“There Are No Useless Degrees” – Sam Jonah replies Adutwum

The Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast (UCC), Sir Sam Jonah, has waded into the national debate on “useless degrees,” declaring that no academic program is without value.

“You might have followed the debate in our country over the so-called ‘useless degrees’. I will not join the quarrel. Let me instead settle the matter: there are no useless degrees. There are only degrees that have been separated from usefulness, and it is our job to reunite them,” Sir Jonah stated during his address in what appears to be a subtle jab at former Education Minister Dr Osei Yaw Adutwum

The Chancellor emphasized that simply building vocational institutes will not be enough because “Ghanaians want degrees very badly.”

To bridge the gap, Sir Sam Jonah proposed that UCC become the first university in Africa to establish a full faculty for degree-awarding vocational education, offering Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Applied Skills.

He made the remarks at the investiture ceremony of Prof. Dennis Worlanyo Aheto as the 12th Vice-Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast. Prof. Aheto previously served as Pro Vice-Chancellor and Acting Vice-Chancellor of UCC.

“As we install a new Vice-Chancellor, I want to be honest with you, Professor Aheto: I have not come here to hand you keys. I have come to hand you a storm. Fortunately for all of us, we are installing a man who has spent his entire career studying what happens where the storm meets the shore,” Sir Jonah said.

He also charged students to take initiative: “Do not wait for the curriculum to change before you do. Form the club. Find the problem. Build the thing. The tools are in your hands, and the world has never been more open to those who can use them.”

Prof. Aheto Outlines 4-Year Vision

In his acceptance speech, Prof. Aheto said his vision is to provide strategic leadership for “a transformative, inclusive, and diverse academic environment that empowers excellence in research, teaching, and learning, as well as operates for wider impact on society.”

“With profound humility and a deep sense of responsibility, I stand before you today, honored and privileged to be appointed and invested as the 12th Vice-Chancellor of our great University,” he said.

Source: MyNewsGh.com