Mount Kenya University has rebranded as it celebrates 10 years of existence as a fully fledged university.
The rebranding ceremony was held at the institution’s Happy Valley Grounds in Thika on Friday. The university unveiled a new logo, motto and seal.
‘Unlock Infinity Possibilities’ is the new MKU motto, replacing ‘Scaling the Heights of Education’ that has been the institution’s motto for 10 years.
MKU founder and chairman Simon Gicharu said, “We have scaled the heights of education for a very long time. We now want to unlock the infinite possibilities in higher education.”
He said the move to rebrand will complement the university’s endeavour to improve the quality of learning as it seeks to become the leading institution of higher learning in the country and in Africa.
“My vision for MKU is to become the best institution in the country through provision of quality education,” Gicharu said. The university also launched the University Staff Providence Fund to cater for employees remuneration when they retire.
The chairman said the scheme is part of the institution’s step in realising its mission of becoming a world-class institution. Members of staff will be contributing a certain percentage of money and the employer another percentage. “We are committed to creating an enabling environment for our staff,” Gicharu said.
Members will also enjoy tax exemption as they will be contributing to the retirement scheme. “They will also have the advantage of using the retirement money as collateral in obtaining mortgage,” he said.
The chairman also said the university will audit its systems to tame illegal awarding of marks to students, a vice he said has been a thorn in the flesh in the integrity of education.
“In our quest to realise our mission, we must promote our integrity to the highest level possible. We will invest a lot in auditing our systems. The first thing next year is to hire internal auditors to monitor and determine the performance of our students,” Gicharu said.
Gicharu said other private and public universities in the country are affected by the menace of awarding marks illegally to students.
He urged the institutions to counter the vice so as to raise the integrity of the country’s education. “It will cost us nothing to rectify the mistakes,” he said.
Vice chancellor Stanley Waudo said the university is among the best in Africa, following its improved ranking.
According to a UniRank report, the university this year climbed 11 positions to number 106 from last year’s 117.