Students have individual responsibility for their actions (PAGE 11, NOV 6)

A MATRICULATION ceremony has been organised for 108 fresh students, including 16 females, to undertake undergraduate courses at the Faculty of Forest Resources Technology (FFRT) of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), at the Sunyani Campus in the Brong Ahafo Region.
The Pro Vice Chancellor of KNUST, Professor William Otoo Ellis, who performed the function, stated that it was always a sad thing to dismiss a student and therefore, urged the freshmen and women to be of good behaviour, law abiding and serious with their studies.
“Never give us the opportunity to either rusticate or dismiss you. With this attitude, you will not have any problems with anybody. In all your endeavours, my dear students, be guided by the anxiom that, anything that is a breach of common sense, also constitutes a breach of university regulation for which you will face appropriate sanctions which could include dismissal from the university”, Prof. Ellis cautioned.
He said, there were many other important issues that they needed to know which had all been stipulated in the Student’s Guide and so, “Be familiar with those provisions and be guided by the tenets of the provisions”.
The Pro Vice Chancellor added, “Get to know the KNUST, its philosophy, ideology, vision, mission and be good ambassadors of the university every where you go from now on and remember that, you have come to the university and, therefore, use this opportunity to attain universal education. Make a conscious effort to get to know so many other things other than what you are supposed to study in your chosen programme or area of specialisation”.
Prof. Ellis reminded them of the fact that all of them had entered the university as individuals and, therefore, had the individual responsibility for any action or inaction on their part, stressing that, the university was governed by rules which served as margins of everybody’s freedom, and that, “Hiding under the umbrella of groups and misconducting yourself can cause your withdrawal, rustication or prosecution”.
He emphasised that, their admission to the university, was a rare privilege for them to add value to themselves in their attempt to become more useful citizens to Ghana in particular and Africa at large.
“I, therefore, congratulate you all for making one of the best and strategic decisions of your life. I am very hopeful that you will make maximum use of this opportunity offered you to attain tertiary education so that, following the completion of your programme, you will go and positively impact lives of ordinary citizens in Ghana and Africa, especially, in your chosen area of study which is Forest Resource Technology,” he added.
Prof. Ellis further cautioned, “You must remember that, henceforth, you are responsible for the planning or scheduling of your time and you must know that, the university is not like a high school, where you have the privilege of a senior housemaster to wake you up from your sleep, prompt you on your time for prep and so on”.
He said, everything was now up to them, and that their success or otherwise would depend on their ability to utilise that freedom to their advantage, saying, “Be cautiously adventurous and make sure you explore your talent to the full”.