For faculty and staff at Ashesi, Commencement Day holds a special place in their hearts. After four years of nurturing the students from freshmen into young leaders ready to take on the world, it’s a special moment.
For Anthony Ebow Spio, Head of Business Administration department, this year's graduation was an even more special one: his first son, Ekow, was one of the students graduating.
“It feels great, and as a family, we are very happy and also proud of our son,” he said. “I believe this is the best place for any young man and woman to be to be equipped with the skills and competencies to transform our continent.”
Before joining Ashesi in 2009, Ebow worked for Unilever for 16 years in Ghana and Nigeria , leading teams to manage several of their key household brands. Drawn by his passion to inspire youth, he took up a position at Ashesi, teaching Marketing. Three years on, his first son, Ekow Nyame Spio, gained admission to Ashesi, to read Business Administration.
“I find the mission of the school pretty laudable, and the mission ties in with my own purpose of preparing students to transform Africa,” he explains. “So if I’m also part of the people doing that, it is also proper that I get my boys to come into here.”
For Ekow Spio, not only was he drawn to Ashesi through his father, but also, he was inspired by Ashesi’s hands-on approach in the classrooms, and a glowing desire to be part of the community.
“I wanted a very practical approach and Ashesi’s curriculum helped spread my wings,” he said. “I’ve gained an appreciation for multiple facets in academia, and I’ve also come to build lifelong friendships which have helped shape me. Also, anytime I visited an Ashesi Commencement ceremony, I liked it, and soon, started dreaming of graduating from here too.”
For Ebow, not only does he continue inspiring more young leaders to graduate from Ashesi, but also, now that Ekow is done, he is keenly looking forward to his second son’s Commencement ceremony in a couple of years. “There couldn’t have been a better place for my sons to go to.”