Liberia: Higher Education Commission Accredits Tubman University To Offer Master Degree

Monrovia – Tubman University has received accreditation from the National Commission on Higher Education (NCHE), granting the Southeast-based university the authority to offer masters in hospital administration and education leadership.

“In keeping with recommendations from the department of Quality Assurance at the NCHE Secretariat regarding the assessment conducted on TU, it submits that TU has the basic capacities and potentials to commence delivery of its two programs applied for in Education Leadership and Health Administration,” a letter from NCHE Acting Director General, Prof. David S. Dahn, to the University in Harper, Maryland County, reads.

The letter, dated September 1, 2020, concluded: “Until production of the required ‘Permit’ from NCHE Secretariat when sealed duly, accept the legitimacy of this correspondence to commence full operations of the programs herein mentioned, and other academic activities on 1^st October 2020.”

Reacting to the accreditation from NCHE, Dr. Elliott Wreh-Wilson, President of TU, expressed confidence that the University will attract massive partners’ support to ensure the success of the two programs.

Dr. Wreh-Wilson mentioned international NGO Partner In Health (PIH) as a major partner that will collaborate with the University to fund the training of hospital administrators from hospitals across the country.

“They (PIH) are going to bring those people for the program, they are going to support those people and when the program is over, those people will back to their respective hospitals then we can pave it to something else to expand the program,” Dr. Wreh-Wilson said.

Commenting on the Education Leadership program, the TU President emphasized that the country needs qualified teachers, and that the program will be committed to training teachers. He said it is important because there is a lurking vacuum of teachers in the country’s education system.

“Many young people, who have bachelor’s degrees, are not trained to teach, so you send them to the classroom, and they know nothing about teaching methodology. They know how to put facts out there, but they don’t know how to control those facts for children to understand and you see the failure in WASSCE,” he said. “So, you need to train teachers who know these things so that the children are prepared for tomorrow.”

He praised the Liberian government for its support, adding that the University is determined to maintain its progress while remaining optimistic of the two master’s programs. 

“As for the graduate school, we think we will be able to sustain it,” he said confidently. “If government will chip in with salaries, we can run it, we can – and if they people coming can afford the fees, then I think we will do well.”

Prof. Wreh-Wilson was named president of TU on March 5, 2018 by President George M. Weah, making him the third president of the university since its founding back in 2009.

In addition to obtaining accreditation from NCHE to run two master’s programs, the University has been making strides in several programs including soliciting foreign scholarships for 19 persons including staffs, faculty and Alumni into postgraduate programs in Israel, South Africa, Uganda, and the United States, amongst others.

There have also been faculty exchange programs, construction of a 12 class-room building that is now accommodating more students on campus with other offices attached, construction of a 600 seated commencement stand named — Tubman Pavilion — to host events on campus, and a GIZ partnership that has seen the reactivation the Center for Gender program, which promotes gender equality and other sensitive gender issues.

The University has also strengthened its relationship with several international partners and foreign universities including University of Rhode Island and University of California, Sacramento – all in the USA — and Jiangsu University in China.

At the same time, TU has been making some inroads with its agriculture project in Maryland County with the production of pineapples, cassava tubers and leafy vegetables at its Barrabo Farm, which is 500 acres of land given by the community.

The community has assured of granting another 500, something the University president sees as a boost to their agriculture initiative.

“What we are trying to do now is to get in the Cocoa business and in the next three to four years, this will be able to help the university with cash because we cannot always depend on government – the government pays our salaries. The government does a lot for us, so I think in the next four or five years we will start making some money,” said Dr. Wreh-Wilson.