01
Community
Foster a strong sense of community among African graduate students at UIC.
The story
Founded in 2023, built for what we needed.
AGSA was born out of a simple but powerful need: community.
When Rita Omuero arrived at the University of Illinois Chicago, she experienced firsthand the challenges many African graduate students face when transitioning into a new academic and cultural environment. In response, she took the initiative to build what she could not find, a space for connection, belonging, and shared growth.
Rita started AGSA and created a community for African graduate students at UIC. She brought along Joy Itodo and Tobiloba Adejumo, and they were the pioneering officers.
What began as a small group of about 10 members has grown into a vibrant, thriving community, now a recognized home for African graduate students from West, East, and Southern Africa at UIC. Today, AGSA continues to foster connection, celebrate culture, and empower its members academically, professionally, and socially.
Ubuntu.
I am because we are
AGSA is anchored in the Ubuntu philosophy. Our individual journeys at UIC are shaped by, and accountable to, the community of African graduate students who walk alongside us.
Today: 100+ members across UIC's graduate programs.
Our mission
Five things we set out to do.
02
Growth
Promote academic, professional, and personal growth via seminars, workshops, and networking.
03
Culture
Celebrate and showcase African culture, heritage, and diversity on campus.
04
Mentorship
Provide mentorship to incoming and current students.
05
Collaboration
Build collaborative relationships with other student organizations and the wider university.
The vision
What we're building toward.
- 01
A vibrant inclusive hub
A home for African graduate students at UIC that is open, lively, and unmistakably ours.
- 02
Empowered leaders
Equip our members to lead, innovate, and create change inside and beyond the academy.
- 03
Visible scholarship
Enhance the visibility of African scholars in academia and elevate the work being done.
- 04
A lasting global network
Build relationships that outlive cohorts, across continents, across careers.
- 05
Inspiring the next
Inspire future generations of African graduate students to take their seat at the table.
The framing
There is no single story.
“There is no single story of Africa, of African graduate students, of who we are or what we carry.”
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, "The Danger of a Single Story"
There is no single story of Africa, of African graduate students, of who we are or what we carry. AGSA exists as a counter-narrative, a place where we own our story, in plural, with all its texture, contradictions, and joy. We want to own how that story gets told, which asks more of us than simply being seen.
