Project Participants

Dr. Fallou Ngom
Associate Professor of Anthropology & Director of the African Language Program
Dr. Fallou Ngom is the Director of the African Language Program and a tenured Associate Professor of Anthropology with training in Linguistics and Applied Linguistics. His teaching and research interests include Wolofal (Wolof written in Ajami script), interactions between African languages and cultures and non-African languages and cultures, and Ajamiliterary traditions of Sahelian Africa. Dr. Ngom leads a staff of African language instructors in Amharic, Hausa, Kiswahili, isiZulu, isiXhosa, and Wolof.

Dr. Zoliswa Mali
Coordinator of Southern African Languages
Dr. Zoliswa Mali earned her PhD in second language acquisition focusing on linguistics and technology at The University of Iowa. She is especially interested in computer-assisted language learning (CALL) and computer–mediated communication (CMC). She also obtained a MA in linguistics at The University of Iowa in addition to a MA (cum laude) in African languages (morphology and syntax) from The University of Stellenbosch, and a BA (Honors) from The University of Fort Hare, South Africa. Before coming to the United States, she had worked at The University of Fort Hare as a lecturer for isiXhosa linguistics and literature from 1989–2000.

Judith Mmari
Kiswahili Lecturer & Program Administrator
Judith Mmari has been teaching languages for over 5 years. She is a certified instructor and is the Program Administrator for African Languages. Ms. Mmari holds a M.A. from Ohio University (2002) where she researched the role of indigenous African languages in education and development.

Dr. John Hutchison
Associate Professor Emeritus
John Hutchison is Associate Professor Emeritus of African Languages and Linguistics and currently teaches Hausa. Professor Hutchison coordinated the African Language Program at BU for nearly 30 years and has been involved in the documentation of African languages since the 1960s. He is the founding editor of Mother Tongue Editions which has published numerous literacy tools including literature, dictionaries and pedagogical materials in Malian, Nigerien, and Nigerian languages.

Dr. Telahun Gebrehivot
Amharic Lecturer
Dr. Telahun Gebrehivot is a native speaker of Amharic, and has been teaching languages at High Schools and Universities for over 30 years. He holds a BA in Ethiopian and French, an MA in Applied Linguistics, and a Ph. D. in Public Administration. He currently teaches at both Boston University and Harvard University.

Alex Zito
Wolof lecturer
Alex Zito holds a M.A. in History, Education and Language from Boston University. He now teaches Wolof after spending 5 years conducting research in urban and rural areas of Senegal. He has become one of the rare specialists in both Roman script and Ajami (Wolof written with modified Arabic script).

Marta Shongwe
Martha Shongwe (nee Mdluli) was born in Swaziland and got her BA in humanities and Education at the University of Swaziland. She majored in English, Theology, and Religious Education. She served as Head of English at Saint Theresa’s Girls’ High school for ten years before she was awarded a World University Services Scholarship to move to the U.K. and continue her studies. She received her Masters in 1999 and then returned to Swaziland where she assumed the position of Senior Inspector of English Language and Literature for Swaziland schools. In 2008, she received the Hubert Humphrey Fellowship Program scholarship from Boston University. She now teaches isiZulu and siSwati at the African Studies Center and has been involved in developing the 200 word isiZulu materials.

Jennifer Yanco
Jennifer Yanco is the Executive Director of the West African Research Association. She holds a PhD in Linguistics and has taught and developed instructional materials for a number of languages, including Hausa, Lingala, and Setswana.