Reflections on Teaching Across Continents โ A Year of Becoming
When I began contemplating a return to graduate school to pursue my MBA, I harbored a silent desire: I wanted to teach.
This aspiration was more than a professional goal โ it was a personal yearning rooted in my commitment to education, empowerment, and creativity. I envisioned myself standing in front of students, helping shape minds and ambitions, just as so many had helped shape mine.
I communicated this desire to the admissions team at the Broad College of Business at Michigan State University. They kindly informed me that MBAs typically did not serve as teaching GAs, and my admission, while exciting, did not initially come with a Graduate Assistantship (GA). I was disappointed โ but also patient. As life often teaches, the right opportunities unfold at the right time.
Becoming a GTA โ and Embracing a Dual Role
A few weeks into my MBA journey, an unexpected opportunity arose: the College of Engineering was seeking Graduate Teaching Assistants to guide final-year students through their senior capstones.
I interviewed and was offered the role.
At the same time, through the Ntha Foundation (now Kwathu Kollective), I was already mentoring students at the Malawi University of Science and Technology (MUST) through their Work in Learning phase โ Malawiโs equivalent of a capstone.
Two classrooms.
Two continents.
One unified mission.
I was, at once, a teacher and a student myself โ navigating my own graduate coursework while leading students thousands of miles apart through theirs. Although I was physically on the same campus as my MSU students, because of schedules and logistics, my engagements with both MSU and MUST students remained entirely virtual throughout the year.
This experience became a living experiment in the future of education: connected, borderless, and hybrid.
The Evolution: From Ntha Foundation to Kwathu Kollective
These experiences did more than fulfill my teaching dream โ they clarified my life’s work.
Africa does not lack talent.
It lacks platforms designed with its unique context in mind.
Recognizing this, the Ntha Foundation began a deliberate transformation. In 2025, we officially transitioned into the Kwathu Kollective โ a distinctly African innovation and entrepreneurship brand.
Our mission evolved from:
“Creativity and Innovation for Development through Advocacy”
to “Bridging Worlds with Creativity and Innovation.”
This is more than a change in words; it is a change in posture.
We are not merely advocating for development anymore.
We are designing ecosystems for it.
Key aspects of this transition include:
- Globalizing the Ntha Foundation: Now incorporated in the United States as a 501(c)(3), the Foundation champions global partnerships and elevates African innovation onto the world stage.
- Localizing the Kwathu Kollective: Through initiatives like Kwathu Kowork and Kwathu Konnect, the Kollective roots itself firmly within African communities, digitizing and democratizing opportunity.
Rather than building isolated hubs, we are building bridges โ collaborating with institutions, governments, and private sector partners to create sustainable, scalable impact.
Navigating Two Systems: Insights and Learnings
Managing student teams from MSU and MUST offered a rare, first-hand comparison of two educational systems operating in parallel โ but not in parity.
At MSU:
- Students benefited from structured deliverables, reliable internet, and predictable timelines.
At MUST:
- Students struggled with infrastructure challenges: limited connectivity, power outages, and delays outside their control.
Yet, brilliance and ambition were constants on both sides.
This experience taught me that while talent is universal, opportunity is not.
And without intentional systems to bridge these gaps, we risk reinforcing cycles of exclusion.
It was from this realization that the seed of Kwathu Konnect was firmly planted โ a vision for a sustained, bidirectional student exchange grounded in collaboration, not charity.
Rethinking Study Abroad: One Week Isn’t Enough
During my MBA, I had the privilege of participating in a study abroad program in Spain.
It offered valuable exposure to European innovation and business systems.
It broadened my perspectives and deepened my reflections on global development.
But one week was not enough.
True collaboration requires time, trust, and continuity โ not just exposure.
What my students, and countless others, deserve is not a passport stamp, but an ecosystem where shared learning can unfold over months, not days.
This realization reinforced the need for Kwathu Konnect to be designed differently:
- Sustained: Stretching across semesters, not weeks.
- Relational: Built on mentorship, not tourism.
- Bidirectional: Where African and American students co-develop real-world solutions together.
It is not merely a program.
It is a new model for what global education should become.
Embracing Feminine Leadership
Another quiet but powerful dimension of this year was leading โ and being led โ through the lens of feminine leadership.
I had the privilege of reporting to a female supervisor โ continuing a pattern throughout my career where women in leadership have mentored and championed me.
Leading my own teams of students, I found myself embodying a leadership style rooted in:
- Presence: Building trust even across screens and continents.
- Structure without Rigidity: Providing clear expectations while allowing autonomy.
- Empowerment over Control: Encouraging students to own their work and their growth.
In doing so, I realized that feminine leadership โ characterized by empathy, intentionality, and empowerment โ is not just effective.
It is essential to building the kinds of systems and organizations that can nurture true innovation.
The Broader Vision: Building Sustainable Systems
Teaching, I realized, is never just about the individuals in front of you.
It is about the systems you build around them โ systems that will outlast you.
Through Kwathu Konnect, we are committed to building such systems:
- Facilitating bilateral student mentorships.
- Piloting joint capstone projects that address real-world challenges.
- Enhancing digital literacy, soft skills, and self-leadership across continents.
Our inspirations are many โ from George Washington Universityโs Global Capstone, to Virginia Techโs XMNR program, to the virtual exchange initiatives of Georgia State and UT Dallas.
But our implementation is distinctly African: designed by us, for us.
The Path Forward: Bridging Worlds
As we look ahead, our three-pronged structure reflects our ambition:
- Kwathu Kollective: A virtual hub for African innovation.
- Kwathu Kowork: Physical spaces where creators and entrepreneurs can thrive.
- Ntha Foundation: An international platform for global partnerships and advocacy.
The transition from Ntha Foundation to Kwathu Kollective is not merely organizational.
It is deeply personal. It reflects a growth journey โ mine, and ours.
I did not receive the GA I had originally hoped for.
Instead, I received something better: a calling that aligned my personal aspirations, my entrepreneurial instincts, and my commitment to the future of African youth.
Through teaching, mentoring, and leading โ while still learning myself โ
I have come to understand the power of bridging worlds with creativity and innovation.
the profound impact of bridging worlds with creativity and innovation.
still learning,
Ntha
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- Center for Leadership in Global Sustainability. (n.d.). XMNR Global Study. Virginia Tech. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://cligs.vt.edu/virginia-tech-master-of-natural-resources/executive-mnr/global-study.html
- Center for Teaching and Learning. (n.d.). Virtual Exchange/Collaborative Online International Learning (VE/COIL). University of Texas at Dallas. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://ctl.utdallas.edu/programs/ve-coil/
- Elliott School of International Affairs. (n.d.). Global Capstone. George Washington University. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://elliott.gwu.edu/global-capstone
- Office of International Initiatives. (n.d.). Virtual Exchange Initiative. Georgia State University. Retrieved April 25, 2025, from https://international.gsu.edu/initiatives/virtual-exchange-initiative/
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