Our History
Initial discussions on the organization occurred between Thanksgiving of 2015 and January 2016 among Prof. Gitau, Prof. Ongeri, and Prof. Muhoro. The three of us recognized the role that African women play in improving livelihoods and the impact that they could make on policy. We also recognized that African women were largely underrepresented across all sectors and, thus, the pressing need for networks to support their academic and professional growth and success. We held our inaugural meeting in May 2016, bringing together ten African women with terminal degrees in their respective professions. These women became the Founding Members of the organization.
Our Name
After going through a number of potential names, we chose our current name Mentoring Network for African Women in Academia as one that best reflected our mission and vision. Our acronym is MTAWA, so you may see our name written as Mentoring neTwork for African Women in Academia. Both forms are acceptable. MTAWA is a Swahili word that means pillar or lighthouse.
Our Board
| President Margaret W. Gitau, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Agricultural & Biological Engineering, Purdue University |
Secretary Clare Muhoro, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Chemistry, Towson University |
| Treasurer Margaret Okomo-Adhiambo, Ph.D. Bioinformatics Lead, NCIRD/OD/Office of Informatics, CDC |
Board Member Christine Adhiambo, Ph.D. Lecturer in Biochemistry, University of Nairobi, Kenya |
| Board Member Senorpe Asem-Hiablie, Ph.D. Contaminant Transport Modeling |
Student Representative Pauline Welikhe PhD student in Ecological Sciences and Engineering, Purdue University |
MTAWA 