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Diola Bagayoko is a Malian-American professor of physics at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Early life and education

Bagayoko grew up in Mali.

In 1973, Bagayoko earned degrees in chemistry and physics from Ecole Normale Superieure in Barnako, Mali. He then earned a master's degree in solid state physics from Lehigh University.

Bagayoko earned his Ph.D. in theoretical solid state physics from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Career

In 1990, Bagayoko started the Timbuktu Academy in Baton Rouge. The academy hosts STEM-based summer programs for middle school and high school students mostly from underrepresented communities in science.

Bagayoko is a member of the American Physical Society (APS).

Bagayoko's mentoring model consists of student-centric goals like fostering confidence, involving students in research, and monitoring them. He has attributed his passion for mentoring to his teachers in Bamako. Bagayoko uses the power law of human performance and his belief that scientific knowledge is acquired cumulatively to push students away from self-doubt.

Bagayoko published on mentoring topics over 50 times, and he has published on various condensed matter theories over 80 times.

Bagayoko taught courses in introductory and mathematical physics, as well as classical, relativistic, and quantum mechanics in the United States and abroad.

At the Southern University at Baton Rouge, Bagayoko is a Southern University System Distinguished Professor and the chair of the Department of Physics.

Outside of academia, Bagayoko has consulted for organizations such as the Southern Regional Education Board and the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization.

Awards

In 1996, Bagayoko was given one of the first Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and Engineering Mentoring. In 2009, Bagayoko was awarded the AAAS Mentor Award for Lifetime Achievement.

References

1. ^ Bhattacharjee, Yudhijit (2006-10-27). "Failure Is Not an Option for These Minority Students". Science. 314 (5799): 587–588. doi:10.1126/science.314.5799.587. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 17068237.
2. ^ "Diola Bagayoko". The History Makers. 2012-08-18.
3. ^ "2009 Mentor Award for Lifetime Achievement | American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)". www.aaas.org. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
4. "Members In The Spotlight". APS. 2024-10-25.

• 21st-century American physicists
• Louisiana State University alumni
• Living people
• Southern University faculty
• Lehigh University alumni
• 21st-century Malian people
• 20th-century Malian people
• 20th-century American physicists
• Malian scientists
• 1948 births
• 21st-century African-American scientists
• 20th-century African-American scientists