“Education Opened Doors For Me As An Immigrant,” Says College Professor Of Nigerian Descent

As a college professor at Wichita State University, Mercy Umeri understands the power of education to make dreams come true. She moved to the States after experiencing delays in completing her master’s program in her home country. Frustrated with the disruptions in her education she decided to study in America where “I’m sure that if they say the program is for 18 months, it will actually be for 18 months.” She went on to get a doctorate and now works at the university, molding young minds. “One of the things that I encourage people who come to the U.S. to do is to get an education. It’s okay to come here and just get minimum wage jobs, but with education in the U.S., you increase your chances to get into rooms that you would not ordinarily be able to get into if you didn’t have an education.” According to the college professor, education has been a blessing in her immigrant journey, opening doors and helping her transition nicely into the spaces she operates today.  She sits at the decision-making tables because of her education.

Leaving home and migrating to a new country was not an easy decision; she was growing a business and family. However, being dissatisfied with the schooling system at home, she chose to travel for education. Umeri handed the reins of her consulting business to her husband and traveled with three small children – the oldest was seven years, the second was five and the last was one. It was a challenge to combine transitioning to a new country at the age of 36, starting a graduate program, and caring for three children. However, the college professor regards this as one of the best decisions she has made.

As a new migrant in Kansas toting little children, with no family or friends, Umeri explains that she had to build new support systems, meet people, and make friends with other Africans and Nigerians. Managing child care for all three children was difficult. “Some of us do not fully appreciate the communal life we enjoy back home, there is always help somehow.” She worked to learn the culture of her new environment – how to relate with the people, how to start conversations, and how to make herself relevant to the new system. Even the weather impacted integration as she had to adapt to the cold in Kansas after living in a country with temperate weather. Another important lesson Umeri has learned while integrating into American society is that race remains a sensitive issue. Initially, she experienced a culture shock coming into the U.S. and identifying as Black. In Nigeria, people do not identify by race as there are multiple ethnicities and cultural affiliations. “The identity of me as a Black woman was a new learning. For every form I had to fill in the U.S., there was a space where I had to fill that I am a Black woman. I think for me, that was actually jarring.” However, the college professor highly commends the merit-based system within which America operates. It is the reason she believes that she could move to a new country at 36 years old and still succeed.  

Umeri has fond memories growing up in Lagos, describing herself as omo eko ni mi, a child of Lagos. With her parents and siblings based in Nigeria, she often visits to nurture home ties. She is also involved in philanthropic activities in her home country, facilitating access to education for low-income children. Growing up in a poor background, a lot has changed for Umeri, and she attributes it to the power of faith, the power of focus, and believing in your dreams. “I put in the work; you also have to do your work.” Although the odds are usually stacked against people like her, she notes that education can be a game changer. “Education is a good way to bring people out of poverty, especially people who do not come from money. Education is a good start. That critical thinking element in education, I think, is what makes the difference; to see that you can be anything you want to be. It is the key for me to come out and break that cycle of poverty.” 

As a college professor and advisor to the African Caribbean Student Association at Wichita State, she is taking on the responsibilities of a teacher, big sister, counselor, and mom away from home. She is also the program coordinator for the mini MPA program, which is a professional development program for executives. “I love my students and I think the feeling is mutual. I get good feedback about what they enjoy in the classes and the things that they are learning.” Umeri is grateful for the American civil rights movement and the African Americans’ fights and sacrifices for equality and fairness. She acknowledges that it has made her journey easier as a woman, Black woman, and professor, and she looks forward to a time when there can be more Black women professors working in her school.  

Belinda Nzeribe is the magazines contributing writer, editor and interviewer based in Nigeria. Her work furthers a transatlantic relationship between FunTimes diaspora audience and the motherland. She began her career as a broadcast journalist, and is currently the managing editor of IkejaBird Media, an online news publication. She also runs creative writing clubs in high schools and publishes student anthologies. Her other passion is child literacy and she manages a charity working to improve reading levels of children in low-income communities. Belinda holds degrees in Theatre and Film, Public and Media Relations, and International Affairs.