About Us

American Culture Studies at BGSU

American Culture Studies is the flagship program for interdisciplinary study in the humanities and social sciences at BGSU and a leading international innovator in cultural studies. From its inception, the ACS program had a strong interdisciplinary focus, drawing faculty from across the BGSU campus and attracting students from across the US and world.

In 1957, an undergraduate interdisciplinary Bachelor of Arts program in American Studies was established under the direction of Dr. Alma Payne of the Department of English, who was named as the first faculty joint appointment in English and American Studies. This program was expanded in 1964 to include a Master of Arts. The B.A. and M.A. in American Studies were the first two non-departmental, interdisciplinary degrees offered at BGSU.

BGSU established the American Culture Studies Ph.D program in 1978, among the earliest of its kind. The program draws on the expertise of full-time and joint-appointed faculty in the program as well as affiliated faculty. Particularly, the program relies strongly on affiliated faculty from the other units in the School of Cultural and Critical Studies: the Department of Popular Culture, Department of Ethnic Studies, and the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program. The program also draws on expertise from, and interdisciplinary collaborations with, faculty in Art, English, History, Media and Communication, Philosophy, Political Science, Theatre & Film, Sociology, Sport and Leisure Studies, and other units across BGSU.