Nikia Brown

Nikia Brown, is a native Philadelphian who has an unyielding passion for people and places. Growing up in a Caribbean household kindled within her a strong curiosity about world cultures and ethnic backgrounds. Upon graduating from Liberty University with a bachelor’s degree in government, she relocated to South Korea to teach English as a Second Language for two consecutive years. Currently, Nikia works as the Associate Director of Intercultural and Global Learning, International Student Experience at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

In 2010, Nikia was awarded with a scholarship from the Korean government to complete a language immersion program and attain a master’s degree in sociology from Sungkyunkwan University. During the course of her study, she completed a qualitative study on how Korea-born multicultural students negotiate their ethnic identities amidst stigma and homogeneity. The Sungkyun Journal of East Asian Studies published this work in April 2015 and she presented her research later that year at the American Sociological Association Annual Meeting in Chicago, Illinois.

Nikia also comes to Global Philadelphia Association with a wealth of non-profit experience at culture and arts organizations in the Greater Philadelphia Region. She coordinated summer enrichment programs for urban students at The Franklin Institute Science Museum as well as facilitated the daily operations of the mentoring and tutoring academy, ESF Dream Camp Foundation. Most recently, Nikia played a dual role in her position as Community Outreach Coordinator at Please Touch Museum. Along with managing the museum’s teen college and career readiness program, she partnered with the School District of Philadelphia to deliver parenting and literacy workshops to expecting and teen parents.

In her role as World Heritage Philadelphia Coordinator, Nikia is eager to utilize her diverse experiences to strengthen Philadelphia’s designation as a global destination.