TUPAC SHAKUR - LEARN TUPAC

The life and work of murdered rapper and actor TUPAC SHAKUR has been turned into an academic course at an American university.

Students at THE UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON can study THE TEXTUAL APPEAL OF TUPAC SHAKUR, a class created by teaching assistant and third year graduate student GEORGIA ROBERTS.

The college isn't the first to dedicate a class to Tupac, who was killed in a Las Vegas drive-by shooting in 1996 - classes on the hip-hop star have been offered at the UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY and HARVARD - but it is the first to relate Shakur's work to literature.

Roberts says, "I wanted to show students there is something to be gained from taking a closer look at why so many people consume a figure like Tupac and why he is important."