Situated in Molete, Ibadan, Yejide Girls Grammar School remains one of the city’s most enduring public secondary schools dedicated to girls’ education.
According to the Oyo State Government Educational Institutions Directory, the school was established in 1956 under the Western Region’s educational expansion programme, a time when access to secondary education for girls was being widely promoted.
The 1950s marked a period of dynamic growth in Western Nigeria’s educational system, driven by Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s Universal Primary Education policy (1955–1957) and the emergence of regional government-funded schools. The establishment of Yejide Girls Grammar School reflected this wider shift, an intentional effort to ensure that female students were included in the region’s new academic infrastructure.
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Early Female Education in Ibadan: The Missionary Influence.
The roots of formal female education in Ibadan stretch back to the mid-nineteenth century, when Church Missionary Society (CMS) missionaries, Reverend David Hinderer and Mrs Anna Hinderer, arrived in 1853. They founded mission stations and schools at Kudeti and Oke-Are, pioneering the introduction of Christian literacy and education among the Yoruba people.
While there is no documentary evidence directly connecting Yejide Girls Grammar School to these early mission schools, it is historically accurate to say that the missionary system inspired the later framework that produced public girls’ schools across Ibadan.
The school’s name, Yejide, is widely regarded as a symbolic tribute to the memory of early female learners in Ibadan who, under missionary tutelage, challenged social norms by embracing Western education. Oral histories within the Ibadan community often associate the name with the Olunloyo family, who were among the earliest educated households influenced by CMS missions. However, there are no archival documents confirming a specific individual named Yejide Olunloyo as the first girl to attend school, making the name more commemorative than genealogical.
Establishment and Growth (1956–1970s).
The founding of Yejide Girls Grammar School in 1956 occurred during a golden age of Western Nigeria’s educational development. Ibadan was then emerging as an intellectual hub, hosting key institutions such as Queen’s School (1952), St. Anne’s School (1896), and St. Teresa’s College (1948).
Unlike the missionary-founded schools of the earlier colonial period, Yejide was a state-established institution designed to complement the government’s agenda of expanding access to secondary education for girls.
Archival searches and regional education listings reveal no direct ecclesiastical involvement in the founding of the school, and no credible documentation links it to Bishop Daniel O. Akinyele or any earlier “Ibadan Anglican Girls Grammar School.”
Nevertheless, the school’s philosophy of discipline, service, and scholarship reflected the moral and academic values inherited from the missionary education system.
By the 1970s, Yejide Girls Grammar School had become an integral part of the Ibadan educational network, its reputation built on academic strength, civic discipline, and the pursuit of female advancement.
Social Impact and Alumni Legacy.
Over the decades, Yejide Girls Grammar School has produced generations of women who have contributed meaningfully to Nigeria’s professional and academic sectors.
The Yejide Old Girls’ Association has remained an active and influential body, supporting the school through scholarships, infrastructure projects, and mentorship programmes.
In 2022, the Nigerian Tribune reported that the 1972–1976 alumni set established scholarships to assist financially challenged students, a continuation of the school’s founding spirit of inclusion.
Similarly, in 2019, Punch Nigeria documented the visit of Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, Director-General of NAFDAC and a distinguished alumna, who pledged support for upgrading the school’s science laboratories.
Such gestures underscore the strength of the alumni network, highlighting how the Yejide legacy continues to foster educational empowerment and community development decades after its establishment.
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Academic Excellence and Community Engagement.
Yejide Girls Grammar School’s academic track record has been complemented by active participation in inter-school competitions, youth leadership initiatives, and community service projects.
According to FRCN Positive FM Ibadan and Tribune Online, the school’s students have repeatedly excelled in regional debates, quizzes, and empowerment programmes aimed at developing leadership and life skills among young women.
The school also maintains partnerships with local NGOs and social development groups, promoting mentorship, self-reliance, and civic education. This reflects the postcolonial Nigerian educational model that sought to integrate intellectual development with community values and national consciousness.
Legacy and Continuing Relevance.
Nearly seven decades since its founding, Yejide Girls Grammar School remains a respected institution within Oyo State’s educational landscape.
Its endurance demonstrates the long-term benefits of public investment in female education and the transformative influence of community-driven schooling.
The school symbolically connects Ibadan’s nineteenth-century missionary educational heritage with the twentieth-century state-led educational reforms, bridging the continuum between spiritual, moral, and intellectual growth.
It stands today not merely as a school but as a living monument to collective progress, where the legacy of early missionary literacy and postcolonial nation-building converge.
The history of Yejide Girls Grammar School, Ibadan is one of continuity, progress, and social vision. Founded in 1956 as part of the Western Region’s commitment to gender-inclusive education, it grew into a centre of academic excellence and empowerment for women across Nigeria.
Though its naming draws symbolic inspiration from Ibadan’s missionary past, the school itself is a product of state education policy, not direct missionary establishment. Its legacy, strengthened by generations of accomplished alumnae, reflects the enduring value of learning as both a right and a responsibility.
Author’s Note
In preserving this heritage, Yejide Girls Grammar School continues to embody the spirit of community service, intellectual curiosity, and women’s advancement that have defined Ibadan’s educational story since the nineteenth century.
References:
Oyo State Government Educational Institutions Directory, Entry on “Yejide Girls Grammar School, Molete, established 1956.”
Church Missionary Society Archives (CMS, London) – Records of David and Anna Hinderer’s mission work in Ibadan (1853–1876).
Punch Nigeria (2019) – “NAFDAC DG, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, Visits Alma Mater, Supports Science Laboratory Upgrade.”
Nigerian Tribune (2022) – “Yejide Old Girls 1972–76 Set Offer Scholarships to Indigent Students.”
FRCN Positive FM (Ibadan) – Educational features on inter-school competitions and community programmes.
