Ebenezer Afarikumah

Afarikumah joined Goodwin University from Greenfield Community College (GCC) in May 2022 as the Business Program Director and an Assistant professor at Goodwin in May 2022. He taught at Afarikumah, from the fall of 2019, as an assistant professor of computer information systems. Prior to GCC, he was a visiting professor in the College of Business – Department of Management and Business & Information Technology at Framingham State University, Framingham, MA. He came to Goodwin University with an extensive background as a researcher, instructor, entrepreneur, and business IT professional both in Ghana and in the United States.

Afarikumah began his education at the University of Ghana, earning a Bachelor of Science in computer science and statistics and a master’s in business administration. While attending the International Statistical Association Conference in Germany, Afarikumah became very interested in big data and decided to pursue work in that direction. In particular, he was interested in helping hospitals develop electronic database systems for managing patient medical records. This led him to the work of his doctoral degree in information technology at the Open University of Malaysia, studying electronic health and telehealth as it pertains to the developing world.

Afarikumah has a passion for making health care available to people in remote areas, especially connecting them to specialists through technology. “That is something that I’m so excited and enthused about—to make sure we deploy technology for the benefit of humanity.”
It was his interest in health IT that led Afarikumah to Massachusetts. The state is central to this work in the United States, so in 2013 he relocated to Worcester to work on an AA in computer information systems at Quinsigamond Community College. Afarikumah finished this degree in 2016 and then finished his doctorate in 2019, writing a dissertation entitled, “Implementing Digital Health in Ghana: An Actor-Network Theory Approach.”

Before coming to the United States, Afarikumah worked for many years as a senior scientific researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, the largest research institute in Ghana. He also taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Ghana Business School and in their continuing education program, as well as at the Accra Institute of Technology, and the University of Ghana’s Department of Biostatistics, among other institutions.

Once he settled in Massachusetts, Afarikumah worked at Genesis Healthcare Systems as their medical records manager and taught courses in business information systems at Framingham State University.

Afarikumah also took the opportunity to start a nonprofit, the Telehealth and Assisted Living Center, Inc, a 501(c) 3 nonprofit in Worcester, to further his efforts to improve people’s lives through technology. The organization helps senior living communities implement telehealth services, educates people on becoming independent through technology, provides assistive technology tools to people with disabilities, and collects technology donations to support people in the developing world.

Outside of his work at Goodwin University, Afarikumah is active in his church and volunteers with organizations supporting homeless people.

Finally, his ultimate desire is to prepare for the Business and Information Technology program so it can “bridge the gap” between technology and business.