Professor Rose-Margaret Ekeng-Itua, a Nigerian educator has been awarded a doctorate degree (Ph.D) in Cybernetics making her the first black woman with the title.
Ekeng-Itua, who was supervised by the first human Cyborg in the world, Prof. Kevin Warwick, backed the degree from the University of Reading in the United Kingdom.
In addition to her recent achievement in Cybernetics, Vanguard News reports that the distinguished scholar and professor of engineering has several awards to her credit with over 20 years of experience in Engineering and STEM Education cutting across the USA, Europe and Africa, leading the creation of innovative programmes in STEM.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, as well as a master’s degree in Mobile and Satellite Communications Engineering.
In an interview, the Cybernetics scholar said, “Every challenge became fuel for my determination. I realised that my success would not only open doors for myself but would serve as an example for other women and girls who might otherwise doubt their capabilities.
“I am a Dreamer-Doer-Thinker, so I always had dreams, but my dreams were not necessarily focused on being ‘great’, but more on how I could be a positive change agent, and how to create initiatives, programs and technologies that will impact the world positively. I am human-centric in my approach to making positive change hence, the field of Cybernetics gave me that opportunity as Cybernetics is centered on purposeful design of technologies for society and humans.
“This has always been my passion, and pursuing my passion and the dream to disrupt some societal misnomers propelled me to being the first black woman to earn a doctorate degree in Cybernetics. Being the first in anything is always retrospective, for me, the initial focus is always creating positively transformative impact.”
Ekeng-Itua added that “I wanted to pursue a career that would give me the opportunity for creativity, innovation, collaboration, and positive impact in communities.”
