Today, Friday, 6, September, 2024, Uganda Christian University (UCU) has officially opened the doors to its new School of Journalism, Media, and Communication (JMC) building. The state-of-the-art facility was handed over to the school by the university’s leadership, led by the Vice Chancellor Prof. Aaron Mushengyezi and Mr. David Mugawe, Deputy Vice Chancellor Finance and Administration.
This comes after the senior leadership received its completed projects from the contractors, during a handover ceremony, on Monday, 26, August, 2024 at the Main Campus in Mukono.
Prof. Mushengyezi congratulated the school upon receiving its new home.
“It has been something worth the effort. As people who train the fourth estate, we value your significance in the country. We believe you now have ample space to be more creative and that you will shine even more,” Prof. Mushengyezi said.
Prof. Mushengyezi emphasized that the new building is part of UCU’s vision to transform the institution into the real center of excellence in the heart of Africa.
For 13 years, the School of JMC and Words of Hope have shared the same building. From that yellow, storied building, faculty members experienced a bird’s-eye view of the university and surrounding hills. The disadvantage is that as what was once a department under the School of Education grew, staff members were scattered.
JMC is set to relocate to a new building designed to house all its staff and be more centrally located to administrative and other faculty/school offices. The new building, which previously housed School of Business offices, is located near Baskerville Building which houses the UCU Communications and Public Relations Office.
John Semakula, the Head of the Undergraduate Department within the School of JMC, said the JMC move is part of a university-wide space rationalization exercise that began two years ago.
“The new block will be referred to as the School of Journalism, Media and Communication Office Block,” Semakula said. “We had a shortage of office space, and as a result, we have been using different office blocks on campus, which kept us scattered. The new block is an opportunity to bring all the staff of the School under one roof.”
Professor Monica Chibita, Dean of the School of Journalism, Media and Communication expressed gratitude to the engineers, contractors, university administration and the entire team involved in the project.
“We feel special, I never dreamt that the former School of Business building would turn out like this after renovation. It is very beautiful and befitting of us,” Professor Chibita said.
She also cited the advantages of the new building.
“It is centrally located, surrounded by other faculties and schools, as well as some strategic administration offices, promoting interdisciplinary partnerships,” she said. “It also enables us (the faculty) to share office space, which eases collaboration. Many of our students have complained about the distance from the classrooms to the faculty, and we have struggled with limited office space and storage.”
Prof. Chibita noted that as the school shifts to the new location, the studios and equipment will remain at the current location, transforming it into a multimedia center, with The Standard newspaper, the UCU Focus TV, and other facilities relocating to the former JMC building.
Among those who have noticed the positive growth of the School of JMC is Frank Obonyo, an alumnus and a lecturer at the school. He recalled that the journalism department was started by former journalists – Mr. Illakut Ben Bella for print media, the late Okoku Obomba for radio, and the Rev. Canon Dr. Jackson Turyagyenda for television. The department was later joined by other seasoned professionals, including Ben Ochan for photojournalism and Jane Gitau, a Public Relations practitioner.
Obonyo recalled some early collaboration between the Mass Communication department and Spirit FM radio. He remembered being a student when there was no media laboratory with five still-photo cameras shared by over 90 classmates.
Today, the curriculum training is supported by highly qualified staff and practitioners in the industry and more equipment in a multimedia laboratory and three studios.
Obonyo, who joined UCU as a student in 2003, was among the first interns at The Standard student newspaper. In March 2007, an advertisement called upon Mass Communication graduates to apply for intern jobs at The Standard. The applicants went through the normal university recruitment process and four of the graduates were selected: Frank Obonyo, John Semakula, Brian Semujju and Emma Wafula.
Obonyo says this was a great opportunity for them to sharpen their journalism skills.
“As a result, we all got employed by the New Vision newspaper, Uganda’s leading daily English language newspaper,” he said. “At The Standard, I was responsible for Sports news, Semakula was in charge of news and current affairs, Emma Wafula did Campus Life and Semujju was the Managing Editor.”
As the school prepares to relocate to a new building, Obonyo reflects on this journey.
“Today, the School of Journalism, Media and Communication is among the top media and communication training hubs in the country,” he said. “We have come a long way, and I am proud to have been part of this journey.”
For Geoffrey Ssenoga, a lecturer at the school since 2008, the move will bring numerous benefits to both staff and students. He notes that it will be easier for students to access them since it is closer to the classrooms, compared to the current building location.
“We have course units taught by people from other faculties like the Social Sciences and Education, so being close to other faculty members will allow for easier collaboration,” Ssenoga said.
As Ssenoga looks forward to the relocation, he reflects on his earlier days as a lecturer, when resources were limited and such renovations to allow for office relocation were far fetched. “Well done UCU team”, he added.
“I had to draw a camera on the blackboard to teach students how to operate a camera because we only had five cameras,” he notes, “But now, students have the privilege to access the camera whenever they need it to practice.”
Timothy Okurut, a student leader representing the Mass Communication class, said: “In the past, there have been times we failed to access the studio for production purposes because the lecturers were in a meeting however with the new building for the staff, we shall have unrestricted access to the studios and thus enhance learning at UCU.”
