FUOYE: An Ivory Tower that dares to dream more

By Kunle Farohun

From February 11, the Federal University, Oye-Ekiti, would take a flight into another epoch in its history. It is the moment when the current Vice-Chancellor of the university, Professor Sunday Abayomi Fashina, would pass the mantle of leadership to the Vice-Chancellor-designate, Professor Joshua Olalekan Ogunwale.

It would be a time in the history of FUOYE when the incoming Vice-Chancellor will be taking over with a big backdrop of accomplishments from the predecessor.

FUOYE, created in 2011, has seen four substantive Vice-Chancellors with Fasina being the current one. The tenure of Fasina from 2021 to 2026 witnessed the transformation of FUOYE from a little-known ivory tower to being not only the fastest-growing Federal University in Nigeria, but also the first amongst its peers.

As one other commentator had argued elsewhere, the historic rise of FUOYE under Fasina, without the slightest prejudice to the achievements of his predecessors, “is an outcome of his hard work, strategic foresight and pursuit of excellence.”

Under Professor Fasina’s visionary leadership, FUOYE experienced unprecedented expansion and sustainable growth by expanding to 17 faculties, introducing future-ready programmes such as Cybersecurity, Data Analytics, Software Engineering, Journalism & Public Relations, Broadcasting, Information and Communication Engineering, and a strengthened suite of Physical Sciences disciplines.

His tenure also witnessed massive infrastructural transformation, with hundreds of modern buildings now gracing the twin campuses in Oye-Ekiti and Ikole-Ekiti. These structures stand as enduring testimony to his prudent resource management and bold vision for physical development.

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He also fostered a culture of global scholarly engagement, drawing from his own rich experience as a widely travelled researcher at the cutting edge of his field.

The leadership style of his administration in adhering to fairness and recognition of merit ensured the promotion of over 100 professors and hundreds of other academic and non-teaching staff, significantly boosting morale and institutional capacity.

He nurtured an environment where excellence thrives, resulting in remarkable student and staff achievements such as nine undergraduates passing the rigorous ICAN professional examinations and becoming chartered accountants while still in school – a rare feat in Nigerian university history.

Also, seven fresh graduates secured fully-funded doctoral scholarships at top universities in the United States and United Kingdom, while numerous lecturers won multi-million-naira research grants, elevating FUOYE’s research profile nationally and internationally.

Beyond academics, Professor Fasina instilled outstanding leadership skills in students. A notable initiative was the innovative One-Day Vice-Chancellor Programme, which in one edition produced a female Student Vice-Chancellor. Her symbolic 24-hour leadership profoundly inspired her peers and reinforced belief in youth and gender-inclusive leadership.

Professor Fasina’s tenure will be remembered as the golden era that redefined what a young Nigerian federal university can achieve through visionary, principled, and people-centred leadership.

As FUOYE prepares to welcome Fasina’s successor, Professor Ogunwale will be inheriting an institution transformed—with modern infrastructure, expanded academic offerings, enhanced human capacity, and a deeply ingrained culture of excellence.

The good news is that Ogunwale is a part of the Fasina success story as he was the deputy Vice-Chancellor, Strategic Partnerships, Research, Innovation and Linkages in FUOYE before his appointment as Vice-Chancellor.

Therefore, Professor Ogunwale is someone who comes to the job with a wide range of experiences first, as a former Vice-Chancellor of a private university; and secondly, his role in FUOYE before his new appointment.

Ogunwale is a scholar who has travelled wide and far and his various working experiences across universities in Nigeria such as the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria; Adamawa State University, Federal University, Dustin-Ma among others will very well provide the erudition to not just enter the big shoes left behind by Fasina, but also provide the compass through which he will navigate FUOYE into greater heights.

Apart from his footprints in Nigeria’s academic circle, Professor Ogunwale’s illustrious career is distinguished by an exceptional array of prestigious international fellowship, research appointments and leadership roles spanning five continents.

These global acknowledgements set Ogunwale as a round peg in FUOYE’s round hole, because he is one of Africa’s most internationally recognized and accomplished soil scientists and comes with a profile that would help the burgeoning FUOYE enjoy more global visibility in academic ratings and recognitions.

As a former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt once said: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”

FUOYE’s successes under Fasina was a dream, and with Ogunwole coming into the saddle, let the dream go on.