In the 240-page book LASU STEWARD, The Making of West Africa’s Best University: An Account of the Leadership of Professor Ibiyemi Olatunji Bello, Entrepreneur and Youth Leader, Emmanuel Agida, examines the impact of Lagos State University’s second female Vice Chancellor on the school.
Before attaining the position of Vice Chancellor of LASU, the don’s first contact with the school was as the first professor and substantive Head of Department of Physiology in October 2007, following a transfer from University of Lagos, College of Medicine.
Bello served as acting Vice Chancellor of LASU in 2010, and 2011, and as a Deputy Vice Chancellor between 2008 – 2010, then as Deputy Vice Chancellor Academics 2011 to 2013. It took three attempts in 2011, 2016 and 2021 to clinch the position.
She hit the ground running upon assumption of duty, by highlighting six strategic goals to achieving her administration’s core values and focus – to make LASU the best university in west Africa.
These strategies include: ensuring academic and professional programmes exist and are accredited by authorized bodies; to make the university a research, innovation and development hub for Lagos State; to ensure improvement of infrastructural facilities and that they are available to enhance administrative performance and academic duties; the improvement of internally generated revenue and financial sustenance of the institution; the promotion of students and staff welfare; and finally, the participation of both students and staff in recreational activities.
The result of her vision, preparedness and capacity for her position, is seen through the success of a few of her initiatives within a period of six months. Heading to her third year in office, Bello administration has seen LASU ranking rise to the 9th best school in Nigeria (AD Scientific Index 2024), the Best State University in Nigeria, and the Best University in Nigeria and West Africa based on Universitas Indonesia (UI) Green Metric Global Ranking.
These results came after her notable moves in developing the institution’s academic arm via the establishment of collaboration and exchange opportunities with top institutions within and outside of Nigeria including the Cornell University, USA; WSB University, Poland; Delta, and Gomber State Universities. Bello secured LASU’s selection as a beneficiaries of internet deployment via fibre solution by the National Communication Commission (NCC) in March 2023. This collaboration has boosted research and human capital development further enhancing international collaborations. Not to mention her provision of research grants for students and lecturers, and scholarship award for Best students to boost students’ commitment towards academic excellence.
These, among other achievements were recorded by the highly decorated don whose fast rise in the university academia is totally merited.
Some bones of contention would be a disagreement with the timeframe of the accomplishments in the school, the absence of state of affairs before and during Bello’s administration to gauge her administration’s impact, and zero highlight of works of her predecessors completed by her administration.
Nevertheless, LASU STEWARD is a good read for anyone interested in the history and creation of LASU, and the impacts of Bello’s leadership in the school.
Readers gets a close-up on the life of Bello, from her childhood, the impact of her upbringing and parental support in attaining the highest path to her academic career, as well as the support of her politician spouse, Hon Olatunji Bello.
A simple, easy-to-read text with multiple images, author Agida takes you through the subject’s family background and formative years to help readers understand its influence on her academics and career path. While chapter nine gives an account of her leadership at LASU, chapter ten – provides pictorial evidence of some of her achievements not mentioned in former. This leaves chapter eight the pools different perspectives of her impact from students, alumni, and institution employees, like her impact on the LASU Sickle Cell Society, securitizing national general election voting process for students in the school, and entrenching the mantra of making LASU the best university in west Africa in the psyche of LASU students.
LASU STEWARD is a commendable historical documentation of a chapter of LASU that its alumni and future student network.