The Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Caleb Group of Schools, which includes Caleb University, Imota, Lagos, Dr Oladega Adebogun, is not only a firm believer in the provision of quality education, but one that is provided at affordable cost for as many people as possible to benefit.

Not only that, he believes coming from a poor background should not be a factor to stop the realisation of the academic pursuit of anybody, as such persons should be encouraged with scholarship and other incentives to march forward.

All these, he not only preaches, but practises in the award of hundreds of scholarships annually to indigent students and the moderate cost of fees charged in his schools

For instance, for the 2019/2020 academic session, fees payable by students at the Caleb University ranged from N189,500 to N194,500 per semester and not much was added to the current session.

“It was Malcolm S. Forbes who said, ‘the purpose of education is to replace an empty mind with an open one’. If we are going to do that and make our society great and better, sound education that is hinged on core values that would also promote and produce sound moral values in our children must be our focus. That is what we are promoting in our schools.

At Caleb University for instance, our core values are Godliness, Innovation, Service, Integrity, Teamwork, Excellence and Creativity. We know that without Godliness in whatever we do, the result will be negative. We emphasise service to humanity, integrity that others can see in us and vouch for us about. Teamwork that is shown in the saying that two heads are better than one. Excellence in service and digging deep to draw from the innate creative power God has given us.

“From my own background and having served as a classroom teacher and also having worked in the public service as an educationist, I know that talents abound in this country and helping to educate and nurture such talents is a great way to lifting our society. Yes, we know education has a cost, but the cost shouldn’t be out of the reach of the majority.

My passion for education led to my investment in the sector, not that we just started because we want to make money. And that is why our fees are moderate. We are focused on making our products make positive impacts wherever they find themselves,” he said.

Adebogun, who left the services of the Lagos State Government as a Principal Inspector of Education, noted that government alone cannot meet the expectations of the citizens and must be complemented by other stakeholders.

Even as a private school owner, his membership of the National Association of Proprietors of Private Schools, NAPPS, has tremendously helped in lifting the bhody

On his annual scholarship awards that cut across all levels of education, Adebogun emphasised the need not to let financial constraints stand in the way of people yearning to actualize their dreams.