Lady Kofoworola Ademola was the first Black African to obtain a degree from the University of Oxford.
She was born in Lagos, Nigeria, into the Egba royal family, but attended school in the UK and the US.
In 1932, she arrived at the University of Oxford and studied English Literature until 1935 at St Hugh’s College.
Women were only allowed to matriculate in 1920, two years after some women gained the right to vote.
Lady Ademola paved the way for other black women to study at Oxford. During her time at the university, she wrote a biography detailing her experiences. In it, she challenged the stereotypes of African people held by the British.
After obtaining her degree, lady Ademola returned to Nigeria to fulfil her dream of being a teacher. After teaching at a prestigious girls’ school in Lagos, she then founded two new girls’
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