2008 Woodie Awards
From Nigeria to Newport: Salve Welcomes a New Professor
Dr. Aje-Ori Agbese, Professor of English, settles into the Salve community
Kimberly Osborne
Issue date: 11/3/04 Section: News
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She enjoyed seeing the reactions of students when they realized that they had a foreign professor. She noticed that many students thought that they weren't going to understand a single word she said. But, on this particular day, after telling the class where she was from, Agbese got more than just the usual stunned looks of students that she was used to.
"I had this one student ask me, after I told her what country I was from, what kind of tree I lived in back home," said Agbese.
As a new addition to the Salve Regina University faculty, Agbese has yet to experience moments in teaching as alarming as this with Salve students.
Agbese teaches Journalism I and Understanding the Media this semester at Salve. Throughout her own life, Agbese has had exposure to many media outlets.
Her father was a journalist for 40 years and at the age of 6, Agbese had her own radio show. In high school she sang, a talent that her students have had a glimpse of, in a Coca Cola commercial in Nigeria, and before leaving her native home, she was a television reporter for African Independent Television.
"My mom likes to tell people that from the moment she had me she thought I would do something with the media," said Agbese.
Out of all the communication media that Agbese has been in contact with, she said that the Internet is the medium that amazes her the most. Agbese said that she is impressed with the way that the Internet has opened up the world and she has used it as a means of staying connected to Nigeria while in the United States.
"In this age of globalization you can make anyplace a home," said Agbese.
But even the Internet can't make up for some of the cultural differences that Agbese has noticed while living in the United States. Agbese said that she believes that people don't realize how important home is until they leave, and then they miss it.