Congratulations to Professor Jim McCann and Dr. Mustapha Kurfi!

Professor Jim McCann has been appointed to chair the History Department. In appointing Professor McCann, Dean Cudd writes: “I am pleased to announce that Prof. James McCann has accepted our invitation to serve as the next Chair of the History Department. He will serve a two- year term. Professor McCann brings to this role both his very distinguished reputation as a scholar of African history and agricultural history, but also his extensive leadership experience in multiple units in the College. We are very grateful for his willingness to serve in this new way.” As he takes on his new role, Professor McCann will continue to work with the African Studies Center and its long-standing collaboration with the Department of History in working with students and common efforts of research, teaching, and service.

Mustapha Kurfi successfully defended his dissertation in sociology on March 19, 2018. His dissertation, titled Religion, Gender and Civil Society: The Role of A Muslim Women’s Association in the Evolution of the Nigerian Society, examines how the Federation of Muslim Women’s Associations in Nigeria (FOMWAN) utilizes effective organizational and networking structures along with a dynamic religious culture to produce empowering opportunities for women to engage in education, social services, and civic life. His findings challenge the stereotypical view that Muslim women lack agency and provide critical insights into broader debates about the role of Muslim women’s religious culture in development discourse and in the global South’s public life. While a graduate student Mustapha served as a Hausa instructor in our African Language Program and also contributed greatly in making BU’s Ajami instructional, digital, and research program unrivaled in the country. Join us in congratulating Dr. Kurfi and wishing him all the best as his bright career in sociology and Islamic studies unfolds!