Zwedru, Grand Gedeh County – Normal activities at the Grand Gedeh County Community College in Garloville, outside Zwedru have seized after students staged a demonstration in demand of accreditation for the Nursing department.
Report by Ben T.C. Brooks, Contributor
Grand Gedeh County Community College was established in 2010 by an Act of the 52nd Legislature as a College with the objective of providing tertiary education to the local community of Grand Gedeh Counties and its surroundings.
The college began regular academic activities in 2013 and has since held three commencement convocations, with the latest on July 13, 2019.
A little over a hundred students including Liberians and foreigners have graduated with associate degrees in different fields of studies including business, public administration, agriculture and Education.
But none of the students within the Nursing department has graduated since 2013.
On Wednesday, October 16, the students blocked the main entrance of the college campus in Garlloville outside Zwedru and at the same time peacefully marched through the principal streets of Zwedru.
The match ended with a petition statement to the county local authority at the Zwedru administrative building.
Reading the position statement on behalf of her colleagues, one of the affected students, Tina Blanyon said they have started schooling from the college since 2013 and are yet to graduate with an associate degree in the nursing program.
According to Ms. Blanyon, the Liberia Board of Nursing and Midwifery (LBNM) has conducted two assessments of the nursing division, and the result forwarded to the GCCC president, Dr. Solomon X.Y. Jallayou, showed a mark of 76 percent.
“The Liberia Board of Nursing and Midwifery (LBNM) policy on accreditation decision for the new school is in complete contradiction with the college result. Because from the score, 50-79 percent is allowed for probationary Accreditation with a have nine-month period to meet the standards,” Blanyon said.
“The policy also states that the LBNM will work with the new school to make the correction within three to six months, two verification visits focusing on identified gaps, and then repeat accreditation visit. Upon two visits with the repeated above score will cause a denial of accreditation.”
Speaking furthered, she alleged that the refusal of the LBNM to issue the school its accreditation after the school met the requirements to be placed on probation is politically motivated.
“The Liberia Board of Nursing and Midwifery is going contrary if she cannot afford us our deserved probationary accreditation after the college has scored the mark of 76% from an assessment made by them and we believe is highly influenced by national politics,” she alleged.
The students furthered that their action was the result of the LNBM communication to the college president, Dr. Jallayou, demanding the closure of the nursing division under the Health Sciences department until October 2020.
The students threatened that normal activities will not commence on the campus until the Nursing Department is given its accreditation.
Receiving the students’ position statement on behalf of the county’s local leadership, the County Inspector and acting Superintendent, Paul Neoh promised to present their concerns to the right authority for implementation.
Meanwhile, the Superintendent of Grand Gedeh County, Kai Farley has called on the students to do away with the protest as he works with the College Board of Trustees (BOT) and other relevant stakeholders to address the situation in two days.
The College’s President also appealed for calm and called on the students to abandon the protest and return to class, while calling for a round table discussion between the students.
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