Grit and Gratitude

It all started with a bicycle.

Born into poverty in the small town of Warri, Nigeria, Sean Edeki wanted a bicycle more than anything else in the world. While few kids in his neighborhood had the luxury of owning their own bike, Sean was obsessed with the idea.

His father struck a bargain with Sean: if he could rise to the top of his class in school, his father would buy him a bike. Sean studied hard and worked to uphold his end of the deal, reaching the top of his class as agreed. At that time, Sean’s father sat him down and explained that he couldn’t actually afford the bike.

Sean was devastated by the news, but a couple of days later, his father surprised him with a bike after all. Elated, Sean spent hours polishing the bike and riding around his hometown. Later, he would learn that his father had borrowed money from another man to make that small miracle happen.

While the memory of his bike resonates with him to this day, Sean looks to that moment as a turning point.

Though his mother and father were technically uneducated, he insists that they’re the smartest people he ever knew. The Edekis were determined that their kids would have the opportunities that they didn’t while growing up, forever working to instill the value of education in their family. Their greatest goal in life was to put their five children through school.

“My parents strived to give the best to their kids,” said Sean. “They weren’t thinking about themselves; they were only thinking about us.”

With his parents guiding him every step of the way, Sean graduated from high school and went on to study at the Petroleum Institute in Nigeria, earning his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. From there, Sean gained a position as a pipeline engineer for Shell Oil and Gas. The job offered him the opportunity to travel and provided a salary he’d never dreamed of.

Sean was eager to share his good fortune. He returned to his hometown, visited the local orphanage, and bought a bicycle for every one of the 40 children residing there.

“When I did that bicycle project, I could see in their faces what I saw in my own face when my dad got me that bicycle,” Sean recalls. “The reality of having a bike of their own was something those kids had never pictured for themselves. That’s one of the things I’m most proud of to this day.”

Sean wasn’t finished paying it forward for the residents of Warri.

Upon visiting his former primary school, he noted that the facilities were extremely dilapidated: students studied on the floor, paint peeled from the walls, and rainwater leaked from the roof.

Sean approached the principal and offered to upgrade the classrooms on one condition: no one could know that he was the anonymous benefactor behind the donation.

The principal agreed, and Sean funded chairs, a fresh coat of paint, and a new roof for the school.

The motivation to give back is an integral part of Sean’s life still today.

Sean considered multiple universities as he set his sights on America to pursue his master’s degree. In the end, Professor Zhong Hu was the determining factor that motivated him to choose SDSU for his next adventure.

Sean and Hu communicated throughout his application process, discussing how best SDSU could provide the additional skills Sean was looking for. Hu specialized in theoretical engineering research regarding materials engineering and design analysis, while Sean excelled in practical application from his industry experience. The two realized they could combine their shared expertise to fully round out Sean’s education at State.

With that goal, Sean packed his bags for South Dakota in 2017. Upon arrival, he was met with two first impressions: friendly people and extremely cold weather.

Sean completed his first master’s degree at SDSU in mechanical engineering, becoming active in many campus and community organizations for international students. He was unanimously appointed the President of the African Students Association.

Through his interactions with SDSU students, Sean quickly realized that most Americans had a skewed perception of Africa. In 2018, Sean and the African Students Association, in collaboration with the International Relations Council, formed a partnership with the South Dakota World Affairs, the Children’s Museum of South Dakota, and Camelot Intermediate School to heighten awareness about the current state of countries around the globe. Sean arranged for a series of presentations for a Cultural Appreciation Day, led by international students to expand the horizons of Camelot middle schoolers. The initiative sourced materials from various countries within Africa and helped to shift mindsets about other cultures around the world.

After completing his master’s degree in 2020, Sean briefly spent time in Georgia, which led him to take a break from engineering and invest in his management skills. From there, Sean was faced with another decision on where his education might take him. SDSU’s was one of three master’s programs across the country that accepted him.

After little debate, he opted to return to South Dakota.

Now in pursuit of his second master’s degree, this time in operations management, Sean is interested in learning about the business aspect of engineering. With a goal to one day own an organization that puts people, and not profit, first, Sean’s mission is to emphasize a personal investment in human resources above all else.

While studying for his latest degree, Sean is hard at work to establish a Graduate Student Council at SDSU, uniting graduate students across all schools within the university in one organization. He’s also employed through a grad assistantship and a position with the SDSU Foundation.

Sean remains humbled and inspired by the drastic shift in his circumstances that led him to South Dakota State University.

“I feel like God blessed me in countless ways in my life, because the fact is, where I grew up, it’s really hard to make it out the way I did. Appreciating the little things we usually overlook, and choosing optimism and resilience is what did it for me. Now, I just want to see what I can do after all that SDSU has given me.”