BRONX, NY, April 05, 2017 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Rev. Dr. Nkechi Agwu has been included in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Dr. Agwu began her professional career in 1984, earning a Bachelor of Science with Honors from the University of Nigeria. Upon graduation, she joined the Federal Office of Statistics in Enugu, Nigeria, where she stayed for a year before transferring to Kaduna Polytechnic, for which she worked as a lecturer from 1985 until 1987. In '87, she decided to immigrate to the United States to pursue other avenues, both educationally and professionally. Upon arriving in the U.S., she obtained a Master of Science from the University of Connecticut, a Ph.D. from Syracuse University and later theological education as a licensed global chaplain and ordained minister through the Worldwide Association of Small Churches.
In 1995, after earning a doctoral degree, Dr. Agwu began working as a mathematics professor and later as director for the Center of Excellence in Teaching Learning and Scholarship for the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), City University of New York (CUNY), where she has remained until this day. A proud Nigerian, Sierra-Leonean, American, her specialties include ethno-mathematics and the history of mathematics, as well as, curriculum development in mathematics and statistics with a focus on gender, ethnic and class equity. Her scholarship promoting educational equity has twice earned her a Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship working in partnership in 2014 with the Federal University of Technology, Akure, and in 2016-2017 with the National Mathematics Center, Abuja, on the Project, "Culture and Women's Stories: A Framework for Capacity Building in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Related Fields," which motivated the writing of her mathematical, cultural and spiritual story, God's Own: The Genesis of Mathematical Story-Telling and her founding of CHI STEM TOYS Incorporated (together with Bishop Dr. Kirkland and Mr. Ngozichukwuka Agwu), an educational business entrepreneurial platform for inspiring children and youth worldwide to create their own toys from recycled materials to tell mathematical stories of the work of rural women and successful women in STEM while learning scientific concepts.
From 2001 until 2003, Dr. Agwu served as the chair of the statistics committee of the mathematics department, where she led the faculty collaboration on a MAT150 workbook for teaching statistics, the royalties of which were funneled back into the department. In addition to her work with the CUNY system, she served as an educational consultant for New Visions for Public Schools in New York City and the Algebra Project, which helped to shape her work in educational equity.
As a member of the International Biographical Association, Mathematical Association of America, Project Kaleidoscope Faculty for the 21st Century of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, and Marquis' own Who's Who in America, Dr. Agwu has parlayed her industry knowledge into numerous creative works. In 2000, she authored "Using a Threaded Discussion Web-based Software to Teach Statistics," for which she earned the American Mathematical Association of Two-Year Colleges INPUT Award for innovative curriculum in teaching statistics. In addition, she served as the editor of "Mathematics in College" a CUNY Journal for Undergraduate Mathematics Education.
Dr. Agwu is a shining example of excellence in her field, which is evident when one looks at the amount of recognitions and awards she has received throughout the course of her career, including the Performance Excellence Award from the CUNY system in 2000 and her chieftaincy title of ADA BENDE (first daughter of Bende) given to her in March 2017 by the Traditional Ruling Council of her local government in Abia State, Nigeria, for her contributions to educational equity and empowerment of the children and youth and for her scholarship in promoting and bringing recognition to the mathematical traditions of African people. Additionally, she has earned the Nigerian Federal Government Merit Award and the American Educational Research Association National Graduate Student Dissertation Travel Award. She was also named a visiting fellow for the Education Testing Service in 2003 and a Fulbright U.S. Fellow in 2004. Looking forward, Dr. Agwu intends to remain passionate about her field, specifically regarding indigenous mathematical, scientific and technical knowledge, and women leaders in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM, fields.
About Marquis Who's Who :
Since 1899, when A. N. Marquis printed the First Edition of Who's Who in America , Marquis Who's Who has chronicled the lives of the most accomplished individuals and innovators from every significant field of endeavor, including politics, business, medicine, law, education, art, religion and entertainment. Today, Who's Who in America remains an essential biographical source for thousands of researchers, journalists, librarians and executive search firms around the world. Marquis now publishes many Who's Who titles, including Who's Who in America , Who's Who in the World , Who's Who in American Law , Who's Who in Medicine and Healthcare , Who's Who in Science and Engineering , and Who's Who in Asia . Marquis publications may be visited at the official Marquis Who's Who website at www.marquiswhoswho.com.
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