to make available the idea of queerness to all students, whether they take the classes or not,” Reed said.

Reed also said that students in the department have been “chomping at the bit,” becoming excited about the minor.

Reed said she and advocates of the program hope that students will be inclined to question their understanding of gender and sexuality.

“To be an educated person in today’s world, we need to have access to the idea that not everyone is straight,” Reed said.

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