Ghana: Origins of African Identity

“The experience with research and the introduction to Ghana afforded by the SIT program in Cape Coast has shaped the trajectory of my life. Because of my experience with SIT Ghana, I was able to go back to Ghana on a Fulbright after I finished my undergraduate studies and now am working on a Ph.D. on governance and the state in Ghana.”

Erin Metz McDonnell, former SIT Ghana student
Current Doctoral Candidate, Department of Sociology
Northwestern University

Study the African Diaspora and global African identities through direct exposure to local communities and sites and through a critical review of contemporary scholarship and resources.

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This program examines the global dispersions of peoples and cultures of African ancestry, including their growing impact on world economies, politics of ethnicity and belonging, aesthetic and material cultures, and ideologies.

Students learn how forced and voluntary migrations from West Africa have shaped the memories, survival strategies, and cultural, literary, and artistic expressions and responses of African diasporants living across the globe.

Topics of study include histories of ethnicities, slavery migrations, archaeology, and contemporary national politics of culture and identity. Students also consider problematic notions of “home” and “return” projects, by hearing directly from Ghanaians and other West Africans.

The program provides a unique opportunity to learn about a wide variety of cultures and societies with which segments of the African Diaspora are intertwined. Students reflect on Ghana’s unique historical and sociocultural legacies, as well as its contemporary initiatives and leadership roles in Africa and the world at large.

The structure and contents of the program are designed to appeal to a broad spectrum of students and departments with various inter- and multidisciplinary offerings pertaining to African Diaspora, Africana, African American Studies, and contemporary issues of identity.

Experience Cape Coast and beyond
The program is based in Cape Coast, a vibrant coastal community and Ghana’s education capital. The city affords easy access to key historical sites and monuments and above all communities of African Diaspora returnees.

To gain broader exposure to Ghana and the region, the program also includes excursions to Elmina, Accra, Kumasi, northern Ghana, and the country of Benin.

Live with Ghanaian host families
Time with homestay families immerses students in Ghanaian communities while adding additional context and meaning to Fante language study and thematic coursework. Learn more.

Engage with Ghanaian and Béninois university faculty, archaeological and cultural sites, and village and community leaders.

In-country resources and program partners generally include:

University of Cape Coast
University of Ghana
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology
Université D’Abomey: Calavi in Benin

Browse this program's Independent Study Projects / Undergraduate Research

Students Myrtie Williams and Kali Block-Steele talk about why they chose the program and what they researched for their Independent Study Projects.

Vibrant Culture, Troubled History
Ghana, a country rich in natural resources, is characterized by its complex history. In 1957, Ghana was the first African nation to achieve independence from colonial powers after winning independence from the United Kingdom. Tragically, Ghana also served as the departure point for a vast number of enslaved Africans shipped to the "new" world. The slave castles lining the Ghanaian coast serve as contemporary reminders of the historical atrocities of enslavement and the forced migration which transpired on the country's shore. Today, Ghanaian society continues to wrestle with the long-reaching effects of the slave trade.