…As Akeredolu’s wife commissions school facility

By Victoria Amadi

On Sunday, September 17, scores of eminent Nigerians converged on Adebo Avenue at the GRA, Iyaganku, Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. They were at the venue to witness an event that has been helping to keep the memory of Chief Bola Ige, Nigeria’s former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, alive.

The event was the commissioning of an ultramodern four-storey building, which serves as permanent site of The Vale College, a co-educational institution founded by Mrs. Funso Adegbola, the eldest daughter of the late Cicero of Esa Oke. A scholarship scheme instituted in honour of the former minister and his late wife, Atinuke, has for years, assisted brilliant but indigent young men and women achieve their dreams.

The project was commissioned by Mrs. Betty Rotimi-Akeredolu, wife of the Ondo State governor. Until now, the school had been on Ademola Avenue within the Iyaganku GRA.

CEO of the institution, Mrs. Adegbola informed that the school, established by the Solemilia Educational Trust in 1993, is a private co-educational secondary school to cater for the educational and pastoral needs of individuals from JSS1-SSS3.  

But it is not the first time that the college would be expanding. In 1998, the school left its premises at Old Bodija and relocated to Adetokunbo Ademola in Iyanganku. In 2007, the school commissioned its Boys’ Hostel while the Girls’ Hostel was commissioned in 2013. It was gathered that the newly commissioned edifice would accommodate all the classrooms, laboratories and offices.

Founder of the school, Mrs. Adegbola has two degrees in Spanish and French from University of Essex and a law degree from Bristol University, both in the United Kingdom. She explained that the establishment of the school was a result of a vision given her by God to raise knowledgeable men and women that would be of service to the community. She recalled that her late brother, Mr. Babatunde Ige, was the first to know of the dream, though he died before the school took off.

“But after God, the greatest benefactors of this projector were my parents,” she asserted. “My father, Chief Bola Ige gave me the capital seed to start the school and my mother gave me her building to start the hostel.

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“God has also used my staff to bless me. I have workers that have been with me for 20 years. The average number of years of my staff is eight years. I also value the parents who have entrusted their kids in my care.”

Few years ago, the school partnered with Bayelsa State and Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) to provide education to Balyesa indigenes. The pupils performed well and later moved abroad for further studies. Besides having 50 per cent of her former students in Ivy League universities abroad, Mrs. Adegbola said many have graduated with first class degrees in Law, Medicine, Engineering, Pharmacy and other professions.

“One of them, Yewande Akinola received the Queen Elizabeth II Award in 2012 as one of the best female engineers under-30 in the UK. My students do leadership programmes at the African Leadership Academy in South Africa. Two of my students have gone for the Yale Summer School. I have been to Harvard Business School and the Lagos Business School. I have sent my staff to Cambridge and Ghana for training. Our students and teachers get a lot of international exposure,” she said.

A few years ago, the school commenced a scholarship scheme in memory of the founder’s late parents for children in public schools.

“The Bola Ige Scholarships are for students in public primary schools in Oyo and Osun States. The best boy and the best girl get scholarship worth N12 million for the six-year post primary education. The Atinuke Ige Scholarships are for students in public secondary schools. The most outstanding boy and girl in both Oyo and Osun States receive a scholarship worth N2 million to come here for their ‘A’ Levels for one year. We have been doing that now in the past five years. Three of the students are studying medicine at the University of Ibadan. The N12 million awards have benefitted pupils whose parents are bricklayers, tailors, bread sellers. One of the students, Boluwatife whose mother sells bread with a capital of less than three thousand naira, won a scholarship worth N12 million.

“This is a Bible-based Christian school that values character building in young ones. We run both the Nigerian curriculum and British curriculum. Public speaking and elocution, Christian fellowship, leadership training and charitable activities have been part of the school programmes since inception,” she noted.

She expressed gratitude to the board of governors, including Chief Mrs. Christies Ade-Ajayi, Dr. Tony Marinho, her husband, Mr. Gbenro Adegbola, current governor of Ondo State, Mr Rotimi Akeredolu, and others.

Many students of the school, including Oloni Oserogo and Biyi Campell, commended the founder for keeping the vision of standard education alive. An old student, Jide Salami, said the school made him into a great leader. And the vice-principal, administration, Mr. Billy Oladimeji, said besides helping to give children quality education, the school also turned the staff to better individuals.

In his closing remarks, Ven. Godwin Daramola urged the school to maintain its high standards so as to keep producing great leaders in all fields of human endeavour.