Educator  ·  Coach  ·  Builder  ·  Storyteller  ·  Author

Maina
Ibn Mohammed

"I help people navigate
systems not built for them."

Nigerian-born. San Francisco-based. I build bridges between students, institutions, and the futures they deserve — grounded in research, powered by story, measured in real outcomes. 606 coaching appointments. 53 countries. One constant: people deserve to be seen before they are optimized.

Maina Ibn Mohammed
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"I am what the stars are made of. I am what the Earth is made of. I am the universe folding in on itself, trying to understand its own reflection.

I am movement."

Origin

Born in Nigeria.
Called by the world.

I grew up in a small town in Nigeria, skipping chemistry class to read space books in a library with heavy doors I had to plant my feet just to open. I never imagined I would end up in the United States. But the universe honors one rule above all others: move.

I immigrated to America as a teenager and spent the next decade navigating systems that were not designed with me in mind. Figuring out how to make myself legible to institutions. Learning to carry my whole self into rooms that expected me to leave parts outside.

That experience is not background context. It is the foundation of everything I build. When I sit across from a student from Kazakhstan, or Nigeria, or Cambodia, navigating their first semester in an unfamiliar country, I am not guessing at what they need. I know. I use storytelling intentionally — not to make the room about me, but to lower the temperature. When I share the parts of my journey that students recognize, it gives them permission to be honest. I use research and evidence to design what happens after that moment of honesty.

0 Coaching Appointments
0 Students Coached
0 Countries Reached
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0 K+ Global Followers
What I Build

The Work

I have spent the last several years doing director-level work. Here is the evidence.

01

Human-Centered Coaching

Helped optimize and deepen Minerva's four-stage group coaching framework — Values, Strengths, Identity, and Summer Planning — and introduced a new evidence-based session focused on team strengths and teamwork skills. Using research-informed approaches and storytelling as a primary tool, I made each session more connected, more human, and more actionable. 150+ students from 50+ countries. Every session ends with clarity, not overwhelm.

99.6% Attendance · 99.1% Session-to-Session Retention
Co-Active Coaching Evidence-Based Practice Career Development International Students
02

AI-Powered Education Tools

Built AI infrastructure for student support before most institutions knew it was possible: an automated resume reviewer serving 200+ students monthly (85% reduction in admin time), a LinkedIn profile analyzer, and a cover letter reviewer. Also built an internal AI coaching reflection tool to evaluate my own patterns — talk time, pacing, question rhythm.

200+ Monthly Users · 85% Admin Time Reduction
AI Tool Design MIT Strategic AI Leadership EdTech
03

Industry Partnerships & Site Visits

Built and sustained relationships with YouTube, Waymo, Meta, Yahoo LaunchPad, and Gensler — coordinating 6 fully-booked site visits in one semester, all at or above capacity. 148+ students exposed to VP- and Director-level professionals at the world's most competitive companies. Yahoo LaunchPad evolved into an ongoing institutional partnership.

6 Site Visits · 148+ Students · All at Capacity
Google Meta Waymo YouTube Yahoo
04

Program Design & Institutional Leadership

Designed the "Design Your Minerva Life" workshop series. Represented Minerva to senior executives and high-level delegations, including Brazilian executives evaluating global education partnerships. Trained and mentored program interns. Built visual impact reports that communicate program outcomes across the university. Regularly invited as institutional spokesperson for prospective students and special guests.

Invited Speaker · Program Architect · Institutional Ambassador · MLK Community Service Award
Program Design Storytelling Thought Leadership Staff Management
Student Voices

What They Say

These are not testimonials collected for a portfolio. These are the moments that tell me the work is real.

Maina's coaching helped us better understand our team dynamic and made each member feel seen and valued.

Minerva Student · Fall 2025

CTD coach Maina's support made me feel more secure and ready to present. Team coaching sessions with Maina were the best part of our preparation.

Minerva Student · Fall 2025

Talking with Minerva alumni at Meta helped shape what feels possible and reachable. It wasn't just networking — it made ambitious paths feel real.

Linh Nguyen · Minerva M29

We received great ideas from Maina on how to highlight the stories of immigrant women in an emotionally compelling yet politically neutral way.

Minerva Student · Fall 2025

These site visits helped me visualise my future self. I'm genuinely grateful — no other university offers such experiences in the first semester.

Nida Ali · Minerva M29

The presentation session with Maina helped us stay on track and refine our message. His advice on improving our communication was always valuable and specific.

Minerva Student · Fall 2025
"Maina is a visionary. Students leave conversations with him feeling seen and valued. His relational approach significantly strengthens the sense of belonging and psychological safety within our programming."
Supervisor's Review · Minerva University · February 2026
Ideas & Writing

The Thinking Behind
the Work

I believe the most powerful things a leader can do are think clearly, write honestly, and share both. My ideas live at the intersection of education, technology, human potential, and the question of who gets access to what.

I write and speak on international student experience, AI in education, leadership development, and acculturation. My LinkedIn platform has grown to 250K+ followers because the ideas resonate — with people navigating the same systems I once navigated.

"Our Earth spins at over 1,000 miles per hour. The Moon orbits at 2,290. Our Sun drags us through the Milky Way at 448,000 miles per hour. At the smallest scale science can imagine, there is no stillness. There is only movement, dressed in different clothes. I was born in a small town in Nigeria. I never imagined I would end up in the United States. But I suppose it was never truly my choice. It was the universe honoring the one rule everything must follow: Move."

From "Movement" · Maina Ibn Mohammed, February 2026
Book · Near Completion
Path to Elegance
The Making of a Gentleman

A philosophical and practical guide to becoming a man of depth, dignity, and distinction. Not a style manual. A framework for the inner architecture of excellence — how we carry ourselves, how we treat others, how we build a life that holds meaning in every room we enter.

Written from the intersection of Nigerian heritage, American experience, Islamic values, and a decade of coaching the world's brightest young minds.

Coming Soon
Thought Leadership

Writing on international student experience, AI-powered coaching, leadership development, and the systems that need to be redesigned. Published on LinkedIn to 250K+ followers across 50+ countries.

Read on LinkedIn
Beyond the Title

Lighthouse Foundation

Global Nonprofit · Founded by Maina

Before I had a title, before 606 appointments, before Minerva — I was already building. The Lighthouse Foundation exists because I know what it feels like to be in the dark without a guide. It exists because I believe access to leadership development and community should not be contingent on geography, income, or institutional membership.

The Foundation has served over 10,000 people globally in leadership development and community access. It is the work that I would have done regardless of where I worked. In recognition of this work, I was awarded the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Service Award by the City of Natchitoches — a reminder that service is not a footnote in a career. It is the point.

10K+ People Served
Global Reach

Digital Platform

A thought leadership platform built on the belief that ideas that liberate deserve the widest possible audience.

250K+ Followers across 50+ countries

Covering international student experience, acculturation, AI in education, and coaching innovation. Because the students who need this guidance most are often the ones least likely to find it through traditional channels.

Let's Talk

What I'm Building Toward

I am looking for institutions that want more than a hire. I want to help you build something — a student experience, a coaching infrastructure, an AI strategy, a bridge between your campus and the world your students are walking into. If you are building something that matters and need someone who can think at the systems level and still sit with a student and change the temperature of the room, let's talk.

I am also open to speaking engagements, partnerships, and conversations with leaders who believe that education systems need to be redesigned for the students actually in them — not the ones the systems were originally built to serve.

Based in San Francisco, CA · Open to H1B sponsorship