Black Hall of Fame 2020-21

Black Hall of Fame As part of The Students' Union Celebrating Black Excellence campaign, we are pleased to announce the second edition of the Black Hall of Fame for the 2020-2021 academic year. Through this campaign, we aim to showcase Black undergraduate students, alumni, and staff of excellence to empower other prospective Black students and professionals. These individuals have been nominated by other members of the UWE Bristol community for their instrumental contributions to the UWE Bristol community and wider society.

The second edition of the Black Hall of Fame has been led by The Students’ Union Presidents’ Team 2020-21

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Adeyemi Adedokun Course: PhD in Public Mental Health

Adeyemi is a presidential award winner from Nigeria. During his Master's in Public Health, he was The Students’ Union BME Officer, a Public Health PAL leader and a member of the UWE research team for the Rockefeller Foundation competition (semi-finalist). He was also an active member of the Student Consultation Panel, a two times semi-finalist for the ViceChancellor's Award for representation (Student Experience Awards), President of the RCCG Campus Fellowship Society and the UWE Public Health Society's Pioneer President.

He is a stakeholder at prospermarket.co.uk, a UWE 2020 enterprise summer scholar and the founder of Unmute with Docyem initiative (Mental Health Advocacy).

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Alaya Holloway Course: Bachelors of Law

Alaya Holloway, Founder of FirstGens, received the National Young Innovator Award 2020-21 whilst completing her LLB Law Bachelors.

The award offers recognition to young entrepreneurs from across the UK. All of whom have the potential to become successful business owners and future leaders through innovation. Alaya’s advocacy for diversity and inclusion had a positive impact on the Equity Programme and has been awarded for her outstanding services that empower and support students from minority-ethnic and other underrepresented backgrounds.

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Augusta Chidinma Nnajiofor Course: BA (Hons) Business Management and Economics

Augusta Chidinma Nnajiofor was recognised as one of the 87 most influential women in Bristol in 2021 (Bristol Post). Augusta served as the former President and Vice President Community and Welfare at The Students’ Union at UWE where she worked on student facing projects and wellbeing campaigns to champion the student voice at all levels during the pandemic. Augusta completed her placement year in the UWE Human Resources department and graduated with a First-Class Honours. Augusta is passionate about empowering and supporting BAME students. In 2021, Augusta spearheaded a year-long Celebrating Black Excellence campaign and kick-started a project called “A year in conversation with Augusta”, to progress conversations on race, equality, equity and inclusivity with high profile leaders from across the UK.

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Dr Emmanuel Adukwu Job Title: Deputy Head of Department (Applied Sciences)

Dr Emmanuel Adukwu is the Deputy Head of Department in Applied Sciences. He is an empowering academic and leader supporting and enabling members of the UWE Bristol community, using his expertise, professional knowledge and global networks. He is passionate about community and global development and has created and supported high profile programmes such as Africa Week, Bristol Museum Fabric Africa, Afrofuturism, A Day in the Life, including other international programmes in Kenya, Nigeria, Gambia and the USA. He has been recognised for his contributions to science and other endeavours such as Trustee of the Society of Applied Microbiology, UWE VC Excellence Award, Bristol BME Powerlist, Nominee for Royal Society of Biology Bioscience Teacher of the Year National Diversity Award nominee.

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Dr Udonna Okeke Job Title: Senior Lecturer in Engineering Management

Dr Udonna Okeke is a Senior Lecturer in Engineering Management in the Department of Engineering Design and Mathematics.

An advocate of equality, diversity and inclusivity at UWE, he currently champions the BAME Girls in Engineering Project in Bristol which has motivated and inspired about 116 BAME girls (aged 12-15) in three inner Bristol city schools between 2018 and 2020.

He is passionate about raising a new cadre of girls from the BAME groups and has used the BAME Girls in Engineering project to inspire the girls with appropriate information that laid a positive foundation for a better career choice in the fields of Engineering.

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Elysse Lawrence Course: Psychology

Elysse is a psychology student on her placement year. She created her internship within the Widening Participation team in the Faculty of Health and Applied Sciences, as an extension of her student advocate role. Elysse was a student advocate and now recruits and manages the student advocates across the faculty. She also created the name for her “Oops I didn’t realise” series. Aside from this, she is the CEO and Founder of The ELY Project. This project supports and mentors students from A-Levels onwards, from minoritised backgrounds who wish to pursue a career in psychology. They aim to diversify the field of psychology.

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Evans Kagiri Course: BSc. Mathematics and Statistics

Evans is an aspiring, ambitious young scholar who has just completed his final year in BSc. Mathematics and Statistics. He has a great statistical and analytical passion that has guaranteed his success in this field.

His post as the Equality and Participation Officer of the East African society involved supporting students from the East African region in receiving equal opportunities in the wider society and the University. Evans worked with other brilliant and like-minded students to ensure that every student got the best university experience.

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Faysascha George Course: BSc (Hons) Forensic Science and Learning Disability Nursing

Faysascha George affectionately known as “Sanny” is originally from St. Lucia, a beautiful island in the Caribbean. Her supportive parents Cecilia and Lester George always encouraged Faysascha to follow her dreams and aspirations. She completed two BSc (Hons) degrees (Forensic Science and Learning Disability Nursing) at UWE. She enjoys the outdoors, especially camping and loves art and music. Faysascha prides herself on making the most of life recognising that there cannot be success without failure.

“I love helping others, trying to be an agent of change wherever I go.”

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Jane Ojiako Course: Business Management and Human Resources

Jane Ojiako was Vice President Education at The Students’ Union for two terms from 2019 to 2021. In her role, she has championed and initiated projects aimed at addressing the UWE Awarding Gap. From organising various events focused on educating students on the issue, initiating campaigns focused on decolonising the UWE reading list and library shelves to co-creating the UWE Inclusive Curriculum and Practice Toolkit collection.

Additionally, she has worked in partnership with the University to improve the assessment and feedback process at UWE Bristol. Above all, Jane has been committed to championing and representing the voice of students on all matters relating to ensuring their experience at UWE beats their expectations.

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Janet Ige Job Title: Research Fellow in Public Health

Janet Ige has been a member of the UWE Bristol community for the past seven years which has been a truly remarkable experience. Janet’s transition from being a student to a staff member has allowed her to connect with diverse members of this community. Janet is thankful for the opportunity to mentor and support BAME students in achieving their goals and realising their potential. “As we celebrate our strengths, our stories and our successes, it is important for us all to look ahead and work together to break down the very glass ceilings limiting our potential.”

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Louise Goux Job Title: Staff and Student Engagement Officer

Louise is an equality specialist passionate about creating spaces for people to feel a sense of community and connection. Her core passions are discussions around race, LGBT+ inclusion, mental health, and theories of intersectionality. She describes herself as unapologetically ambitious - a trait that has pushed her through various challenges and obstacles throughout her life. She uses her social media platform to candidly talk about a variety of equality issues - aiming to create open and authentic dialogue. She aspires to become a leading CEO in the charity sector combining her passion for equality, amplifying diverse voices, and creating sustainable social change. Louise has spoken at a variety of national and international conferences, webinars and panels bringing her lived experience and wealth of professional knowledge.

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Malaika Kegode Course: Film Studies

Malaika Kegode is a writer, performer and producer. She has appeared on stages at several festivals and literary events including WOMAD and Edinburgh Book Festival. As of 2021, she has published two poetry collections and her debut theatre show Outlier, which was co-produced by Bristol Old Vic. In addition to her own writing, Malaika is a poetry mentor and workshop leader. Utilising skills learned in her time at UWE, she has had essays published around themes of film, culture and race, and has also worked as a programme selector for Encounters Film Festival and Tallinn Black Nights.

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Mohamed Hussein Course: BA Accounting and Finance

Mohamed is a First-Class Graduate from BA(Hons) Accounting and Finance who cultivated UWE’s culture for developing personally and professionally.

His PAL Leader role led him to secure a placement year within the Finance Department at UWE and become a pro-bono financial advisor to entrepreneurs at the Business School. His hard work and dedication during the placement year resulted in his nomination to the Best Performing Placement Student by UWE’s Chief Financial Officer. He has also built up his extra-circular activities further through his committee role within the East African Society, where he was capable of giving back to the UWE population.

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Paul Lassa Course: Computer Science

Paul aka “Jabani” is a Nigerian, multi-disciplinary music producer, mix engineer and songwriter who has worked with a variety of artists such as PsychoYP and Laime to produce “Loot Me”, Jaay to produce his ep “Bynd the Arch” and Sambee to co-produce produce his album “1718”. His work focuses on self-expression through creativity and empowering individuals through music, video and photography. He is the Creative Director of SEPH group, a creative management brand whose goal is to provide exquisite entertainment worldwide. Jabani is also currently working with Creative Power Town (CPT) to engage musical talent in and around Bristol. He has also been included in the Dean’s List for excellent performance in his degree of study.

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Raphaella Vieira Da Silva Course: Urban Planning

Raphaella is a Brazilian urban planning student, who has worked at The Planning Inspectorate in Bristol. At UWE Bristol she has been involved in many enterprise events such as the UWE Business Case Competition. She was also a PAL leader, Student Representative, Social Media Manager and Vice-President for UWE Planning Society. She participated in the Futures Award, the Grand Challenge and ran for The Students’ Union President in 2021. Raphaella loves getting involved in projects that support or appreciate a community. Raphaella tries to step out of her comfort zone as often as possible, leaving her print everywhere through her support and love towards others. She is passionate, motivated and optimistic, and hopes that someday she’ll be able to improve infrastructures in underdeveloped areas sustainably. “Let us change for the better!”

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Rita Buehring Course: BA (Hons) Early Childhood

Rita has completed her second year of studying BA (Hons) Early Childhood.

She has provided leadership and commitment in serving as a Student Representative and as President of the East African Society, which focuses on improving the experience of Black minority students.

Through her work, Rita has shown dedication to issues including environmental sustainability, diversity and inclusion.

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Roger Griffith Job Title: Associate Lecturer and Diversity and Community Projects

Roger Griffith MBE is a writer of cultural stories, insights on race, global observations and social inequality. He has worked to promote diversity and inclusion for over 30 years. After leaving school without qualifications, he became a champion for life-long learning during a diverse career as a consultant, creative producer, activist and lecturer at UWE Bristol. Roger is the former Executive Chair and Broadcaster at the award-winning Ujima Radio. He was awarded the Bristol Lord Mayor’s Medal for his community, voluntary and race equality work in 2018 and received an MBE for his work in Diversity and Arts in 2019.

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Samuel Ikpe Course: Mechanical Engineering

Samuel is a mechanical engineer whose been elected to be the Vice President Societies and Communication for two years in a row at UWE Bristol. In addition to his academic success, he has proven himself to be an exceptionally hard worker. He is a talented music producer, songwriter and artist who identifies as “Sambee” with many successful albums “1718: A New Yair” as well as music videos with more exciting projects such as “Big Head” in the future.

His work ethic has allowed him to maintain a high standard of consistency, and these are the qualities we expect in an exceptional Black individual.

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Scholastica Obodo Course: Statistics (PhD)

Scholastica is a PhD student of Statistics. She is an author, orator and a creative recipient of the Prestigious Presidents' NYSC honours award. Her efforts gear towards awareness on salient issues to support the youths, teenagers and BAME Community. As President of the NSS UWE, she initiated NSS HELP COPE videos. She is a student council member and is a volunteer with the British Heart Foundation. Her detailed interview on tips for achieving success has been featured in the Research Skills development programme on UWE Blackboard. She was also nominated and shortlisted for committee member of the year in the 2021 Society Awards.

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Stephanie Jay Course: PhD Biomedical Science

Stephanie graduated with a first-class degree in 2018 and is currently on a Biomedical Science PhD. programme at UWE Bristol, in partnership with Colgate-Palmolive. She is a creative producer, photographer, and curator who has worked with Rising Arts, Bristol City Council, Africa Week, CRIB UWE. Stephanie has curated exhibitions at the Tafari Art Gallery, The Arnolfini, and her work has been featured in Bristol, the Voice, BBC and ITV. Stephanie is the co-founder of SEPH Group, a creative management company focused on nurturing creative talent. She has worked with several media institutions in the UK, including the BBC and Ujima Radio station and has been featured in several exhibitions including the “I am Melanin”, “African Queens”, and “Africa Week” exhibition. Recently, Stephanie was appointed as a Board Director and Trustee of St George’s in Bristol.

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Terry-Dawn Limbu Job title: Journalism and Public Relations

Dawn is a broadcaster, activist and an award-winning former student with a degree in Journalism and Public Relations.

Equality and diversity has always been at the forefront of her mind, representing her class as a student representative for three years running. She also sat on the committee of the BAME society's opening year as a Media Officer.

Dawn broke into broadcasting after delivering a speech to 10,000 people during the Black Lives Matter protest in Bristol 2020. She is committed to writing cutting-edge stories that combine social justice and environmental issues in the UK and beyond.

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Ubong Joseph Ante Course: Mechanical Engineering

Ubong, popularly known as “Joey” is an ambitious young hardworking individual, who studied Mechanical Engineering at UWE Bristol. His active involvement led him to be part of the first all-black Presidents Team at The Students’ Union at UWE. His selflessness, ability to make a positive influence on people and love for making an impact lead him to serve two years in office.

He is a co-founder of SEPH Group established in 2016, a creative management company with a vision to provide a platform for creatives to express themselves through art.

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Uzochi Nwaosu Course: Professional Doctorate in Health Psychology

Uzochi Nwaosu is a trainee health psychologist and sexual health practitioner currently completing the Professional Doctorate in Health Psychology at UWE. Uzochi is passionate about finding solutions to address the sexual health inequalities observed among Black people in the UK.

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Will Taylor Course: Film Studies and Media Culture Studies (BA Hons)

Will grew up in South London then spent his teens at a prestigious boarding school. Already sat on the fringes of diaspora, these experiences shaped his view of the world and inform all of his work. As a Creative Producer, Will’s work centres around the diversity of thought, lived experience and representation in the creative and culture sector.

“I swear the work is never done for recognition but because of need, I wish I could see someone who looked like me doing this work when I graduated, but I realised that I had to be that person for myself, and others who feel like I did”.

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