By Ihiasota Boniface, USA

Fun, eventful, and exciting were some of the words used to describe the graduation cookout which was held in commemoration of Adanna Ekekwe’s academic milestone on Saturday, July 30th in Maryland.

What was witnessed at the cookout event was a sheer show of love as friends, colleagues, and loved ones came all out to the Walkins Regional Park to celebrate with the celebrant and her family.

The guests were treated to a mouthwatering menu, both cooked and grilled at the events while the disc jockey, Dj 911 also lit up the atmosphere with a series of danceable songs which the guests couldn’t help but vibe to.

The gorgeous celebrant Adanna Ekekwe is the daughter of Sir. Ignatius Ekekwe and Dr. Christiana Ekekwe. After graduating as one of the top students in her class at Duval High school in Lanham Maryland, she continued her studies at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) as a Meyerhof Scholar.

In UMBC, she was a residential assistant, teaching assistant, tutor, captain of the African Student Association dance team, and founder and president of CURL PWR (Power with representation).

While at UMBC, Adanna was very involved in biological research. After her freshman year of college, she went to the University of Minnesota School of medicine to conduct neuroscience research. This experience made her grow a love for the biomedical sciences and she continued undergraduate research at UMBC until she graduated.

During the summer after her third year of college, she went to the State University of New York Upstate University to join their prestigious Physician-scientists summer undergraduate research program to do more Neuroscience Research. She has been able to present her research at many conferences, including the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minoritized (ABRCMS) in Anaheim, California.

Adanna graduated Cum Laude from UMBC with a Bachelor of Science degree in BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES WITH PSYCHOLOGY MINOR on May 26, 2022. She is now a post-bac researcher at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), where she researches Diabetes and Metabolic pathways. After her time at NIH, she will start medical school.

Present at Adanna Ekekwe’s graduation cookout were members of the Excel TV crew who captured the event for general reliving.

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