Student Feature Archives - Center for African Studies

Student Feature

Africa Eats: What a Room Full of Language Learners Proved This Spring

Thursday May 14, 2026

On April 17, Africa Eats served as a semester-ending showcase organized by John Muchira, Coordinator of the Center for African Studies African Language Program. This event brought together African language students, their friends, faculty, and language instructors for an afternoon of performance, food, and conversation.

Afriganza at UF: Celebrating African Cultures

Friday May 8, 2026

Held at Plaza of the Americas on February 17th, the event transformed the space into a vibrant cultural atmosphere filled with interactive activities, performances, educational materials, and introductory African language conversations connecting attendees to the many traditions and languages represented across the continent.

Bridging Borders in Public Health: A UF–Ghana Virtual Exchange Initiative

Tuesday April 28, 2026

The Virtual Exchange for Public Health is a collaborative initiative between the University of Florida and Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Ghana. The program is structured around small, mixed groups of students who work together to address pressing public health issues in Ghana.

2026 Pre–dissertation Research Award Recipients

Wednesday April 8, 2026

The Center for African Studies is proud to congratulate the recipients of the 2026 Pre–dissertation research award Recipients. We look forward to seeing the impact of their summer work.

2026 Summer Travel Award Recipients- Poynor & Beilstein Burgess

Wednesday March 25, 2026

These students are not just traveling; they are immersing themselves in communities, cultures, and questions that will shape the future of African studies. Their work reminds us that knowledge is most powerful when it is lived, not just learned. Congratulations to each of them, we can’t wait to see what they discover.

Student Spotlight – December 13, 2025

Saturday December 13, 2025

Phumelele Ndlela is a Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) for IsiZulu in the Program in African Languages (PAL) at the Center for African Studies at the University of Florida.

Student Spotlight- Week of September 24th

Wednesday September 24, 2025

Selome Medemaku is a Nigerian writer and currently a master’s student in French and Francophone Studies in the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures. His academic and creative journey are shaped by a passion for storytelling.

CAS Student Spotlight: Week of April 30th

Monday April 28, 2025

The Center for African Studies congratulates Nduka Mbadugha on his latest achievements as he graduates from the UF’s College of Communications and Journalism with a Bachelor’s degree in Public Relations and a minor in History and fall internship with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

CAS Student Spotlight: Week of April 9th

Tuesday April 8, 2025

Rebekkah Hudson is a third-year UF undergraduate double majoring in History and Linguistics with minors in African Studies and English, whose research—rooted in Gikuyu perspectives—reexamines the role of African agency in colonial-era forestry scouting in Kenya, with aspirations to pursue a Ph.D. in African History.

CAS Student Spotlight: Week of February 5th

Tuesday February 4, 2025

Baba Adou was born and raised in Mauritania. He earned a BA (Maîtrise) in English from the University of Nouakchott and an MA in Global and International Studies from the University of Kansas, which he attended as a Fulbright Scholar. He is a 4th-year Ph.D. student in the UF Department of Political Science. His research […]

CAS Interdisciplinary Graduate Workshop: The Environment in Africa

Wednesday December 4, 2024

The Center for African Studies recently hosted its first interdisciplinary graduate workshop “The Environment in Africa,” that invited graduate researchers, faculty, and attendees to explore critical environmental issues across the continent. The event featured student presentations on diverse topics, including climate change, conservation, public health, and gender dynamics in fisheries. Joshua Benjamin explored macroinvertebrate shifts […]

30th Annual International Student Achievement Awards

Wednesday December 4, 2024

The 30th Annual International Student Achievement Awards recognized the outstanding contributions of our international student community. The event started with an opening and welcome by Dr. Marta L. Wayne, the Dean of the International Center and Associate Provost, and a keynote by Elias G. Eldayrie, Vice President & Chief Information Officer for the University of […]

CAS Student Spotlight

Saturday November 2, 2024

Fallon Jiménez was born and raised in Bogotá, Colombia, where she did an MS and BS in Animal Production Sciences at the National University of Colombia.

CAS Student Spotlight: Week of May 3rd

Friday May 3, 2024

Raphael Osarense Iyamu, a computational linguist from Benin City, Nigeria, has recently earned his Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of Florida. With a foundational education in Linguistics from the University of Benin, where he completed both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees, Raphael has developed a robust skill set that includes linguistic fieldwork, language data […]

CAS Student Spotlight: Week of October 10th

Tuesday October 10, 2023

Belay Alem is an international student who was born and raised in the Northern part of Ethiopia. He is a Ph. D candidate in the Department of Anthropology. Before starting Ph.D. study at UF, he received his LL. B in Law and LL.M in Business and Corporate Law from Bahir Dar University School of Law. […]