The Vice Chancellor of the University of Jos Professor Tanko Ishaya has lauded an erudite scholar – Professor Emeka D. Ozoji for giving back to the University.
The Vice Chancellor who is an expert in computer studies, security and forensics, congratulated Professor Ozoji of the Department of Special Needs Education and Rehabilitation Sciences for giving back his FESTSCHRIFT, and assured him that the publications will be judiciously and widely read from the university’s libraries.
Professor Ishaya who is the 10th substantive Vice Chancellor of the university emphasized that the university has a clear vision and mission of inclusiveness for students with special needs and will continue to leverage on scholarly contributions such as those of the 2023 FESTSCHRIFT donor: Prof Emeka Ozoji.
While presenting the Festschrift during the university management meeting on Wednesday 31st May, 2023, Prof Ozoji noted that the three volume-seven section FESTSCHRIFT was titled ‘Special Needs Education from the Lens of Interdisciplinary Dialogue‘.
The Awardee’s vision of the FESTSCHRIFT was to make it inclusive in every of its significant entity (concept, author contribution, content, academic writing style and tone).
Professor Ozoji appreciated The Gender Studies Association of Nigeria (GSAN) for awarding the Festschrift to him during the 2022 international conference at Bayelsa state. GSAN also publicly presented the Festschrift during her 2023 international conference held at the Tai Solarin College of Education, Omu Ijebu on 20th April 2023. Prof Ozoji is a Fellow of GSAN.
According to him, the Festschrift was based on the Salamanca Statement 1994 (Framework for Action) that deposes that everything done for special needs children must follow inclusiveness.
He also asserted that the FESTSCHRIFT adopted the new perspective of special needs education as opposed to the old concept of special education: the old negates the principle of inclusion, while the new enhances inclusive education. He emphasized that the concept of dialogue is to forge partnership between special needs education professionals and their neighbouring professionals from other disciplines who are needed related service providers in proper understanding of students with special needs and in providing adequate inclusive services to them.
The university don went further to explain that the involvement of one to the exclusion of the other is inadequate to meet the needs of these students.
Prof. Ozoji cited the comment by Emeritus Prof. PAI Obanya the retired Director of the Regional Office for Education in Africa (UNESCO/BREDA) who forwarded and described the FESTSCHRIFT as a “monumental encyclopedia”.
The Emeritus Professor added that the DIALOGUE posture of the Festschrift “will serve a useful guide to all classes of users” which is a major achievement of the awardee. The FESTSCHRIFT Honouree who donated the three- volume set to the University of Jos described his gesture as a token give back to the institution that nurtured him to the highest point of his careership.
In addition, the aim of the donation is to achieve inclusiveness in the readership of the FESTSCHRIFT. The three sets of the Festschrift according to him were donated to the three libraries of the University: Central, Faculty and Department to enhance wider readership and to grow better understanding of the students with special needs.
The fourth set was for the Vice Chancellor’s personal library as a token of appreciation of his uncommon interest and commitment to the course of students with special needs in this university. Professor Ozoji finally and humbly requested the Vice Chancellor to leave a legacy for his special students before the end of his tenure.
Highpoints were the onward presentation of the FESTSCHRIFT by the Vice chancellor to the beneficiaries Doctor Thomas Adigun, the Librarian of the University, Prof. Musa Maina Dean faculty of Education and Doctor (Sister) Juliana Bodang the Head Of Department Special Education, University of Jos.
Nigeria Star News 