Santa Clara University

History of the Department

Professor Emeritus Witold Krassowski

Dr. Krassowski was the first full-time sociologist at SCU. He was hired by the University in the Fall of 1957. He established the Sociology Department with an academic program leading to a B.S. degree in Sociology. In the 1960s, in response to student demand, the department expanded and also began to offer anthropology courses.

A separate Anthropology major was approved in the Spring of 1978. Since then the Anthropology program expanded to include not only cultural anthropology and archaeology, but also physical anthropology. New faculty hires have broadened the program to research and teaching on cultures of the Middle East, the Pacific, North, Central and South America, and Southeast Asia.

In 2005, the Anthropology and Sociology Department divided into two separate departments.