Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - The tears of Fourah Bay College

my experience at cheikh anta diop (dakar) could also be summed up in the paragraph below. it was better than the overall description of FBC, but the decline from my initial encounter with that university in 1983 down to 25 years later could be attributed to the same reasons below; plus, add, that the student population more than doubled with the faculty remaining the same size--in most cases.
face it, money makes all the difference when it comes to basics like class size, rooms and infrastructure, books, etc., not to mention scholarships for indigenous students, many of who are relatively indigent and depend on scholarships to live.
ken

On 12/1/15 8:34 PM, ibdullah@gmail.com wrote:

The "Great" Blocks of A, C, G, E, M, H and J and the beautiful Lati Hyde and Beethoven have completely deteriorated. Scrambling for chairs and tables amongst students; and clamouring for lecture halls amongst lecturers have now become a norm at FBC – one reason being the increase in the student population over time has not equaled the available infrastructure which have almost remained constant. This mismatch has created tension between students and lecturers on one hand; and friction between lecturers and the Administration on the other."

--   kenneth w. harrow   professor of english  michigan state university  department of english  619 red cedar road  room C-614 wells hall  east lansing, mi 48824  ph. 517 803 8839  harrow@msu.edu