Januarius Jingwa Asongu

Januarius Jingwa (JJ) Asongu is an American philosopher, scholar,[1] journalist, author, entrepreneur, and activist.[2] Born in the small city of Lewoh, in the former British Southern Cameroons, Africa, he moved to the United States in the mid-1990s, where he is now a naturalized citizen.

Januarius Jingwa Asongu
BornJanuarius Asongu
(1970-08-17)17 August 1970
Lewoh, Lebialem, British Southern Cameroons
OccupationPresident and Chief Executive Officer of Saint Monica University (2009–present)
NationalityAmerican
Period1970–present
Notable worksStrategic Corporate Social Responsibility in Practice;
Doing Business Abroad: A Handbook for Expatriates;
The Iraq Quagmire: The Price of Imperial Arrogance;
War, Politics And Business: A Critique Of The Global War On Terror;
Technology in Education and Business: Myths, Issues, Ethics, and Money

In the United States, he continued as a human rights and political activist,[3] while also engaged in academics. His academic career culminated in his becoming a professor of business and in 2012 he founded an American-style international university in Cameroon called Saint Monica University (SMU).[4] With headquarters in the United States, SMU now has campuses in the Cameroons and upcoming campuses in Cambodia, Equatorial Guinea and Nigeria.

Birth and early life

Januarius Asongu was born into a middle-class family in West Cameroon (former British Cameroons) in 1970 as the first of seven children (four female and three male). His parents, Nicholas Jingwa and Monique Nkengbeza, were devout Catholic Christians.[5] He became a leader of the Young Christian Students (YCS) in Kumbo Diocese, while in secondary and high school.

Education

Asongu went to secondary and high school at Government High School Kumbo (now Government Bilingual High School Kumbo) from 1982 to 1989. He then began his priestly formation at Bishop Rogan College,[6] Soppo, Buea. His university education began at St. Thomas Aquinas Major Seminary, Bambui, an affiliated institute of the Pontifical Urbanian University, Rome,[7] where he earned a Bachelor of Philosophy degree. After leaving the seminary, he embarked on an academic career abroad in the tradition of his mentor, the late Professor Bernard Fonlon, also an ex-seminarian and the first person from the Cameroons to earn a PhD. Asonge earned a certificate in journalism from the University of Lagos, Nigeria S(1995) and then a PhD in Journalism in 1998 in the United States . He was the first person from the Cameroons to be awarded the Press Fellowship[8] at Wolfson College, University of Cambridge by the Nuffield Foundation[9] in the United Kingdom. In 2012, he earned a Master of Science degree in Management of Information Technology from the University of Maryland University College, and also a PhD in Business Administration from Charisma University, British Overseas Territories (2011).

Brief Work History

Asongu's first job was that of a teacher of English Literature, History, and Commerce at Bishop Rogan College, Buea (1989/90). In 1993/94, he worked as a seminarian on internship at St. John's Catholic Parish, Kumba, and St. Luke's Parish, Nyandong. After his journalism training, he worked as a reporter in the Cameroons, where he wrote for various newspapers and co-hosted Catholic programs on CRTV. His writings brought him into conflict with the administration and in 1997 he left the country for the United States. His first occupation in the US was journalism, where he worked at The Houston Chronicle[10] as an Alfred Friendly Press Fellow.[11] He was the first from the Cameroons to earn this fellowship from the Alfred Friendly Foundation He was awarded the Press Fellowship[12] at Wolfson College, Cambridge. Upon his return to the US from the UK, he worked as reporter and editor for various newspapers and magazines and taught briefly at several high schools. In 1999, he transitioned into public relations where he worked for various agencies and international companies. Asongu has taught at a number of universities in the United States including Rockford University, Rockford, IL; Herzing University, Milwaukee, WI; Fort Hays State University, Hays, KS; Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Rockford Campus; Franklin University, Columbus, OH. He has also started a number of small businesses in the United States and the Cameroons.

Public Scholarship and Activism

Asongu has spoken on controversial issues on many radio and TV stations in the Cameroons, and has written op-eds for American newspapers. He conducted a detailed study of the Anglophone problem (Cameroon), and wrote a thesis in 1993 on "The Problem of National Unity in Cameroon: A Politico-Philosophical Analysis." He was also a champion of Southern Cameroons independence for years before resigning from the leadership of the struggle in 2006. He has written on corporate social responsibility including "Innovation as an Argument for Corporate Social Responsibility,[13] " and "Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility in Practice.[14]

Founding of Saint Monica University

Asongu founded Saint Monica University (SMU),[15] first as Professional Training Center (PTC), in 2009. PTC is now called Saint Monica Vocational Training Center and is located in Buea. In 2012, he incorporated SMU in the United States, but most of SMU's operations are in the Cameroons, where it operates ground campuses in the college-town of Buea (Saint Monica University Institute) as well as the commercial hub of Kumba (Institute of Professional Studies).

Boards

He has served on the boards of the National Association of African-American Studies (NAAAS) and Affiliates,[16] and the Environment and Rural Development Foundation (ERUDEF).[17]

Books
  • Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility in Practice. Lawrenceville, GA: Greenview Publishing Company, 2007, ISBN 978-0-9797976-0-6
  • Doing Business Abroad: A Handbook for Expatriates, (Co-authored with C'Lamt Ho and Marvee Marr). Lawrenceville, GA: Greenview Publishing Company, 2007, ISBN 978-0-9797976-3-7
  • The Iraq Quagmire: The Price of Imperial Arrogance, (Co-authored with Stephen Lendman). Lawrenceville, GA: Greenview Publishing Company, 2007, ISBN 978-0-9797976-1-3
  • War, Politics And Business: A Critique Of The Global War On Terror. American Star Books, Frederick, Maryland, 2007, ISBN 1424190576
  • Technology in Education and Business: Myths, Issues, Ethics, and Money. Lawrenceville, GA: Greenview Publishing Company, 2007. Retrieved March 4, 2017, from https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0979797624

References
  1. "JJ Asongu - Google Scholar Citations". Scholar.google.com. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  2. Bahru Zewde. "Society, State and Identity in African History: Bahru Zewde: 9789994450251: Amazon.com: Books". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  3. Horst Koehler. "UNILATERAL PRIVATIZATION OF THE CDC WITHOUT PROPER CONSULTATION OF THE PEOPLE CANNOT PROVIDE A VIABLE AND SUSTAINABLE SOLUTION TO CAMEROON'S ECONOMIC PROBLEMS" (PDF). Blccarchives.org. Retrieved 2017-04-10.
  4. "Saint Monica University". Smuedu.org. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  5. "Seven themes of Catholic Social Teaching". Usccb.org. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  6. "Bishop Rogan College - Minor Seminary". Birocol-com.webs.com. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  7. "L'Effort Camerounais (English Version): St. Thomas Aquinas' Major Seminary Bambui Announces Ruby Jubilee Celebrations". Leffortcamerounais.com. 2013-10-09. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  8. "Press Fellowship | Wolfson College Cambridge". Wolfson.cam.ac.uk. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  9. "Nuffield Foundation -". Nuffieldfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 9 April 2017.
  10. "Houston News, Sports, Business, and Entertainment - The Houston Chronicle at Chron.com - Houston Chronicle". Chron.com. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  11. "Alfred Friendly Press Partners". Presspartners.org. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  12. "Press Fellowship | Wolfson College Cambridge". Wolfson.cam.ac.uk. 2017-03-06. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  13. J.J. Asongu. "Innovation as an Argument for Corporate Social Responsibility" (PDF). Foretica.org. Retrieved 2017-04-10.
  14. JJ Asongu. "Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility in Practice: JJ Asongu: 9780979797606: Amazon.com: Books". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  16. "National Association of African American Studies". NAAAS. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
  17. "Environment & Rural Development Foundation - Conserving Wildlife and Protecting Fragile Environments". ERuDeF. Retrieved 2017-04-09.
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