Ufo Eric-Atuanya wasn't the least bit surprised when he was selected to deliver an address Friday at Weber State University's 103rd Commencement.
"Why not?" he said with a grin that seemed to demonstrate his indifference to the odds against an international student from Nigeria becoming one of the most effective student leaders and popular figures on the university's campus.Eric-Atuanya has made an academic career out of proving that language, racial and cultural differences don't impede achievement at Weber State, according to Marie L. Kotter, vice president for student services.
"Ufo is the kind of person we wish all students could be,"
Kotter said. "It never enters his mind that the differences between his background and that of his classmates should be a barrier between them. In fact, Ufo doesn't recognize any obstacles to his goals, and that mindset allows him to achieve just about anything he wants."
In his speech to the 3,100 graduates in the Dee Events Center, Eric-Atuanya characteristically chose to focus on the similarities binding his classmates rather than their differences.
"We share one essential commonality," he told the Class of 1992. "That is, pride in the fact that we have all received a personalized education. An education in a university where faculty are genuinely concerned about students. And an education in a university where students are given the opportunity to explore a diverse arena of knowledge and receive training that will last a lifetime."
Eric-Atuanya admitted he wasn't always sold on Weber State's brand of education. When he left an English boarding school in 1989, Eric-Atuanya's intent was to attend Weber State with his sister for only one year. Then he planned to transfer to a larger, better-known university.
In the summer of 1990, Eric-Atuanya was accepted by Rice University in Houston. But by then he was caught up in campus activities and accustomed to enjoying personal attention from Weber State faculty.
"After careful consideration," Eric-Atuanya said, "I decided that by transferring to a bigger university, I would be a little fish in a big pond. So I decided to stay at Weber State and become a fish with my own identity. I have not regretted that choice."
While establishing his identity, Eric-Atuanya earned a bachelor's degree in political science and an associate degree in general studies in just three years. He also represented social science students in the student government, worked full-time, served as attorney general for the Utah Intercollegiate Assembly and graduated in the top 8 percent of his class.
"It was not easy," Eric-Atuanya said. "I just concentrated on one thing at a time."
Eric-Atuanya plans to teach English in Hong Kong this summer before pursuing an international law degree at Harvard University.
His ultimate ambition is to become Nigeria's ambassador to the United Nations.
Eric-Atuanya doesn't dispute Kotter's opinion of Weber State's contributions to his achievements.
"I don't think I could have done the things I've done at any other school," Eric-Atuanya said.