Building the Best

Last Week

In five years, the Department of Afro-American Studies has gone from having one professor to having a nationally commended program. But should Skip Gates take the credit? And can these academics really alter American social policy?

Today

* The today Afro-American stuides department in the country doesn't have a Ph.D. program. What's in the works?

* The arrival of William Julius Wilson has given the department new credibility and new potential for affecting political change.