CIU MAGAZINE-JUNE 2022-ISSUE 6

INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Magazine

CIU

COMMUNITY DAY

CONTENT

INDEX

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04

08

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Vc Editorial

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CIU Community Day In Pictures.

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CIU Community Day.

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2022 Guild Elections.

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Gradution Ceremony.

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Road To Charter

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Graduation In Pictures.

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The last mile scholarship.

The first female nurse to acquire the title of Associate Professor of Nursing Leadership, Management and Policy.

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Learning And Teaching At Ciu: A Blended Approach?

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Why Counseling is important for University students especially during Post Covid or Post Lockdown.

Dr. John Charles Okiria Promoted to Full Professor of Management of Clarke International University.

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MPH Get Together

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VC E D I TO R I A L 4

By Prof. Rose Nanyonga Clarke

Clarke International University

After two years of the Covid-19 lockdown, life has picked up at Clarke International University (CIU). We are late with this issue of the CIU Magazine but are delighted to report on various activities that signaled our cautious return to a new normal.

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We held the 12th graduation for the Class of 2021 not in December, but in March 2022. For the first time since the start of the pandemic, we all sat under one tent. It was a beautiful occasion, (see page 16) and we were so proud of our graduates who weathered the Covid-19 storm admirably and managed to graduate on time.

In my remarks at graduation, I highlighted many of the university’s achievements, among them, the appointment of the first full professor at CIU, Professor John Charles Okiria, I am personally pleased that my appointment to Associate Professor of Nursing Leadership and Management (page 30-33) also happens to be a first for CIU and for Uganda as prior to this appointment, there hasn’t been a female nurse to be promoted to this level! Quite humbling.

In March 2021, right on the verge of the second wave of Covid-19, not many of us remembered the CIU Day and majority of our community outreaches had been on hold except for those conducted through webinars. Community Day this year was about reconnecting with each other and with our community. We had music, dance, drama, bouncing castles, rock climbing, and food from different countries. Our students shined. Most of all, we had fun—see page 8.

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The mission of the university is to prepare students for global leadership, and to be catalysts for transformation. Students’ involvement in leadership provides an early opportunity for growth, volunteer service, cultivating purpose, managing change, connecting with others and clarity of their own values. Congratulations to the new Student Guild Leadership team who were recently sworn in at a peaceful transition of power event—page 12.

Every facet of our life has been impacted by the pandemic and we continue to experience waves of exhaustion, adversity, trauma, financial hardships et cetera.

We appreciate the service of our resident counselor who we interviewed for this issue—see story on page 24. And are equally grateful to supporters of our scholarship funds who continue to support students who are facing enormous financial hardships—see the last mile scholarship fund story on page 20.

Finally, a new normal for higher education institutions means that we all must continue to learn and embrace change. CIU is poised to leverage the best of both face-toface and online learning to meet the evolving needs of our students… I invite you to read about Learning and Teaching and CIU—a blended approach on page 22.

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LEAD • INNOVATE • TRANSFORM

CIU COMMUNITY DAY..... 2022

On the 26 th of March 2022, Clarke International University hosted its first ever community day. Since the move to our permanent home in MuyengaBukasa, CIU has longed to interact with its community.

The University hoped to engage with its neighbors sooner, but because of the numerous lockdowns, and health risks associated with COVID-19, It failed to happen.

However, with the lifting of all the Government COVID restrictions, we were over the moon to host our community at our new home. The Community Day was a colorful celebration of cultures and communities.

At CIU we pride ourselves in our strong diversity of culture, religion, ethnicity, nationality and even race.

Everyone is welcome to CIU. And our community day was nothing short of that. Our students show cased their traditional dances, clothing and food. From South Sudan, to Eritrea, to Kabalagala, to

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Tanzania, to Somalia and even Ireland; all these cultures were well represented. We also partnered with International Hospital Kampala to offer some free health checks to the community. HIV, hypertension and Diabetics checks were done for free. Over 300 community members go free medical checks. We engaged different businesses and vendors from the community to sell and promote their businesses.

The Uganda Rock climbing club gave free rock-climbing lessons to community members who really enjoyed themselves.

Businesses like The Drop in Muyenga, The Hive and many other businesses all took part.

We hope to continue engaging with our community and look forward to making this an annual event. We hope to see you at our next Community Day.

By Daphne Bukirwa.

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CIU COMMUNITY DAY IN PICTURES

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2022 GUILD ELECTIONS Recently concluded elections were not for the faint hearted.

The 2022 Clarke International University Guild Presidential race was one of a kind following a series of events that involved tight competition between the three candidates who were all aiming for victory.

The Electoral Commission was guided by a roadmap created on the 4th of April ,2022 which started with publication and physical awareness of applicants followed by vetting and finally publishing the specific candidates who made it through. After vetting, candidates started their campaigns. The campaigns run from the 21st -28th April 2022 and were concluded by open air campaigns and mock elections on 29th April 2022.

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The Elections were scheduled for 6th May 2022 and the voter Register was published by 3:00pm. Voters rushed to the polling station to elect their candidates of choice. The elections were conducted online and polling agents for the different candidates were stationed at the Computer lab(Polling station).

Tension prevailed due to the tight competition as all candidates and agents were mobilizing students to take part in the voting process. The Electoral Commission worked hand in hand with the ICT Department to ensure that the voting process was free and fair.

The results were announced and the crowds and supporters of Kangume Hannington rejoiced in victory with 103 votes, followed by Bulyaba Rhoda Ellen who was beaten by only 11 votes and the second runners up being Nakaferro Mariam with 81 votes.

Celebrations from Kangume’s camp went on all day, with the president-elect thanking his voters for entrusting him with their votes. He was quoted saying “Leadership is not a bed of roses, it comes with challenges which you must be able to solve.”

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GRADUATION CEREMONY

12th

Earlier this year, CIU celebrated its 12th graduation; and with the graduation Class of 2021, the university is celebrating a growing community of leaders and influencers in the region.

CIU’s story in the last 24 months of the pandemic was about coming to grips with a disrupted and changing world and finding a way to bounce forward. It is a story of resilience.

Blog author Michael McKinney (2022) defines Resilience as the ability to maintain your purpose while adapting your methods…and notes that in the book Resilience, why things bounce back (2021) authors Zolli and Healy posit that “if we cannot control the volatile tides of change, we can at least learn to build better boats…we can design—and redesign—institutions and systems to better absorb disruption” At the heart of the university’s business are the students and parents who have embraced our mission and vision and trusted our process for continuity during one of the most challenging seasons. Faculty and staff also worked tirelessly to deliver a quality education through creativity and determination. And, to foster continuity and positive change through meaningful and rigorous educational experiences.

They did so while collectively holding on to foundational pillars that define the ethos of CIU: •

Our solid foundation of leadership.

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Our ability to rethink strategy.

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Our capacity to adapt and innovate.

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Our student-centric perspective, and .

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Most importantly our hope and faith in each other.

This year’s graduation reflected the strength and wisdom of the CIU community. But most importantly it spoke volumes about who CIU graduates are. They are courageous, tenacious, resilient, and agile. As we celebrated each student and their journey at CIU, we knew that these skills, attitudes, and values will no doubt set them apart and above their peers—and will serve as a foundation for their continued growth.

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A university’s stature and reputation determine the value and currency of the university’s awards in the world of work and beyond. With the Class of 2021, CIU’s Alumni network has grown to over 3200. Tracer surveys consistently indicate the level and scope of their impact in relevant industries. They are among the key ambassadors of CIU who will continue to make important contributions to the University and the country in many areas.

Despite a challenging year, there was so much to celebrate at graduation this year: For the first time, CIU graduated 16 pioneer students with a Bachelor of Science in midwifery.

IntraHealth reports that a gap of nearly 3000 midwives exists in Uganda (2019). Properly trained, midwives can provide 87% of essential maternal care and will mitigate child-birth-related complications by up to 88%. And midwives, like all other healthcare professional students at CIU, are a critical group to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals and Universal Healthcare. With the

first cohort of midwifery graduates, CIU is contributing to a critical need for human capital development and the strengthening of the health system.

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In December 2021, we graduated another 130 software developers from our Refactory program, bringing the total to over 300 graduates who are poised to pioneer new ways of learning in the Tech industry.

Our score card also included newly accredited programs In the Institute of Public Health and Management: i. Master of Science: Health Informatics and Analytics. ii. Master of Science Human Nutrition. iii. Master of Science Monitoring and Evaluation. b. In the School of Nursing and Midwifery . i. The Post Graduate Diploma: Critical Care Nursing. c. In the School of Business and Applied Technology. i. Bachelor of Accounting and Finance

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Uganda’s Human Development Index (HDI) of national achievements in health, education, and income before Covid-19 was reported at 0.528 out of 1 (one being the highest possible HD). This score puts the country in the low human development category— positioning it at 159 out of 189 countries and territories. We hope that new programs (and graduates from these programs) can directly or indirectly contribute to improving the HDI of the country.

In keeping with Goal 2 of the CIU Strategic Plan 2023: to grow strategic Partnerships: CIU signed an MOU with the University of Somalia in December 2021 to establish a collaboration that will allow Somali students to access learning via a satellite learning centers.

But one of our biggest wins this past year is that the university was able to send these graduates off to join the frontline health workforce where they are needed the most. The mission and vision of CIU are represented in the capacity of faculty, students, and alumni to Lead, Innovate and Transform. At graduation, Mr. Andrew Kamau’s (BScN, Class of 2012) testimony of his work with covid-19 patients was a true reflection of CIU’s mission at work in the community. Andrew is the winner of the Heroes in Health Award (HIHA) 2021 for the Covid-19 responder of the Year. HIHA is a rewards initiative instituted to recognize outstanding individuals, entities, organizations, services, products, and programs. This is a public choice award, where members of the public nominate and vote their heroes.

We were also delighted to host Mr. Robert Kabushenga who noted that the story of leadership, innovation and transformation has been captured very well in the life of a 70-year-old man called Dr. Ian Clarke.

What a fitting tribute to the proprietor of CIU! Lastly, we celebrated key milestones with the appointment of the first full professor of management of CIU as well as the appointment of the first female Associate Professor of Nursing Leadership and Management at CIU and in the country.

Congratulations to all CIU graduates. #GoLead

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GRADUATION IN PICTURES

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THE LAST MILE SCHOLARSHIP In December of 2020, CIU’s scheduled graduation was moved to March 2021. Continuing lockdown in the first year of the pandemic resulted in many students failing to collect data for their dissertations on time. Relatedly, with hundreds of thousands of Ugandans at home and unable to work, paying for a university education was out of reach for many of our students. Among the 420 eligible-to-graduate students for the year 2020-2021, over 30% could not graduate citing financial strain as a result of the pandemic.

Further, nearly 13% of the remaining graduates needed financial support to clear tuition and fees balances often amounting to 50% or less, while others wrote promissory notes to be allowed to graduate and pay later.

These experiences have persisted among subsequent graduating cohorts and have intensified amidst Uganda’s escalating inflation and high commodity prices for basic goods and services.

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We know that every year, many university-eligible students fail to enter university due to financial constraints. These needs were already pronounced among many poor youths before the pandemic. In Uganda the majority of students pay for their education at university level. The Ugandan Government sponsors about 4,000 students per year out of the over 190,000 who enter private and public (41%) universities every year (The State of Higher Education and Training in Uganda, 2018/2019). Additionally, there is a dearth of accessible university government or private loan schemes in the country, particularly for students in licensed but not Chartered universities. And, with loss of jobs or inability to work during lockdown, many parents, guardians, and self-funded students found themselves unable to borrow money from banks as an alternative means to pay for self, or their child’s education.

When the Rose’s Journey Scholarship Fund was

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established in 2009, it was in response to and in recognition of these needs among nursing and other health professional students seeking to pursue a university degree. Over 90% of students at CIU are health professional students, many of whom worked on the frontline thorough the pandemic. And as we got closer to the graduation date in March of 2021, it was inconceivable that more than 40% of well-trained health professionals would be held back from graduating for having failed to secure funds for their education.

The Last Mile Scholarship part of RJSF was established to support 40 health professional students in their last year of study. It was in recognition of the fact that as universities re-opened many students who were previously capable of meeting the cost of their education were unable to do so. In addition, we recognized the urgent need to release graduates as part of the COVID-19 strategy to bolster the number of healthcare providers on the frontline.

Since the first call in 2021 to raise funds, a total of 20,000$ have been raised towards the Last Mile Scholarship; and 40 health professional students including Nurses, Midwives, Clinical Officers, Medical Laboratory Scientists, Pharmacy Officers, Public health Officers and Medical Education Trainers have been supported.

The Last Mile is part of a wellestablished RJSF. The goal of the fund is to be able to support nursing and other health professional students who are deserving, have demonstrated financial need, and have the potential to emulate some of

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the defining values and the spirit of Rose’s Journey: A dedication to the pursuit of excellence in service; A servant heart, Hard work, Passion for nursing, Passion for humanity, Resilience, and A demonstrated ability to lead, inspire and enable others in communities.

We are deeply grateful to friends and partners of the RJSF who are enabling this Fund through generous giving and continued support. In particular, this could not have been possible without the support and continuing collaboration with the Narrow Road International Aide, Relationship Awareness, USA, friends of RJSF such as Chuck and Pat Gordon of Russellville Arkansas, and the Health Education Empowerment, USA.

To give to the RJSF in the USA please follow this link: http://narrowroadintl.bcmcommunity.org/Narrow_Road__Roses_Journey.html In Uganda funds can be sent to Clarke International University Account number: 6000164850 Absa Bank Uganda Limited Tank Hill Parade, Muyenga Swift Code: BARCUGKX Purpose (RJSF)

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LEARNING AND TEACHING AT CIU: A BLENDED APPROACH?

In the second year of the Covid-19 pandemic it became clear that higher education institutions would not be going back to the traditional world of teaching and learning as it was before the pandemic. Planned change is usually hard. But forced and unplanned, but inevitable change is even harder. And that is what we have grappled with and will continue embrace in the months ahead. The university implemented swift and pragmatic actions necessary to foster continuity in 2020-2021; we must now leverage the two years of institutional learning related to the Emergency Open Distance and eLearning (ODeL) implementation to advance the CIU Model of Education.

While teaching online was not new at CIU— having implemented eLearning in 2010 for graduate programs—2020 was the first time some of our teaching faculty and administrators started engaging in online teaching. It was a steep learning curve. Similarly, for majority of our students, the experience was also new.

The university rapidly implemented campuswide intensive eLearning clinics for staff and students, and invested heavily in establishing enabling infrastructure, policies, and processes to enable quality and engaging education experiences. Learning from the experience of both students and faculty (through open E-Assemblies, program reviews, student, staff, and faculty feedback), benchmarking with other institutions, and seeking guidance from the National Council of Higher education (NCHE)

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has helped us consolidate and shape the future of eLearning at CIU. Analysis of survey data for both faculty and students indicated that majority of students and faculty reported positive experiences of ODeL including design and access to quality learning content, online assessments, access to and utilization of digital education resources, and student and faculty engagement. Majority indicated a preference for continuity using eLearning and many reported facing zero to fewer technical issues. But both faculty and students reported areas of improvement including wanting more interactive lectures, integrated simulation in the learning management system, networking issues for students in less networked areas, the cost of data, and gaps in orientation for eLearning naïve students (especially among first year students).

The university responded to some of these areas of challenge by enhancing staff and faculty preparedness for online learning, providing data for faculty and students, investing in ongoing digital literacy and eLearning clinics, appointing eLearning Support Committees, expanding access to open-source educational resources, implementing Covid-19 public health measures to allow clinical and skills lab placements, and strengthening institutional ICT infrastructure. Some of these interventions were necessary especially during

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the lock down where mobility was restricted for majority of Ugandans.

The university management recognizes that some of these measures are not fiscally sustainable however, what we have learned from staff, students, emerging evidence, and experiences from other higher education institutions (HEIs) helps us prepare better for future disruptions and will shape ongoing strategies for learning and teaching at CIU.

Globally, many HEIs have already adopted education models that leverage the best of both face-toface and online learning to make their education delivery flexible and accessible and to meet the evolving student needs. Thus, the blended instructional approaches (that provide engaging learning opportunities by combining face-to-face with digitally enhanced online learning opportunities) will continue to be part

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of CIU’s instructional strategies going forward. At CIU we have no intention of blinking on quality, and we want to assure our stakeholders that careful attention, consultation, and planning will be undertaken as we full open the university and continue to implement new instructional strategies.

However, to ensure optimal learning experiences through blended and hybrid approaches, all stakeholders must learn to learn.

Ongoing eLearning readiness and enhanced competencies for faculty and students is necessary.

Evidence-based approaches on how to successfully implement blended approaches is critical. Support by parents and guardians, regulators, and government agencies as well as other relevant higher education stakeholders is also vital.

As stated earlier, change is hard and requires sustained positive energy.

We are a learning institution. Let us continue learning.

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Clarke International University takes Counseling so serious that Mr .Osire the University Counselor says re -opening means many new starts for the different students and staff ,as a way of adapting to the new norms created by the University and the country as a whole,this means the only way to achieve our goals and objectives is by making things flexible through improving the educational objective ,planning and course curriculum.

Below are some of the guide questions The University Counselor answered in relation to the main topic of ”Why counseling is important for University students especially during the Post Covid ?”

a) What are some of the unique challenges facing students as they are back at school?

Mr.Osire Morris .

Interview with the University Counselor of Clarke International University

Why Counseling is important for University students especially during Post Covid or Post Lockdown.

Counseling is traced way back from the ancient times where elders passed knowledge and guidance to the young ones or even to their fellow agements with reference to their past experiences and with this they gave correct ways of handling problems but more so ways of preventing them from happening.

This has always been a natural part of human experience no matter what level of education an individual is involved in because it cuts across ,this is witnessed through use of relationship to facilitate self knowledge ,emotional acceptance and growth and personal resources or talents.For example when a person goes through counseling he /she has to be made aware about their own positive attributes and negative problems .

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Heading back to the lecture room or fitting in can be challenging especially during a pandemic,As some institutions have been open this year by conducting virtual classes,the others have not got access to learning material and lessons for close to two years during this pandemic.

Opening schools while Covid 19 poses challenges for students especially mentally or physically .Something that many Institutions already understood is that one size does not fit all. This is why education at higher Institutions is so complex and why it has been so challenging to bring about improvements because there’s no clear road map setup.

The solution depends on the individual, the community, and the classroom.For example a few students are still traumatized by the past events during the pandemic ,so the counseling staff has introduced a support system like individual and group counseling for students mental well being which is encouraging all students facing any mental issues ,Mr .Osire’s office is open because if a student is not in the right state of mind then they can not perform well academically.

b)How are the teachers and students handling the transition at the university during the Post Covid period?

Heading back to the lecture room or fitting in can be challenging especially during a pandemic,As some institutions have been open this year by conducting virtual classes,the others have not got access to learning material and lessons for close to two years during this pandemic.

Opening schools while Covid 19 poses challenges for students especially mentally or physically .Something that many Institutions already understood is that one size does not fit all. This is why education at higher Institutions is so complex and why it has been so challenging to bring about improvements because there’s no clear road map setup.

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The solution depends on the individual, the community, and the classroom.For example a few students are still traumatized by the past events during the pandemic ,so the counseling staff has introduced a support system like individual and group counseling for students mental well being which is encouraging all students facing any mental issues ,Mr .Osire’s office is open because if a student is not in the right state of mind then they can not perform well academically.

c) What is the role of parents in preparing these students for the basic educational routine?

Some teachers have been able to connect with their students, whether by phone or on Zoom, or physically, through this they put concerted effort into doing outreach in the community to check on families to make sure they have basic needs.The teacher at school is needs to play the parental role as well because even when the parents are not around, the close supervision by the teacher gives quality information to the parent which helps them observe the students behavior. As an institution there should be frequent communication to parents about their children’s time,incase of any severe mental or physical emergence the parent can be contacted so that they work hand in hand with the Institution for the student’s mental and physical well being. Clarke International University has been able to understand what challenges their students are facing and are somewhat flexible and proactive to address these challenges, especially if they already have strong parental engagement. That’s why you have continued to see progress and growth

Finally, the University Counselor Mr.Morris Osire encourages students to freely interact with fellow students to avoid issues of being left out and if they need any help or someone to talk to, his office is always open.

He also encourages students to take part in different programmes organized by the University like Debates to keep their brains engaged and also keep physical interaction because we all know an idle mind is a devils workshop.

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d)What should you do for students that have been facing mental stress,anxiety and depression during the Covid 19 pandemic?

Students need to appreciate because at Clarke International University we consider consider Counseling services very serious thats why its free of charge, entitled to each and every student .Mr Osire the University Counselor says “its okay to seek for help because when you do ,you are guaranteed an improvement on your well being or health.”

Since we have just opened up, each student needs a copying mechanism on how to handle the past events that have affected their life.For instance taking part in the individual or group counseling sessions will help provide a support system through tailor intervention or getting involved.

One other point is that given that we know lecturers do more than just academics, we need to make sure our lecturers are trained to be able to provide social emotional support to students. As some of the students come back into the classroom, we need to acknowledge that they may be dealing with devastating losses, or the frustration of being kept inside, or the violence that is happening in their homes and neighborhoods. It’s very hard to learn if you’re first dealing with those kinds of issues. Our lecturers already do so much, and we need to support them more and provide even more training to help them address that wide-ranging set of challenges their students may be facing even before they can get to the learning part.

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ROAD TO

CHARTER

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By Prof. Rose Nanyonga Clarke Four weeks ago, we re-submitted the CIU application for Charter. The application was a culmination of efforts by the collective leadership team. In particular, the Self-Assessment Committee, which is led

by Dean John Bosco Alege, the QA Officer, Ms. Githinji, the Registrar, and other support leadership teams. For me, the submission itself is a win. I read the Self- Assessment Report (SAR, 2022) with pride. It reflects the true image of who we are as an entity, what we have accomplished, our aspirations for the future and our continued relevance in higher education in Uganda and beyond.

For more than a decade, CIU has been dedicated to making a difference in healthcare education through knowledge expansion and sharing; inspiring change and innovation through research; engaging with communities and institutions to improve the human condition and translate knowledge into practice and developing the next generation of healthcare and business leaders for Uganda and beyond. In this fourteenth year of the university, we seek to enhance the profile of the university by securing one of the highest recognitions of quality in higher education in Uganda: In 2019, following a monitoring visit by the National Council of Higher Education, we received one distinct recommendation: for CIU to “Prioritise the construction of a permanent home before starting the Charter Application Process” We have since fulfilled this requirement and we believe

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that these developments among others will continue to support the establishment of CIU as an institution of great repute and stability. Securing Charter will open substantial opportunities for program growth, and new streams of revenue for research funding, as well as provide a mark of credibility to support past, current, and future graduates’ standing in the various industries where they serve.

The application process has also allowed us to reflect on our reason for being as well as our purpose and aspirations. The future of the region’s emerging market is greatly dependent on the effective skilling and education of current and future generations of Ugandans to be successful transformers of their community, and this is at the core of the CIU Vision and Mission.

Since its establishment, CIU has grown and evolved, passed many milestones, established a robust infrastructure, and forged transitions and strategic alliances that have enabled the university to achieve its goals.

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In responding to the need for developing a fit for purpose health workforce we have focused our agenda on not only increasing the quantity but also the quality of healthcare graduates.

Although the country has seen an overall increase in the number of healthcare providers from 44,000 (2008) to over 100,000 in 2020, there is still a vacancy rate of 26%, and significant inequities in the distribution of the available workforce (MoH, 2020; WEMOS, 2019). CIU contributes meaningfully to closing this gap and is part of Uganda’s effort to ensure that health care is more accessible to the entire population.

Past and current CIU Strategic Initiatives demonstrate the university’s commitment to building a sustainable future while fostering the overall engagement of the CIU community to strengthen our core pillars: Learning and Teaching; Research and Innovation, and Community Service.

CIU is cognizant that the future of Uganda will increasingly be defined by Ugandans who can lead, innovate, and transform the current and future industries. Our graduates must compete favourably. To do this, we must continue to strengthen our foundational aspirations. Among them:

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Becoming a university that constantly challenges thestatus quo.

02.

Ensuring that our people are enabled to make a difference using their talents, knowledge, skills, and available resources.

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Prioritizing academic excellence, research productivity as well our students and faculty’s influence and impact in communities.

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Establishing processes and procedures that ensure that faculty and staff remain principal assets in achieving our vision and mission.

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Inspiring students to Dream, Discover, Create/ Innovate, and Experiment in order to develop solutions that address the country’s needs.

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Becoming a flagship for outstanding valuesbased education that increases our student’s readiness for a complex, interconnected, diverse, and fast-paced world.

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Fostering a culture of Trust, Respect, Responsibility, Diversity, Communication, Timeliness and Execution, and Environmental Preservation.

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Pursuing a growth and change agenda that is necessary to ensure increasing capacity, vitality, and sustainability.

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Operating a financially stable, accountable, and nimble organization to strengthen CIU’s capacity to respond to internal and external threats.

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Developing our people as Whole Individuals (Mind, Skill, and Tools).

CIU is also built upon a steady foundation of a credible promoter. Beyond seed investments, Dr Clarke continues to invest in the ongoing infrastructure developments of the university. The vision of the Clarke family is to impact Uganda through sustainable development. Over the years they have provided thousands of jobs in their various enterprises and recognised the need for a values-based practical education as a foundation for employment. (See The Founder’s Aspirations)

In the last 14 years, we have established ourselves as leaders in the education sector. Goal 5 of the CIU Strategic Plan 2023 is Leadership and Advocacy: To Increase Leadership Capacity, Lead Change and Take CIU to the World. This is also a critical institutional capacity indicator per NCHE guidelines. CIU has a strong leadership team that has steered the university to this point. Our leadership is engaged, enthusiastic and extremely capable of the imminent growth and expansion of the university. The team is experienced and from diverse backgrounds including Academia, Research, Business and Applied Technology, Health, Faith-based, Higher Education, Economics, Philanthropy, Law, Private and Public Sectors and so on.

With such a wide range of representation and experiences, we believe the team will support the university as it strives to demonstrate high value and impact in Uganda.

Fig 1. The Founders’ Aspirations

The charter process was also instrumental in highlighting the strengths of our talented, diverse, and exceptional staff who are committed to the vision and mission of the university. CIU’s community of scholars is dedicated to creating learning experiences that foster lifelong learning and they strive to model for our students a culture of responsibility, integrity, accountability, academic excellence, and value-based responsive leadership.

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Recruitment and retention of outstanding talent.

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Integration of value-driven pedagogy.

The Charter application is a result of dedicated investment in CIU infrastructure, systems, programs and cultures that foster traditions of academic excellence. Key drivers that underpin academic developments at CIU include: •

Ensuring that our programs are in line with current and future market demands.

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Relevance of courses as a response to national and international priorities and employment needs.

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Not blinking on Quality through adherence to quality processes.

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Recognizing that disruptive innovation will continue to change the way the world learns— and implementing innovative curricula to enable the employability of our graduates.

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According to the World Economic Forum (2020) By 2025, ‘‘ some 85 million jobs may be lost to emerging division of labour among humans, machines, and algorithms. HOWEVER 97 million more jobs may emerge that are better adapted to the new dynamic. Among top 10 skills in terms of prominence by the year 2025, according to the report, are soft skills including creativity, ledership. and flexibility. ‘‘

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Given this focus, we believe CIU is well-positioned to capitalise on the potential for increased market segments through diversification of programmes and research opportunities.

Building Human Capital Through Education, Skills, and Learning.

We are pursuing the Charter because we believe that Higher Education Institutions need to “be enabled to undertake technological innovation that can fundamentally expand and transform education…to build future-ready (and pandemic proof) education systems” (WEF, 2020) and to enhance Uganda’s Human Capital. The World Economic Forum (WEF, 2022) outlines five core areas for consideration for future education, skills, and learning all of which highlight needed domains of competencies and learning needs for future professionals.

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Lifelong Learning Pathways (key drivers: Gender inequity, Behavioural sciences, Ageing and longevity, infrastructure changes, artificial intelligence, changes in workforce employment, the 4th industrial revolution (4IR), agile governance, social innovation, and Economic progress.

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Relevant Continuing Education (Key drivers: e.g., inequality, sustainable development, innovation, 4IR, migration, youth perspectives).

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Quality Basic Education (Key drivers: Public finance and social protection, data science, Covid-19, Human rights, digital communications).

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Education Innovation (Key drivers: Covid-19, pandemic preparedness, future of computing, virtual and augmented realities).

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Digital Fluency and STEM Skills (Key drivers: Data science, artificial intelligence, future of computing, science, 4IR, values, the digital economy).

We believe that obtaining a Charter will help us leverage and scale our education offers to meet the future education needs of the country.

At what is a historic juncture for CIU, the university: borrowed over 1.6 billion shillings to purchase a beautiful 4-acre site in a prime location; successfully paid off the loan in 2019 and has built its campus. We hope that this level of infrastructure development supports the pursuit of the Charter – the ownership of our own home being the final hurdle CIU had yet to achieve in order to be awarded this distinction.

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The charter acquisition will allow the university to grow.

For example, expansion of graduate studies (including doctoral studies) requires a Charter. In addition, in recent years, several of our graduates have also been denied admission to graduate schools where the university policy stipulates admission for only those candidates from a Chartered university. This is a significant limitation to our growing body of Alumni currently totalling over 3200.

A key pillar of the University is research and Innovation.

Although the university’s lack of a Charter limits our ability to actively pursue some research related grants, the university has actively advanced research and scholarship and has diversified the research portfolio. This is reflected in the strategic partnerships and the growing area of knowledge development and research dissemination.

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CIU New Home! Phase One Complete Community: Over the years, we have prioritised Community as a key part of learning at CIU. The mission of CIU is to prepare students for global leadership, and for those graduates to be catalysts for transformation. CIU students adopt this mission on entry into the university through university traditions such as the CIU Leadership Pledge which encourages students to lead even in the absence of a title, to lead with resilience, courage, integrity, humility etc. and by enabling others to greatness among other things.

Community Engagement reflects continuously negotiated collaborations and partnerships between CIU and the interest groups and is aimed at building and exchanging knowledge, skills, expertise, and resources required to develop and sustain society. The goal is to enhance service-learning: An educational experience in which students participate in contextualised, well-structured and organised service activities…and reflect on the service experiences in order to gain a deeper understanding of the linkages between curriculum content and community dynamics.

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Part of our strategic goal to take CIU to the world is achieved through the various community projects the university undertakes every year as well as our growing presence of alumni in the community.

Since its founding, CIU has strived to educate students who go on to become leaders in every sector.

The critical importance of skills-based learning has been at the core of the university’s strategic initiatives, resulting in highly sought-after graduates across the region. As communicated before, based on Alumni Tracer Surveys, 93% of CIU graduates are in employment, a remarkable statistic in a country where the majority of graduates are unemployed.

We have come a long way. We have demonstrated resilience in the face of the pandemic. We are proud of the work that CIU has accomplished over the last 14 years. Please look out for Charter updates in the weeks to come. I hope that we can all lean into this process and support every effort, detail, and our amazing teams through the last mile. This is work we can all be proud of selflessly doing. Bravo CIU.

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The first female nurse to acquire the title of Associate Professor of Nursing Leadership, Management and Policy.

By Dr. Rose Clarke Nanyonga

This Month, Clarke International University (CIU) celebrated Dr. Rose Clarke Nanyonga, the Vice Chancellor, on her new appointment as Associate Professor of Nursing Leadership, Management and Policy of CIU. To our knowledge, the is the first female nurse to earn the title in Uganda.

Dr. Nanyonga, a well-established inspirational healthcare leader, educator, learner, researcher, nurse, mentor, policy influencer, and global health enthusiast. She has more than 26 years of clinical nursing experience and health systems & administrative leadership. Before pursuing a career in academia, she worked as the Director of Nursing and Midwifery services at International Hospital Kampala and later served as the Director of Clinical Services for International Medical Group, Kampala, Uganda.

She was instrumental in helping Dr. Ian Clarke to establish the International Hospital School of Nursing in 2005, which subsequently formed the first faculty of CIU in 2008.

Being first is not new for Dr. Nanyonga. She was the first (male or female) in her birth family to earn a college degree graduating 32

with a Bachelor of Science-Nursing from Arkansas Tech University, USA in 2002 with the highest distinction (Summa Cum Laude) in her class.

She went on to earn Master of Science in Nursing degree from Baylor University, USA in 2005 (Family Nurse Practitioner); a Ph.D. in Nursing from Yale University, USA in 2015; and a Graduate Certificate of Concentration in Global Health from the Whitney and Betty McMillan Center for International Studies at Yale University, USA in 2015. She was the first Ugandan graduate to have a scholarship named in her honor at Yale University in 2015 and has gone on to win more honors including becoming a Jonas Scholar (Yale University); Distinguished Alumnae (Yale-2018); a Hall of Distinction Alumnae (Arkansas Tech University-2020); and was named among the 100 Most Outstanding Women Nurse and Midwife Leaders

by Women in Global Health a story we covered previously.

In addition to her busy schedule as VC, Dr Nanyonga is interested in research that explores issues related

By Daphne Bukirwa 18 Image lost resolution due to stretch to Health Systems Strengthening, Management of Chronic Illnesses, Health care and Higher Education Leadership & Policy, and Nursing Workforce studies. Her Ph.D. work examined Leadership, Followership, and the Context, an Integrative Examination of Nursing Leadership in Uganda.

She is a co-Principal Investigator in multiple research studies exploring hypertension care in Uganda, optimising nurse-led interventions for hypertension management, and is currently an institutional faculty mentor for the Health Professions Education and training for strengthening the health system and services in Uganda program (NIH Grant No. 1R25TW011213) in which CIU is a participating institution.

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Her impressive CV highlights a wide range of platforms where her research has been disseminated through publications in peer review journals, conferences, webinars, and relevant presentations. Dr. Nanyonga believes that the best work that academicians do is in community where individuals are able to translate theories into tangible and practical solutions, thus community outreach remains a core pillar of her academic work. Dr. Nanyonga is the founder of the Rose’s Journey Scholarship Fund which was established in 2009 to support and increase the number of nurses and midwives with baccalaureate degrees in Uganda. To date, this program has sponsored over 72 health professional students to complete their degrees. She also spearheads the Lead, Inspire, Enable leadership training programs for nurses and midwives in practice. She also serves

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on numerous committees and boards, holds multiple speaking engagements and mentoring webinars annually, and is passionate about enabling young people through thought and valueoriented leadership.

In 2009, Dr. Nanyonga pioneered a grassroots campaign to end child sacrifice and crimes associated with ritualistic child sacrifice in Uganda.

She has remained an avid advocate for change in this area She is a member of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses, American Association of Nurse Practitioners, American Nurses Association and Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society for Nurses.

For the last 7 years, Dr. Nanyonga has successfully led the CIU leadership and staff to transition the university from a disadvantaged state to a

position where CIU is well-established as one of the leading private universities in Uganda. In recent months, with the country besieged with the Covid-19 Pandemic, she and her team demonstrated leadership by collaboratively working with the National Council of Higher Education to foster continuity of learning through the Emergency Open Distance and E-Learning for health professional students at CIU. She has done so while remaining passionate about issues that impact the nursing and midwifery profession and has remained a key leadership figure for the Nursing and Midwives Leaders Think Tank, an advocacy group established in 2020 to respond to issues impacting the fraternity during the Covid-19 pandemic. We join every nurse and midwife and all Ugandans in celebrating this well accomplished scholar.

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Dr. John Charles Okiria Promoted to Full Professor of Management of Clarke International University

The University Council is very pleased to announce that Dr. John Charles Okiria has been promoted to the rank of Full Professor, effective December 17th, 2021. Congratulations!!

Since he arrived at CIU in 2008, Professor Okiria has worked tirelessly to move the Institute of Allied Health forward, both in his capacity as a regular faculty member and in recent years as the Dean of the Institute a position he has held since 2014.

The professor is currently a Teaching Professor; a Dean of the Institute of Allied Health Sciences; The Chairperson Allied Health Professionals Council Uganda (Serving a second 3-year term); A Senior Programme Assessor for National Council for Higher Education; and A board member on numerous Government and private organizations in Uganda.

Professor Okiria has also conducted several research studies funded/ financed

by USAID, UNFPA, INTRAHEALTH, other private institutions, and the Ministry of Health Uganda. Before CIU, he worked in public service as the Head of pharmaceutical services at the district level for over 18 years. He has dedicated his life’s work by investing in the medical education and business sector, mentoring healthcare professionals, and service to the community.

As a dean at CIU, a large portion of Professor Okiria’s assignment has been devoted to the strategic management and coordination of the Institute’s core activities: Teaching, Research & Innovation, and Service. The high quality of Professor Okiria’s teaching is supported clearly by the glowing recommendations he has received from current and former students, as well by the consistently high student evaluation of instructor scores that he has earned over the years. Peer evaluations were also obtained and spoke highly of the candidates’ ability to teach effectively.

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Professor Okiria’s scholarly activities are impressive, timely, and innovative; more importantly, perhaps, is their positive impact on the discipline. Of particular note is the continued high quality of Dr. Okiria’s research productivity even when he carried a significant administrative load as the dean. For the last 5 years, Professor Okiria has published over 28 peer-review 20 journal articles. This is in line with CIU’s core strategy to advance research and scholarship while enhancing innovative practices.

Professor Okiria’s contributions to the Institute of Allied Health Sciences, the Senior Management Team, the University Senate, The University Council, and other University Committees have been nothing short of exemplary. He can be counted on to promote the university through program expansion (which is evidenced by the various programs he has developed), work collaboratively with both internal and external stakeholders, and with this key milestone promotion, the university celebrates a truly well-rounded individual and colleague.

In this 14th year of Clarke International University, we invite you to congratulate and celebrates the talent, and dedicated service of our very own Professor John Charles Okiria. We trust he will continue to emulate the ethos and values of the university as he pursues the fulfillment of CIU’s mission and vision. We celebrate him above his peers and wish him well in all his endeavors.

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Professor Okiria has clearly excelled in external community service and has a well-established and strong national reputation, and consistently offers effective service to the country. For example, he is one of few individuals to have received a Presidential Golden Jubilee Award in 2019 in recognition of his leadership, technical, and innovations in the Health/ Education industry and Community.Professor Okiria has clearly excelled in external community service and has a well-established and strong national reputation, and consistently offers effective service to the country. For example, he is one of few individuals to have received a Presidential Golden

Jubilee Award in 2019 in recognition of his leadership, technical, and innovations in the Health/ Education industry and Community.

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NEW PROGRAMS

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VC Nanyonga and Registrar Ayot with the completed Charter Application

MPH GET

TOGETHER

By Daphne Bukirwa

Before the Corona Virus pandemic, e-learning in the Institute of Public Health and Management (IPHM) at Clarke International University was only restricted to remote students (post graduate students taking Master’s in Public Health and Heath Service Management) with a blended approach. Currently e-learning at CIU has been integrated in all university programs. Since 18 th March 2020, all our post graduate students (full time, part time, evening and remote) have been undertaking their programs online due to the COVID 19 SOP requirements

by WHO, MoHUganda and NCHE. Though a virtual tour to CIU was done during the lockdown, IHPM thought it was vital for students to have a physical University tour before they embark on end of semester exams in May. On 30 th April, a physical tour was organized by the coordinator for community engagement at CIU (Alimah Komuhangi), students from Somalia, Eritrea, South Sudan, Ghana, and Congo and rural and urban districts

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of Uganda were able to physically interact with peers and their lecturers. Students also met administrators in the registry office, HR office, Faculty office, ICT department, Quality Assurance office, Refactory and the Research office. After the University tour, we had a BBQ, several games, cake cutting and awarded gifts to online class representatives and those that demonstrated time management skills in terms of logging online for classes. Closing remarks were given by the IHPM Dean Mr. John Bosco Alege. We thank the staff that were present to meet the students (Ms. Anitah mwebaze, Dr. Allan Komaketch, Mrs. Miriam Ondia, Ms. Fiona Atim, Ms. Josephine N, Mr. Nuwagaba Justus, Mr. Rashid, Mr. Martin, Ms. Florence Githingi, Ms. Monica and Mr. Hamid K). Special thanks go to PR department, ICT department, Registrar and Prof. Rose Clarke Nanyonga for making the event a success.

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