At FUTA’s 12th Registry Lecture, administrator canvasses quality mentorship programme in varsities

A former registrar of the Obafemi Awolowo University Ile Ife, Mr. Ayorinde Ogunruku, has challenged those at the top echelon of the university enterprise to commit to raising people like themselves through deliberate mentorship and building a culture of excellence in all the members of the community.

This he stressed would ensure the sustainability of global standards.

Ogunruku made the call recently during the 12th Registry Annual Lecture of the Federal University of Technology Akure, FUTA.

Speaking on the topic: ‘Attaining and Sustaining Global Standards in University Administration through Mentoring’, Ogunruku who also served as the Director Vice Chancellor’s Office at FUTA, said a situation where participants in the university community compete among themselves rather than complement one another can only lead to institutional chaos.

He said, “Good mentorship keeps organizations going, and sterling leadership qualities and requisite knowledge are essentials required for mentors just as willingness to learn and devotedness are of essence for the mentees.”

He reiterated that there is no way a university can thrive and actualize its objectives where there is distrust between the key officers and other stakeholders.

He said there is therefore the need to ensure a process of getting all members of staff committed to the university’s vision and mission as well as the mode of operation that is transparent.

Ogunruku stressed the need to improve on the quality of human resource personnel being recruited into the university as academic or non-teaching staff and to expose all members of the university to the core values driving the ethos of a university as well as commit all the members of the university to ensuring excellence in the provision of best practices.

Speaking in her capacity as the chairman of the occasion, the vice chancellor, Professor Adenike Oladiji, said the role of the Registry in the affairs of any higher educational institution cannot be underestimated as all official records except financial are kept by the Registry and they facilitate all the meetings of the university committees and guide the proceedings with the established rules and regulations.

She said there is therefore the need to ensure that the baton of leadership of the all-important department is passed from one capable leader to another.

In his address, the registrar, Mr. Richard Arifalo, said there is the need to preserve culture and pass on cherished values and knowledge to the coming generations in the interest of the society.

He said there are university cultures and traditions that must be passed on to the coming generations in the system, adding that “we cannot afford to lose our values as we adopt progressive change, advancement and development strides arising especially from Information and Communication Technology.”

Highpoint of the occasion was the presentation of the Award of Excellence to the vice chancellor, the guest lecturer and the registrar, whose tenure as the fifth substantive head of the Registry ends on May 31, 2023.