It was in 2012, in the month of October about a year+ after I joined that poly
When this gurl bumped into my office and slammed the door behind her, leaning on it
I have been a lecturer since 2010, buh this is one experience I thot I'll never share
The bang was so loud it would rattle anyone a mile or two away
'Good day, Mr. Abasifreke', she appeared to mumble, writhing in fits of anger - all dour, crabby, wabbit & out of sorts
I was alone. About 4:15pm or so. On a Wednesday. I had a project to read
I didn't know whether to nod or nudge
Buh I know it was disquieting
"Why on earth would she lock my door and lean on it
I couldn't wrap my head around her face, either, in any of the classes or course I took that semester
This got me the more scared
Classes were excessively large at that poly, students in their hundreds - and in fairness to the owners - it made a great deal of economic sense to get in as many students as possible
Buh who exactly is this gurl? Who could she be
With adrenalin on overdrive, I had processed a million thots in seconds
Buh no definite answers
So to allay my fears I pointed to a seat adjacent ... and thank good heavens she took it, settled in & sat still
"Thank goodness, she has freed my door"
'At least now I can jump out in any eventuality', I assured me
Buh one thing was not in doubt: I was visibly scared, and I knew it
One didn't need a soothsayer to sense the danger - all wasn't just well
Something wasn't right with her, buh I just could not immediately figure out what
For all of five minutes my guest kept mum, casting unsavory gazes at me
Any stray guesses were mere surmises, banal permutations and idle conjectures
So I pretended to be neck deep in the project I was reading
I had barely turned the page when she drew her chair towards my desk & leaned forward
I thot I was finished
'Mr. Abas', she started off, rueful & teary
"You gave me 39 in your course and I'm in final year"
"I had to come to you now at close of work, when you are less busy so you could attend to me"
She said, swiping another finger across a streak of tear down her cheek
I couldn't speak for a minute or so
First, as a policy, I DON'T leave students at borderlines - 39, 49, 59, 69, etc. Something in Continuous Assessment should defray the deficit
Conscience won't just let me
So how did this one escape me
I was sorry
So I protested my innocence to her face, insisting I'd not do a thing like that ... let alone to a final year class, at that
No, pls. No na
So I passed her a sheet of serviette and asked she dried her tears
Tossed the project aside, and reaching for my shelves, I fetched the results folder in minutes and probed for her reg number
We were both curious
Long story short
In a class of nearly 480 students she was the only one I'd not move from the borderlines
Narratives about students failing to do well in a course is a separate kettle of fish, buh I should have moved her to the weakest pass, like I did others
'Giving' her a 40 wouldn't hurt. And that's all she needed
'Let my people go' they call it
Buh this was a clear miss - aworkload-induced oversight more than negligence
By the time she came complaining I had turned in the result to management, and the Lagos contingent had left with it
Those were the days of online result experimentations
So I told her there was little [if anything] I could do in the matter
An indigent student she was
I felt I could help
So I encouraged her to take the course the following session
And that I'll support her with the tuition
She thanked me and left
It looked like a win-win for all
Buh in good conscience I had taken a step of faith
My salary was under 50k, her tuition was 40Something or so a semester !
It was in 2012. Sometime in October
I gave and honestly, I forgot anything like that had ever happened
Two years later, I gained employment into my current University
Years later ...
I had barely driven into the campus and made it to my office that morning, when a knock rattled my wooden door
"Yes, Come in..."
A towering lady in glasses looking all peng & panache walked in
"Sit down, pls" I beeped,
"Can you recall this face?", my interlocutor quipped beaming in smiles
"Nope"
The vivid flashbacks got us both teary
"Dr• Abas, I come to say thank you"
"I'm now in your University for my PGD.