ACHIEVEMENTS AS DEAN, FACUTY OF SCIENCE (2001-2004) AND PROVOST, COLLEGE OF SCIENCE (2004-2010)

1. Initiating a new building complex to provide larger laboratories and lecture halls/theatres,  permanent accommodation to the departments of  Biochemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, Actuarial Science, Food Science & Technology, Optometry, Environmental Science, offices for the Provost, Deans and Heads, a College Library, 400 capacity Auditorium and a Conference Hall. The Building was commissioned by the Chancellor of KNUST, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, Asantehene on 28^thJune, 2010.
2. Provision of Teaching and Learning Aid materials, such as, white boards in all classrooms, lecture theatres and laboratories, LCD projectors and 7 SMART Boards to facilitate teaching and learning.
3. Modernization of Physics, Chemistry, Biology and, the Optometry and Visual Science, Laboratories to international standards at a cost of GH¢15 Million
4. Provision of internet connectivity to almost all offices, libraries, departmental computer laboratories and some specialized laboratories.
5. Improvement in transportation of staff and students for field trips and research activities outside KNUST by acquiring a VALCO Trust Fund Minibus through donation and the purchase of two 33-seater buses.
6. Setting up of Computer laboratories in all departments with all computers hooked unto the internet.
7. Reviewed all existing academic programmes in consultation with industry and other stakeholders
8. Setting up of new undergraduate programmes (Food Science & Technology, Environmental Science, Statistics & Actuarial Science, Meteorology and Climate Science)
9. Strengthening the College Library by acquiring more books and providing internet connectivity.
10. Creation and launching of a College Logo.
11. Production of College brochure, posters, and flyers for the general public and second cycle institutions to market the College and its programmes.
12. Production of Faculty/College Strategic Plan (CoS PLAN 2K14).
13. Development of a software for the computerization of Staff and students records, in particular, examination results, academic transcripts, online registration by students and payment of AFUF.
14. Recruitment drive to improve on the number of Academic Staff: Number which rose from 37 in 2001 to 150 in 2010.
15. Creation of a centralized College fund to support income generation in all departments
16. College of Science won the Exhibitor’s award, INDUTECH 2005, for Outstanding Performance in the Category of “Most Outstanding Research Exhibit”
17. Initiation of collaborative links with foreign universities:

Link with Ramapo College of New Jersey, USA

     A visit to Ramapo College in the USA, followed by a reciprocal visit by a team from Ramapo College led to signing of a MOU with the College and subsequently, the:

• Exchange of Academic Staff
• Donation of 300 computers (donated in two batches) and accessories, science text books and journals, laboratory equipment worth about $800,000 to the College
• Donation of books and journals to the newly established Nursing Department of SMS, and
• Donation of several books to the main University Library.

 Link with Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP)

A visit to IUP led to the signing of MOU for the:

• Exchange of Staff and students
• Training of postgraduate students (Staff Development)

Following a reciprocal visit to KNUST by a team from IUP, IUP donated computers and accessories, and essential Science Text books to the Faculty.

 Link with Pennsylvania State University: The AESEDA initiative

Was a member of a three member KNUST Team invited to participate in the 1^st Inaugural Symposium of the New Alliance for Earth Sciences, Engineering and Development (AESEDA), held in Pennsylvania State University, USA 13-14 October, 2003.

AESEDA is a research, education, and outreach initiative of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences of the Pennsylvania State University to provide partnership among Penn State University, some African Universities and some Colleges and Universities in the United States. A proposal to Penn State University in 2004 led to the signing of an MOU between KNUST and the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences of the Pennsylvania State University in 2005.

 Ghanaian-German Collaboration on Lake Bosumtwi

The Ghanaian-German Collaboration between the Department of Physics, and three German Universities of Frankfurt, Munich and Kiel was initiated to enhance geophysical research on Lake Bosumtwi and its environs. The benefits derived so far from this collaboration include:

• Construction of research platform (Akora Bompe), which was commissioned in March, 2000 by the then VC (Prof. Ayim), to facilitate scientific work on the lake. The facility was used by extensively by postgraduates from other Departments such as Biology and Environmental Science for their research on the lake and its environs.
• Donation of outboard motor to power the research platform, several modern pieces geophysical equipment, three computers and accessories, geophysical software, to the Department of Physics in June 2000
• Exchange programmes for staff to visit German universities and research centres
• PhD training programme for Geophysics lecturers in the Physics Department
• Donation of a field vehicle to the Department of Physics for Lake the Bosumtwi Research Project, in June 2004

 The Lake Bosumtwi Crater Drilling Project within the framework of the International Continental Scientific Drilling Programme (ICDP)

This was a collaborative research project between the Physics Department and the Geological Survey Department on one hand and, the ICDP on the other, in July, 2004. The Director of the Geological Survey Department and the then Dean of Science, were the signatories on the Ghanaian side. The project brought together geoscientists and climatologists from the Physics Department, KNUST, Geological Survey Department of Ghana, University of Toronto, Canada, University of Arizona, Syracuse University, U.S.A, and University of Vienna, Austria. The academic benefits derived from the Drilling Project included:

• Availability of drill cores of the lake crater for paleo-environmental, geophysical and impact studies
• Training of postgraduate students on drilling/coring techniques
• Establishment of link with the University of Akron, U.S.A., through which two of KNUST Physics postgraduates in Geophysics pursued their PhD with assistantship from the University of Akron
• Establishment of Link with the University of Toronto and University of Alberta in Canada for Staff Exchange. A senior member and current Head of Physics visited Toronto in 2005, under this programme.

 18        Donation of a grant of $10,000 by the Society of Exploration Geophysics (SEG, U.S.A)

Through an initiative, the SEG, granted $10,000 which was channeled through Prof. Fred Boadu of Duke University, U.S.A., to the Geophysics Section of the Physics Department, to provide geophysics journals and other educational materials to enhance the teaching and learning of Geophysics at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels, educate the younger generation (SSS students) on the benefits of exploration geophysics to society.

 19        Award of Grants from Teaching and Learning Innovative Fund (TALIF)

Under my leadership as the Dean/Provost, the College of Science did tremendously well to win TALIF grants totaling approximately eight hundred thousand dollars ($800,000) between 2004 and 2006 for the improvement of teaching, learning and research in the College of Science. These included grants for the:

• Creation of a Centralized Laboratory to improve the quality of undergraduate and postgraduate teaching and research. The College was awarded a TALIF grant of $200,000.00 to set up the laboratory (2004)
• Design and manufacture of Solar and Oven Driers awarded ¢95,000,000.00 (2005)
• Renovation and establishment of fully operational glass blowing and smelting unit at the Department of Chemistry, awarded $155,000.00 (2005)
• Computerized Database for the College of Science, awarded a grant of $19,963.00 (¢181,663,300.00) (2006)
• Establishment of a Cold Room Facility for Biotechnology Research laboratory, awarded $19,868.00 (¢ 180,798,800.00) (2006)
• Capacity Enhancement of Faculty of Distance Learning, awarded approximately $200,000.00 (2006)
• Establishing Molecular and Information facility (MMIF) to train graduate students at KNUST awarded $184,800.00 (2006)

 20        Establishment of College of Science French Resource Centre

Through an initiative, a Multimedia facility, worth about 30,000 Euros (about 300 million cedis) was donated by the French Government and commissioned jointly by the VC and the French Ambassador on 18^th April, 2006. The centre, located in the Chemistry Building, facilitated and strengthened the teaching of the French language to both staff and students but in particular, to science students, to give them linguistic proficiency in French language.