LadiesCorner
University
of
Alberta
Emily Kimani
F Emily Kimani
22
or her graduation, a girl of colour mentions her hair as her identity and tells a story about the sense of empowerment she derives from it. She is Emily Kimani, a fifth-year science faculty student at the University of Alberta, and the first black Vice President of Operations and Finance at the Students Union body. Kimani’s voice steadily characterized purposefulness in an engaging 30-minute podcast with Tee Adeyemo, from her ancestral Afro strands to the significance of diversity and inclusion for people of colour. Even more intriguing is how she took action by embracing a rare leadership opportunity outside of her field of study - immunology and infection! The position which required things like budget management was certainly a far cry, but Kimani, despite initially feeling inadequate, exemplified black excellence by learning the ropes. Another ironic twist to Kimani’s emergence is that she was not heavily involved in the university community until her third year when she began volunteering for the Student Union at key events and activities. Her primary goal had been to get good grades, but after meeting the then-Vice President of Operations and Finance, and forming a friendship, Kimani leaned into a deeper meaning for social good. She first became a Science Counsellor and was mentored into a historic role at the University of Alberta.
LadiesCorner – Summer 2022
