Unoma Azuah teaches writing at the Illinois Institute of Art, Chicago. Her research and activism focus on Sexual Minority rights in Nigeria. Recently, she concluded a book project on the lives of LGBT Nigerians entitled, “Blessed Body: Secret Lives of LGBT Nigerians”.
In 2011, she was listed as one of the top professors at small private colleges in the United States in the online publication, Affordable/Private Colleges and Universities in the United States. Additionally, she is recognized by The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education under the topic, “Honors for Four Black Educators.”
A prolific author and a speaker, Azuah has been a guest lecturer at such institutions as Queens University in Kingston, Canada; Maynooth University, amongst others. Her writing awards include the Hellman/Hammett Award; the Urban Spectrum Award for her debut novel, Sky-high Flames; and the Snyder-Aidoo Book Award for her novel, Edible Bones.
She has an MA in English from Cleveland State University, Cleveland, Ohio and an MFA from Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA. Her undergraduate degree in English is from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka.
