Editor’s Note: As we celebrate African Heritage Month in February, we’re proud to spotlight some of our own people, Black culture, contributions and history.
Here, we meet Adriel Uangbaoje, a student in StFX’s Gerald Schwartz School of Business. Mr. Uangbaoje, a native of Nigeria, has been actively involved in the StFX community. He placed third in the first-ever Xaverian Stock Pitch Competition held in November, and this month is part of a five-member team representing StFX at the CFA Research Challenge in Halifax. This year marks his second year working as a community advisor in residence and over his time at StFX, he has worked as a marketing and communications intern with the Coady Institute; with the Xaverian Weekly; and in running social media for the Faculty of Arts. Mr. Uangbaoje says he was inspired by the accomplishments of Black students at StFX who came before him and he hopes to inspire those who follow.
Helping others see what’s possible: Meet Adriel Uangbaoje
For St. Francis Xavier University student Adriel Uangbaoje, success is not just about personal achievement. It’s about impact and helping others see what’s possible. It’s one of the reasons he’s working hard to leave a mark at StFX.
Mr. Uangbaoje is a third year student in the Gerald Schwartz School of Business, majoring in enterprise systems and setting his sights on a career in finance. He’s drawn to the analytical side of business, the process of dissecting a company from top to bottom and projecting what its future might look like.
“It’s the data,” he says on what attracts him. “Data is a treasure trove.”
That interest has already translated into achievement. This year, Mr. Uangbaoje placed third in the first-ever Xaverian Stock Pitch Competition, an internal business competition where students showcased their financial literacy, critical thinking, and presented their analysis to a panel of industry professionals. In February, he is part of a five-member team representing StFX at the CFA Research Challenge in Halifax.
Mr. Uangbaoje’s journey to StFX began far from campus. In high school in his native Nigeria, he began researching universities across continents, comparing business programs. What drew him to StFX was both the quality of its business school and the sense of community he felt, even before arriving.
His time at StFX has been “fantastic,” but he admits acclimatizing when he first arrived wasn’t easy. “Not because the resources weren’t there or the people weren’t helpful,” he explains. “It was just different.”
He noticed something else too. “When I first came, there weren’t a lot of Black students. But they were trailblazers.”
He wanted to follow this lead.
“I want to do something like that too,” he remembers thinking. “I want to make my mark here. Legacy is really important even if it’s in the tiniest way.”
Once he settled into university life, he turned those thoughts into action. Mr. Uangbaoje’s first job on campus came when he joined The Xaverian Weekly as an arts and community editor. Other involvements have followed. This is second year working as a community advisor in residence. He is a member of the AfriX and BLACC student societies, and last semester he worked running social media for the Faculty of Arts.
One of the most meaningful experiences of his time at StFX came last summer during his job as a marketing and communications intern at the Coady Institute. Particularly impactful was the time spent interviewing African women bursary leaders from Kenya to Tanzania through Zoom. He heard stories of courage, leadership, and a shared commitment to improving lives. particularly for young girls.
He sees African Heritage Month as a powerful opportunity not only to connect, but for accomplishments to be seen and celebrated. This is important for students to have a reference point, to see what is possible, he says.
“Being in a majority white university, you may feel you can’t do as well as you want, that you can’t really thrive because you’re not seeing other people who look like you.”
Like those before him, he’d like to be a reference point for those students yet to come.
“Making a difference even in the tiniest of ways is really important to me.”
Many Black students second guess themselves and that impacts their psyche and even their academics, he says. “When you believe there is not many people like you and you don’t have a reference, it’s more difficult to become involved. It’s not lack of confidence, it’s lack of reference.”
His goal? He wants to see future students do even better than those who have come before. “I want someone coming after me to say, ‘He did it, so I can do it, and I can do it better.’
“You don’t have to do a lot,” he says as advice for students. “Just start somewhere.”
Once you take that first step, things shift, he says. You begin to see what’s possible, and you help others see it too. That’s a legacy he wants to leave.
