Prudent Ndihokubwayo has a lot to smile about these days.
The 33-year-old has become an embodiment of the American dream, first coming to America in 2011 from his native Burundi, barely speaking any English.
“(The words) ‘Kitchen’ and ‘chicken,’ I didn’t know the difference,” he said.
Today, however, he supports himself with a job as a janitorial supervisor at the University of Southern Maine, and spends his spare time working toward becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen and nurturing his dream of becoming a published author.
And English? He no longer has a problem speaking it. Indeed, after becoming a student at the university he made the subject his major, and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in the language on May 7. This week, Ndihokubwayo talked with Spectrum News about his journey and accomplishments.
Burundi is a country in central eastern Africa, surrounded by Tanzania, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is nearly 28,000 square miles in size, slightly smaller than the U.S. state of South Carolina. Ndihokubwayo said he grew up in Bujumbura. He described his country as beautiful, but economically poor and torn by political strife and violence that lasted for at least a 25-year period through 2015 when, he casually noted, people died following elections that year.
“There was always something going on,” he said.
Ndihokubwayo declined to discuss in detail how the violence affected him, but said escaping it was a motivator for his journey to America.
“I needed a new life. A place where I can grow,” he said.
An uncle, he said, arranged for him to come to the United States and connect with a friend in the Portland area. Despite speaking little English, he managed to secure temporary employment at the university as a janitor through an employment agency.
By 2015, Ndihokubwayo had become a full-time employee. When he learned that employment at USM allowed him to take classes for free, he said, he enrolled immediately — first in classes to learn English.
Later, Ndihokubwayo enrolled as an undergraduate student, first majoring in psychology, then business, neither of which appealed to him. He found his path, he said, through reading. There are libraries in Burundi, he said, but not like in America.
“I was fascinated by books. I was reading books to gain knowledge,” he said.
That fascination grew to include writing, and Ndihokubwayo changed his major to English. He was, at the time, the only immigrant in the department, he said.
“It was hard. I thought about quitting many times,” he said.
But he didn’t. Today, Ndihokubwayo speaks and understands English perfectly, his accent little more than a muted French-African lilt. Speaking English like an American, he said, meant watching and listening to hours of American movies and television.
“English is not hard. The accent is hard,” he said.
Ndihokubwayo’s command of the language goes far beyond basic communication. He has an affinity for popular fiction (“Stephen King. I would like to meet him,” he said), but also for the classics, from Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” to Shakespeare and the poetry of William Blake.
Ndihokubwayo has progressed in his job, too, now working as a supervisor.
“He could’ve sustained a position with less responsibility while maintaining a full course load but Prudent won’t settle for less,” said Kristen Case, director of facilities management for custodial services.
Case said she and her team celebrated Ndihokubwayo’s accomplishments, and supported him on his journey.
“Despite his hard work, Prudent displays only his warm, humble, gracious personality,” Case said. “He reminds me that we pass people in the halls facing challenges greater than mine. He reminds me to be kind and supportive even when it’s difficult. He reminds me that our past, present or future challenges will not limit our ability to be our best selves.”
Ndihokubwayo also supports himself. He can afford, with a roommate, an apartment in Auburn, but his ultimate goal is to become an author. He is writing a book about his journey to America, and he has also written screenplays and other fiction. He said writing is his way of expressing himself to the world.
“I want to die empty,” he said. “I want everything I have in me to come out.”
If he has success and builds some wealth, Ndihokubwayo said, he might return to Burundi to build libraries, but ultimately he just hopes to capture something of himself that will live on. He considers the written word one of his greatest influences, and he said he hopes his work might do the same for others.
“I just want to inspire people,” he said.