Barbara McDade Gordon, is a faculty member in the Geography Department; and affiliate of the Center for African Studies, and African American Studies Program. Upon her retirement from UF in May 2016 she received the distinction of Emeritus(a) by a unanimous departmental vote. She began her academic career in 1990 at UF which she described as a “perfect fit”: a dynamic Geography Department, a top-ranked Center for African Studies, and a progressive and diverse local population. She earned her Ph.D. in Geography and Planning from the University of Texas-Austin.
Her academic disciplines are Economic & Cultural Geography, primarily in Africa. She studied the development and viability of traditional and modern African businesses. She is author, editor, or co-editor of several refereed articles, book chapters, and the book, African Entrepreneurship: Theory & Reality (1998, University of Florida Press). She has visited seven African countries; France, England, Italy, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean.
During 2013-2014 she returned to University of Ghana as a Visiting Scholar in the Department of Geography and Resource Development. She first traveled to Ghana in 1985, and returned in 1987 as recipient of a Fulbright Dissertation Award.
Dr. McDade Gordon was Director (2004-2012) of Upward Bound, a college preparatory program for promising students from low-income households. She is a founding member of the African Studies Association of Africa and will attend its Second Biennial Conference in Ethiopia in 2017. She maintains an active interest in youth development and international issues and serves on the Board of Directors of the Cultural Arts Coalition (Gainesville, FL), the Africana Children’s Education Fund (Kansas City, Mo), and the United Nations Association-Gainesville (Gainesville, FL).
Her current research interest is the African Diaspora worldwide; she launched the course, Global African Diaspora, at UF in 2015. She developed the course, Global and Regional Economies, for UF’s Online program – ranked among the top five online Geography B.A. programs in the U.S. Other courses include Geography of Africa; Regional Development; Geography of World Economies; World Regional Geography; and Economic Development in Africa.
She resides in Gainesville with her husband, Dr. Jacob U. Gordon, a historian, also an Emeritus Professor, University of Kansas.