Olashore International School (OIS) has bagged an award for emerging one of the Top Ten schools in Nigeria, and one of the best international schools in Africa. This was stated at the 17th Valedictory ceremony of the school held recently at the school in Osun state.
The Award which was granted by Africa Brands Review, an Integrated Marketing Service Company in Africa, got its ratings from the 2014 WASSCE results. They compared how secondary schools across Nigeria performed and rated the Top 1000 schools in Nigeria, and thus granted the award in June 2015. The events brochure of the Africa TOP 1000 SCHOOLS AWARD is to be distributed to Embassies of various Africa countries and libraries of institutions of higher learning and blues chip companies, including free copies to all participating Schools in Africa. The Plague award which was granted based on standard criteria read ‘2015 Africa Top Schools Award Platinum Category’
Speaking at the valedictory ceremony, the Chairman Board of Trustees, Prince Bimbo Olashore, stated that being honored with the Platinum category award based on standard criteria, and top ten award based on WASSCE results, gives credibility and validation to the efforts of the staff and students in taking the school to its career peak. His words: “Awards are good. When we do things here, we don’t do them for the purpose of awards, but awards are validation of some of the things we stand for. We believe in academic excellence. It’s the bedrock of what the school stands for. About 99.8% of our students get Cs’, while about 92% get As’ and Bs’. To us, this is already excellence. By the time we add other activities such as music, drama, discipline, leadership and the likes, we will be proud of ourselves. We didn’t apply for any award, they just wrote us a letter, and initially we were being skeptical, until they showed us results and proofs, so we agreed with them at least it was from an official source. We emerged one of the best international schools in Africa, but before qualifying for this, we first qualified as one of the top ten schools in Nigeria with 7th position to be specific. Being one of the top ten schools amongst about 11,000 schools sitting for WAEC gives us value to our certificates”.
The Principal also spoke on the award, he pointed out thus; “We’ve been recognized as one of the top ten schools in Nigeria, and this reminds us of our position and how academically successful we are. We need to let everyone know we do a lot in Olashore and it keeps us out. There’s no school to compare, so if you want sustained academics and all round education, Olashore has it”.
Being a unit of Spirit DeFirst Limited, Africa Brands Review specializes in Research, Training and Awards. With a combination of Award ceremonies, round tables discussions on brand and product distribution issues, regular supplements and conferences added to its editorial strength, Africa Brands Review has established credibility as a specialized marketing vehicle for multinational institutions.
The Chairman spoke further on the vision of the school, reiterating that the vision is to educate Nigeria’s young male and female, give them an education that is comparable to any other one in the world, prepare them for leadership positions, to position the school and the young ones, to equip them enough to compete with any other institution in the world, and that vision is actualized through the performance of those who have passed through the school. He continued: “This is our 17th valedictory service, meaning we’ve produced 17 sets of graduands, and we are so pleased that the ones that have left have stayed tuned to the motto of the school. They’ve left the school to leading schools in the world. Our students have competed with other students abroad. It’s not just going to the best schools but it’s what they become afterwards in their work place. Being above their peers is the manifestation. We are bringing up disciplined students, people that are upright with moral compass set towards the right direction, people who can take decisions that will move them forward”.
He however urged the graduating students to go into the world with confidence of changing the status quo, pointing out that the six years they spent in the school has opened their minds to understand the global world and global standard, thus preparing them for the future.
The Principal of the School, Mr Derek Smith, on his part, rated the outgoing students well, based on how they were able to manage the challenges inherent in the last year of their stay in school, ranging from the late resumption of the session as a result of the Ebola disease breakout, and later the heat of the election period, thus resulting in the addiction of extra hours of learning. He explained that Olashore International School believes in learning beyond classroom and that is why activities have been introduced such as leadership programs, international excursions which gives them the opportunity to meet other students in abroad, sports, public speaking, orchestral (music), amongst others.
The Valedictory service which was celebrated in grand style with dignitaries, parents and students. Speaking at the event, the Guest of Honour Mr Chidi Okoro, in his presentation titled ‘To be ready for the world you crave; reflect and learn’, x-rayed that life is sweet, and can be fun and fulfilling where challenges will come, and opportunities missed. He however advised that they should endeavor to blaze a trail, discover better and more efficient ways to live through life while living their dent on it, explore boundaries and testing limits, hold firmly that everything is possible and nothing can stop them, keep imaginations and creativity alive, keep being inquisitive, and to see failure as an opportunity to learn. He ended his speech by stating that between goals and achievement are Discipline and Perseverance.
The Outgoing Head boy, Master Beko Wood an indigene of Osun state, and a would-be lawyer /ambassador, confessed that he learnt lots of lessons from the school, amongst which are discipline and proper courtesy, which reflects a good upbringing. He however advised his fellow grandaunts to go into the world and show case what the school has taught them thus representing the school well, and to his juniors, he advised that they should follow their own examples and uphold the name of the school. In the Same Vein, the Outgoing Head girl, Miss Ojehomon Eunice Arinola, a would-be Aeronautic Engineer, reiterated that the school taught her to be self-confident amongst others. She however advised her fellow graduands to keep the right company, and to her juniors who combine relationships with studies, to pick their studies more seriously than the relationship. Also, the best graduating student, Miss Olasoko, Mofiyinfoluwa Hannah, a would-be Doctor with best results in six (6) subjects(Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Economics, and Painting and Decorations), reiterated that ‘Not giving up’ and ‘God’s Grace’ kept her at the peak academically. To this end, she advised her juniors not to ever give up, and also show respect to their elders.
To crown up the valedictory ceremony, a Social Project Presentation, which is termed a leadership programme and anchored by a United States based consultant, Mr John-Ubong Silas, was organized for Year 7 to Year 10 students, in which they had to devise a service project addressing a societal issue, make presentations, and a panel of esteemed judges would judge them based on their presentations, the quality of students’ research for each group, and the sustainability of the project. According to the Principal, “The Social Project Presentation is a combination of our leadership programme. Leadership shows a lot, and has an impact on the local community and improved environment. We need Social Change Modeling, shaped”
