It was with regret earlier this quarter that I accepted the resignation of Afia Asamoah as the Program Coordinator for Honors. Afia didn’t move far–only one building away, for a full-time job in the Records Office–but we will miss her keen insight, friendliness, and passion for Honors and Seventh-day Adventist higher education.
Afia was a bit of an unknown quantity when I hired her. She was at Andrews University, working on a Master’s Degree, and thus the interview was on Skype. After only a minute into the interview, the visual feed failed, and the student worker and I conducting the interview could only hear her voice. Both of us had the same reaction: this candidate was warm, friendly, confident, and appeared to be quite capable. I offered her the job a short time later, and spent the next year-and-a-half being thankful.
As an undergraduate, Afia completed the requirements of Andrews University’s Honors Program, and thus came into the job understanding Honors education. In addition to managing the office/student workers, she also advised students (academically and non-curricularly), looked for ways to improve the physical plant of South Hall, supported events, and was an active voice on Honors Council. She was not afraid to introduce new ideas and work hard to implement them properly. The students valued her contributions to Honors, as indicated in the following quotes:
Ethan Hoffman – Working with Afia over the past year and a half has been such a great experience. She is such a compassionate leader who is tuned into the student experience. I’ve always felt welcome to express my thoughts to her as employee and student. I will miss her, but am glad she is able to share her skills and warmth with even more members of our campus.
Svetlana Sheindlin – One of the best parts of working with Afia was getting to know her not only as a boss, but also a friend and even a sister. Over the summer, she became a close confidant when I least expected it, teaching me the power of confidence, self-love, and most importantly, “Homecoming” by Beyonce.
Afia created a welcoming space for students. She loved chocolate and placed a jar of candy on her desk, although it was really for the students, many of whom would come into her office ostensibly for a piece of chocolate, but then stay as they had something weighty they wanted to get off of their chests. Afia loved her time in the program, telling me recently:
I enjoyed getting to know the students, not only as a community, but also on the individual level. The students were always so interesting when I talked to them, especially when they spoke about topics they cared about. It was fun watching the freshmen grow in UHNR 101 as they considered their upbringing and realize their developing worldview. I enjoyed buying snacks I knew they liked! Seeing their smiles when there was new candy was priceless 🙂 I am grateful I had the chance to travel to Malaysia and Singapore with the class of 2021. Everyone made me feel like the Honors Program was a real family, and South Hall was our home. I felt that especially on the days when I put out the call for help decorating around the holidays, and that one time we hung up art on the first floor *tears*. The Honors Program will always have a special place in my heart! PS: “Tea” (the students pointed out that I say that a lot, lol!)
Afia, thank you for all that you did for the program, for introducing new ideas and implementing them, and for creating a space where students felt comfortable coming into your office to talk. We of course will miss you, but are excited for you in your new job and wish you the best in all your future endeavors.
— Andrew Howe (Director, Honors Program)