...As Shalom Academy Nsukka celebrates silver jubilee anniversary
The Director of Shalom Academy Nsukka (SAN), Dr. Wilfred Onu, has advocated for qualitative education in the country to eliminate crime and corruption, as well as to ensure rapid national development.
Onu said this in Nsukka over the weekend during the 25th-anniversary ceremony and graduation of the 2024 set of SAN Academy.
He said qualitative education deposits intellectual and spiritual content in a person, which according to him can help a person become a positive contributor to society.
The Director explained that the introduction of qualitative education would systematically deal with corruption and crimes, stressing that the country would experience rapid development in all sectors of the economy.
"The escalating security challenges and corruption in the country are because the majority of schools have failed to give qualitative education to our children in primary, secondary, and higher institutions.
"Majority of schools give our children only intellectual education certificates that lack spiritual content.
"Here in Shalom our education training is kristocentric that helped our graduates make wise and right decisions in life no matter the circumstance," he said.
In a brief historical profile of the academy, the director said SAN was. established on October 4, 1999, with 135 students with a vision and mission to raise children that would be academically excellent and spiritually impeccable.
"We have committed staff and our curriculum is Nigerian, American, and British combinations.
"Our students have made us proud as they have represented Nigeria many times in international competitions and performed creditably.
"In external exams, our students have also excelled, Cynthia Ali our student in 2017 made the West Africa Examination Council (WAEC) Book of Records when she scored 9As in all her subjects.
"This earned her scholarship from Gov Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi the immediate past governor of Enugu State to study Medicine and Surgery at University of Nigeria Enugu Campus," he said.
Onu said the graduation ceremony of the 2024 set of the academy falls within the 25th anniversary of the academy.
"To my great shalomite and alumni, seeing you today is a thing of joy taking into consideration our great interactions in the past when you were under our tutelage in the academy.
I believe that at your duty posts, you are good ambassadors of SAN," he said.
The director admonished 2024 graduating students not to relent in living a godly life and taking their tertiary education seriously.
"Avoid peers that will change and destroy your good visions and missions here on earth.
"Keep to the Bible standard and fear of God you have learned in this academy in every circumstance," Onu advised.
In a lecture titled "Qualitative Education as Vehicle to National Development" Mr Ben Nnam, the Chief Executive Officer, Feild Phase Group Estate Company said qualitative education would ensure sound education and high moral in pupils and students.
"Qualitative Education will equip them with the required capacity to contribute their quota towards national development and good society.
Nnam who is an alumnus of SAN said that it was the qualitative education and sound morals he acquired from the academy that made him what he is now.
"With qualitative education and sound morals, you will be fortified to resist crime, corruption, and other societal ills.
"I am happy that I passed through Shalom Academy. The discipline and quality education impacted on me here has been guiding and propelling me to success and greatness," Nnam said.
In their separate remarks, Associate Prof. Samson Agbaje and Prof Patience Osadebe from UNN who chaired the anniversary lecture and graduation of 2024 set respectively commended the director and the wife Prof Vicky Onu, Director Shalom Group of Schools for maintaining intellectual excellence and high morale in the academy since the establishment of SAN in 1999.
Pastor Clement Olumide, the Chairman of SAN Praents Teachers Forum (PTF) thanked God for using the director, the principal, staff, students, and parents as instruments for the sustenance of high academic standards and morals in the academy.
Olumide noted that PTF needed assistance from all stakeholders, spirited individuals, and philanthropists to build well-equipped science laboratories, IT units, art and music studios, a hummer bus to ease logistics in the school, among others.
Earlier, Mr Komolafe Olugbenga, the Principal of SAN recalled that the school started on October 4, 1999, with 14 teachers and 2 classrooms.
"In all, we give thanks to God for thus He has led us far, many hurdles and challenges have been crossed and life has been modelled to fit into our ever-yearning society.
"We are happy that our graduates scattered all over the world are doing us proud, the vision and mission of SAN will remain sacrosanct until Christ comes.
"On behalf of Staff and students I deeply appreciate all our parents who entrusted their children in our care, " Olugbenga said.
The three-day event featured an anniversary lecture, a novelty football match, graduation of the 2024 set, among other things.
Onuche Rita Ojonigwu was named as the best-graduating student of the 2024 set of SAN.
The highlight of the anniversary was cutting of the Silver Jubilee cake.
No comments