Derrick Crentsil profiled

by Naa Ayeleysa Quaynor-Mettle

Derrick Crentsil, a born leader, is the first of three boys. He loves people and is a music fanatic. Derrick even when much younger, wrapped Ashesi’s core values of scholarship, leadership and citizenship around his breastplate. Before Ashesi, Derrick attended St. Theresa’s School, Galaxy International and SOS College where he composed the school’s anthem. An innate musician, he taught himself to play the piano at age six, and with little assistance, now plays the saxophone, bass guitar and drums.

Here at Ashesi, he’s been instrumental with the creation of the Community Choir and was one of the brains behind the very successful first ever Jazz Festival, held here at Ashesi. “I love music. It inspires me,” Derrick says. A Computer Science major, Derrick, together with three other Ashesi students recently spent two week interning at the Goldman-Sachs’ office in London. This internship program, which brings together some of the world’s brightest students is designed to introduce these young men and women to the workings of a leading global securities and investment management bank.

Derrick speaks of his experience at Goldman. “I was privileged to be amongst students from top universities in the world—I now have friends at Oxford and Cambridge”, he says smiling. “I realized how not so different I am from them. I am equally intelligent and have the same values they consider important—integrity, hard work and a sense of responsibility. It wasn’t difficult to fit in.”

Derrick loves being at Ashesi. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. I love the courses, the way everyone here wants us to succeed and the strong desire to help change Africa in our own small ways.” Derrick says he has so many great memories of Ashesi but his favourite by far is the students’ support of the Honour Code despite being faced with possible accreditation revocation. “It was amazing! I’d never seen anything like it before. Students here clearly care about the future of this continent. We are so bold and I am proud to be part of such a community.”

Derrick is a star. I look forward to his success because he will thrive in whatever situation.