Speaker
Dr. Akil Kokayi Khalfani
Dr. Akil Kokayi Khalfani is a Change Agent, Motivational Speaker, Ambassador, Author, Professor and Award-Winning TV Host. He is Director for the Center for Global Education and Experiences, Director of the Africana Institute, Associate Professor of Sociology, and Chair of the Social Justice Council at Essex County College. He also serves the college as the Coordinator of the Sociology Program and the Co-Coordinator of the Africana Studies Program. He is the author of, The Hidden Debate: The Truth Revealed about the Battle over Affirmative Action in South Africa and the United States, which was nominated for the national Oliver Cromwell Cox Award by the American Sociological Association (ASA). He is the co-author of Introduction to Sociology: Understanding Our Complex World, 4th edition. He is a contributing author to several books including the W.E.B. Du Bois Encyclopedia, The Demography of South Africa and White Logic, White Methods, Racism and Methodology, which won the ASA’s 2009 Oliver Cromwell Cox Award.
His community service efforts have been honored on numerous occasions. He was awarded the Lifetime Services Award from the West Orange African Heritage Organization in 2022 and the Changing Our Community Award in 2021 by Eyes Wide Open Hope. In 2019, Dr. Khalfani was selected as a Presidential Elevate Fellow for the Council on International Educational Exchange. He received a Citation Award from the National Sorority of Phi Delta Kappa in 2017, for his “outstanding contributions in the field of education and his humanitarian deeds.” He became the Pan African Diaspora Ambassador to the Ooni of Ile Ife, Nigeria in 2016 and was awarded The Chair Academy’s 2016 International Exemplary Leadership Award.
Dr. Khalfani was a candidate for U.S. Congress representing New Jersey’s 10th congressional district. He recently founded Vote-ED, a nonprofit organization dedicated to voter education.
Dr. Khalfani is the Host and Executive Producer of The Pulse: a televised talk show that explores the diversity of the African global experience (since 2011). The TV program won the Total Faith 2021 Media Award. He has appeared in several documentaries including: 54 and Counting, Searching for Shaniqua, Covid Conflict, and Black Eagle of Harlem. He has given keynote addresses at the United Nations and for various corporate and government organizations such as KPMG and the Transportation and Security Administration (TSA). Additionally, he has given graduation and keynote addresses at various secondary schools and universities. He sits on the editorial board for the Association of Black Sociologists’ journal entitled Issues in Race & Society: An Interdisciplinary Global Journal. He is a member of the Board of Directors for: African Diaspora for Good Governance and The African and American Alliance.
Dr. Khalfani has been recognized for his tireless community work by the United States Congress, the New York and California State Senates, the New York and New Jersey State Assemblies, and several municipalities and counties in New Jersey and New York. He was a Commissioner on the West Orange Human Relations Commission and was the Vice President of the West Orange African Heritage Organization. Ambassador Khalfani was an Advisor to the UNESCO Center for Global Education and previously served as Co-Chair for the Education Committee for the City of Newark’s African Commission and served on the Essex-Newark Coalition to End Homelessness. He served as President and Vice President of the Board of Trustee for Adelaide L. Sanford Charter School.
Dr. Khalfani has curated numerous art exhibitions and installations, partial list including: Pan Africana in Nine Boxes, Draped: A display of Fabrics from Africa and the African Diaspora, Enlightened Journey – Carol Black-Lemon, Let Us Emerge: Slavery in the Diaspora, Voyage to Success – Bradford Brown, African Beauty – Abdul Badi, Subject to Change, Urban Issues Around the World – Japan to Sudan, Indigo Green – Jerry Gant, Paintings as Nubian Archeology – Omar Saeed, The Architectural Artistry of Wilson J. Woodridge, Jr., and Wabembe: Carl Whiteurs.
Dr. Khalfani earned a Ph.D. and a master’s degrees in Sociology from the University of Pennsylvania, from which he also earned a Graduate Certificate in African Studies. While living in South Africa he studied at the University of Pretoria as part of his graduate program. He earned his bachelor’s degree also in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz. His areas of expertise are Africana Studies, race relations, social stratification, and developing solutions to social problems.