FAMILY BACKGROUND AND EDUCATION
May 29, 2021
Born on 19th April, 1988, as the fifth child (third daughter) of Elder Kenneth Ekwesianya and Mrs Grace Ekwesianya, Chioma was a charming, precocious girl. She attended Obom Community Primary School, Azia, where she obtained her First School Leaving Certificate in 2000. Thereafter, she had her post-primary education at St Anthony’s Secondary School, Azia. In 2006, she sat and passed her West African Senior School Certificate examination in flying colours. She then enrolled in the Pre-science programme of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Mbaukwu, through which she gained admission as an undergraduate student of the university.
At this time, there was a financial difficulty in the family: all her four older siblings were already in the university and our parents could not afford the financial weight of her admission. While the family was still struggling to raise funds for her university education, Chioma elected to forfeit her admission and wait another admission year. In addition, she engaged herself fully in the family’s poultry farm where much of the money used to sustain her siblings’ education was being generated. She sacrificed the pursuit of her own education and ensured continuous supply of resources for the education and wellbeing of her siblings.
Despite the physical, emotional and social distress the economic situation of the family had put her into, Chioma forged ahead doggedly and never despaired. She still made out time to continue reading and planning for the future. She wrote another University Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) and got another admission at Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka. By this time, the economic situation of the family had tremendously improved. She enrolled in the university and fought her way through. On 7th August, 2012, she obtained her Bachelor of Science (Ed) in Science Education/Physics with a Second Class Honours (Upper Division).
Chioma did her National Youth Service in Lagos, and had her passing out parade on 4th March, 2014. Post-NYSC, she engaged in several skills acquisition programmes where she acquired several life skills necessary to fulfil her vision of entrepreneurship and financial independence. Concurrently, she worked as a science teacher at St Anthony's Secondary School, Azia, for several years. Her burning zeal for education made her enroll for a Master of Science (MSc) degree programme at Anambra State University, Uli, which she was about concluding before her call to rest.