American Culture Studies is a multidisciplinary program within Arts and Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. The program is committed to the notion that people learn best when they draw from a broad range of perspectives. The program emerged from the realization among faculty that their scholarship and their teaching benefited from an extended conversation with people in different disciplines.

This principle of multidisciplinarity is the foundation of the approach to American Culture Studies at Washington University. We have eschewed the axis of literature and history that often constitutes the foundation of American Studies. Although many of our students and faculty are indeed interested in the relationship between these disciplines, we seek a broader approach which incorporates the humanities, social sciences, arts and architecture, and natural sciences.

Our method of studying American culture in turn shapes the form of our degree programs. At both the graduate and undergraduate level, we require students to situate their work in American Culture Studies alongside study in other areas. Our graduate fellows are pursuing PhDs in a broad range of disciplines. Our undergraduate majors must take American Culture Studies in conjunction with another major.

In order to provide for this sort of broad study, our faculty is drawn from throughout the campus. Although most are in the Arts & Sciences, our faculty includes people from all of the schools in the University. The program is run from our offices in McMillan Hall (Room 140 in in the Southwest Tower). Randall Calvert serves as Director of American Culture Studies, Heidi Kolk is our Academic Coordinator, and Sarah Smith-Frigerio is our Administrative Coordinator. For more information about the program, please email acsp@artsci.wustl.edu or call 314-935-5216.