The African Student Union creates a community for international African students at Oakland University, allowing them to form bonds with students by encouraging them to show others themselves and their culture.
The Union balances comfort and joy for international students who join. Originally aimed to ensure that African students at Oakland are adjusting well to their college life, the African Student Union also makes sure to host several events that include students outside of the African student community, with the goal of forming lifelong friendships and creating a welcoming environment for those who share different backgrounds.
One of the biggest events of the year is the beginning of the year potluck. This event has students introduce themselves and their culture to other members of the Union. In addition to the potluck, they also host different events throughout the year in order to introduce African culture to students all over campus. These events are welcomed to all and are curated by the African Student Union (ASU) board, which includes members from all over Africa.
Vice President Fatoumata Samb was born in Senegal and moved to multiple countries across North and West Africa. The exposure to many cultures and perspectives is what ultimately led her to finding the African Student Union.
“I heard about the African Student Union when my friend told me about a potluck being organized by a group of African students,” Samb said. “The idea of coming together over food and culture immediately caught my attention, so I decided to attend. That event introduced me to the amazing sense of community within the African Student Union, and I knew I wanted to be part of it. It truly felt like home away from home.”
Samb is involved with many community-driven leadership roles at Oakland, including being a Resident Assistant and a peer mentor for the Center for Multicultural Initiative (CMI). Her work within the student union and her overall involvement within the Oakland community led to her being gifted with the Keeper of the Dream Award.
“I was recently honored with the Keeper of the Dream Award, which recognizes students who promote diversity, equity and inclusion on campus,” Samb said. “Receiving this award was incredibly humbling, as it affirmed that the work I do to foster a sense of belonging and advocate for multicultural understanding truly matters. It was a reminder that every effort, big or small, in creating an inclusive community has a meaningful impact, and it motivates me to continue working towards a more equitable and connected campus.”
Personal Relations Manager and head of the African Student Union social media account Dominic Agyei Gyimah was born in Ghana and enrolled in the Oakland University PhD program for Organic Chemistry.
“When I was kid, my mom used to work in a hospital as a secretary in the medicine management unit, so I was almost always drawn to medicine,” Gyimah said. “I was more drawn to the pharmacy aspect, so generally I felt that if I wanted to have an impact on how drugs work, and what drugs help people, then I have a better chance of going through the pharmacy route.”
While he attends Oakland with the mission to get a PhD, the African Student Union has also allowed him to connect his personal life with the campus community. The Union has allowed to share his culture and connect with those who are and are not African.
“It’s one of the best things I’ve seen with ASU and I really like that it is called that,” Gyimah said. “We actually like it when we have different people coming into our events. People from different continents, to show that when we see unity, it’s not just people from Africa, but different people from everywhere. And regardless of what you speak, what you look like, regardless of anything, once we are human beings, you see that they seek the same thing that all of us believe, all of us are interesting.”
President Michele Sende Nzimbou is in the Nursing Program as a student at Oakland University and was born in Congo. Members of the Union are proud of seeing the representation of African culture thrive on campus.
“People see the name and they are like ‘Oh, it’s only for Africans,’ but it’s not,” Nzimbou said. “The target group is non-Africans and I wish more people knew about it. We are trying to show you African culture, so we want to see non-Africans come to our events and see how things are done. My favorite event that we have is the fashion show. It’s a lot of work because you need to get people to volunteer to be models and to create outfits, but watching the whole show happen — even though I was behind the stage the whole time to make sure the models were in line — but watching the whole show was actually fun, I love it.”
Not only is she seen behind the scenes of these events, but she is also seen often being expressive and very open to sharing her Congolese culture with other students at Oakland.
“We have a big reputation in Africa for being ‘extra’ with everything. There is even this funny meme that says, ‘If you invite your Congolese friend to your party you have to be really specific, tell them ‘Oh it’s just casual don’t be extra,’” Nzimbou said. “I just love it. I’m like ‘I’m Congolese, I can’t help it. We always have to make sure we have fun through everything, and just enjoy life.’ It’s like being the life of the life of the party, and I love sharing it with people. We smile, we dance through everything.”
The African Student Union opens International African students to be themselves at Oakland University, as well as encourages them to introduce and connect with other students who may or may not be African as well.
For more information about the African Student Union and what they do, be sure to visit them on their Instagram page, as well as their GrizzOrgs page.
