Tongai Maodzwa, coordinator of Inclusive Excellence at Northeast State Community College, has been selected as a 2021-22 Maxine Smith Fellow by the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR). He joins 13 other faculty and staff members from TBR institutions in this year’s class.
“I am grateful for, the formal opportunity to continue to learn and develop as a service leader through the Maxine Smith Fellows Program,” Maodzwa said. “The many possibilities and tools it will bring in my abilities to create partnerships with my colleagues at Northeast and beyond; and importantly, the knowledge and application tool to continue nurturing our Northeast State campuses to be more lively and viable campus communities where all students, staff and faculty bring their whole-selves and thrive in human dignity.”
Tongai Maodzwa
The program provides professional development, training, and advancement opportunities for participants from traditionally underrepresented groups at the College System of Tennessee, governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) and the state’s locally managed public universities. Members meet monthly for a year, starting this month.
In addition to the professional development of the class members, the program stimulates increased collaboration among institutions, growth of a statewide network for program participants, and an overall increase in the diversity of ideas, thoughts, and experiences within senior leadership ranks at Tennessee public higher education institutions.
“When I think of education and learning, I am reminded of my grandmother Norah’s indelible words – every opportunity she gets, to this day, she says – “batai mabhuku aya nesimba” which can be translated to mean ‘hold these books (education) with unwavering strength,’” Maodzwa said.
Maodzwa has worked for various universities and colleges executing multiple responsibilities, including being a Sociology Instructor at Columbus State Community College, a Research and Evaluation at Appalachian State University, and as a researcher on internationally funded projects, such as the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research project on self-help and social transformation in India and South Africa, and the Political Terror Scale Project.
Maodzwa holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and International Relations from the University of Witwatersrand and Master’s degrees in Development Studies and Liberal Arts from the University of Witwatersrand and University of North Carolina at Asheville, respectively.
Maodzwa is the fourth Northeast State employee named as a Smith Fellow. Current Vice President for Administration and Grant Development Linda Calvert was a 2011 Fellow; Dayna Smithers, former associate professor of Mathematics, was selected in 2014; and Francis Canedo, dean of Humanities, earned the honor in 2015.
“I am a strong believer that the whole idea of education and our institutions of learning is to change and improve the human and communal conditions, so that possibilities for more just and equitable communities can emerge, even at moments when pragmatists say this is impossible. It is an honor to be part of the Maxine Smith Fellow Program cohort for 2021-22,” Maodzwa said.
The program is named in honor of the late Maxine Smith, who headed the Memphis Branch of the NAACP for 33 years. She was a member of the Tennessee Board of Regents from 1994 to 2006. The Class of 2021-22 is the program’s 15th cohort.
Tongai Maodzwa, coordinator of Inclusive Excellence at Northeast State Community College, has been selected as a 2021-22 Maxine Smith Fellow by the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR). He joins 13 other faculty and staff members from TBR institutions in this year’s class.
“I am grateful for, the formal opportunity to continue to learn and develop as a service leader through the Maxine Smith Fellows Program,” Maodzwa said. “The many possibilities and tools it will bring in my abilities to create partnerships with my colleagues at Northeast and beyond; and importantly, the knowledge and application tool to continue nurturing our Northeast State campuses to be more lively and viable campus communities where all students, staff and faculty bring their whole-selves and thrive in human dignity.”
The program provides professional development, training, and advancement opportunities for participants from traditionally underrepresented groups at the College System of Tennessee, governed by the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) and the state’s locally managed public universities. Members meet monthly for a year, starting this month.
In addition to the professional development of the class members, the program stimulates increased collaboration among institutions, growth of a statewide network for program participants, and an overall increase in the diversity of ideas, thoughts, and experiences within senior leadership ranks at Tennessee public higher education institutions.
“When I think of education and learning, I am reminded of my grandmother Norah’s indelible words – every opportunity she gets, to this day, she says – “batai mabhuku aya nesimba” which can be translated to mean ‘hold these books (education) with unwavering strength,’” Maodzwa said.
Maodzwa has worked for various universities and colleges executing multiple responsibilities, including being a Sociology Instructor at Columbus State Community College, a Research and Evaluation at Appalachian State University, and as a researcher on internationally funded projects, such as the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research project on self-help and social transformation in India and South Africa, and the Political Terror Scale Project.
Maodzwa holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and International Relations from the University of Witwatersrand and Master’s degrees in Development Studies and Liberal Arts from the University of Witwatersrand and University of North Carolina at Asheville, respectively.
Maodzwa is the fourth Northeast State employee named as a Smith Fellow. Current Vice President for Administration and Grant Development Linda Calvert was a 2011 Fellow; Dayna Smithers, former associate professor of Mathematics, was selected in 2014; and Francis Canedo, dean of Humanities, earned the honor in 2015.
“I am a strong believer that the whole idea of education and our institutions of learning is to change and improve the human and communal conditions, so that possibilities for more just and equitable communities can emerge, even at moments when pragmatists say this is impossible. It is an honor to be part of the Maxine Smith Fellow Program cohort for 2021-22,” Maodzwa said.
The program is named in honor of the late Maxine Smith, who headed the Memphis Branch of the NAACP for 33 years. She was a member of the Tennessee Board of Regents from 1994 to 2006. The Class of 2021-22 is the program’s 15th cohort.
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