University Of Ghana at 70: College of Humanities Launches Programme of Activities

Prof. Samuel Agyei-Mensah giving the welcome address

The College of Humanities (COH) has launched its programme of activities to mark the 70th anniversary celebrations of the University.

In his welcome address, the Provost of the College, Prof. Samuel Agyei-Mensah reiterated the theme for the anniversary celebrations, “Celebrating Excellence, Shaping Futures” and added that the College of Humanities has been assigned the first two weeks of the months of April and November 2018 to showcase its activities.

 

Programme Highlights

The Chairperson of UG@70 Planning Committee of the College, Prof. Daniel Ofori gave the major highlights of the programme of activities. He noted that the University of Ghana has three core mandates - teaching and learning, which is done through classroom, laboratory and field instruction and demonstration; research, done through fieldwork; and extension, through which the University interacts with the wider society.  In line with the programme of activities, the 20 constituent units of the COH, he indicated, would engage stakeholders through workshops, seminars, public lectures and conferences as well as academic publications.

Prof. Daniel Ofori, Chairperson of UG@70 Planning Committee of the College of Humanities

Prof. Ofori presented details of selected events and activities scheduled for 1st -15th of April and November. The events include a public lecture on April 10th, by Prof. Horace Campbell, the current occupant of the Kwame Nkrumah Chair at the Institute of African Studies, on the topic "African Universities, African Academics, African Liberation," and a colloquium by the Centre for Ageing Studies on the theme "Spirituality and Ageing" scheduled for April 18th.

 

Launch of the Strategic Plan

The College’s strategic plan was launched as part of the activities for the ceremony. The Provost gave a brief overview of the College and its constituents and thanked the Deans and Directors of the College, members of the College Advisory Board, the College Secretary and the entire College Administration for their support in finalizing the strategic plan. The strategic plan which spans from 2016-2021 is aimed at steering the College to become a world class research intensive College of Humanities. This according to the Provost sits well with the University’s vision of becoming a world class research intensive university by 2024.  He noted that the strategic plan is also in line with the objectives for which the College was establish in 2014.

Prof. Agyei-Mensah noted that whilst the plan sets out the direction of the College from 2016 to 2021, it is important that it is understood as part of a transition already in progress. He highlighted some of the key objectives of the plan, noting that interdisciplinary scholarship is key to the realization of the vision of the College given its diversity and the need to create a synergy for teaching and learning. He mentioned the establishment of new centres such as the Centres for Asian, Latin American, European and Ageing Studies, as some of the measures introduced to provide the interdisciplinary focus.

He noted that research, teaching and learning are key to the realization of the vision of the College and that there are plans to reinvigorate research in the College through partnerships and submission of grant proposals to funding agencies. He expressed gratitude to the Carnegie and Andrew Mellon Foundations for providing support for graduate training in the College.

The Provost also noted that there are plans to strengthen the financial position of the College through the introduction of additional sandwich and special fee paying programmes in addition to alumni contributions. He noted that a College endowment fund had been established and appealed to those who had not yet made a donation to do so. He noted that the College will work in partnership with the Careers and Counselling Centre to explore internship opportunities for students and also provide them with the skills needed to meet the challenges and opportunities of the increasingly competitive and global job market. 

To ensure effective monitoring and evaluation, each priority will be assigned to a committee to champion the strategy, engage the rest of the College community and report on progress made. 

 

Book Launch

As part of the programme, a book on Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Transformation in Africa was launched. The launch was also meant to raise funds to support UG @70 celebrations. The lead editor of the book, Prof. Peter Quartey noted that the book was a product of the first College of Humanities International Research Conference. The book was reviewed by Prof. Augustin Fosu of the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER).

The launch was chaired by Professor Michael Tagoe, Acting Provost of the College of Education, and moderated by Mr. Bernard Avle, host of the Morning Show on Citi FM.

Professor Michael Tagoe, Chairman of the occasion