Meet Our Students

Taylor Coleman is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Africana and American Studies. She obtained her Master's in Humanities at UB in 2017 and her undergraduate degree in Spanish and International Studies from Spelman College in Atlanta, GA.

Emily H Diaz-Novak is a PhD Candidate and Instructor in the Africana & American Studies department at the University at Buffalo. Her doctoral research explores the impacts of Colombia's 2016 Peace Accord on Black and Indigenous communities of the Caribbean coast.

David Duske holds a BA in North American Studies from the Freie Universität, Berlin and an MA in American Studies from the University at Buffalo. His research interests focus on Transnationalism, Cross-Cultural Individuals, and the development of belonging and identity of people living across borders.

Samson Fagbohunlu holds bachelor's and master's degrees in international relations from—Landmark University, Nigeria, and LUISS University, Rome, Italy. His research is centered around the intersection of Music and Social Activism, with a keen and specialized focus on the genre of Afrobeat as a transnational creation and its profound expressions within social movements.

Evelyn Santiago Gonzalez (AKA Evelyn Rosario) holds a BA in Sociology from the University of Puerto Rico, and a Master's in American Studies focused on Puerto Rican Studies from UB. Her interest is in culture, ethnicity, race, "ISMS," and the indigenous people, particularly the Taino people of the Caribbean.

Soumaila Guirou is a Ph.D. candidate and Teaching Assistant who teaches courses on Africa and its diaspora. Within his research in the department, Soumaila centers his attention on youth activism in Francophone West Africa, investigating the deterritorialized practices and transformative social engineering initiated by engaged citizens, and highlighting the importance of unity and shared objectives in their pursuit of justice and equality.

Stephine Hunt is a Ph.D. candidate (ABD) in American Studies and a TA in the Department of Indigenous Studies at the University at Buffalo. She is also an adjunct instructor in the Department of English at SUNY Fredonia and works for the Chautauqua Literary Arts at Chautauqua Institution.

Yao Kahlil Newkirk holds a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Theatre Performance from the University of Buffalo. He is a writer, director, speaker, performance artist, singer, song-writer, poet, filmmaker, actor, and designer. Using his current research in Africana & American Studies as supporting context for his art, his interdisciplinary work focuses on trauma-based performance.