After Spelling Bee Win, Precious Ochulor Gets First-Hand Exposure to Leadership and Governance
For Ochulor Precious, winning the maiden internal Spelling Bee competition at My Dream Stead School came with a reward that went far beyond academic recognition.
The school’s Senior Prefect was given a scholarship, appointed to serve as proprietor for a day, and taken on an educational trip to Abuja designed to introduce her to leadership, governance and experiences beyond the classroom.
Rather than treating the Spelling Bee as an isolated academic competition, My Dream Stead School turned Precious’ achievement into an opportunity for experiential learning.
Her Abuja experience included visits to key institutions and interactions with people involved in Nigeria’s governance and public service.
At the National Assembly, Precious was received by Senator Ede Dafinone, representing Delta Central Senatorial District. The visit gave her an opportunity to see the legislative environment first-hand and learn about the work of the National Assembly.
She also visited the Police Service Commission, where she was received by Barrister Taiwo Lakanu, DIG (Rtd.), Commissioner II.
During the visit, Precious was introduced to the Commission’s mandate and responsibilities, providing her with a practical perspective on Nigeria’s security and governance institutions.
The trip also allowed her to experience a different side of Abuja. She visited the Art and Craft Market and Abuja City Gate, explored other educational and recreational attractions, shopped at Ceddi Plaza and visited an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp.
For Precious, the experience offered lessons that could not easily be captured in a textbook.
She expressed appreciation to My Dream Stead School for creating the opportunity to learn from direct experiences, meet leaders and understand institutions that she had previously encountered mainly through classroom learning.
The initiative is part of the philosophy of the school’s proprietor, Amb. Isaac Success Omoyele, who advocates an approach to education that combines academic learning with exposure, leadership development, character building and real-world experiences.
The decision to make Precious a proprietor for a day further reinforced that philosophy.
By allowing a student to step into a leadership role, even symbolically, the school sought to give her an early understanding of responsibility, decision-making and the expectations that come with leadership.
The Abuja trip then extended that lesson beyond the school environment.
Precious moved from learning about leadership in the classroom to seeing how leadership and public institutions operate in the wider society.
According to the school, the goal is not simply to reward children when they excel, but to use such moments to expand their vision of what is possible.
The school acknowledged Luxuriate Travels and Tours, Hadassah Dream Events and House 575 for their contributions towards making the educational tour possible.
For My Dream Stead School, Precious’ Spelling Bee victory became an opportunity to demonstrate its belief that education should not stop at academic achievement.
For the young champion herself, it became a journey from spelling words in a school competition to seeing leadership, governance and public service up close.
