The 1976 Alumni Group of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, has donated 10 computers to the faculty to support digital teaching, learning and skills development.
The donation forms part of the group's commitment to giving back to the faculty 50 years after graduation. The computers are expected to strengthen practical, computer-based learning and support the faculty's plans to establish a Digital Skills Laboratory.
Receiving the computers on behalf of the faculty, the Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Professor Kabila Abass, assured the alumni that the equipment would be put to good use.
“We can assure you that we’ll put these computers to good use. It’s not going to end in anybody’s office. We said digital lab, and so it’s going to our lab,” he stated.
Professor Abass said the faculty plans to consolidate its existing computer laboratories, including the GIC Lab, as part of efforts to establish a larger digital skills facility.
He welcomed additional support from other alumni groups and expressed hope that successive contributions would help the faculty achieve its target of establishing a 200-computer facility.
Representing the 1976 Alumni Group, Ms. Sabina Acquah said the donation was motivated by the group's belief that alumni have a responsibility to support institutions that contributed to their professional and personal development.
“We believe that if we had just finished at the university level and didn’t go any further, we wouldn’t be where we are in our careers. It is the university that sets us up for the careers that we eventually end up growing in,” she said.
Ms. Acquah said the group decided to support the faculty after recognising that, despite 50 years having passed since their graduation, they had not undertaken a significant project specifically for the faculty.
She stressed the growing importance of digital skills in preparing students for the workplace, saying access to computers would help students develop practical competencies in emerging areas such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
“You need to be able to practice. Hopefully, with the computers starting, the students will be able to have hands-on skills after they’ve learned from the classroom to be able to put it to good use,” she said.
The Alumni Chair, Dr Bernard Ampong, thanked the group for the donation and encouraged members to remain engaged with the faculty beyond financial and material contributions.
He said the faculty was working to strengthen its alumni database and network to promote sustained engagement, mentorship, knowledge exchange and professional development.
“We would need you to also come and support us as resource persons. Through that, the young ones will also be inspired. Our objectives go beyond getting something from you,” he noted.
Dr Ampong also highlighted opportunities provided by the faculty's computer-based virtual classroom platform, which gives students access to digital teaching and learning resources and supports online assessments and examinations.
“This is going to be a huge support,” he added.
The computers will support digital instruction, assessments, practical workshops and other academic activities for students and lecturers.
The faculty thanked the 1976 Alumni Group for the donation and called on other alumni groups and partners to support efforts to expand its digital infrastructure and strengthen technology-driven teaching, learning and skills development.
Story: Ama Pokuaa Mensah
