Guest-lecturers will include Professor of Sociology and Afro-American Studies Lawrence D. Bobo, Evelyn B. Higginbotham, professor of history and Afro-American studies and Geyser University Professor William Julius Wilson.

Du Bois Professor of the Humanities Henry Louis Gates, Jr., who was on leave fall semester for medical reasons, will also lecture although his own courses have been cancelled.

But students like Onyechi T. Ezekwueche '04, who first heard West lecture when he followed his older sister to class during a college visit, say they will wait for West's return before taking the course despite its being offered this semester.

"[West] has a really engaging personality and I think that's the basic reason a lot of people, including me, are holding out on taking the class," Ezekwueche says.

Gerald Demas '04 also cites West's charisma, in addition to his prominence, as reasons for waiting for West's return.

"The Af-Am class is to me a class taught by Cornel West," Demas says. "I've heard [West] is a fantastically motivated person and he's one of the leading African-American philosophers in this country at this time."

The course had an enrollment of 314 undergraduates when it was last offered in the fall of 1999 but will have a "much smaller" enrollment this semester, says Appiah.

Although course assignments have not been made for the coming year, Appiah says there is a "good chance" that West will resume teaching "Af-Am 10" in the fall.