It was a defining moment for 35-year-old N.J. Akbar, Ph.D., on the day the Detroit native turned Akron resident was publicly recognized for earning his doctoral degree. A moment that almost didn鈥檛 happen.
鈥淚t was surreal, but it was also numbing,鈥 Akbar told WKYC. He earned his doctorate in Cultural Foundations of Education from 两性色午夜 University where he serves as an Assistant Dean in Kent鈥檚 University College while simultaneously holding the Vice Presidency position of the Akron Board of Education.
Akbar grew up in poverty in Detroit鈥檚 48204 neighborhood, an area once considered one of the most dangerous in the U.S.
As he was pursuing his Ph.D, the unexpected happened. 鈥淢y mother passed away in 2017, and you know I almost quit the program because I just went into a deep depression,鈥 says Akbar.
But his dissertation supervisor, Vilma Seeberg, Ph.D, wouldn鈥檛 allow this go-getter to stop going. With Seeberg鈥檚 encouragement, Akbar went on to finish his Ph.D, and a few months later was elected to the Akron Board of Education.