AA POLY: ONASANYA AT 3 — RECTOR REELS OUT SCORECARD, SETS FRESH AGENDA
From Practical Learning and Student-Led Projects to Research, Infrastructure and a Culture of Service, Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic Marks Three Years of Institutional Development
By Femi Mebude
CEO | Editor-in-Chief | Project Director
Ijebu Today Newspaper | Today Update Magazine | Today RadioTV Online Station | Igboro Lawa Update
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IJEBU-IGBO, OGUN STATE — Three years into the administration of Engr. Dr. Mobolaji A. Onasanya as Rector of Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic, Ijebu-Igbo, the institution's development trajectory increasingly reflects a deliberate emphasis on practical education, skills development, research, innovation, infrastructure and institutional responsibility.
At a time when tertiary institutions are being challenged to produce graduates who can do more than obtain certificates, the real measure of a Polytechnic is becoming increasingly clear: Can its graduates translate knowledge into useful skills, solve practical problems and compete in a changing world?
Against this background, the third year of the Onasanya administration provides an opportunity not merely to celebrate achievements, but to examine the institutional culture developing around teaching, learning, research, service and practical engagement.
WHEN STUDENTS TURN THEORY INTO PRACTICE
One visible example is the construction of the School of Environmental Technology Recreational Courtyard, featuring a badminton court and sit-out, undertaken by ND II students of the Department of Building Technology and Quantity Surveying, 2025/2026 set.
Beyond the physical structure, the project represents an important dimension of Polytechnic education—learning by doing. Students are exposed to practical considerations involving planning, measurement, costing, materials, construction processes, teamwork, supervision and project execution.
The campus consequently becomes more than a collection of classrooms. It becomes a living laboratory, where students can test classroom knowledge against practical realities.
Such projects also encourage students to develop a sense of ownership, responsibility and confidence while demonstrating how technical education can produce tangible solutions.
MASS COMMUNICATION: THE CAMPUS AS A LIVING NEWSROOM
The practical orientation is not restricted to construction and environmental disciplines. The Department of Mass Communication, like other departments, is actively positioned within the institution's practical-learning environment.
As an alumnus of the department, I can attest to the importance of the practical foundation provided by the programme.
Today, lecturers and students participate in the communication processes required to support the Polytechnic's information dissemination, public relations and institutional visibility.
The Radio-TV Broadcast Studio, computer facilities, photography and videography studios provide practical platforms for broadcasting, journalism, digital publishing, photography, videography, editing and public relations.
Students are therefore exposed to the complete communication cycle—from information gathering and verification to production, packaging, publication and dissemination.
Institutional events equally become practical laboratories. Students participate in news coverage, interviews, photography, videography, broadcasting, publications, public relations and event management, gaining experience in teamwork, professional conduct, deadlines and audience engagement.
The process also extends beyond the Polytechnic through engagement with the host community and external stakeholders, helping students understand that modern communication is about building bridges between institutions and society.
This is particularly significant in an era in which one communication professional may simultaneously function as a reporter, broadcaster, photographer, videographer, editor, digital-content producer and public-relations practitioner.
The department's practical orientation therefore demonstrates a central principle of contemporary communication education:
Knowledge becomes more valuable when it is put to work.
A PERSONAL TESTIMONY FROM AN ALUMNUS
My own experience as an alumnus of the Mass Communication Department reinforces this point.
The department provided an environment in which students were encouraged to understand communication not merely as an academic subject but as a professional responsibility.
That foundation has continued to inform my own engagement with journalism, publishing, broadcasting, public relations and media management through Ijebu Today Newspaper, Today Update Magazine, Today RadioTV Online Station and Igboro Lawa Update.
It is therefore significant to see the practical orientation of Mass Communication continuing to evolve through the use of broadcast, computer, photography and videography facilities.
The ultimate success of a communication programme is not simply the number of graduates it produces, but the extent to which those graduates can communicate professionally, think critically, operate media technologies and create value within society.
THE UNSUNG HEROES BEHIND THE INSTITUTION
Institutional development, however, is not sustained by students and lecturers alone.
As the Polytechnic prepared for the 2025/2026 Second Semester pen-on-paper examinations, office assistants and other support personnel undertook a campus-wide sanitation and beautification exercise.
While many people were spending their Sunday with their families or attending to personal commitments, these workers voluntarily reported for duty to prepare the environment for the examination exercise.
Their work may not ordinarily attract headlines, but it was essential to ensuring that students, staff and visitors encountered a clean, orderly and conducive environment.
The exercise was coordinated by Mrs Adetayo Abisola Opeyemi, ACEO, Establishment Unit.
The enthusiasm with which the workers carried out the assignment, including the visible smiles captured in the institution's video, offered a powerful reminder that institutional excellence is sustained by people at every level.
THE DIGNITY OF LABOUR
A Polytechnic may possess classrooms, laboratories, studios and modern facilities, but these assets cannot function effectively without the people who operate, maintain and protect them.
Lecturers teach.
Researchers investigate.
Administrators coordinate.
Students learn and innovate.
Technicians support practical activities.
Security personnel safeguard the environment.
Cleaners and office assistants maintain the institution.
Every role contributes to the institutional ecosystem.
The sanitation exercise therefore represents more than routine cleaning. It is an example of the culture of service and dignity of labour necessary to build a sustainable institution.
RESEARCH, KNOWLEDGE AND NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Another important dimension of the institution's development is research and intellectual engagement.
The 1st National Conference of the School of Engineering Technology and School of Environmental Technology, held at the Alhaja Idiat Adebisi Kaka Auditorium, provided a platform for academics, professionals and researchers to exchange ideas and examine contemporary challenges.
Engineering and environmental technology are directly connected to national development.
Nigeria's infrastructure deficit, housing requirements, environmental challenges, waste management, transportation, energy and urban development all require technically competent professionals and research-driven solutions.
A Polytechnic that encourages research, professional interaction and knowledge exchange is therefore contributing to a broader national development agenda.
FROM INFRASTRUCTURE TO HUMAN CAPITAL
The Onasanya scorecard should consequently not be judged exclusively by physical infrastructure.
Buildings are important, but human capital is the ultimate product of education.
The real test is whether facilities are being converted into skills, competence, creativity, innovation, professional confidence and employability.
The student-built recreational courtyard, active media studios, research conferences and commitment of support staff to maintain a conducive environment may appear to be separate developments.
In reality, they tell one institutional story:
Students are learning, staff are serving, academics are researching and the institution is creating opportunities for practical engagement.
THE NEXT PHASE
Three years is sufficient to assess direction, but not sufficient to declare the journey complete.
The next phase should consolidate existing gains while pursuing greater institutional competitiveness.
Priority areas should include stronger academic programmes, expanded practical training, infrastructure development, research and innovation, staff development, student welfare, industry partnerships, entrepreneurship, digital learning and technology-driven skills acquisition.
With artificial intelligence, automation and digital transformation reshaping the workplace, Polytechnic education must remain ahead of the curve.
The challenge before Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic is therefore not merely to respond to change, but to anticipate and prepare students for it.
THE SCORECARD AND THE STANDARD OF ACCOUNTABILITY
Every anniversary should combine celebration with accountability.
A credible institutional scorecard should ultimately be measurable through indicators such as academic performance, accreditation outcomes, graduate employability, research output, infrastructure development, practical projects, industry partnerships, staff development, student welfare and the quality of the learning environment.
As the Onasanya administration marks three years, stakeholders will reasonably expect today's foundations to translate into sustainable institutional gains in the years ahead.
WHERE POTENTIAL MEETS OPPORTUNITY
Perhaps the most appropriate description of the institution's educational philosophy is its own message:
“WHERE POTENTIAL MEETS OPPORTUNITY.”
Potential without opportunity may remain unrealised.
Opportunity without competence may equally be wasted.
The purpose of a modern Polytechnic is to bring both together through education, practical skills, exposure, research, innovation and professional experience.
The Building Technology students constructing a recreational courtyard demonstrate this principle.
Mass Communication students operating studios and participating in journalism and public relations demonstrate it.
Researchers and professionals exchanging knowledge at conferences demonstrate it.
And the office assistants who sacrifice their personal time to prepare the campus demonstrate another equally important principle—that institutions are built by people willing to contribute.
LOOKING BEYOND THREE YEARS
As Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic moves beyond the third year of the Onasanya administration, the most important question is no longer simply what has been achieved?
It is:
What will these achievements produce in the next three, five and ten years?
Can practical learning become even deeper?
Can more students participate in real-life projects?
Can research translate into solutions for industry and society?
Can infrastructure keep pace with institutional growth?
Can staff development and welfare remain priorities?
Can graduates leave the Polytechnic sufficiently equipped for employment, entrepreneurship and further education?
The answers will determine the lasting significance of this administration.
For now, the third anniversary provides an opportunity to acknowledge progress while setting a higher standard for the future.
Because great institutions are not built by Rectors alone.
They are built by students who learn, lecturers who teach, researchers who innovate, workers who serve, alumni who carry the institution's values into society and leaders who provide direction.
From the practical classroom to the construction site, from the broadcast studio to the research conference, and from the lecture room to the quiet work of maintaining the campus, the emerging story of Abraham Adesanya Polytechnic is ultimately a story of people, opportunity and purposeful learning.
Three years may mark a milestone.
The real test is what the institution builds from it.
ABRAHAM ADESANYA POLYTECHNIC — WHERE POTENTIAL MEETS OPPORTUNITY.
