Professor Samuel Oladiipo KOLAWOLE, FNITI, has assumed duties on Thursday, February 13, 2025 as the 5th substantive Director / Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria French Language Village. This follows his appointment by the Governing Council of the institution on February 6, 2025 after a successful interview performance where he outscored three other candidates. Alhaji Labiru Musa Kafur, mni, Chairman of the Governing Council, while presenting Professor Oladiipo his appointment letter, encouraged him to leverage his leadership skills to further the institution's mission. Professor Oladiipo in turn praised the transparent and rigorous selection process and expressed his commitment to making significant contributions to the Nigeria French Language Village.
The
Official handing over of baton of leadership
to Prof. S. O. Kolawole by his predecessor, Prof. Lateef Babatunde Ayeleru, FNAL, was done on Wednesday, February 12, 2025 in a ceremony
witnessed by Principal Officers and the expanded Management members of the
Inter-University Centre, as well as the entourage of the newly appointed
Director / CEO comprising His Royal Majesty, Oba Joachim Adeyemi Afolabi
Ajibola, the Ojurin of Ijurin Ekiti represented by Prince Olusegun Adeola.
family members, friends and associates. In her opening remarks the
Registrar, Miss Ini Nwa stated that the meeting was called as the institution
was “about to witness a transition, the departure of one who has been with
us and to welcome another who is also going to be with us for some time”.
She appreciated the outgoing Director/ CEO and wished him success in his future
endeavours.
Prof. Ayeleru in his opening address,
congratulated his successor on his appointment by the Governing Council. He
equally congratulated him for not having to wait for four months after a
successful interview to collect his letter of appointment. He also commended
the Governing Council for implementing the provision of the University
Miscellaneous Act (as ammended) which has empowered the Council to
announce and appoint the successful candidate who emerge as the Director /
CEO. He noted that the instance case has
made the institution overcome the challenge of having to wait for Abuja to
announce a successor which was the case in his own time where he had to wait
for four months after interview to receive his appointment letter. “It
was a waiting period of prayers and I promised God that the waiting period will
not happen to any of my successors … because the terms and conditions of the
appointment is as that of a Vice Chancelllor of a Federal University”, he
noted as he eulogized Prof. Kolawole as one who came with a load of experiences
far above his.
At the handing over ceremony, Prof. L. B.
Ayeleru handed his red pen, as the symbol of authority to his sucessor with
some words of admonition “as the Director / CEO, you are the
Accounting Officer and the only person spending. The red biro gives the
approval as whatever you ask it to say is law. I pray that you will use it for
the growth of NFLV ….This is a CEO job, it’s not a job
where one goes out to be everybody’s friend. You choose to be everybody’s
friend you will end up not having any friend at the end of the day because you
cannot satisfy everybody” .
The outgoing
Director / CEO equally solicited the cooperation of the entire workforce for
his successor, saying: “the way you have accepted and tolerated me, please
extend it to the new Director. He will not fail you”, Prof. Ayeleru stated.
Prof. S. O. Kolawole in his response
appreciated his predecessor Prof. Lateef Ayeleru for the improvements the
Nigeria French Language Village has witnessed during his administration. He
stated that he (Prof. Kolawole) has been part of the Village since inception.
“I
have been part and parcel of this place since inception, since 1991. I was part
of the first set of people that were interviewed to become lecturers in this
place but I was not appointed. …. but as God will have it, I didn’t come as a
Graduate Assistant) but I am now coming as a Director / CEO … French Village is our own property
and we have to do everything possible to promote it…I want to enjoin you to
please corporate with me so that we can move this place forward together”. He solicited
the cooperation of the entire workforce to enable him succeed in his task.
PROFILE OF PROF. SAMUEL OLADIIPO KOLAWOLE
His
career trajectory showcases a blend of academic and non-academic experiences.
He rose through the ranks, starting as a Graduate Assistant at Ondo State
College of Education, Ikere (1990-1999) and ultimately achieving the esteemed
rank of Professor of Translation Studies at Ekiti State University, Ado-Ekiti
in 2011.
Professor Kolawole's
dedication to scholarship is evident in his impressive record of academic
contributions. He has supervised over 100 undergraduate projects, 15 M.A
dissertations, and 10 Ph.D theses. As a prolific scholar, he has authored and
co-authored 4 theses / dissertations and 49 articles / monographs. His commitment to the academic community is
further exemplified by his participation in several conferences / workshops and
the numerous scholarships, awards, and prizes (16 in total) include among others;
Best Graduating Student, Department of French, Ondo State University, Ado-Ekiti
(1988), A research Schorlarship for “Sejour pedagogique de Haut Niveau”
an award by the French Government at International Centre for Pedagogical
Studies, Universite de Caen, France,
(July - August 1999), Achievers Award as a Distinguished Schorlar and
Ojurin Patriot by Oba J. A. A. Ajibola, to mention a few. He is an Associate
member of Nigerian Association of French Teachers (NAFT), Fellow, Nigeria Institute of Translators and
Interpreters (FNITI), Member, International Association for Translation and
Intercultural Studies (IATIS), among others.
He is Editor-in-Chief, Ado Journal of French and Related Disciplines
(AJOFARD) EKSU, Ado Ekiti, Consulting Editor (and former Editor-in-Chief),
Obitun, Faculty of Arts Journal, EKSU, Ado-Ekiti. His administrative experience
include serving as Head, Department of French (2005-2015), Acting Dean, Faculty
of Arts (2008 – 2009), Dean of Faculty of Arts 2015 – 2019), Chairman, Faculty
of Arts Board of Studies (2008-2010, 2015-2019), Chairman, Committee of Deans
(2018 -2019), External Examiner to several Public and Privately-owned
Universities, including the Nigeria French Language Village, Member, Ekiti
State University Development Committee, Chairman / Member, NUC Accreditation
Committee to various Universities, to mention a few. He was also President,
Apex Club of Ijurin Ekiti (2007-2011, 2015 -2022) and at the moment an ordained
Pastor, Christ Apostolic Church Worldwide since 2004.
Despite being in the
prime of his life, Professor Samuel O. Kolawole remains deeply committed to
knowledge generation, dissemination, and growth. He firmly believes in
contributing to the betterment of humanity by creating opportunities and
possibilities for the younger generation and those yet to come. His vision is
to propel the Nigeria French Language Village to new heights, solidifying its
position as a leading center for French language and cultural studies in
Nigeria. He assumed duties on Thursday, February 13, 2025, succeeding Prof.
Lateef Babatunde Ayeleru, FNAL, whose tenure ended on Wednesday, February 12, 2025.
Sessi Fagbeji-Agemo, Mrs.
Deputy Registrar (Information and Protocol).