One sterling quality Professor Okechuku Onuchuku, the vice chancellor of Ignatius Ajuru University of Education (IAUE), possesses is the conviction that “wealth and position are nothing if they do not positively impact on the lives of the people.” This accounts for why he uses every position he occupies to unlock people’s potential to become better.
For instance, on his assumption of office at the university, Prof. Onuchuku introduced the payment of statutory school charges in two instalments. The policy is in response to the current economic challenges in the country and an expression of his ability to understand and share the feelings of others.
This explains why the rehabilitation of existing infrastructure and building of new ones to enhance the students’ safety and well-being, including the welfare of the workers and many other accomplishments, with the lean resources available to him, continue to attract recognition.
In the same way, to retain public trust in the degrees awarded by the institution and its capability to produce the right workforce for national development, he strengthened the Quality Assurance Unit, which led to innovative strategies in checking all forms of malpractices among the staff and students.
Furthermore, he restructured the academic programmes so that all courses leading to the award of the Bachelor of Education degree are domiciled in the Faculty of Education, allowing the Faculties of Humanities, Social Sciences, Management, and Natural and Applied Sciences to award degrees in their core mandate areas. Prof Onuchuku made Agriculture a full-fledged faculty by removing it from Vocational and Technical Education and established new courses.
As stated in Proverb 22:29 that those who work in diligent and determined ways will stand before kings, it was therefore not a surprise that the vice chancellor was recently awarded the ‘African Leader of Integrity Merit Award’ for his exemplary leadership in University Educational Development at the 19th African Leadership Development Conference held in Accra, Ghana.
According to Proven Integrity Communications Network, organisers of the event, the award was in recognition of Prof. Onuchuku’s contributions to educational development in Nigeria, the African continent, and the entire world.
Remarkably, the recognition came barely one month after the vice-chancellor and his university, Ignatius Ajuru University of Education, were honoured last month for the second time as the Vice Chancellor and Academic Institution of the Year by the Trendsetters, a Port Harcourt-based media outfit.
The Trendsetters, while disclosing that the award was instituted to “reward the exceptional achievements of individuals and corporate organisations”, acknowledged that Professor Onuchuku was selected because of his “remarkable policy changes at the university”, which are already yielding commendable results at the institution.
