S.D.A. (Seventh-day Adventist) College of Education – Asokore, Koforidua

S.D.A. (Seventh-day Adventist) College of Education – Asokore, Koforidua is a teacher education college in Asokore, Eastern Region of Ghana, about 52 miles from Accra, the national capital.

Beginning of the School

Today’s S.D.A. College of Education started as the Seventh-day Adventist Training College at Asokore near Koforidua in the Eastern Region of Ghana. The original name, according to the Adventist Yearbook, was Koforidua Day-Teacher Training College. It became a boarding institution.¹ It was established by the Seventh-day Adventist Church on October 26, 1962, on an area of 135.9 hectors of land. The College began with 120 students. Since its inception, it has run several programs. The College began as a Post-Primary, Four-Year Certificate “A” Teacher Training institution. In 1974, a Two-Year Art Specialist Program for Trained Teachers was started but was short-lived. As a result of the 1974 educational reforms in Ghana, the college was turned into a three-year post-secondary Institution, offering Vocational Commercial, Home Science, and Arts courses in 1975.²

The total student enrollment in 1993 was 640, representing a 15 percent increase over previous years. The staff tried to maintain high academic standards, resulting typically in 99 percent success in the external examinations. The spiritual aspect of the school was emphasized. In addition to the regular Week of Prayer, a special one was organized at the beginning of the external exams. In 1993, more than 30 students were baptized into the Adventist faith. In the 1990s, the college church community, made up of students and staff, financed the construction of an assembly hall-church building.³

Further changes in the structure of teacher training programs in the country have led to the S.D.A. Training College offering a diploma in Basic Education in 2004. The S.D.A. Training College changed its name to S.D.A. College of Education when Ghana’s Education Act of 2008 requested upgrading teacher training colleges to tertiary status and designating them as colleges of education. The S.D.A. College of Education had accreditation from September 1, 2013. to August 31, 2018, with Accreditation Certificate Number: NAB/IAC/No. 0000876 to run the Diploma in Basic Education Program. Formerly, the College had an affiliation with the University of Cape Coast (UCC).⁴

The College Programs

The College offered a Three-Year Diploma in Basic Education Program from October 2004 to 2019, preparing teachers to teach in Ghana’s basic schools (kindergarten to junior high school). It offered general and early childhood programs. The General Program trained teachers primarily for primary and junior high schools. The Early Childhood Development Program trained teachers especially for lower primary schools, including kindergarten. The College was selected as one of the colleges where the Institute of Education of the University of Cape Coast ran a program for a Bachelor of Education degree.⁵

The S.D.A. College of Education has been affiliated to the University of Education, Winneba, since 2019 and has 2,280 students, enrolled in Primary Education, Junior High School Education, and Early Childhood Education programs under University of Education, Winneba.⁶

Principals

C. Y. Kyeremeh (1962-1966); I. T. Agboka (1966-1976); J. A. Manu (1976-1982); M. E. Duodu (1982-1991); C. Kuma-Korante (1991-2003); A. H. Awortwi (acting principal) (2003); Felicia Duku (acting principal) (2003); A. Akumfi–Ameyaw (2003-2011); A. Kwame Adjei (acting principal) (2011); Rose Owusu–Kakrah (2011-2017); Anthony Nyamesem-Poku (2017-2018); William Kofi Koomson (2018-2022); Cecilia O. Odame (acting principal) (2022- )

Sources

“60^th anniversary of SDA College of Education.” Anniversary Booklet, November 13, 2022, Asorkore, Koforidua.

“History,” https://sedacoe.edu.gh/index.php/about-us/history. Official site of the S.D.A. College of Education Asorkore-Koforidua. Accessed November 5, 2024.

Principal’s Report to the College Governing Council, March 28, 2023, SDA College of Education, Asokore Koforidua.

Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia. Second revised edition. Hagerstown, MD: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1996. C.v. “Asokore Seventh-day Adventist Teacher Training College.”

Notes

1. Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia (1996), s.v. “Asokore Seventh-day Adventist Teacher Training College.”↩

2. “History,” https://sedacoe.edu.gh/index.php/about-us/history, official site of the S.D.A. College of Education Asorkore-Koforidua, accessed November 5, 2024.↩

3. Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia (1996), s.v. “Asokore Seventh-day Adventist Teacher Training College.”↩

4. “History,” https://sedacoe.edu.gh/index.php/about-us/history, official site of the S.D.A. College of Education Asorkore-Koforidua, accessed November 5, 2024.↩

5. 60^th anniversary booklet, SDA College of Education, November 13, 2022.↩

6. Principal’s Report to College Council, March 28, 2023, SDA College of Education, Asorkore Koforidua.↩