Dr. Mauriell H. Amechi

Social Scientist, Professor, and Speaker in Norfolk, VA

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Mauriell Amechi, Ph.D. is a speaker, social scientist, professor, and activist-scholar committed to educational equity and improving college outcomes and opportunities for historically marginalized learners. Amechi's research expertise and advocacy center on issues of educational equity, student development, college access, choice, and readiness, and student persistence. His latest research examines the experiences and pathways of transition-age youth and young adults with experience in foster care. The second strand of his research explores institutional efforts to broaden participation for minoritized learners in the health science and STEM fields. The National Resource Center on the First-Year Experience and Students in Transition, National Association for Campus Activities, and ACPA Foundation have generously sponsored his scholarship.

Amechi's solo and co-authored publications appear in the Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, Review of Higher Education, Journal of African American Males in Education, American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning, and the edited volume Advancing Black male student success from preschool through Ph.D. He remains active in professional associations, namely the American Educational Research Association, the Association for the Study of Higher Education, NASPA, and ACPA. He is also an affiliate of the Office of Community College Research and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Born and raised in Chicago, the Westside native is a proud alumnus of Chicago Public Schools. He received his B.A. (with high distinction) from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and M.A. in higher education and student affairs from The Ohio State University. He later earned a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a concentration in higher education.

In his free time, he enjoys travel, mentoring, watching sports, exercise, and performing arts.

  • Work
    • Old Dominion University
  • Education
    • University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign
    • Ohio State University
    • University of Wisconsin-Madison
Testimonial
I had the pleasure of working with Dr. Amechi who was the keynote of the California State University Monterey Bay Guardian Scholars - Foster Care Awareness event in May 2019. This was the first time the Guardian Scholars Program hosted a scholar to bring awareness about the obstacles and resilience of foster youth navigating higher education. His research and passion advocating for foster youth in higher education left an imprint on the Guardian Scholars Program and the greater CSUMB community.
Keyiona Ritchey
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