The Directorate of Quality Assurance in collaboration with the Directorate of Staff Training and Development, have聽organised a retreat in order to review the policies and standard operating procedures of the university.
The retreat,聽which聽was聽held at the University Library聽at the headquarters in Jabi, Abuja,聽had in attendance聽management staff,聽deans,聽directors and聽heads of聽unit of the聽university.
Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Olufemi Peters, emphasised the need to for the university to have an established culture and way of doing things.
鈥淚 want to take what we鈥檙e going to do here from the perspective of culture, and for me it is an idea, custom or social behavior of a particular people or society.
鈥淚 have linked it to civilisation because these are things that border on what we are doing today. Civilisation is the stage of human social and cultural development and organisation that is considered most advanced. It means that once we perfect whatever it is that we are doing, it means that we are civilised,鈥漢e said.
The Vice-Chancellor added that 鈥淲hat we are doing here today is like culture. By the time we perfect our policies, processes and procedures then we have what we refer to as quality assurance and then you become a cultured society.
鈥淭he most important thing about culture and what we want to do today is that it is learned and is passed down from one generation to another shaping individual identities and influencing their perspectives, attitudes and聽behaviours.鈥
He said 鈥淲e can take NOUN as a society and an organization, so this means we must develop a culture. How do we develop this culture? We do this by learning it. By formulating it, you are learning and developing it.鈥
Peters said聽the university recently got a visit from the聽International Quality Assurance Agency and they asked for almost 200 policy documents to be submitted in March. Failure to do so, will stop their funding of ACETEL,聽because it shows that the university does not have quality assurance.
鈥淩ight from time we have had these policies but we have never documented them in a way and manner that is useful and in a manner that it becomes a culture to all of us鈥.
鈥淭hose of us that have been involved with accreditation, know that all they are asking for in accreditation are documents, and what documents are these? They are policies, and what is inside the policies? Processes and procedures. That is what they are looking for鈥.
The VC underscored the need for the retreat, saying聽that it聽was important that the聽university lays a foundation so that when staff of NOUN go somewhere else, people will know that the university is doing something great.
The Director, Quality Assurance,聽Prof. Juliet Inegbedion, who welcomed participants, said鈥淲e are gathered here to revisit, think and review our principles and regulations, governing the academic and operational activities in NOUN. This can only be achieved through adequate documentation of our policies, processes and procedures.
鈥淚f you are here, I congratulate you because you are a value to NOUN鈥檚 progress and success. I am just a year old as director in the Directorate of Quality Assurance. At my assumption of office, the mandate given to the directorate was to ensure that quality becomes the watchword in academic and operational activities in NOUN; where everyone can go to sleep during institutional or programme accreditations, and above all, excel in the institution鈥檚 vision, mission, objectives and core values,鈥漵he said.
Inegbedion聽stated that the policies are designed to serve as marketing strategy for the institution towards meeting the institution鈥檚聽one聽million mark enrollment and beyond.
鈥淲orking along with the given mandate on 29th聽November 2022,聽the聽directorate made a call to all聽faculties,聽directorates,聽academic聽centres,聽units and聽registry to submit the policies guiding their operations.
鈥淭he responses were not pleasant. It was observed that there was no adequate documentation of polices and processes guiding the institutional operations,聽the director explained.
She said due to the poor responses, the directorate carried out a diligent review of all academic and operational activities in the university and identified 127 academic and operational activities that required immediate documentation of policies and standard operating procedures.
She stated that it was important that every activity in NOUN must have SOPs,聽because with that, the university can clearly define its activities and the steps taken to achieve the activities.
The director added that聽it will help in measuring the effectiveness and efficiency in job performances.