Education: Oyo to launch compendium on SGBs

THE Oyo State Government on Monday announced it would  launch a compendium of the School Governing Boards, SGBs in the state to celebrate achievements recorded by the boards, provide vital information on schools and hopefully promote healthy rivalry.

Speaking during the 2018 COPE/MOES &T Capacity Building Workshop on leveraging support of School Governing Boards towards improved education system in Oyo State  held at Ibadan Grammar School, Molete, Ibadan, the State’s Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Professor Adeniyi Olowofela said the compendium was part of the state government’s way of thanking the stakeholders in the state for running with the SGB vision and making it work.

According to him, “the fear of change is what led to the initial resistance of a section of the public against the vision of His Excellency, Senator Abiola Ajimobi, for a participatory school management structure for our schools. To the glory of God and due to the doggedness of the governor, the School Governing Board is up and running today. Now we can see that the cause of initial dread is actually a change for the better”.

The ex-council boss stressed further that the collaborative sensitization workshop was targeted at proper repositioning, enhancing contribution and ensuring that the School Governing Board philosophy becomes fully internalised so that the SGBs remains as it were, flagship for phenomenal growth.

While commending the efforts of the boards, Olowofela noted, “the SGB is only eleven months old, yet its positive impact on secondary schools in the state is phenomenal with contributions ranging from rehabilitation of the dilapidated buildings on our schools; construction of new classroom buildings; construction of perimeter fences; provision of resource materials, teaching aids, laboratory equipment and materials, as well as library text books to the employment of teaching and non -teaching staff.

” But, we know it can be better still if we work on members of the respective boards in terms of re- exposing you to your rights and responsibilities, so to say. We also aim by this workshop to envision board members on possibilities you could explore for the development of your schools “, he added.

Earlier in his welcome address, the Chairman, Centre for Organizational And Professional Ethics, COPE-Africa, Dr. Adeyeye Adewole reiterated that one of the major areas through which Governor Abiola Ajimobi has clearly demonstrated his transformational posture was by instituting School Governing Boards, SGBs initiative to give a semblance of proactive corporate governance mechanism in the area of policy issues, funding, proper management and helping to fast track sustainable growth and development in Oyo state secondary system, adding that the initiative came at the right time given the spate and profundity of near -total neglect and despicable downswing which the secondary schools have suffered over – time.

The Associate Professor cum UNDP consultant, Adewole while paying a glowing tribute to the governor for appointing committed personalities who are very successful in their chosen fields of endeavour, also averred that the level of accomplishments within the short frame of time when the SGBs came on board was overwhelming and thus call for rejoice in Oyo state. “Little wonder that the School Governing Boards, SGBs initiative is already been studied for replication by many states across the country”.