Grambling State University is proud to announce Bello Ahmadou Ahidjo, a senior psychology major with a minor in sociology, as the valedictorian of the Fall Class of 2015. He will graduate with a 4.0 grade point average at 10 a.m. Friday at the Fredrick C. Hobdy Assembly Center.

“It is incredibly humbling and incredibly exciting at the same time,” Ahmadou Ahidjo said. “I don’t think I have had time to process all the emotions, but I am very happy, and I will do all I can to live up to the expectations of my department and Grambling.”

Ahmadou Ahidjo, of Yaounde, Cameroon, is the son of Denise Ahidjo and Ahmadou Ahidjo Sali. He attended Grambling on the advice of a family friend, John Gwan, who told him about Grambling’s small, close-knit community and caring faculty.

“Grambling has been wonderful,” he said. “I got to meet a lot of new people and lifelong friends. I got to find a new family, because Residential Life has been very welcoming and very supporting, and they have been my second family away from home.”

Ahmadou Ahidjo has been very active during his time at Grambling. He works as a resident assistant with the Department of Residential Life and Housing. He is also a member of the Earl Lester Cole Honors College, the National Society for Leadership and Success, the President’s List, the Psychology and Sociology Club, the Grambling Quiz Bowl Team, the Student Government Association and the National Black United Front.
Bello Ahmadou Ahidjo Ahmadou Ahidjo would like to thank his supervisor, Rudolph Ellis, assistant director of residential life, and his advisor, Stacey Duhon, an assistant professor of sociology and psychology, for helping him make it at Grambling. He would also like to thank his mother for inspiring him to graduate.

“I am very thankful to my mom. She really pushed me and was there for me. I am incredibly thankful to her for everything she has done for me, and I will do everything to show her that her efforts were worth it,” he said.

After graduation, Ahmadou Ahidjo will pursue a master’s degree in psychology at Grambling State University and later a doctorate in clinical psychology. Eventually, he would like to return to African to open a therapy center for children with development challenges and learning disabilities such as autism.

“Autism is one of those issues that people often overlook,” he said. “There is not a lot of information, especially back home in Africa where we have a low understanding of these things. I want to raise as much awareness as possible.”