EKITI FIRST LADY: TEACHING STUDENTS DURING MY HUSBAND’S TENURE, AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE IMPACT
…Motivates Students to Pursue Greatness
Wife of Ekiti State Governor, Dr. Olayemi Oyebanji, has described her decision to perform community service function of teaching in universities in the state while holding office as a First Lady as an opportunity to make impact.
Dr. Oyebanji who made the remarks on Tuesday after a teaching session with 300 Level students of Education Management at the Ekiti State University (EKSU), Ado Ekiti said the community service also gave her a platform to contribute to education sector in the state.
The First Lady explained that her appearance before the students also afforded her the opportunity to assess the learning environment in the state-owned university where she started her teaching career noting that situation has improved from what it used to be in the past.
Dr. Oyebanji taught the students a course, Education Management 303 (EDM 303) under the topic, “Leadership in Formal Organizations,” with the students listening with the rapt attention.The lecture was the continuation of her teaching in the Department of Education Management during the tenure of her husband, Governor Biodun Oyebanji.
Before she went into the nitty-gritty of the lecture, the First Lady advised the students to be focused on their studies and also pursue greatness in life which, according to her, started from their studentship in the university.
Dr. Oyebanji said if they remain focused and give their studies the best shot, there is no height they cannot reach in life adding that education provides the ladder to greatness for children who were born without silver spoons in their mouths.
The First Lady noted that the course was aimed at preparing the students for leadership positions in various sectors like education business, economy, politics, governance, civil society, religious organizations, and diplomacy, among others.
While describing teaching as her passion, Dr. Oyebanji said she decided to leave her comfort zone and make her wealth of experience as a senior academic at the University of Ibadan available for students of EKSU and Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti (ABUAD) in order to be a model of leadership and mentorship to the students.
She also used the opportunity of the academic interaction with the students to advise them to learn vocational skills to complement their education and overcome the challenge of dwindling spaces for white collar jobs.
Dr. Oyebanji said: “The primary reason of coming to the university is to learn and be a functional member of the society, so they should be focused, they should not be distracted. Let them focus on their education and graduate with good results.
“Let them also get engaged with vocational skills because there is no white collar jobs out there. We now have entrepreneurial programmes in the university system. They should take advantage of these so that when they completetheir courses, they can put their hands to work and also put food on their tables.”
Expressing appreciation on behalf of his colleagues, the class governor, Joshua Owoniyi, said the students enjoyed Dr. Oyebanji’s lecture, which he described as “very engaging and interactive.”
A senior academic in the Faculty, Prof. Florence Adebayo hailed the First Lady for her rare leadership and sacrifice saying “the entire people of the state and Ekiti women are proud of her for being pleasant and showing respect to elders.”
Another senior academic, Prof. Grace Akinleye commended Dr. Oyebanji for her “exemplary humility” in leaving the comfort of her office and coming back to teach at the state university and making impact on the students.