Board Member
Ursula Ngozi Akanwa
Professor Ursula Ngozi Akanwa is the Vice-Chancellor of Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike (MOUAU), a distinguished Nigerian scholar and a professor of Educational Measurement and Evaluation, with an accomplished career spanning nearly four decades in teaching, research, academic leadership, educational policy, and institutional administration.
Professor Akanwa began her academic career in higher education at Abia State University in 1999 as an Assistant Lecturer, where she steadily rose through the academic ranks—Lecturer II, Lecturer I, Senior Lecturer, and Associate Professor, demonstrating excellence in teaching, scholarship, and administration. In October 2014, she attained the rank of Professor, cementing her status as one of Nigeria’s foremost scholars in educational assessment and evaluation.
Professor Akanwa holds a formidable array of academic qualifications that reflect both breadth and depth. She obtained her B.Sc. (Honours) in Zoology from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka in 1984, followed by a PGD in Education and an M.Ed. in Measurement and Evaluation from the same institution in 1987 and 1991 respectively. Demonstrating an uncommon appetite for learning, she later pursued a PGD and M.Sc. in Financial Management Technology from the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (2004 and 2005), before completing her Ph.D. in Educational Measurement and Evaluation at Abia State University,
Uturu, in 2008.
Prior to her appointment as Vice-Chancellor, Professor Akanwa served in several critical leadership capacities at MOUAU, including Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Administration) from November 2024 to October 2025 and Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research and Development) from October 2025 to February 2026. She also served as Dean of the College of Education from 2019 to 2024, where she played a transformative role in strengthening academic quality, research productivity, postgraduate development, and faculty expansion. Her exceptional administrative competence also led to multiple occasions where she acted on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor on official assignments, reflecting the institution’s confidence in her leadership.
As a scholar, Professor Akanwa has made significant contributions to research in educational assessment, psychometrics, instructional strategies, curriculum development, digital learning, teacher education, gender and education, and educational technology. Her research has consistently addressed practical challenges in teaching, learning, and assessment systems, especially within developing-country contexts. She has authored and co-authored numerous
scholarly publications in local and international peer-reviewed journals, with substantial contributions in areas such as adaptive assessment, artificial intelligence in learning evaluation, examination malpractice prevention, psychometric analysis, formative assessment, peer assessment, and science education methodologies.
Her scholarly visibility extends globally through active participation in leading international academic forums. Professor Akanwa has presented research papers at prestigious conferences organized by the International Association for Educational Assessment (IAEA) in countries including the United Kingdom, the United States, Singapore, South Africa, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. Through these engagements, she has contributed to global discourse on educational
quality assurance, assessment innovation, and 21st-century learning systems.
Her influence extends beyond university administration into national and international policy spaces. She currently serves as CODENU’s representative on the Governing Council of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN). She is also a member of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Board, contributing strategic insight to education and agricultural development at a continental scale.
Professor Akanwa belongs to several prestigious professional bodies, including the Nigerian Academy of Education, the Science Teachers Association of Nigeria, the Association for Educational Assessment in Africa, the American Psychological Association, the Organisation for Women in Science for the Developing World, and the Nigerian Institute of Management. She is also a Fellow of the Science Teachers Association of Nigeria (FSTAN) and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Local Government and Public Administration of Nigeria.
Professor Akanwa remains a respected voice in academia and public service, inspiring a new generation of scholars, educators, and leaders through her unwavering dedication to educational advancement and societal transformation.