Schedule of Activities

True to Ashesi’s hands-on approach to learning, the workshop will be highly engaging and immersive, requiring participants to share and co-design approaches to promote the objectives of their institutions. The 6-day workshop will be fully packed with practical, and immersive exercises for participants. All sessions are driven by liberal arts and sciences teaching strategies in and out of the classroom, for both small and large institutions. 

Schedule of Activities:

Day 1 | Day 2  | Day 3 | Day 4  |  Day 5


Focus Areas this June:

  • Building career support for exceptional graduate placement rates
  • Fundraising from excellence for institutional growth: With Dr. Patrick Awuah and Ashesi University Foundation
  • Curriculum and course design (with a focus on the liberal arts in Africa, innovation, and entrepreneurship)
  • Incorporating the liberal arts: Broadening students’ perspectives in learning, thinking and doing
  • Applying design thinking in evaluating and planning educational institution value fulfillment structure
  • Branding for a student-centered institution and culture

In these sessions, participants will share their own institution’s approach in an exploratory design-thinking format to spark ideas and build strategies to implement in the following year.


Workshop Outcomes Include:

  • A practical, and achievable plan for implementing or further exploring the areas covered either in or out of the classroom
  • Established peer-pairings over the next year for research, networking, and mentorship
  • Setup on the Education Collaborative online resource and repository. Participants can also provide progress report on task commitments and successes on the online system

 

Arrival day: June 4th
18:00 Welcome Reception and Registration
Keynote Speaker: Patrick Awuah
Topic: The need for an Education Collaborative for Africa

Patrick Awuah, Founder and President of Ashesi University College will give the welcome address and speak on the vision and mission for the creation of the Education Collaborative at Ashesi. 
   
Day 1: June 5th
8:30 Arrival: Coffee
9:00 Welcome
Icebreakers and Introductions
Campus tour and Group photo
11:00 Coffee Break
11:30 Speaker/Workshop Session: Incorporating the liberal arts in African education: Broadening students’ perspectives in learning, thinking and doing
Speaker/facilitator: TBD
14:15 Case session: The Ashesi Value Fulfillment Blueprint (Using Design Thinking tools)
Facilitators: Dr. Gordon Adomdza, Nathalie N'Guessan

The value fullfillment blueprint (VFB) is a tool used by Ashesi's Foundations of Design and Entrepreneurship team, and the Design Lab to map out the frontend, backend, and support systems an organization uses to fulfill value to its clients. This session will use the VFB and other design thinking techniques to map out the various parts of Ashesi's support system that forms its foundation.
15:15 Coffee Break
15:45 Workshop: What is your Value Fulfillment Blueprint (Using Design Thinking tools)
Facilitators: Dr. Gordon Adomdza, Nathalie N'Guessan

In this workshop, participants will get to create or recreate the VFB of their institution or context using the design thinkng techniques from the previous session. Laying out the broader syatem with it's support structures, will help participants identify the areas they can have the most influence in their current role. 
   
Day 2: June 6th
8:30 Arrival: Coffee
9:00 Case Session: Branding for a student-centered institution and culture
Facilitators: Araba Botchway, Anthony Spio, Ebenezer Gwumah-Buckman, and Eli Tetteh

What does it mean in practice to have an institutional brand that is evident in all stakeholders including students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Through multiple cases and examples, Araba Botchway, Anthony Spio and Eli Tetteh will share how Ashesi has approached achieving a strong brand ownership across our stakeholders. Cases will highlight how this is being achieved from admissions, through to recruitment, student and curriculum development,etc. and the challenges faced in addressing this.
10:00 Expert Interview: Branding for a student-centered institution and culture
Interview: Patrick Awuah and Industry Brand Executive (TDB)
Interviewer: Nhyira Addo (Head of Talk and Thought Leadership, Multimedia Group Ltd)

Dr Awuah will respond to questions on the place of brand in a higher education institution like Ashesi. He will be asked to share the strategies Ashesi used in creating the Ashesi brand from the start in 2002. The guest executive will respond on the application of branding to larger more established institutions in Africa. He will be asked to present the key factors to focus on in building and maintaining a strong brand for institutions.
11:00 Coffee Break
11:15 Workshop: Achieving targeted positioning and branding
Facilitators: Araba Botchway, Anthony Spio, Ebenezer Gwumah-Buckman and Eli Tetteh

In a workshop, participants will work with facilitators on identifying the brand assets and opportunities in their respective institutions. This will be a targeted hands-on session in small groups.
13:45 Case session: Designing and delivering student-centered learning experiences
Facilitators: Kajsa Hallberg-Adu and Kwadwo Osafo-Marfo, Michael Quansah

The product any educational institution is its students, and success is ultimately measured by the success of graduating classes. Therefore, all stateholders and assets of the institution should be designed with the target product in mind. How do you get student, faculty and administrators involved in acheiving student-centeredness in higher education institutions. In this multi-case session, facilitators will share the various ways in which this has been achieved at Ashesi.
15:15 Coffee Break
15:45 Small group consultation: Designing and delivering student-centered learning experiences in curriculum and campus life
Facilitators: Dr Kajsa Hallberg-Adu, Kwadwo Osafo-Marfo, Michael Quansah

In small group consultation, participants will delve into various aspects of their institutions and their roles, and share ways in which they can achieve student-centeredness in curriculum design and campus life. Faculty participants will additionally explore applying some liberal arts methodologies in classroom delivery and curriculum design. 
17:30 Daily wrap Up: Feedback and Review
Facilitator: Rose Dodd
   
Day 3: June 7th
8:30 Arrival: Coffee
9:00 Case session Establishing a culture of ethical and exemplary leadership in campus life, coursework and student development (lessons from the Ashesi ethics and honor code system)
Faculty facilitators: Stephen Armah and Kobby Graham, Rebecca Awuah

Ashesi's focus on ethics and the honor code has had mixed reactions from varied parties. This multi-case session will share the experience of faculty, staff and department heads in implementing this system. 
10:30 Coffee Break
11:00 Panel: Establishing a culture of ethical and exemplary leadership in an African Institution
Panel Moderator: Kobby Graham
Panel members: Stephen Adei, Student, Ashesi AJC chairman, Alumni (Araba, Village of Hope), Prof Philip Duku Osei (Deputy Rector, GIMPA)

This panel will focus on discussions on the the role of an ethics and honor system in an African institution. Should it be structured or unnstructured? I will look specifically at Ashesi's ethics system and honor code from creation, implementation and ownership, through to impact and relevance outside of Ashesi. Panel includes Ashesi alumni who has implemented the honor code system in a basic school system.
12:30 Round Table Lunch: Participating Institution Highlight

Individuals from participating institutions share focus and target for upcoming year with round table of other participating institutions. This is to receive feedback, explore partnerships, and reflect on goals and target for coming year in student-centered institutional administration and teaching.
13:45 Case session: Developing entrepreneurial thinkers in and out of the classroom: Fostering a mindset for innovation and lifelong learning through design thinking
Facilitators: Nepeti Nicanor, Jude Acquah (on summer student entrepreneurship projects)

Entrepreneurship has become increasingly important as a course option in institutional learning. Facilitators in this multi-case session will share the various ways by which their institutions have approached offering entrepreneurship and innovation in and out of the classroom. 
15:15 Coffee Break
15:45 Parallel session
Executive Session: Fundraising strategies for higher education institutions in Africa 
Speaker: Patrick Awuah
Workshop: Patrick Awuah, Ebenezer Gwumah Buckman, Dr. Emer Doolie

Presidents, department heads, board executives, directors will join Patrick Awuah, Emer Doolie (Ashesi Fundraising board member), and Ebenezer Gwumah-Buckman (Ashesi PR and Development) in a session on how to strategically raise funds for growth projects in your institution.
15:45 Parellel Session
Workshop: Fostering a mindset and culture for innovation entrepreneurial thinking
Facilitators: Nepeti Nicanor, Jude Acquah (on summer student entrepreneurship projects)

Alternatively, faculty participants will have a hands-on workshop session to create roadmaps and strategies for developing an entrepreneurial and innovation mindset in thier students, and in generating faculty interest in entrepreneurship.
17:30 Daily wrap Up: Feedback and Review
Facilitator: Rose Dodd
18:00 Networking Cocktail
Network with stakeholders: Institutional representatives, alumni, Ashesi board members, graduate employers, and students. 
   
Day 4: June 8th
8:30 Arrival: Coffee
9:00 Workshop: Career support for exceptional graduate job placement rates (Lessons from Ashesi Career services program)
Facilitators: Abigail Lartey and Jude Acquah Industry employer (TBD)

Ashesi has been able to achieve a 100% graduate student job placement rate after national service. In this session, the career services and student community service engagement offices will share the strategies and experiences in creating and achieving this record, including challenges faced along the way. There will be a brief consultation session after the case session on how to design a career services office for high graduate job placement
10:15 Coffee Break
10:45 Workshop: Revisit: Your value system
Facilitators: Dr. Gordon Adomdza, Nathalie

Based on the workshops and cases from the past 3 days, participants will revisit and review their value fullfillment blueprints and their plans to achieve higher output for their input.
12:00 Reflection: Individual reflection time: Detailing out and reflecting on goal and tasks for following year
Facilitator: Sena Agbodjah Agyepong
14:15 Speed pairing: Identifying partnerships of interest
Facilitator: Sena Agbodjah Agyepong

One of the main goals of the workshop is to establish pairings and partnerships for faculty and administrative staff exchanges over the year. In this facilitated session, Dr Agbodjah will lead participants in a "speed pairing" activity to identify potential partnerships and pairings
15:45 Daily wrap Up: Feedback and Review
17:15 Open (free) session: Detailing out, reflecting on, and meeting with specific partner of interest
 - Research interests
 - Peer exchange, etc
18:15 Dinner on own
   
Day 5: June 9th
8:30 Arrival: Coffee
9:00 Online setup: Courseware introduction and setup for repository
Facilitator: Kwadwo Osafo-Marfo

Participants will be taken through Ashesi University's online course management system, and get set up to access Education Collaborative repository which will host all workshop and other materials on the topics covered.
9:30 Looking back: Video playback
10:30 Coffee Break
11:00 Workshop wrap Up: Feedback and Review
Facilitator: Rose Dodd
12:00 Closing