Today we’d like to introduce you to Austin Okaiwele.
Hi Austin, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I had the opportunity to come to the United States as an immigrant in 2009. Like many immigrants, I was faced with some challenges. Back in Nigeria, I studied Computer Engineering; however, I couldn’t immediately get into the workforce because I had no US experience event though I had a lot of work experience back in Nigeria. To face this challenge, I had to get a student loan with my brother risking it all as co-signer. I enrolled in an IT training school to learn what I knew already and while doing that, I offered to be an unpaid intern and helped with some school projects and external projects they had with the military. I used this to build my resume to land my first contract job at the University of Central Florida technology department. My previous exposure to the English language and my technology background made it a little easier to get started.
After leaving the University of Central Florida technology department, I got a job as an enterprise Storage support engineer, where I got to support corporations on a global scale. I also got to provide technology support work in the education software, healthcare and civil engineering industries.
While I had my work-life going, I also was having encounters with fellow African immigrants from all over the Continent and I never lost the opportunity to learn about their immigrant story and participate in their community activities while getting them also to collaborate with me for a better quality of life here in the state of Florida. While our immigrant stories were slightly different, like I didn’t have to learn English like some had to do because they are from a none English-speaking country, we all had a common experience of being under-served or not served at all with resources to foster integration and build prosperity. We started connecting socially while at the same time, i was learning very fast about the systems and opportunities in the United States that could solve these challenges that we face daily.
We have challenges like available financial resources that are needful for successful integration not being readily accessible to the African immigrant community.
Advertised information about government programs to help achieve the American dream but nothing to help us readily access them. Due to my passion of leveling the playing field, many African Immigrants have reached out to me with their questions not only about the issues aforementioned but about others they face in trying to integrate into the American culture. Things like education, legal, business, family, health, etc. I would help them out the best I could with the information I have but this helped a few and the rest couldn’t find resources and support tailored to meet their pain-points and hence gave up. At this point I had to create something outside of my individual effort and because there were no other entities/organizations that completely focused on helping skilled African immigrants integrate and prosper here in Florida. In 2013 I began engaging the community about a broader and more focused platform to face our challenges. In 2015, the African Leaders Council was formed to put more emphasis and effort towards resolving these issues faced by African immigrants in Florida.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Oh absolutely not! lol! It hasn’t been all beds and roses but a lot of challenges to overcome.
Reaching out to connect and create awareness about the African community in Florida comes with companies, agencies, businesses and individuals ignoring you because you don’t add any hype to what you’re trying to accomplish but at the same time there are few ones that realize and identify with real action to what we’re trying to do. I don’t want to mention names here or turn this to an Ad but these few partners makes the work well worth and has brought the work this far.
The work we do requires deep connection and engagement with people who find it hard to ask for support or accept it when it’s given, is a challenge which keeps me on my toes to find innovative ways to reach out and build community.
Now another thing is the administrative and operational work involved in running an organization is sometimes distracting and if your vision is not constantly in your face, you could get caught in the web of administration and operations which is very important but at the same time distracting. managing this is something i had to learn on the go, you can never be 100% prepared for this.
There are some more but that’s okay for now.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
On the personal side, outside my work as President & Founder of African Leaders Council Inc., i am an entrepreneur in the Event Production, Digital marketing and Creative agency space.
Any big plans?
Oh Yes! A couple of them, but first I am working on expanding our reach by launching an awareness campaign. Secondly, developing new programs to more directly empower the community.
Also expanding our scope beyond Orlando, one City at a time.
Contact Info:
- Email: contact@www.AfricanLeadersCouncil.org
- Website: www.AfricanLeadersCouncil.org
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/AfricanLeadersCouncil
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/AfricanLeadersCouncil
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/ALCFlorida
