The Mount Zion School has commemorated its 70th anniversary celebration in a colourful event on Saturday in Accra.The event was marked to honour seven decades of academic excel­lence and community impact.Delivering the keynote address at the event, Dr Fatimatu Sulemanu, an alumna of the school, praised Mount Zion for its pioneering role in shaping lives and nurturing gen­erations of responsible, confident, and compassionate citizens."Seventy years is not just a passage of time; it is a journey of impact, resilience, and excellence," she stated.Dr Sulemanu recalled her per­sonal experience as a student of the school, joining in 1976 after facing financial challenges in her early education.She paid glowing tribute to the school's founder, the late Very Reverend E.

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Dogbe-Gakpetor, whose decision to admit children who had been denied entry to other schools marked the birth of Mount Zion."That single act of compassion sparked what we now celebrate as one of Ghana's enduring institu­tions of learning," she said.Dr Sulemanu also commended the school for adopting a holistic approach to education long before it became a national policy direc­tion, blending academic excellence with creative expression, language skills, emotional development, and community values.Additionally, she highlighted the role of education in addressing contemporary challenges, espe­cially climate change, which she described as a pressing concern for Africa's youth."The education we offer must prepare us for the realities ahead, and I know Mount Zion students will lead the way," she stated.As Mount Zion School looks toward the future, she expressed confidence in its continued com­mitment to excellence, innovation, and inclusive education, aiming to build on its legacy for the next 70 years and beyond.On her side, the Head of School, Mrs Ophelia Delali Dogbe Zungbey, indicated that it was the school's mission to provide quality training aimed at developing pupils and staff morally, academically, physically, and spiritually."The school environment has largely been a conducive one aimed at enhancing teaching and learn­ing," she added.She highlighted that the academ­ic environment was being handled by a staff strength of 40, compris­ing 32 qualified facilitators and 8 non-teaching staff, who sought to provide affordable and innovative teaching to the students.Mrs Zungbey noted that some programmes such as gender-fo­cused discussions, hygiene programmes, and civic education are always incorporated into the academic programme for students, and this effort has yielded tremen­dous results.However, she emphasised some challenges affecting the school, indicating that some parents lack interest in monitoring their children's education and also the government's inability to sup­ply textbooks was affecting the school's progress.Mount Zion School, recognised as the first private educational institution established at Nima, currently has an enrolment of 875 students, consisting of 425 boys and 450 girls.