Former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar teamed with McKissack & McKissack and American University to develop the American University of Nigeria, Sub-Saharan Africa’s first U.S.-style university.
To bring the excellence and supportive style of American higher education to rural Sub-Saharan Africa, former Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar tapped McKissack to provide master planning and architectural design services for the American University of Nigeria. McKissack’s work included two academic buildings, a dining facility and two residence halls. Today the institution educates over 1400 students at the undergraduate, graduate and professional levels. AUN was founded in response to the growing need for higher education in sub-Saharan Africa and is intended to be the first world-class university in West Africa and one of the premier universities on the continent. The career-oriented institution strives to meet student employment needs as well as local and international demands for highly trained staff. All students, regardless of academic specialty, receive extensive training in information technology. Located in the state of Yola, AUN opened its doors in September 2005. Initially, the university was comprised of 200 students in three programs, and planned to expand to 7,000 students within a decade. American University in Washington, D.C. is supplying academic and management expertise to further AUN’s mission.
