The Founder, His Excellency Atiku Abubakar, has commended the vision of the management of AUN Schools in launching the School Improvement Project (SIP). He also praised alums of the AUN Academy for turning out in large numbers to support their alma mater.
The Founder spoke on December 9, 2022, during the official presentation of the School Improvement Project at a dinner hosted by the AUN Schools and attended by his wife, Her Excellency Dr. Mrs. Amina Titi Abubakar, alums and parents of the AUN Academy, entrepreneurs, business leaders, and the Founder's political associates.
He spoke about his abiding passion for education and why he believes that the nation's policymakers must prioritize education. The Founder pledged to continue to support the cause of education and promote an inclusive national education policy that will ensure access to quality education for all Nigerians, irrespective of background.
"We have reached a point in our lives where we feel obliged to contribute to the field of education. You can always count on me to make education accessible and available to every child in Nigeria. This is my promise".
The former Vice President of Nigeria and frontrunner for the presidency in 2023 explained that he founded the schools, which now include a university with undergraduate and graduate programs, to provide young people with access to quality education and to give back to society what it had given him. "I have always held the unwavering conviction that education is the key to success in life and must be accorded top priority at all levels."
The Founder revealed that his love for education is why he has never taken money from the AUN Schools system; instead, he has always directed the Schools' management to plow back any excess funds into redeveloping the institutions and maintaining their international status.
His Excellency Atiku Abubakar congratulated the school's administration for launching the SIP while wishing the alums and their parents continued success.
Alums, their parents, and the community are partners in creating access to education, the Founder said. He congratulated the alums on their efforts to become successful role models in society and thanked them for their contributions to the institution's continued growth and development.
The presentation of the AUN Academy's SIP was part of activities in commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the founding of the AUN Schools, which presently comprise the Academy (Nigerian and British track), the Charter School (American track), and the Elementary and Early Learning Center (pre-school cadres).
The dinner, which also aimed at raising funds for the Schools' infrastructure and ICT upgrade designed to be implemented in three phases, quickly became a networking platform for the alums, who were more than excited to be reunited with their schoolmates and former teachers.
A highlight in the evening's colorful gala was the presentation of a plaque to the Founder by the Chairman of the AUN Schools Board of Trustees, Dr. Mrs. Ebi Seimodei, on behalf of the Schools' Management, staff, and Alumni in appreciation of his unparalleled vision in establishing the AUN Schools twenty years ago and his unwavering commitment to developing education in Nigeria.
Senate Minority Leader Senator Philip Tanimu Aduda, former Governor of Imo State, His Excellency Rt. Hon. Sir Emeka Ihedioha, Senators Ben Bruce-Murray, Dino Melaye, and former Registrar and Vice President for Administration of the American University of Nigeria, Dr. Andy Okolie, are among the dignitaries in attendance.