The Nation Newspaper

Tag: College

  • College gets Acting Provost

    Dr Cecilia Ibekwe has been appointed the Acting Provost of the Federal College of Education, Technical (FCET) in Umunze, Anambra State. She took over from Prof Josephat Ogbuagu, whose tenure ended last month.

    Ibekwe, a former Dean of School of Education, was appointed by the Governing Council, headed by Mr Ibrahim Abdu Radda.

    She joined the college in 1991 as  Lecturer III and rose through the ranks to become a Chief Lecturer in 2008, an equivalent of associate professor in a university.

    In a statement, Radda said  Ibekwe was appointed by the council to provide strong leadership needed in the college, pending the appointment of a substantive provost. The council chairman said members remained dedicated to the task of making the college a reference point among other tertiary institutions in the country.

    In her 26-year stint in the college, Ibekwe served as the Head of Department of Educational Foundation, Dean, School of Sandwich and Teaching Practice, and Dean, School of Education and General Studies.

    Ibekwe served on various committees in the college. She is also a member of several professional bodies, including Philosophy of Education Association of Nigeria (PEAN), National Association of Curriculum Theorists (NACT), and Technology Education Writers Association of Nigeria (TEWAN).

    A high-profile scholar, she had Bachelor of Arts in Religious Studies fromthe Bendel State University, now Delta State University, Abraka, got her Master’s in Philosophy of Education at the University of Ibadan (UI) and doctorate from the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT).

    Reputed for her dedication to excellence, members of the college’s Academic Board welcomed her choice as Acting Provost, describing it as a step in the right direction.

     

  • Agric minister pledges support for college

    Agric minister pledges support for college

    The Minister of Agriculture, and Rural Development,  Audu Ogbeh, has praised the Provost of the Federal College of Agriculture, Akure (FECA), Dr. Samson Odedina, for  infrastructural development, academic growth and better staff and students welfare.

    Ogbeh commended  Governor  Oluwarotimi Akeredolu for his contribution towards the development of agriculture in the institution and the state.

    The minister made the commendation during a facility tour of the college.

    The visit, according to him, became necessary in order to assess the various innovative centres under the management of the  institution

    Ogbeh praised the innovative effort of the management in creating a conducive learning environment for students and stakeholders.

    The minister  promised to support the school by providing a ‘milking machine for the dairy farm, crusher for the manufacturing of feeds for livestock, flash dryer for high quality cassava flour, and bio-fortified value chain as well as forage seeds for the resuscitation of grazing paddock. He noted that the equipment will support the training of young people who have chosen agriculture  as a profession.

    Responding, Odedina said the  minister’s visit was an accomplishment for the college as it was the first time a minister would be visiting the college in 50 years.

    Odedina added that the visit also served as a platform to present  the challenges of  the college to the Federal Government.

    The minister flagged off the National Egg Powder Production scheme (NEPRO) in the state where a cheque of N564 million naira was presented to 135 farmers.

    Officials who accompanied the minister  include  his Special Assistanton News Media, Mrs. Aishat Onusi, and Special Assistant on Quality and Standardisation, Mrs, Akanni.

  • College reduces fees

    THE  management of Adeniran Ogunsanya College of Education (AOCOED) Otto/Ijanikin, Lagos State, has reduced fees for its full-time Nigeria Certificate in Education (NCE) students.

    A statement made available to The Nation stated that the reduction was arrived at a meeting the institution’s management held with the Students’ Union (SU) executives.

    The statement, signed by the Registrar, Mr Shehu Abdulqadri Muhideen, stated that management of AOCOED agreed to the agitation by students for a reduced fee, after a meeting with SU executive late last month.

    The students kicked against an upward review of the fees, which was agreed between management and the Parents’ Forum last October.

    With effect from the 2017/2018 Academic Session, tuition for 100-level students on regular NCE programme, is N25,000 as against N28,000. The reduced fee  covers acceptance fee, administrative charges, ICT levy, biometric ID card, sports, medical, library and teaching practice (TP).

    Similarly, 200 and 300 level students would pay N15,000 as against the N18,000 earlier agreed upon at the Parents’Forum. The fee covers administrative, ICT, ID and card, among others.

    Other items, such as sports, medical and library, will attract no charge for 200 and 300 level undergraduates.

    T

  • College gets Registrar

    The Governing Council of Adeyemi College of Education Ondo, has approved the appointment of Mrs. Olufisayo Olukemi Fakorede as the Registrar of the College.

    The appointment which took effect from December would run for five years.

    Mrs Fakorede, a seasoned administrator, was born in Omuo Ekiti, Ekiti State in 1966. She attended St. Louis Grammar School, Ikere-Ekiti and Mount Camel Secondary School, Ikare-Akoko for her primary and secondary school education between 1977 and 1983.

    Thereafter, she proceeded to Obafemi Awolowo University Ile-Ife for her Bachelor of Arts (Education) in French (1988), Diploma in Public Administration (2010) and Masters in Public Administration (2015).

    She had her National Youth Service at the Army Day Secondary School, Sokoto from 1988 to 1989.

    She joined the Ondo State Teaching Service Commission as class teacher in St. Louis Secondary School, Ondo between May 1990 and October, 1991. She later joined the service of Adeyemi College of Education, Ondo as Administrative Officer II on November 1, 1991.

    Over the years, she has worked in various units of the institution as school officer in the Schools of Applied Arts and Science Education; Science; and Arts and Social Sciences.

    In December 2006, she was appointed Acting Registrar, a position she held until June 2007.

    Between 2002 and 2017, Fakorede was Head of Divisions of Personnel Affairs; Academic Affairs, General Administration; Staff Training and Development; and Pension and Staff Welfare

    Before her appointment, she also acted as the College Registrar from June to December, 2017.

    Mrs. Fakorede has attended a number of conferences and workshops within and outside the country.

    She is a member of the Nigeria Institute of Management; Nigerian Institute of Training and Development; as well as Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Administration.

    She is a member of the Welfare Committee, Living Faith Church, Ondo, and happily married with children.

     

  • College seeks investment in solar energy

    The Federal Government has been urged to invest more in solar energy to meet up with the electricity challenges.

    At the End of the Year/Graduation of ABITECH Engineering College in Ikorodu, Timothy Obano, the Chief Executive Officer, said the potential of solar in Nigeria as a source of power is “absolutely enormous.”

    Obano said the solar energy, inverter and other trainings in the College, is one of the renewable training schemes designed to generate employment for the unemployed graduates.

    He urged graduating students to put their training into good use by also creating employment.

    “This is our modest contribution to development and improvement of our energy sector, so I urge the graduates to become vibrant employers of labour that will positively affect this generation,” he said.

    He said lack of conventional electricity infrastructure paves way for rapid deployment of solar.

    “In Nigeria, for instance, there’s currently an energy deficit of 170,000 megawatts, the majority of which can and should be filled with solar energy,” he said.

    Debunking claims that solar power and inverter are expensive, Obano explained that the recent innovations in battery storage and the falling cost of solar panel technology had made solar increasingly accessible in Nigeria and beyond.

    He also assured customers that his company gives 30 years guarantee on both solar and inverter system assembled by his company.

    He expressed optimism that in future many Nigerians would accept the alternative source of power, adding that solar energy is fully accepted as a safe, efficient and environmentally friendly energy source.

    ABITECH’s Head of Electrical and Solar Department, Abah Dominic Ogwuche said the college has empowered many youths through trainings in solar energy and computer skills acquisition.

  • Why we established Aviation College, by Ahmed

    Why we established Aviation College, by Ahmed

    •Kwara spends N2.2 on SMEs

    Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has said the government established the International Aviation College (IAC), Ilorin, to help the country save foreign exchange, and to empower and improve capacity of stakeholders in the aviation industry.

    He spoke when Coordinator of the Nigerian Army Aviation Maj.-Gen. Johnson Olawumi visited him at the Government House in Ilorin.

    Ahmed said the need to make Kwara a state of preference by investors, and improve training time of pilots, are among reasons for establishing the college.

    “The last six years has witnessed an improved capacity building at the college, as well as strengthening of assets to benchmark it against best practices in the aviation industry,” he said.

    Governor Ahmed was happy facilities at the college met the Armed Forces training standards.

    Gen. Olawumi said the facility and environment at the college were satisfactory, adding that the five pilots sponsored by the Army to the college expressed preference to return to Ilorin for further training.

    According to him, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, directed him to visit the state to ascertain the state of the college for training of its officers and “partner IAC as a way of strengthening local institutions and saving foreign exchange”.

    Governor Ahmed said his administration spent about N2.25 billion to strengthen capacity of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

    He added that in commitment to this, he earmarks N500 million yearly towards the scheme.

    Ahmed spoke at the second annual general meeting (AGM) of the Kwara State Coalition of Business and Professional Associations (KWACOBPA).

    Represented by the Commissioner for Commerce and Cooperatives, Ahmed Rifun, the governor said: “The spate of growth in the number of micro credit loan seekers, which includes viable cooperative groups, paved the way for the creation of Kwara State Bureau of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). This development is also complementing the Federal Government’s effort in assisting entrepreneurial development in the state…”

    “I must say many activities have been going on since its establishment. These include youth empowerment schemes; agricultural loan and seedlings scheme; motor vehicle and motorcycle loan.

  • Gombe College threaten workers with ‘no work no pay’

    The management of the Federal College of Education (Technical), Gombe State has warned striking lecturers to return to work or risk implementation of the ‘no work no pay’ policy.

    This was contained in a statement yesterday by the Director, Establishment and Council Affairs, Ibrahim Shehu, on behalf of the Registrar.

    Shehu described the strike as ‘uncalled for’, saying it left the management with the option of applying the ‘no-work no-pay’ policy.

    The management accused the lecturers of insensitivity to its constraints, especially with the prevailing financial situation in the country.

    The statement said the crisis, which led to the indefinite strike, began shortly after the current executive of the Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) was inaugurated in April.

    According to him, the union, precisely on April 19, engaged the management over salary shortfalls (February till date); outstanding payment of Peculiar Academic Allowance (PAA) arrears, and inclusion of some in their monthly salaries, among other demands.

    The statement reads: “The management informed COEASU that the school’s finances could not accommodate their demands at the moment. However, one month PPA and 25 per cent of the Conference Attendance Allowance (CAA) were paid.

    “It was agreed that when the Federal Government releases funds for 2015 promotion arrears and salary shortfalls, these would be paid without delay.”

    But COEASU, barely a month after this, wrote the management, requesting for the payment of the balance of 50 per cent of the CAA, PAA, salary shortfalls and 2015 promotion arrears,” Shehu added.

    He said the management in response set up a committee to negotiate with the union but could not reach conclusive agreement as the lecturers insisted they must be paid balance of the PAA and at least one month’s CAA.

  • College’s credit Society declares profit, elects managers

    Seven years after the Federal College of Education in Eha-Amufu, Enugu State, inaugurated Staff Cooperative Thrift and Credit Society for its staff, the Society has declared N4.4M dividend at N200 per unit share.

    The declaration was made by the president of the Society, Mallam Yahaya Musa Baba, during its first combined Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in the college. According to the president, the dividend covered 2008 to 2015 periods, adding that the share capital of N30.8M was also realized, while ordinary savings and interest for the periods were N861.4 million and N19.9 million.

    Mallam Baba disclosed that N211.1 million was the outstanding loan owed to the Coop, saying that the debt profile was recorded under IOU, Normal and Material loans advanced to the members. Mallam Baba said despite the challenges the Society faced at its inception, it was able to make positive impacts on members.

    He said: “Apart from loan administration to members in cash and material, we have succeeded in acquiring 153 plots of land for our members in the various parts of Enugu state and without any bank loan. The membership of the society has also increased from 60 in 2008 to 424 members in 2017 and we were able to get our account audited from 2008 to 2015.”

    Mallam Baba thanked the founding members of the Society and former Acting Provost of the college, Mr Romanus Onah, for their efforts to keep the Society strong.

    The provost, Prof B. N. Mbah, said the Society made enormous impact in the lives of the college workers, and improved their financial status. He said: “Members also have the opportunity to borrow money from the coffer of the Society and paying minimal interest on the loan.”

    New Board of Directors and members were elected during the theAGM, with Mallam Baba and Mr Augustine Attah returned unopposed as president and financial secretary.

    Others are Vice President, Dr Emmanuel Idu, Secretary, Mr Chikwere Chinedu Eze, and Treasurer, Dr Eunice Anumudu. Others members are Mr Emmanuel Ogugua, Mr Anthony Okwor, Mr Felix Nwaonwu, and Mr Osmond Aniaku.

    Prof Mbah advised the elected officers to live above board in discharging their responsibilities, while urging members to support Society’s management.

  • Foundation donates books to college

    The Sir Emeka Offor Foundation has donated over 1,000 books to the Federal College of Education (FCE) in Obudu Local Government Area of Cross River State.

    Presenting the books to the institution on behalf of the Foundation, the College’s Governing Council Chairman, Dr Anthony Obi, said they would assist both the teachers and students in their studies and research.

    Obi said the council approached the foundation for assistance in view of the scarcity of teaching and reading materials and the need to boost the quality of education.

    He said the books were in different fields including Biology, Chemistry, Physics, English and Mathematics.

    He said colleges of education across the country are the foundation for those aspiring to make a career in teaching, and emphasised the urgent need to provide teaching materials and other learning aids.

    He urged the management to make adequate use of the books and explore ways of attracting more.

    Receiving the books, the Provost of the College, Dr James Bassey Ejue, praised Obi for making the contact with the Foundation, which led to the donation.

    “This is the first time the college has got this kind of gesture of partnering with non-governmental organisation towards achieving its core mandate. We will utilise it maximally for the benefit of staff and students,” Ejue said.

    He said the efforts of the currentt administration had paid off with the donation, adding that there are plans to reach out to other agencies and organisations for further assistance.

    “The policy thrust of the administration is to encourage mutually beneficial partnership with agencies, organisations and individuals with a view to accelerating development as well as achieving the institution’s mandate,” he said.

    The books were handed over to the librarian, Mr. Godwin Angianting.

  • College matriculates PDE

    Topmost College of Education, Ipaja, Lagos, has supported the directive by the Teachers Registration Council (TRCN) that all practitioners must have teacher qualification before being allowed into the classroom.

    The private college of education said it also supported TRCN’s stance that those who fell in love with teaching and are already plying their trade in the classroom, but with no teaching qualification, must enroll for the council’s Post Graduate Diploma in Education (PDE).

    The college management made its stance known at the matriculation of fresh PDE students for the 2016/2017 academic session.

    Topmost Provost, Dr Mabel Odunayo, praised the council for  announcing that by 2018 all unregistered teachers would be sacked.

    She said the council’s action was like a soothing balm to Nigerian children, who according to her, are now liberated from the clutches of unqualified and unprofessional teachers.

    “They (unqualified teachers), are all over the place, parading our classrooms. But I can assure you that in no distant time, cheats and impersonators will have no place to hide any longer,”she said.

    The council’s Lagos State Director, Mr Gbolahan Enilolobo, In his address, decried the poor capacity of teachers to deliver quality service commensurate with their qualifications and experience.

    “Such occurrences are the consequence of low commitment, poor pre-service training and dispassionate psyche of most emerging teachers. This all boils down to incompetence,” he said.

    Enilolobo added that TRCN as the regulatory agency for the teaching profession in Nigeria finds the scenario ‘highly worrisome’, adding that in order to address the shortfall, it introduced the Professional Qualifying Examination (PQE) for teachers seeking to register as professionals nationwide.

    “The PQE regime, which is in consonance with provisions of TRCN enabling law, is aimed at ensuring that only teachers who have demonstrable competencies are registered to practice as teachers as against reliance on qualifications obtained from training institutions,” Enilolobo said.

    The PQE according to him, will take place between April and September every year, noting that since serving teachers are already scheduled for qualifying examination prior to registration,  graduating students cannot be inducted without their training institutions integrating the PQE in the induction protocol.

    “Therefore, all graduates of education programmes preparing for induction are to be short-listed for PQE at a time during their final examination. This means that eventual induction shall take place after passing final examinations approved by Senate or Academic Board of universities and colleges of education respectively in addition to passing the PQE,” he concluded.