Adetoun Ogunsheye

"It is the grace of God. Also, if God gives you the grace to live long, you have to work hard too. There should also be a lifestyle adjustment. It is a gift of God. You can’t rule out the efficacy of prayers."

"I love music. I love classical music. That was the thing that first brought us (my husband and me) together. My husband loved classical music and I still do. I have a library in Ibadan for the collection of classical music."

"They say it gives wrinkles but I am lucky no wrinkle…(laughter). Laughter Cheers you more when you are angry before you blow up. Smile more and laughter refreshes not just the soul but the way you look on the outside."

"So for me as a mother…what I sow now in terms of feeding my children properly with nutritious food will remain embedded even at old age."

"The day we met, it was like I met an old friend. It was fantastic. We started talking as if we had always known each other. He was wonderful. When we met later, I read his papers and critiqued them. It was fantastic."

"This is probably the first time any of us would be gathering to witness the launch of a book by a 95-year old. It is an event we all will remember for a long time."

"My father was a missionary teacher, first in Benin, and it was at the same time he became a civil servant."

"I have a baptismal certificate signed by the mission. The date of my birth was in that baptismal certificate."

"I went to primary school in the Cameroons – British Cameroon Tutorial – because my father, who was a chief clerk, was transferred there. From there, I went and took entrance examination to Queen’s College, Lagos. I finished from Queen’s College before proceeding to Yaba Higher College for my Teaching Diploma. Yaba Higher College was the only one around in 1945, training doctors, engineers, and education officers, etc."

"I couldn’t study medicine because Queen’s College didn’t offer sciences in those days.But there was an interesting issue before going to Yaba Higher College. After finishing from Queen’s College, my father went to my principal and asked him if I could take exam to go to Yaba Higher College. It was an all-male institution then. But the principal told my father they would not take me because I was a female and it was all-male institution. But my father disagreed with him, arguing that there was nothing in the instrument setting up that school that forbade women from attending it. So, I took the entrance examination, passed and was admitted. I was the only female student in the first year."

"I was a foundation student of University College Ibadan, from where I got a scholarship to Cambridge University as the first Nigerian female student."

"I obtained BSc and MSc degrees in Geography from Cambridge, before attending Simmons College in America, for a master’s degree in Library Science."

"When I finished at Yaba Higher College, one of my teachers had recommended me to take the entrance examination to Cambridge University, London. I took the entrance exam to read Geography at Cambridge but I had a problem because I did not do Latin in secondary school."

"I taught myself Latin to qualify for the entrance exam. I got credit in Latin after the one-year study and I was able to take the entrance exams and I got government’s scholarship to study Geography at Cambridge University in 1949."

"Because I was a government scholar, I felt like working for the government, but at the civil service, they told me they had no room for candidates that finished with university degree as teachers. So, I went to work for the Anglican Mission. I taught at Anglican Girls’ Secondary School, now St. Margaret’s School, Ilesha, and St. Anne’s School, Ibadan. I lectured at Nigerian College of Science and Technology, and the University of Ibadan, where I also served in the University Library.I became a Reader; Professor; Acting Director, Institute of Librarianship; Head of Department of Library Studies; and Dean of Education. I have carried out and supervised many academic researches. I have more than 50 publications."

"I started a secondary school. That secondary school is still in existence till today. After that, I got married. I had spent two or three years in the school at that time. Then, my husband got an appointment at the University of Ibadan. I moved there with him. At Ibadan, I joined the university as the Map Librarian."

"Yes, it is true. There is no doubt about it because I made the first professorship and I sat on the Senate for the appointment of subsequent professors. The first two professors came from Ibadan and I was the first female professor in Nigeria in any discipline at all. I got it in Library Studies."

"I became a professor in 1973 when the university librarian started a library school in UI and they asked me to come and talk about how to organise maps. After talking about that, they said they would like me to move over and start a library because then we were taking the promotion exams of the UK and (they) wanted us to establish an academic programme. So, I went to Boston, United States, and did a master’s programme in librarianship and then came back and started the Department of Library Studies in Ibadan. I started the first programme except postgraduate and master’s degree programmes in Ibadan."

"More or less, I taught myself, and that was what happened with many of the first teachers in the university. I started a postgraduate programme from University of London (master’s programme) and I supervised 11 PhD holders and so many master’s degree candidates for several years before I retired."

"Well, it was more exciting in the 60s and 70s because interest was very high to the extent that we trained librarians in line with the country’s professional agitations. I was one of those who started a book on professional agitations and I made sure that when we did the national policy implementation, I was in the committee and it was said that no educational institution could be set up without having a library. Then, I went to do a master’s degree programme in library science in the US. I was conscious of the fact that we needed intellectual resources in our country. We should make sure that children have a library."

"In the last 10 years, they have not.I will advise the government to formulate a national policy to support the elderly in our society, whether they are educated or uneducated. The elderly have contributed to the development of the country one way or the other. Not only that, I can tell you that old age is very expensive. To keep fit, the health of the elderly must be fully supported by the government."

"While preparations were being made for my surgery, I kept praying. Surprisingly, the surgeons came two days before the surgery to examine me and check if my pulse had increased as it was very low prior to that time. I was sleeping when they came. They woke me up. When they tested me, they saw that my pulse had gone up to 80 and the surgeons shouted in awe.They said they did not believe my pulse would improve that much. In fact, the surgeons said they had to return my money and everything. They returned my money and never performed the operation again. I am still alive till today – I have been going from strength to strength. God has been so kind and wonderful in my life."

"I met my husband when I came back from Britain. One of my old teachers at Yaba Higher College saw me and was very happy I was back from the UK. I was not married. The teacher said he was going to introduce me to whom he considered as “the most famous bachelor in town”. He did and it was Ayo Ogunsheye – he was then a teacher and Assistant Secretary of Nigeria Union of Teachers. I attended a seminar and we (my husband and I) met. The day we met, it was like I met an old friend. It was fantastic. We started talking as if we had always known each other. He was wonderful. When we met later, I read his papers and critiqued them. It was fantastic. We loved each other when we were together but unfortunately, he died suddenly about 40 years ago. Since his death, God has continued to support me."

"No, I didn’t remarry. Before he died, I had retired from the university and was in Abeokuta as Chairman of Ogun State Teaching Service Commission and was in charge of all the primary and secondary schools in the state."