The trio of Oba Akin-Lewis, Omotoke Solarin and Tobiloluwa Oladeso of the Kola Daisi University, Ibadan, Oyo State capital, have been awarded the scholars’ award .
They were eligible for the award because of their Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) of 4.82, 4.84 and 4.74 in their first year.
As part of the benefits, they will not only be identified as scholars, but will enjoy partial scholarship and the privilege to be among prominent personalities at all functions in the university. However, these benefits can only be maintained if they sustain a CGPA of 4.00 throughout their studies as well as exhibit good character and moral standard.
Presenting certificates to them at the inauguration of the award, the Vice-Chancellor (VC), Prof Kolade Ayorinde, said it was necessary to encourage and reward excellence.
“One of the cardinal core values of a university is academic excellence. To this end, the university decided to have its scholar scheme with effect from 2018/2019 session. So, henceforth, we will be rewarding excellent performances. So, these students have met the criteria in their 100 examination and they deserve to be rewarded.
“To be a scholar, a student must have a CGPA of at least, 4.50. Also the students must maintain a CGPA of at least 4.0 in each of the session throughout his stay in the university and he must maintain an untainted character as expected from a university scholar,” he said.
The event also featured the visit of Prof Eldryd Parry, founder Tropical Health and Education Trust (THET) and his wife, Helen. They explained that a university should not just be a criterion to get job, but should be a ‘factory’ where students are refined to be solution providers. They advised the students to make good use of their stay in the university.
Helen advised the students not to focus their learning on the internet, but read books to expose them to different point of views.
“Learning via internet and reading books is a total world of difference. The internet gives you someone else’s predigested opinions therefore, they choose what you are going to read. Whereas if you read books you should choose from a wide range of different perspectives and point of views so that you can hear what other people have to say. To be an intelligent and well educated person, you need to be able to think about other people’s opinions as well as yours and evaluate them. You need to expose yourself to the whole of an argument not just a piece of it. Do not center your researches on the internet, read books, expose yourself to different ideas, it builds your mind,” she said.
The founder of the school, Kola Daisi, described Parry as a man who has spent his lifetime in the pursuit of knowledge acquisition, wisdom and skills to develop humanity, most especially in Africa. He noted that the school will continue to provide good infrastructure and conducive learning environment to produce quality students.
