Paul Akpomuje

Paul is a PhD student in the Faculty of Education. He is a research fellow with the Revolutionary Demand for Happiness Working Group, Department of Black Studies, Queen’s University. He is a member of the Literacies Research Group and Arts Infusion Committee, Faculty of Education, Queen’s University.

Paul’s research delves into visa stories and the poetics of migration, focusing on the experiences of Nigerian immigrant graduate students in Canada and the implications for their identities. Prior to and since joining Queen’s University, Paul has maintained a vibrant and robust academic agenda which lies at the intersection of education, migration, black studies, and social justice. The theoretical and methodological underpinnings of his research include critical race theory, critical counter-narrative inquiry, and multimodality.

Paul’s teaching and research experience spans Nigeria, Germany, and Canada. At the Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria, he taught courses such as Program Development, Workplace Learning, Working and Learning, Transformative Learning, and Arts-based Adult Education. At Queen’s University, he has taught the course English Language Learners and served as a teaching assistant for the Geography course.

In addition to his research and teaching, Paul has served as a representative of the Education Graduate Students Society (EGSS) on the Faculty of Education Indigenization - Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Anti-Racism, and Accessibility (I-EDIAA) Committee. He currently holds the position of International Students Representative of the EGSS. As an Educational Development Associate for the Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL), Paul brings his expertise in critical social justice, program development, and creative, multimodal, and arts-based pedagogies to his role.

As a poet, Paul has a forthcoming poetry collection. He recently curated two poetry workshops: The Poetics of Migration, with Dr. Katherine McKittrick, Professor in Gender Studies and Canada’s Research Chair in Black Studies, and The Poetics of Love, with Dr. Rebecca Luce-Kapler, poet, professor, and Dean of Education.