By Samuel Oyadongha, Yenagoa

Just days before beginning her university journey, a 20‑year‑old lost her father. Instead of giving in to grief, she turned pain into purpose and has now graduated at the top of her law class at the American University of Nigeria, breaking stereotypes along the way.

When Queen Ebitenye Okalizibe left her home in coastal Bayelsa State for the unfamiliar terrain of Adamawa State, she carried two things, a suitcase and a head full of assumptions about northern Nigeria. However last Saturday, she walked across the convocation stage at the American University of Nigeria (AUN) in Yola with a first class honours degree in Law and a hard‑earned CGPA of 3.6/4.0, but her story is far more than a set of grades.

Speaking after her graduation, she said “I spent my entire life in Bayelsa, so leaving home to study in Adamawa was not just a change of location, it was a step into something completely unfamiliar.”

In many ways, that step was the bravest of her young life.

Even before she set foot on AUN’s campus, tragedy struck. Her father, HRH Chief Okali Aku, passed away. The loss left the young Queen not only grieving but also staring down the prospect of higher education without her first hero.

“I carried the usual assumptions many of us have about the North,” she admits. “I thought I knew what to expect.”

What she found instead shattered every preconception.

“I was welcomed with a level of warmth and kindness that genuinely surprised me,” Ebitenye recalled.

“The people were open, generous, and deeply hospitable. That experience alone shifted something in me. It taught me that reality is often far more nuanced than perception.”

That lesson of unlearning prejudice through lived experience became the quiet engine of her academic journey.

Law at AUN is not for the faint‑hearted. The grading system is rigorous: 90–100 for an A, 80–89 for a B, 70–79 for a C, and anything below that meant repeating the course.

“Every test, every exam, every submission required focus and consistency. It was challenging, sometimes exhausting, but it pushed me to become more disciplined than I have ever been,” Ebitenye explained.

Discipline, however, was only half the equation. Behind every late‑night study session and every moment she wanted to quit stood her mother.

“My mother, Modline Amos, has been my anchor,” Ebitenye said, her voice filled with gratitude. “Her strength and support made it possible for me to keep going, even on the days it felt overwhelming.”

She also praised her siblings, Becky, Prince, Edison, Destiny, and her older sister Tutu as constant sources of encouragement. And she singled out Hon. Israel Sunny‑Goli, the former federal lawmaker for Brass‑Nembe Constituency, whom she describe as her uncle and father figure for his immense support, especially in her final year.

Now, with her honours in hand, the Nembe and Yenagoa‑born graduate reflects on what this chapter truly meant.

“This journey has been more than just earning a degree,” she said. “It has been about growth, unlearning, resilience, and finding joy in unexpected places. I left Bayelsa unsure of what I would find, and I am leaving with more than I could have imagined not just university honours, but a version of myself that I am truly proud of. For me, that means everything.”

Asked what she would tell other young Nigerians walking a difficult path, Ebitenye said: “Grow at your own pace. Learn, fail, try again. Trust in God and trust His timing.”