Uzo Agyare-Kumi

Founder

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Suite LP63063 20 Wenlock Road, London, N1 7GU United Kingdom

Biography

Uzoamaka Agyare-Kumi was appointed as Dean of the Academy in September 2022, marking her second stint in the role. She has served in executive positions at African Leadership Academy since 2014, and previously served as Dean of the Academy from 2014 to 2016. Uzo is a passionate educator and social activist who seeks to help every young person develop the skills they need to flourish as confident, productive members of society.

In 2016, Uzo stepped out of the Deanship to build ALA’s Global Programs and our DeJen Parents Association. She has also supported ALA’s Anzisha program and is the author of Parenting the Boss, a book and course for parents of young entrepreneurs. Uzo continues to support young people identify their unique opportunity to become leaders and contribute to the change they want to see in the world by designing and facilitating camps and workshops for young people on leadership development and global education informing on personal identity and race, gender and inclusion as well as building community empowerment.

A dual Nigerian/British citizen, Uzo spent her childhood in the United Kingdom and Lagos, Nigeria before moving to eastern Nigeria for undergraduate studies at the University of Nigeria. She started her career as a teacher at a Catholic school in Calabar, Nigeria, and then transitioned to community organizing and social activism. In 2001, she was offered a full-time position as a community organizer with The East London Communities Organization (TELCO), becoming the first black female community organizer in London. In 2004, she was appointed National Director for the Catholic Association for Racial Justice (CARJ) in the United Kingdom.

She has experience in developing and implementing several national projects, managing staff, consultants, and volunteers. She also authored a book, Fighters of Freedom as part of the Bi centenary celebrations of the abolition of the slave trade in the UK.

After re-locating to Ghana with her family in 2006, she worked as a consultant with the Government of Liberia to recruit professionals into key roles within the Civil Service before eventually returning to the education sector as Head of School at Tema International School. After her distinguished stint at Tema International School, Uzo was recruited to join the faculty at ALA.

Over the course of her career, her empathy, resilience and initiative have evolved into a unique leadership style which combines a grassroots/“roll-up-sleeves and do whatever it takes to make it happen” mindset, and a strategic ability to prioritize high impact areas and support teams to drive focused changes in those areas.

Uzo relocated to the UK this year and is keen to engage with schools, providing mentoring and coaching expertise to Headteachers and their leadership teams. Uzo is a mother to two young adults, and loves reading, meeting new people and travelling.