Faculty

Dr. Akosua Darkwah holds a BA from Vassar College, an MSc from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her academic specialisations are in criminology, Sociology of Development, Sociology of Work, and Gender Studies. She has published extensively in the Journal of Gender Studies, Women’s Studies International Forum, Ghana Studies, among many other journals, and is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana in the Sociology Department. Dr. Darwkwah teaches Globalization & The Developing World and Society, Culture and Modernization in Ghana at NYU Accra. 

Dr. Audrey Gadzekpo is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Communication Studies, University of Ghana, with more than 12 years experience of university teaching and research in the areas of media, gender, development and governance. She has more than 17 years practical experience as a journalist, working variously as a reporter, editor, contributor, columnist, talk show host, socio-political commentator, and magazine publisher/editor. She designs training programs in mass-mediated communication, and is a skilled trainer on various aspects of public and interpersonal communication. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Birmingham, U.K., an M.A. from Brigham Young University, Utah, USA, and a B.A. in English from the University of Ghana, Legon. Dr. Gadzekpo serves on the boards of the Ghana Centre for Democratic Development and the Ghana Integrity Initiative, the editorial board of Feminist Media Studies and is a member of the advisory board of the Public Sector Reform Program in Ghana. She also serves on a number of internal boards and committees at the University of Ghana, where she teaches. In the past she has served on the boards of the Ghana News Agency Board (Jan.2001-Jan.2003), the African Literature Centre, Kitwe, Zambia, 1997, and was on the executive of the African Council for Communication Education (ACCE) 1996-2003. An activist, Dr. Gadzekpo was a domestic election observer in the 1996, 2000, and 2004 general elections in Ghana, and a Commonwealth Election Observer in Mozambique in December 2004. 

Dr. Charity S. Akotia is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Psychology, University of Ghana. She obtained a B.A. (Honors) from the University of Ghana, a Masters in Psychology from Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario and a Ph.D in Psychology from the University of Ghana. Dr Akotia is passionate about teaching and teaches both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. She has taught several courses in psychology including community psychology, social psychology, psychology of gender and introductory courses in psychology. She is a member of the International Association for Cross Cultural Psychology (IACCP) and the Society for Community Research and Action (SCRA). Her research interests include gender and work as well as suicide and suicide prevention in Ghana.

Dr. Doris Boateng holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Philosophy in Social Work from the University of Ghana. She completed a split-site PhD from the University of Ghana and the University of Manitoba in Canada. Her academic specializations are gender issues, women’s economic empowerment and mental health. Dr. Doris Boateng is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Social Work at the University of Ghana. She is also a courtesy faculty at the School of Social Work, University of South Florida, USA. She teaches Inequality at NYU Accra.

Eric Sunu Doe is an Applied Ethnomusicologist and palmwine guitarist/performer specializing in African music revival, sustenance, and the performance practices of Ghanaian highlife and neo-traditional music. His research interests include meaning in African vocal performance, biographical research, and pedagogical issues in Ghanaian popular music. Sunu Doe is the founder and leader of the Legon Palmwine Band and curates the Nsadwase Nkɔmɔ Performance Circle and the Nsadwase Music Festival (visit www.legonpalmwine.com). He holds a Ph.D. in Music (Applied Ethnomusicology) from the University of KwaZulu Natal, Durban, South Africa. Sunu Doe is a lecturer at the Department of Music of the School of Performing Arts at the University of Ghana. He serves as the Director of the Department’s Pop Ensemble and Coordinator of their Colloquiums and Workshops.

A literary scholar, researcher, educator and former Minister of State, Esi Sutherland is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana, Legon, where she chairs the Language, Literature and Drama Department. She is co-editor of the West African and Sahelian volume of Women Writing Africa, a project of the Feminist Press. Dr. Sutherland was educated at the University of Ghana, Legon and the University of California, Los Angeles. She is a former Deputy Minister of Education and also of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Ghana. Currently, she is a Senior Fellow of International Education at the School of Education, University of Manchester, UK and serves on numerous committees, boards and commissions locally and internationally. She has received several awards for her contributions to education and national development. 

John Collins has been active in the Ghanaian/West African music scene since 1969 as a band leader, music union activist, recording engineer, journalist and writer. He is currently a Professor at the Music Department at the University of Ghana at Legon, is manager of Bokoor Recording Studio, is Acting Chairman of BAPMAF African Music Archives in Accra, is a consultant for the Ghana Musicians Union and Ghana Old Musicians Welfare Association and is co-leader of the Local Dimension highlife band. Visit http://www.scientific-african.org/scholars/jcollins/ to learn more about Dr. Collins. 

Dr. Kodho Amedjorteh Senah holds a BA (Honors) from the University of Ghana, an M.Phil from the University of Ghana, and PhD from the University of Amsterdam. He is currently an Associate Professor with the Department of Sociology at the University of Ghana, and an Adjunct Associate Professor with the Central University College, Ghana, where he teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses. From 2005 to 2009 he served as the Head of the Department of Sociology at the University of Ghana. His areas of academic and research interests are Medical Sociology/Anthropology, Criminology/Penology, Rural Sociology/Rural Development, and Urban Sociology. He recently completed a 5-year research project as the Team Leader of a 5-year research project about Sustainable Sanitation Solutions involving the University of Ghana, Health Research Centre, Ministry of Health, Dodowa and Copenhagen, School of Global Health, and the University of Copenhagen, Denmark. At NYU Accra, he teaches Health and Society in a Global Context.

Poet, literary scholar, and cultural activist, Kofi Anyidoho is currently professor & chair of the Department of English and director of the African Humanities Institute Program at the University of Ghana, Legon. He has also been executive producer and host of Ghana Television's African Heritage Series. Well-known for his unique style of performance-poetry, his published works include five collections of poetry, a bi-lingual [Ewe-English] play for children, and three CD/Cassette recordings of his poetry in Ewe and in English. As a literary scholar, Anyidoho has published numerous journal articles and book chapters worldwide, and edited a number of major books on African literature. He has been a distinguished visiting professor at Swarthmore College and Colorado College, and has also taught at Northwestern University and Columbia University. Anyidoho was Vice President and President of the United States based African Literature Association [1998-99]. He was educated at the University of Ghana, Legon, Indiana University, Bloomington and the University of Texas at Austin. 

Kofi Baku holds a BA in History & Philosophy from the University of Ghana, Legon, an MA in Intellectual History from the University of Sussex, a D.Phil. in Intellectual History from the University of Sussex, and became a Barrister at Law at the Ghana School of Law. He teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses at the University of Ghana since 1987, where he also served as the Head of the Department of History from 2006-2009. He is also a part-time lecturer at the Ashesi University College in Accra. His research lies in intellectual resistance to colonial rule in Africa, chieftaincy and other forms of traditional leadership in Ghana, constitutional development in Ghana, and judicial protection of the liberty of Ghanaians. He teaches Cultures and Contexts: the Black Atlantic and Cocoa and Gold: Ghana's Development in Global Perspective at NYU Accra.  

Dr. Kofi Saah holds a B.A. (Honors) in English and Linguistics from the University of Ghana, Legon, M.A. in Linguistics from Indiana University, Bloomington, and a Ph.D. in Linguistics from the University of Ottawa. Dr. Saah has lectured at University of Ghana, Legon’s Department of Linguistics since 1984. He was appointed to the position of Senior Lecturer in 1990, and served as chair of the department from 1998 to 2000. He teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses in theoretical linguistics: phonetics, morphology, syntax and semantics. He has taught the linguistics of the Akan/Twi language and supervised student projects/dissertations at both levels. He has taught the Twi language to American exchange students at the University of Ghana since 1995. 

Dr. Matilda Steiner-Asiedu holds a BSc in Home Science from the University of Ghana, Legon, a BSc in Biology/Chemistry from the University of Bergen, Norway, a M. Phil in Nutrition from the University of Bergen, Norway, a PhD in Nutrition from the University of Bergen, Norway, and an MPD from Brown University. She has been a Senior Lecturer at the University of Ghana since 2008, and was promoted to Associate Professor in 2010. Since 2011, she has served as the Head of the Department of Nutrition and Food Science Department. Her research interests are Nutrition Education, Health Promotion with High/Low literate populations, Women, Nutrition and Health, Infant and Child Nutrition, Dietary Communication, and the Effect of Processing on Nutrient Composition of Foods. She teaches the Introduction to Global Issues in Nutrition: The African Perspective course with NYU Accra. 

Timothy Seyram Kojo Quashigah is an accomplished broadcast journalist and consultant, trainer and coach. A product of many local and international media organisations, including the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, Accra, Ghana and Radio Nederland World Service, Hilversum, The Netherlands, Tim has had decades of practical production, presentation and leadership experience and attained the rank of Head of Training at the national broadcaster. Besides broadcasting, he has previously been the Editor of Youth for Youth, an adolescent reproductive health magazine and Editor-in-chief of Journal of Communication, Media and Cultural Studies. Since 2007, he has been at the University of Media, Arts and Communication (UniMAC-Ghana
Institute of Journalism), teaching Feature Writing, Radio and Television News Presentation, Science Reporting, and Sociology of Journalism at undergraduate and graduate levels. He has also presented papers at conferences and published (especially reviews) in peer reviewed journals. His research interests include migration, climate change, sociology of media, civil-
military relations and democratic governance. Previously Dean of the Faculty of Journalism and Media Studies and Chair of many committees at the university, Tim holds a Diploma in Public Relations, Advertising and Marketing from the Ghana Institute of Journalism, an M. A. in Journalism from the University of Wales, Cardiff, an M.Phil. in Global Leadership from the
University of Professional Studies Accra and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Ghana, Legon, Accra. As adjunct faculty at NYU Accra, he teaches two courses: Journalism and Society: Cultural Contexts and African Media and REPORTING ACCRA: An incomparable African Metropolis: Journalism Methods and Practice.

Yahaya Alpha Suberu holds a BFA in Motion Picture Photography from the National Film and Television Institute (NAFTI) in Accra, and an MFA in Film Production from NYU.He has directed, produced, and served as cameraman/Director of Photography for multiple short and feature-length documentaries in Ghana, Singapore, Mali, and South Africa.He teaches Documenting The African City at NYU Accra.