Ms. Parker is working on a PhD in Anthropology with a minor in African Studies at Indiana University. She has a Masters degree in French from the University of Wisconsin and an advertising degree from The University of Texas. She has taught English and French on three continents (France, Senegal and the U.S.) and brings years of marketing and promotional experience to WARA. During her years at Indiana University, Jenny helped organize the Graduate Students of African Studies Symposium 2 years in a row and contributed to outreach in IU’s African Studies Program. Additionally, she worked in the Anthropology Department revamping their website and creating promotional material for the department. She assisted in the African Studies Program with their winning 2018 Title VI grant. Ms. Parker’s love for the continent of Africa began during her Master’s coursework and led to a two-year residence at the Université Gaston Berger in Saint-Louis, Senegal.
Dr. Sène is an associate professor of Literature (African and African-American) in the Department of English, Université Cheikh Anta Diop, Dakar, Senegal. He chaired the department from 1988 to 1998. He is an alumnus of Université Cheikh Anta Diop where he earned his B.A. and M.A. in English before going to Paris for a Ph.D. in Commonwealth Literatures at Ecole Normale Supérieure de Saint Cloud and Université de la Sorbonne Nouvelle, Paris III. He has been serving in the Department of English of Université Cheikh Anta Diop since his return from Paris in 1983. Sène is a frequent visitor to the United States, primarily for teaching and research purposes.
He was a senior Fulbright Research Scholar at the University of Florida in 1992-93. Before and subsequently he has served as visiting professor in several U.S. universities such as Michigan State University, the University of Minnesota, Loyola Marymount University, Wofford and Converse Colleges, Beloit College, and more. Sène has substantial experience in the area of administration, first as chair of the Department of English in Dakar (3,500 students) and then as study abroad program administrator in Senegal for a number of U.S. universities. He is the author of several publications on issues relating to literature and the social sciences and is a regular contributor to Senegalese daily newspapers and radio and television programs. Sène has also worked as a free-lance translator for several international institutions, such as the Panafrican News Agency (Pana), U.N. representations in Dakar, USAID, and several other development-oriented NGO’s. Prior to being appointed Director of the West African Research Center, Sène was the President of AROA (Association de Recherche Ouest Africaine).