Kene Onyeagusi
Classification: Senior
Major: Accounting and Business
Hometown: Lagos, Nigeria

Kenechi Onyeagusi is getting a lot more out of her college experience than a diploma. Traveling the nearly 6,000 miles from her hometown of Lagos in Nigeria to Cleveland, Tennessee is a move few high school seniors would choose to make. Kenechi, however, was excited to experience the variety travel and studying abroad had to offer.

“I came in determined to absorb as much of the culture as I could in the time I was here,” said Kenechi. “I went kayaking the other day. I can’t even swim. I want to be able to look back and say I did that.”

Driven as she was for more experiences, she always knew she wanted to go to school away from home. In searching for a suitable location, a friend suggested Lee and everything just fell into place. “Within two weeks I had all my paperwork done and that was just a gift from God,” said Kenechi.

On campus, Kenechi finds variety in the many jobs she has held while a student. She is currently an intern in the Lee Business Office and at a local CPA firm. She has also held many other jobs on campus.

“Being able to meet all those people and having a relationship with them is amazing,” said Kenechi. “With all those places, I got to make some amazing relationships.”

The thing she’ll miss most about leaving Lee will be spending time with her friends. “We love to watch movies. It’s so mundane, but it really is my favorite thing to do,” said Kenechi.

Her advice to incoming freshmen is: “Don’t be afraid to live life. Don’t be afraid to see someone walking and say hi. As an international student, it was hard for me to do that, but I found that the friendships I made then were the best.”

Now, studying accounting and business, Kenechi plans to stay in America after she graduates to work as a CPA for at least five years.

Posted on - 9/3/07