LIBERIA CUTTINGTON GROUP PROPOSAL. New edit March 24, 2015 Kweekeh, Florida - HHS <Florida.Kweekeh@houstontx.gov>

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1 LIBERIA CUTTINGTON GROUP PROPOSAL New edit March 24, 2015 Kweekeh, Florida - HHS <Florida.Kweekeh@houstontx.gov> The goal of this proposal is to seek funding for a library project to benefit students of Cuttington University, and the surrounding communities. Cuttington University is a private liberal arts university in Liberia, West Africa. The university is the oldest degree-granting institution in Sub-Saharan Africa. The now Cuttington University started in 1889 when the Episcopal Church in Cape Palmas, Maryland County, Liberia founded Cuttington Collegiate and Divinity School on the Southern-most tip of Liberia. The School was named after Mr. Robert Fulton Cutting, treasurer of the Board of Missions of the Episcopal Church in the United States. Mr. Cutting donated $5,000 to Bishop Samuel D. Ferguson, then Bishop of Liberia, to purchase a land on which to build a school. The primary purpose of the donation was for the establishment of a manual labor farm, which would provide opportunities for practical instruction of boys. On February 22, 1889, Bishop Ferguson laid the corner stone of the first building and named it Epiphany Hall. In the beginning, Cuttington admitted only men. Students came from all parts of Liberia and also from other West African countries. The enrollment was restricted to about 100 students. Standard for admission was high. The College awarded its first two certificates of proficiency in 1909 and was incorporated to give diplomas and grant degrees in Until 1929 when it was forced to close down for financial reasons, the College played an important role in providing quality education to Liberians and other Africans from the nearby West African countries. In 1949, Cuttington was re-opened through the instrumentality of the late Bishop Bravid W. Harris, then Bishop of Liberia, as a four-year co-educational Liberal Arts College, and re-named Cuttington College and Divinity School. Through the assistance of Dr. William V.S. Tubman, President of Liberia ( ), the Liberian Government donated to the Episcopal Church 1,500 acres of rich agricultural land at Suakoko, Bong County, to restablish a College. Commented [KF-H1]: Commented [KF-H2]: Commented [KF-H3]: Commented [KF-H4]: Commented [KF-H5]: Commented [KF-H6]: Commented [KF-H7]: Commented [KF-H8]: Commented [KF-H9]: Commented [KF-H10]: Commented [KF-H11]: Commented [KF-H12]: Cuttington University College, so re-named in 1977, was made up of six (6) degree granting Colleges: Education, Humanities, Social Science, Natural Science, and Nursing & Theology with plans to add more academic programs. Since its inception Cuttington has graduated men and women who have provided leadership

2 to Liberia as bishops, vice presidents, doctors, nurses, educators, and all branches of the government. Alumni from Southern, Eastern and other West African countries served in leadership positions in their countries. Dr. Melvin Mason, who served for 14 years ( ) as president of the College, was one of the two students that first completed course at Cuttington. During the civil crisis, the University campus was occupied by rebels and the students were forced to flee. Dr. Mason travelled to the United States to establish Cuttington-In-Exile. The Episcopla Church of United States provided support for Dr. Mason to continue to serve Cuttington from the USA. Dr. Henrique F. Tokpa succeeded Dr. Mason in August 2002 as the Sixth President of this great Institution but was not inducted into office until November 13, 2005 as a result of the number of interruptions due to the civil wars. Despite the series of financial constraints confronting the institution, Administration has, through the able leadership of Dr. Henrique F. Tokpa, been able to successfully add the following programs to the University in effort to meet the growing demands and challenges of the nation s development process: CU offers 11 degrees and 8 certificates in its undergraduate programs. The Graduate School comprises four departments that offer Master s Degrees in Theology, Nursing, Education and Business Administration and a Department of Professional Studies that offers certificates The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution The Research and Development Institute The Service Learning Department The Cuttington University Junior College in Kakata, Margibi County. This Junior College offers Associate of Applied Science degrees in General Studies leading to a Bachelor s degree in various academic disciplines. In addition to these programs, several sectors of the University have been reactivated with a focus towards reaching out to the surrounding communities and beyond. The same is done with villagers who wish to grow chicken. Besides, the faculty in the College of Agriculture and Integrated Rural Development reach out to the farmers in the surrounding areas to teach them methods of improving their production both in quality and quantity.

3 In addition, Dr. Tokpa s administration has succeeded in raising the status of Cuttington to that of a University, a process that lasted a few years. The University now has seven (7) colleges: College of Natural Sciences College of Health Sciences College of Education College of Theology College of Agriculture and Integrated Development Studies College of Business and Public Administration College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Cuttington University has three campuses. The premiere campus is located in Suakoko, Bong County which is 120 miles north of the capital city of Liberia, Monrovia. This campus houses the undergraduate programs. The junior college campus is located in Kakata, 50 miles north of Monrovia. The Junior College offers Associate of Arts degrees. The Graduate School campus is located in Monrovia. The Cuttington University Graduate School offers masters degrees. Each campus has its own library space. The university is located eight miles from the nearest city, Gbarnga, which is the seat of Bong County s local government. In closer proximity to the Suakoko campus, there are smaller communities/towns which accommodate three high schools, junior high and elementary schools. The estimated student population is over The library at Suakoko was built in 1975 for a student population of 350. Since then, undergraduate enrollment has swelled to over 2000 students. There are also libraries at the Junior College (enrollment of 300) and Graduate School (enrollment of 600). In the past, internet service has been provided at both the Suakoko and Graduate School campuses. The building for the Kakata campus is newly constructed and has not been wired for internet capacity and we realize that this is necessary. Statistics from these entities show that:

4 1. At the undergraduate campus, the monthly walk-ins average 1900 persons. Of this number, 236 (12%) actually utilize the circulation desk to check out books and reference materials. There is also an e-resource room which hosts eight working, internet wired, and desktop computers. Monthly visits to the room average persons. Many of the visitors are repeat visitors. This number includes faculty and students. Faculty members visit the library to place books and materials into reference. The vast majority of visitors to the library are students who come in to find a quiet place to study and complete assignments. During the dry season (November March) when the temperatures hover around degrees, students seek a respite from the heat and rain because the library is one of the few places on campus with air conditioning. 2. There are no statistics available for the junior college campus. The building was completed in January 2014 and there is no librarian as yet. 3. Statistics for the graduate campus are sketchy. This is a commuter campus and books are outdated. However, because of its location, the newspaper collection is adequate. We can conclude that with a population of 600 students the library is used primarily as a wait station for those attending classes. It also provides respite from the heat and rain. There are very few books. Objectives This project will provide opportunities to students and faculty of Cuttington University, and the community to access library resources. These resources will enable them to extend their learning and information literacy, with best practices in their chosen field of study. The resources will also enable participants to improve life long capabilities. This project will provide training opportunities to Cuttington University Staff, students and community at large. This project will establish relationship with Prairie View A&M University to exchange information literacy

5 This project will enable the University to communicate with the alumni throughout the world Goals/Outcomes As a result of this project, students at Cuttington University will receive a wellrounded education and empower them to compete globally. Library staff will become knowledgeable in library activities so that they are able to provide expertise and guidance to students and faculty. The communities at large will have access to 21 st century state-of-the-art equipment and resources. This empowers communities to become part of the global intellectual community. Physical Space The three campuses have library space and these will be available for the project. Currently those spaces include 1950 outdated books on shelves that are not reliable for classroom and professional development. These rooms will be transformed into multipurpose learning facilities with trained librarians, equipped with 21 st century state-of-the art technology. Technology 1. Each library will have ten (10) internet connections. 2. Each literacy lab will be equipped with resources for classroom and professional presentations (NOMAD). 3. Literacy labs will house reoccurring updated appropriate software resources to be used for teaching and learning outcomes and objectives. Training Cuttington University and Prairie View A&M University will identify/develop training resources. These resources will include videos, webinars, smart tablets, devices and library best practice.

6 2. Training for library staff and students to use and access resources will be ongoing. Instructors will be trained to incorporate multi-media into their classroom presentations. The students will be trained to access needed library resources, produced best practice presentations and research projects. Assessment Ongoing surveys and assessments will be built into the library projects to ensure nest practices for teaching library instructions. Participants will be evaluated on the use of equipment and supplies appropriately. Performance goals will be embedded into resources developed to ensure best practices in library engagement. Policies, rules and regulations will be assessed and evaluated to ensure compliance and continue to seek outside consultants for library outcomes. Budget See attached budget