The Price of Working Together and the Cost of Standing Apart

By Ada College of Education Alumni

Healing does not require forgetting.

Every great institution carries two stories. The first is the story of its past, shaped by its triumphs, disappointments, conflicts and sacrifices. The second is the story of its future, which has not yet been written.

As Ada College of Education celebrates its Sixtieth Anniversary on 18 July 2026, it stands at one of the most defining moments in its distinguished history. For six decades, the College has produced thousands of teachers who have contributed immensely to Ghana’s educational development. Like every institution with a long history, it has experienced seasons of remarkable progress alongside periods of misunderstanding, difficult decisions, competing interests and institutional pain. Yet history offers one powerful lesson. No institution reaches maturity without scars.

The greatest mistake any institution can make is to become imprisoned by its own history.

History explains where we have been.

Vision determines where we are going.

Our heritage deserves respect, but it must never become our limitation. Heritage is our foundation, not our destination. The future belongs to institutions that have the courage to honour yesterday, heal today’s divisions and build tomorrow together.

The lecture prepared for the Sixtieth Anniversary of Ada College of Education rightly emphasises that sustainable institutional success depends upon leadership, diversity, collaboration and a shared culture of excellence. The next chapter of Ada College’s journey therefore depends not on remembering old wounds, but on creating new possibilities.

Just as a driver spends only a brief glance at the rear view mirror while focusing primarily on the road ahead, Ada College of Education must acknowledge its past without allowing yesterday’s experiences to determine tomorrow’s destination.

The windscreen is always larger than the rear view mirror because our future deserves greater attention than our past.

How Ada College of Education Can Transform Its Past into a Future of Global Excellence

The Price of Working Together

            •           Every meaningful achievement has a price.

            •           There is no excellence without sacrifice.

            •           There is no progress without unity.

            •           There is no lasting success without trust.

            •           Working together requires deliberate investment.

The price includes:

            •           Choosing dialogue instead of suspicion.

            •           Listening before responding.

            •           Forgiving historical grievances.

            •           Putting institutional interests above personal ambitions.

            •           Sharing responsibilities and recognising collective achievements.

            •           Accepting constructive criticism.

            •           Demonstrating humility in leadership.

            •           Building trust one decision at a time.

These investments may appear costly in the short term, but they generate extraordinary returns.

Research consistently demonstrates that organisations with strong collaborative cultures outperform fragmented organisations. According to Gallup’s 2025 global workplace findings, highly engaged teams record substantially higher productivity, stronger innovation and lower staff turnover than disengaged teams. Similarly, the World Economic Forum continues to identify collaboration, leadership, communication and teamwork among the most valuable competencies required in the modern workplace.

Educational institutions are no exception.

When lecturers, administrators, students, alumni, governing councils, government and communities genuinely work together, the institution becomes stronger than the sum of its individual parts.

The Cost of Doing Otherwise

Unfortunately, division also has a price.

Unlike collaboration, however, its returns are always negative.

The cost of working against one another includes:

            •           Declining student confidence.

            •           Low staff morale.

            •           Institutional politics.

            •           Delayed decision-making.

            •           Reduced innovation.

            •           Loss of talented staff.

            •           Poor stakeholder confidence.

            •           Weak alumni engagement.

            •           Reduced funding opportunities.

            •           Damage to institutional reputation.

One unresolved misunderstanding can delay progress for years.

One divided leadership team can discourage an entire institution.

One culture of mistrust can destroy decades of goodwill.

History provides numerous examples.

Some universities across Africa have suffered prolonged industrial disputes that disrupted academic calendars, affected research output and diminished international rankings. Conversely, institutions that deliberately invested in reconciliation, shared governance and stakeholder engagement have strengthened their global reputation and attracted increased research funding and partnerships.

The lesson is simple.

Unity is expensive.

Disunity is far more expensive.

Cleaning the Past Without Erasing History

Healing does not require forgetting.

Healing requires learning.

Ada College of Education possesses a rich heritage that deserves celebration.

That heritage includes:

            •           Sixty years of teacher education.

            •           Thousands of graduates serving Ghana and beyond.

            •           Dedicated lecturers and administrators.

            •           Strong contributions to national development.

            •           Deep community relationships.

Alongside these successes, there may also be memories of disagreements, disappointments and painful experiences.

Every institution has them.

Great institutions do not pretend those experiences never existed.

Instead, they transform them into wisdom.

The College must therefore make a conscious decision to clean its institutional memory by replacing blame with understanding, replacing suspicion with transparency and replacing division with shared purpose.

The past should become a teacher rather than a prison.

Our Heritage Is Not Our Destiny

One of the greatest misconceptions in institutional development is believing that history automatically determines the future.

It does not.

Destiny is shaped by today’s decisions.

Many globally respected universities experienced periods of financial crisis, political interference, declining enrolment or organisational conflict before becoming internationally recognised centres of excellence.

Transformation begins when institutions decide that yesterday will no longer control tomorrow.

Ada College of Education has already demonstrated resilience for sixty years.

Its next sixty years can become even more remarkable.

Its future depends not on what happened previously but on what stakeholders choose to do beginning today.

Looking Through the Windscreen Rather Than the Rear View Mirror

Every motor vehicle contains two important mirrors.

The rear view mirror allows the driver to understand where the vehicle has travelled.

The windscreen enables the driver to reach the intended destination.

No driver reaches Accra by continuously looking backwards.

Similarly, no educational institution reaches global excellence by constantly revisiting yesterday’s disappointments.

The rear view mirror should provide perspective.

The windscreen should provide direction.

The destination ahead is always more important than the distance already travelled.

Ada College must therefore focus on becoming one of West Africa’s most respected teacher education institutions over the coming decades.

That vision deserves complete attention.

What Ada College of Education Must Start Doing

The College should intentionally begin several transformational initiatives.

            •           Build a shared institutional vision owned by every stakeholder.

            •           Establish structured dialogue among management, staff, students, alumni and governing bodies.

            •           Invest aggressively in digital learning and Artificial Intelligence-supported teaching.

            •           Expand international partnerships with universities across Africa, Europe, Asia and North America.

            •           Increase research publications addressing Ghana’s educational priorities.

            •           Develop a comprehensive alumni investment and mentorship programme.

            •           Recognise teamwork as much as individual achievement.

            •           Strengthen leadership development for academic and administrative staff.

            •           Measure institutional culture regularly through stakeholder surveys.

            •           Celebrate collaboration as a core institutional value.

What Ada College of Education Must Stop Doing

Equally important are practices that must end.

            •           Stop allowing historical disagreements to shape present relationships.

            •           Stop departmental silos that discourage collaboration.

            •           Stop poor communication.

            •           Stop unnecessary bureaucracy that delays innovation.

            •           Stop leadership approaches based on fear rather than inspiration.

            •           Stop protecting unhealthy traditions simply because they are old.

            •           Stop personal interests taking precedence over institutional priorities.

            •           Stop excluding important stakeholders from decision-making.

            •           Stop resisting technological transformation.

            •           Stop measuring success only by examination results instead of holistic institutional impact.

What Ada College of Education Must Continue Doing

The College already possesses valuable strengths that deserve preservation.

These include:

            •           Continue producing competent professional teachers.

            •           Continue promoting academic excellence.

            •           Continue strengthening ethical leadership.

            •           Continue serving surrounding communities.

            •           Continue preserving the College’s proud traditions.

            •           Continue investing in staff development.

            •           Continue encouraging student leadership.

            •           Continue strengthening partnerships with government and educational agencies.

            •           Continue celebrating institutional achievements.

            •           Continue nurturing integrity, discipline and service.

The Road to Global Recognition

Global recognition is no longer achieved merely through longevity.

It requires measurable excellence.

Institutions earning international respect consistently demonstrate:

            •           Outstanding teaching quality.

            •           High-impact research.

            •           Strong graduate employability.

            •           International collaborations.

            •           Digital transformation.

            •           Inclusive leadership.

            •           Financial sustainability.

            •           Effective governance.

            •           Community impact.

            •           Continuous innovation.

These qualities emerge naturally when collaboration becomes an institutional culture rather than an occasional activity.

Conclusion

Sixty years represent far more than an anniversary.

They represent a powerful invitation to write a new chapter.

Ada College of Education has paid many prices throughout its remarkable journey.

The next generation must ensure that those sacrifices become the foundation for even greater achievements.

The College must choose collaboration over competition, reconciliation over resentment and vision over nostalgia.

Yesterday has fulfilled its purpose.

Its lessons remain valuable.

Its pains need not remain permanent.

Its heritage deserves honour.

Its destiny deserves hope.

The rear view mirror reminds us where we have come from.

The windscreen reminds us where we are going.

May every stakeholder of Ada College of Education choose to look forward with renewed faith, renewed unity and renewed determination.

For when a community works together with one vision, one purpose and one heart, there is no challenge too great, no history too painful and no future too ambitious.

Our heritage is not our destiny. Our unity will determine our future.