By Maa-Oul-La-Neine Tunis
The Administration of Fourah Bay College(FBC) , University of Sierra Leone(USL) has engaged the Students’ Union(SU) Government of FBC on the commencement of the 2021/2022 Academic Year in a meeting held yesterday 6th November, 2021 at the SU Building, FBC Campus. The meeting was geared towards fostering collaborative efforts between the Administration, and the SU Government to ensure the commencement of the new academic year.
The Ministry of Technical and Higher Education( MTHE), in consultation with Vice Chancellors and Principals of all Public Technical and Higher Education Institutions(HEIs), had put out a public notice on the 12th November, 2021 requesting that the institutions mentioned start the commencement of the First Semester of the 2021/2022 Academic Year on the 6th November 2021 , and start lectures on the 15th November, 2021 respectively.
Owing to the aforementioned date by the MTHE for the start of lectures, the students raised concerns requesting that the Administration address the issue of the publication of outstanding examination grades before the commencement of the new academic year.
Swiftly responding to the legitimate concerns raised by students through the SU Government serving as their representative body, the Administration of FBC decided to call the students to a meeting explaining to them the progress made in addressing their concerns.
Speaking as the Administrative Head of FBC, the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Professor Lawrence Kamara disclosed to the SU Government that significant progress has been made in ensuring that their grades are published soon. “The Head of Examinations has confirmed receiving a huge number of outstanding grades from your module Lecturers , and also expressed strong certainty of receiving all other outstanding grades soon.” He added
He further stated that the normal academic calendar has been disrupted by several factors, including the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic , which led to students finishing their Second Semester Examinations three weeks ago. He also said that the USL Administration is using the proposed academic calendar by the MTHE as a guide in trying to revert to academic normalcy. Professor Kamara therefore warned students to abide by the policies guiding their academic stay on campus , stating that students who fail to honour the academic calendar will be acting to their detriments.
Expressing the concerns from students to the Administration, the President of the SU Government , Adama Sillah stated that the publication of grades by the Administration is key in guiding students on their promotion to the next level in their academic journey on campus. She encouraged the Administration to speed up the publication of their outstanding examination grades, and also asked students to exercise patience in waiting on the outcome of the process.
President Sillah also encouraged students to utilise the channel within the SU Government designed to receive, and act on legitimate concerns or complaints by students. “ The SU Government completely dissociate itself with messages from people claiming to be concern students, and therefore advise students to ignore such messages.” She added.
The meeting also comprised other Senior Administration Staff , and members of the SU Government who made relevant contributions to ensure a successful outcome of the meeting.
