An African(a) historian, storyteller, and scholar-teacher, dedicated to fostering interdisciplinary conversations and empowering students to "let knowledge serve the city."
Dr. Bright Alozie is an Associate Professor in the Black Studies Department at Portland State University, where he also serves as Coordinator of the African Studies Certificate Program and holds affiliate appointments in the Departments of History and Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. A Nigerian-born historian, educator, and storyteller, Dr. Alozie crosses borders and disciplines to bring a rare blend of academic rigor, creative vision, and personal warmth to his work (whether in the archives, the classroom, or the community).
His research travels deep into the heart of colonial and postcolonial Africa and the African diaspora, uncovering stories buried in dusty archives, whispered in oral traditions, and pulsing through political and sociocultural histories. With particular focus on documentary sources such as petitions, women and gender, social movements, oral and digital history, memory politics, and social movements, his work bridges historical inquiry and traditional archival research with decolonial methodologies, creative expression, and community-based oral history. At the heart of his scholarship is a commitment to recovering and amplifying voices that history has tried to erase.
His acclaimed first book, African Voices in Ink: Petitions, Petition Writing, and the Colonial State in Igboland, Nigeria, 1892–1960 (Lexington Books, 2024), explores how ordinary Nigerians picked up the pen to challenge colonial rule and claim their rights. His current projects expand this legacy: Africa, My Africa: A Visual History for Kids (2026); Inheritance of the Spoken: Africa’s Voices Reclaimed (a poetic collection, 2026); and Black Voices and the African Diasporic Experience: An Oral History of African Immigrants in Oregon (2027). Each project reimagines what it means to document and dignify African experiences, past and present, in a uniquely accessible and creative way.
A prolific scholar and writer, Dr. Alozie’s work also appears in leading academic journals including Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History, Frontiers: A Journal of Women’s Studies, Meridians, Journal of British Studies, Journal of the Middle East and Africa, Ufahamu: A Journal of African Studies, and the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of African History. His widely read public-facing essays and cultural critiques have appeared in The Conversation Africa, Africa Rivista, Black Perspectives, and The Pacific Sentinel, where he blends humor, heart, and historical depth.
Dr. Alozie’s work has been supported by a wide range of competitive grants and fellowships, including the North American Conference on British Studies Diversity and Inclusion Fellowship, the Hagley Library Oral History Project Grant, the African Humanities Research Council Grant, and the Charlton Oral History Research Grant. He has also received multiple teaching honors, including Portland State University’s John Eliot Allen Outstanding Teaching Award (2021/22) and the Peggy Renner Award for Teaching and Curricular Innovation from the Western Association of Women Historians (2025). At PSU, he teaches courses that dare students to think differently: Introduction to African Studies, Women in African History, African History before 1800, African History since 1800, Gender and Sexualities in Africa, Postcolonial Studies of Africa, Protests and People Power in Africa, and Research Methodologies in Black Studies, among others.
In the classroom, Dr. Alozie is known for his infectious enthusiasm, critical rigor, and compassionate mentorship. His classes are firmly rooted in the African philosophy of Ubuntu (I am because we are), emphasizing shared humanity, mutual care, and co-creation of knowledge. “a single bracelet does not jingle” and “learning, like life, is better when we do it together,” he often reminds his students. His students describe him as a professor who makes the past feel present, the personal political, and the academic deeply human and humane.
Outside the university, Dr. Alozie is a proud father and husband, a lover of good food, poetry, cologne, vintage art, and soccer. A globe trotter who has traveled to numerous countries, he brings global perspective and deep cultural insight to his teaching and scholarship. Whether mentoring students, writing about African history, curating oral histories, or experimenting with a new recipe, he does so with heart, humor, humanity, and a deep belief in the transformative power of education and storytelling.
Above all, he is committed to using history to uplift, unsettle, inspire, and to reclaim the silenced, rethink the remembered, and reimagine what’s possible for Africa and its diasporas. Dr. Alozie welcomes collaborative research, community engagement, and graduate student advising and remains committed to cultivating inclusive learning environments that uplift Black, African, and diasporic voices in the global academy.
