Corin Solarin, the first child of the late human rights activist and educationist, Dr Tai Solarin, on Monday, emphasised that her father, the founder of Mayflower School, Ikenne-Remo, believed that holistic education must be combined with practical skills acquisition.
Solarin said one factor that set the 70-year-old secondary school apart—and helped lay a solid foundation for thousands of its alumni—was the culture of engaging students in vocational activities such as farming, poultry, plumbing, and other trades, as established by the school’s founder.
She expressed satisfaction with recent government moves to institutionalise vocational and skills acquisition alongside academic learning in schools, describing the policy as a return to the vision championed decades ago by her father.
Solarin described her father as a man of industry, strong character, and discipline, who possessed foresight in laying the foundation for an educational system capable of promoting independence and national development.
The 73-year-old educationist spoke on Monday during a press briefing organised by the Mayflower Old Students Association at the school to herald its week-long 70th anniversary celebration.
“Mayflower was a very unique school. I don’t know of any other school in Nigeria that encourages students to learn a trade while still in school. My father, Dr Tai Solarin, was 70 years ahead of his time,” she said.
“So, students left the school knowing how to do wiring, plumbing, and poultry farming. If you check the Ministry of Education today, that kind of training is now being reintroduced in schools.
“Seventy years ago, Dr Tai Solarin was already laying a solid foundation for education in the country. What we practised back then is now being rebranded as something new.
“That is one of the things that set Mayflower apart. There are ex-Mays who built their houses themselves, handled their own plumbing and electrical work.
“At the end of the day, education that is only on paper, without practical skills to support it, is not sufficient. This was one of the founding principles of Mayflower School. Much of my interest in farming, for instance, was developed during my time as a student here, and it is encouraging that such practices are returning to schools”, she added.
Earlier, the President of MOSA, Wale Abdul, said the week-long celebration was primarily to honour the unique vision of Solarin and his wife, Sheila, who founded the school in May 1956.
Abdul said the bold decision to transform a jungle into a citadel of learning had positively altered the destinies of thousands of students who have passed through the school and are now contributing to society locally and internationally.
He disclosed that 14 projects aimed at improving the school’s infrastructure—including staff quarters, the emblem gate, and the newly constructed Tai Solarin Hall—would be commissioned during the celebrations.
Abdul added that Dr. Tai Solarin and his wife would receive posthumous special recognition and be conferred with the association’s highest honour, the Grand Commander of the Order of MOSA.
He also disclosed that five past MOSA presidents—Lekan Adeniji, Donatus Okereke, Abiodun Dada, Abiodun Shonibare, and Dr. Rotimi Akinlesi—would receive the same honour.
Highlights of the week-long celebration include the annual inter-house sports, distribution of customised 70th anniversary exercise books to students, a prize-giving day, and a public lecture themed “Making Informed Choices Towards a Greater Future.”
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