THE MAN ADEKUNLE OKUNOYE

Adekunle is from Oyedeji Royal family of Iba, Ifelodun local government area of the Ifelodun/Boripe/Odo-Otin Federal constituency in Osun State. After his primary school education in Ibadan, he returned home to attend Akinorun Grammar School, Ikirun under the guardianship of his great uncle and aunt, Alhaji and Alhaja Olarinde. After his secondary education, he proceeded to Oyo State College of Education, Ila-Orangun where he graduated with distinction in Mathematics at the age of 19. Upon graduation, Adekunle accepted a teaching position as a Mathematics teacher in Akinorun Grammar School, Ikirun, Osun State, Nigeria. After a brief period, he enrolled at Nigeria’s oldest university – the University of Ibadan, where he completed his first degree in Computer Science with Second Class Honors (Upper Division).

Adekunle began his career in Information Technology Consulting and later moved to the banking sector. After several years of working in the Nigerian banking sector, Adekunle relocated to the Gambia where he worked as a Project Manager with Quantum Associates, one of the best IT consulting firms in West Africa. His insatiable thirst for self development led him to enroll in graduate school in Finland where he obtained a Masters in Computer Science. Upon completion, Adekunle was offered and accepted the prestigious Turku Center for Computer Science (TUCS) academic scholarship to pursue a doctoral degree in Information Systems. Adekunle directed his doctoral research to issues plaguing information technology in developing countries with the intentions of eventually bringing this knowledge and his newly acquired skills to bear on the sub-Sahara Africa scenario in general and the Nigerian context in particular. Traces of Adekunle’s passion for rural and national development are evident in his dissertation and early publications

Upon completion of his PhD, Adekunle received job offers from universities and financial institutions around the globe and eventually, he accepted an Assistant Professor position at the prestigious graduate school of the Williams College of Business, Xavier University, Cincinnati, Ohio. Adekunle is a prolific publisher whose research continues to enjoy broad international acclaim. He is the proud winner of various international awards in ICT and currently holds the very competitive O’Connor Fellowship for his work on ICT and Global Climate Change. He is regularly invited to speak at international conferences and is an avid promoter of ICT conferences and think tanks on the African continent. Since arriving at Xavier, Adekunle has added a Masters in Educational Administration to his bag of laurels in order for him to pursue his secondary interests that include educational financing, education reforms and networked learning environment in developing countries. By dint of hardwork, honesty and integrity, Adekunle was promoted and became a tenured Associate professor at Xavier University in February 2009.

MY CONSTITUENCY, MY ROOTS
Adekunle, a prince of Iba, (a central town in Ifelodun Local Government Area (LGA) that connects Odo-Otin LGA with Boripe LGA) is deeply involved in development activities in the town. He currently serves on the board of Iba Microfinance Bank and is very active in community organizations. He is a member of the Frontliners Club, a social club formed in the 80’s with membership predominantly from Ikirun. Adekunle can be said to have inherited his involvement in community service from his parents. For example, Adekunle’s mother was a teacher and principal in several schools in the constituency before she retired. She remains active in women’s groups in the entire constituency and she is a prominent community leader. While Adekunle’s was living with his parents in Ikirun, Oyan, Ijabe, Asi, Asaba and other neighboring towns, Adekunle had the opportunity to develop extensive relationships with many indigenes of these towns and acquire a profound understanding of their way of life and the challenges they faced as individuals and as communities. This ignited a passion in the young Adekunle to better himself and acquire skills and knowledge that he could bring back and put to work to better the lot of the indigenes of the area.

SERVICE AS A CALLING
His experiences as a younger man and the close knowledge of the struggles of his people in the face of inadequate governance birthed an all consuming desire to contribute positively to the realization of a better life for Iba, its environs and Nigeria in general. Born and raised by respected leaders in his community, Adekunle grew up gaining invaluable insight into the role of selfless service as a catalyst to the actualization of a better community. Living in several western countries and visiting as many as 25 countries only serves to stoke Adekunle’s yearning for the speedy development of his homeland and the alleviation of the struggles of his people. His professional activities are always geared towards this end. Adekunle sees the results of adequate governance on a daily basis in his privileged position in the USA but cannot rest easy until he has brought his skills and knowledge to work for his people in particular and Nigeria in general. He believes that the benefits of his wealth of experience, international connections, academic excellence and distinguished career will not be fully utilized until it serves his people. These amongst many other reasons drive him to take on the challenge to help make his constituency and Nigeria a better place.