The American Studies Program at Kennesaw State University dedicates itself to crossing boundaries: disciplinary, social, cultural, and institutional. The program is multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary, focusing on the study of American cultures as they exist locally, regionally, nationally, and transnationally. With grounding in the content knowledge and methodologies from a range of fields, students are actively encouraged to pursue an understanding and critical analysis of the history, literature, arts, politics, language, philosophy, and social practices of the multitude of American communities.

American Studies is an interdisciplinary field which concentrates on the study of the Americas, with historical emphasis upon the United States. The goal is to analyze the social, historical, material, ideological, and aesthetic aspects of American culture, both past and present. American Studies traditionally incorporates knowledge from the fields of history, literature, political science, economics, sociology, anthropology, and the fine arts among others.

Fields studying specific American communities such as African-American Studies, Chicano Studies, Latin American Studies, Asian-American Studies, and American Indian Studies are considered to be both included in and independent of the broader discipline. At Kennesaw State University, the American Studies Program is part of the Interdisciplinary Studies Department (ISD) which includes all of these fields and more. ISD is home to seven programs: American Studies, Latin American Studies, Latin American Studies, African-American and African Diaspora Studies, Asian Studies, Gender and Women’s Studies, Peace Studies, Religious Studies. Faculty from each of these fields teach in the American Studies program, mentor students, and advise capstone projects for students enrolled in the MA Program in American Studies.

The American Studies Program at KSU is a member of the American Studies Association (ASA) and the Southern American Studies Association (SASA).