Parents deny crack in ties with Caleb University over fees
By Elizabeth Osayande
Parents of Caleb University, Imota, Lagos State, have denied having any crack in their relationship with the university management over school fees.
A cross-section of the parents, who said this in a chat with newsmen, explained that the parents’ body – Caleb University Parents Forum, has always been impressed with the school management decisions over the years.
Vice Chairman of the Parents’ Forum, Mr Oritseweyinmi Boyo, said that the parents have been relating with the university management through the body, and at no time was there an unresolved issue that could lead to any crack in their relationship.
He, however, confirmed that some students had paid their accommodation fees in anticipation of resumption, but were advised by the school management to either carry such fees forward or get a refund.
Mr. Boyo said he had personally called on any parent who had paid his or her child’s accommodation fee, to come up with receipts of such payment for a refund.
While commending the university management for ensuring no disruption in the school academic calendar with the e-learning initiative, which has enabled the students to interface with their lecturers, he advised any parent with better suggestions to either channel such through the parents’ forum or directly to the vice-chancellor, and stop making demands on the university.
The forum’s vice chairman expressed parents’ appreciation to the university management for coming up with a broader platform – “Caleb Connect”, a mobile App, through which parents and alumni can communicate directly with the university, while the second App – “Caleb Watch” takes care of the health and security needs of staff and students.
With the two recently launched mobile applications, the stage has been set for even better communication between the university and its stakeholders.
He explained that it was the cordial relationship existing between the parents and the university management that made it possible for the parents to commence the construction of a well-equipped multi-million naira medical centre in the school, which is expected to be commissioned in the last quarter of the year.
The forum treasurer, Mrs. Juliana Falodun, commended the university for the effectiveness of the e-learning programme, stressing that with it, the university has been able to do everything online without any hitch.
Other parents like Deaconess Olubukonla Akinrinsola, Engr. Oluwafemi Ajayi, Elder Kunle Kilasho, Mrs Adaobi Ekwempu and Pastor (Mrs) Uche Omitayo corroborated Mr Boyo and Mrs Falodun’s position that the school authority had made it known that it would either make a refund to those who had paid accommodation fees or get it carried forward.
They advised their colleagues to team up with the Parents’ Forum to always appreciate the management for its consistency in policy direction, ability to maintain the university’s high academic standard, as well as ensuring no disruption in their children’s academic activities in spite of the lockdown.
The parents noted that with the effectiveness of the e-learning programme, the university should not discontinue the initiative even after the lockdown, but merge it with the traditional form of classroom teaching as it had reduced a lot of risk involved in travelling for lectures, meetings, project presentation/ defence and other activities.
Mrs Ekwempu and some other parents, who explained that their children did not pay the accommodation fees and had unfettered access to the e-learning portal, thanked the university management for making available to the students’ periodic guidelines, and also for organising both general training session, college and departmental-level training for them to gain a mastery of teaching and assessment tools available on the e-learning platform.