About the K-16 Education Program

Contact Us

African Studies Center Outreach Program
232 Bay State Road
Boston, MA 02215
617.353.7303

africa@bu.edu

Hours

We are generally open 8am – 5pm, Monday through Friday. If you would like to visit, we suggest you call or email in advance to ensure the office is staffed and not hosting an event or attending a meeting.

Institutional History

The K-16 Education Outreach Program opened in 1979 under the name “Outreach Program.” Since its creation, it continues to increase awareness and knowledge of Africa by providing information, materials, and services to schools, libraries, museums, the media, and community groups in New England and throughout the country. In 2019, the Outreach Program added “K-16 Education” to its title to highlight its central mission to serve educators. The K-16 Education Program is part of Boston University’s African Studies Center, established in 1953 as an interdisciplinary teaching and research center.

Staff

The K-16 Education Program is led by Dr. Elsa Wiehe, a Mauritian national, educational researcher, and licensed K-6 teacher. Her email is: ewiehe@bu.edu

The Program also employees Boston University graduate  and undergraduate students who are essential members of our team. We are happy that Lola Barakat Shadare (’27) as undergraduate student assistant will continue in the year 2024-25, and we welcome Nkechi Abraham as a graduate student assistant from BU Wheelock and the School of Theology.

Congratulations to former employees Dr. Tiffany Bailey (’24) who is now at Northeastern University. Paula Mans (’22) artist & art educator; Lea Kapur, International Relations and Journalism, (QST’ 22); and Arianna Morrell (Wheelock ’21) on their graduation. The K-16 Education Program would like to thank them for their tremendous collaboration.

Teacher Advisors

The K-16 Education Teacher Advisory Board is a voluntary group of active K-12 educators and leaders that have for goal to advise the K-16 Education program. The external advisors support the K-16 Education Program and act as a sounding board for the development of curricular content and events for teachers. In particular, teacher advisors provide direct feedback to the Program Manager whose responsibility is to lead and implement all programs. 24-26 cycle advisors are:

  • Julian Braxton
  • Linda Morse
  • Kristin Strobel
  • Tanisha Dudley-Williams
  • Gregory Hazelwood

Title VI National Resource Centers (NRC)

The K-16 Education Outreach Program is one of ten Title VI federally funded programs in the United States that are designed to broaden the accessibility of knowledge about Africa. All Africa NRCs are members of the African Studies Association Outreach Council and collaborate toward joint events and initatives. Our new website, www.asaoutreach.org, collates these resources so that you can find Africa-related materials and events in one place. Information about our yearly African Studies Association Teachers’ Workshop can be found there.  The constituencies we serve include, but are not limited to, the following groups:

  • K-12 students and teachers
  • Community college students and teachers
  • Companies and business organizations
  • Educational organizations

Copyright Info

All materials under Boston University copyright and available for free on our website may be downloaded for use in classrooms or by community organizations. Please contact us for permission for other uses.