A LIFETIME DEVOTED TO CHILDREN’S EDUCATION
Fatima Lawson, a 1994 MMEG grantee, is a global citizen whose professional, academic, and civic leadership in education has extended over decades and across continents.
Fatima was born and raised in Kano, Nigeria, where western education (Boko Haram) was forbidden or discouraged, particularly for girls. She managed to attend Nigeria’s University of Ife, where she completed undergraduate and graduate degrees in French/Portuguese and Linguistics, respectively. She earned a PhD in Education Policy and Administration at the University of Minnesota in 1995, supported by her MMEG grant. Her intention to return to Nigeria to continue her career was thwarted by the precarious political situation at the time and Fatima and her husband decided to stay in the United States for the sake of their children.
Fatima has been an educator for over 30 years, most often working with and for disadvantaged children. She is now principal of a school in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where 89% of the children are from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and many are from immigrant families. A highlight of her career was helping start one of the most successful language immersion schools in the city, where she served as principal for 12 years. She has worked in local universities as an adjunct professor and on a university committee seeking accreditation for doctoral degree program. She is also active in the National Principals’ Leadership Conference. As an educator, Fatima leads with sympathy for—and a deep understanding of—the issues faced by immigrants and their families.
Fatima has remained connected to the wider African diaspora and her Nigerian roots. She is Vice President of the Minnesota Institute for Nigeria’s Development (MIND) and served two terms on the Governor’s Council for Minnesotans of African Heritage. She is Secretary to the Board of Directors for the nonprofit Books for Africa and was instrumental in organizing a shipment of 50,000 books to mainly girls’ secondary schools in Kano. Through Books for Africa Fatima also sent eReaders to health NGOs such as Mercy International, which conduct regular medical missions to rural areas in Nigeria.
In 2020 Fatima received a Mandela-Washington Reciprocal Exchange Fellowship to partner with ministries of education in Nigeria to develop sustainable education goals and attended an alumni symposium in South Africa in 2023.
Fatima continues to focus on a multitude of objectives, all united by her commitment to education in its broadest sense.
