From Nigeria to North Carolina: The Communicator Ensuring Public Messages Leave No One Behind

Ayotomiwa Akintode did not plan to work in public service. She simply wanted to help people. For someone with her gifts, the two became the same thing.

Tomiwa, as she is known to loved ones, grew up in Nigeria, navigating the space between languages, between cultures, between the way institutions speak and the way ordinary people actually live.

Today, she works as a Marketing Communications Specialist in Charlotte, one of the largest and most diverse cities in the United States. At its core, her job in public service is simple: make sure public information truly reaches the public—all of it.

“When I have a project, I think about the person who sees a flyer and immediately feels like it wasn’t made for them. That feeling of being overlooked in messages that’s supposed to serve you has real consequences. People don’t look for help if they don’t believe that it is meant for them,” she said.

Those who work with Tomiwa said she approaches communication differently, asking questions others may not think to ask: Who isn’t being reached? Why? What assumptions are we making about our audience?

In a bureaucratic environment like government, those questions can be uncomfortable, but they lead to better results.

One of the most recognized projects she worked on was Mecklenburg County’s Foster Parent Awareness campaign, designed to connect children in need with families willing to open their homes.

The initiative earned national recognition from the City-County Communications and Marketing Association. Yet for Tomiwa, the real reward was not the award.

“It was the families. We were intentional about reaching people who had never seen themselves in that kind of campaign before. That meant being thoughtful about the images, the language, and where we shared the message. We kept asking, who are we missing and who could benefit from this message?,” she said.

Tomiwa’s work is grounded in both practice and scholarship. She holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in communications and is currently completing an MBA. For her, studying business is not about corporate ambition; it is about understanding the systems that shape public service.

In December 2024, she co-authored a peer-reviewed article in the Nigerian Journal of Literacy and English Education. The research explored how bilingual students navigate the gap between their native languages and English in classrooms, a topic that mirrors her own upbringing between Yoruba and English.

She said: “I lived that gap. I know what it feels like to receive a message in a language you speak, but not in a way that fully speaks to you. That experience drives my work.”

She was recently invited to return to her alma mater, Troy University, to discuss her experiences in the marketing communications field, a testament to how her insights extend beyond her everyday responsibilities. When asked what keeps her motivated, Tomiwa answers without hesitation.

“When you take the time to truly reach someone and engage with them, not just send a message in their direction, you’re telling them they matter.”

For many readers in Nigeria, her journey will feel familiar.

She is shaped by a multilingual, multicultural environment that teaches flexibility, awareness, and deep listening.

“Nigeria gave me my ears. It taught me to listen for what people aren’t saying as much as what they are. In this work, that’s everything,” she stated.