Tshepang Laurence Mahlatsi is a legal professional, mental health advocate, and community leader whose career reflects a deep commitment to social justice, student wellbeing, and the advancement of human rights. He currently holds the position of Digital Content Generalist I at LexisNexis South Africa/UK, where he is responsible for developing practical legal guidance and digital content across multiple practice units. In this role, he conducts thorough legal research and ensures the accuracy, currency, and compliance of content produced for legal professionals and customers across South Africa and the United Kingdom.
Prior to joining LexisNexis, Tshepang completed a two-year candidacy as a Candidate Attorney at Legal Aid South Africa, one of the country's foremost public interest legal institutions. During this period, he represented clients in both criminal and civil matters, conducted client consultations, appeared in court, drafted legal pleadings and opinions, and managed the full scope of trial preparation and file management. This experience afforded him a strong foundation in practical law and a nuanced understanding of access to justice challenges facing vulnerable and underserved communities.
His professional journey also includes a tenure as Office Assistant in Advocacy at the Free State Centre for Human Rights, where he played an active role in logging rights-violation complaints, coordinating Human Rights Ambassador programmes, and supporting advocacy campaigns aimed at advancing constitutional rights and broadening access to justice. Simultaneously, he served as an Independent Consultant for CampusKey Student Living in Cape Town, where he authored a comprehensive mental health policy for student accommodation with a specific duty-of-care focus, delivered staff training, and applied research-informed practices to embed mental health first aid within the organisation's operational culture.
Central to Tshepang's identity as a professional and public figure is his role as Founder and Director of Next Chapter, a registered non-profit and public benefit organisation he established in 2018. Next Chapter operates as a student-led initiative that runs peer support spaces, facilitates group interventions in collaboration with mental health professionals, and delivers community outreach programmes that strengthen student wellbeing ecosystems across higher education institutions. Under his leadership, the organisation has grown into a nationally recognised platform for mental health dialogue, advocacy, and systemic change within the university environment.
Tshepang has also made meaningful contributions to academic scholarship, including co-authoring a book chapter published by Springer Nature Switzerland in 2024, and presenting research at several prestigious national and international conferences covering themes such as student wellbeing, humanising universities, invisible disabilities, and the legal protection of medical personnel. His work has been featured across major media platforms including SABC 2, SABC 3, eTV, Radio 702, and the Mail and Guardian, among others, cementing his standing as a credible and influential voice on youth mental health in South Africa.
His efforts have been recognised through several distinguished awards, including the Mail and Guardian 200 Young South Africans Award in the Health category, the Free State Premier's Top 50 Inspirational Youth Award in Community Development, and the University of the Free State Student Affairs Lifetime Leadership Award. These accolades reflect not only his professional accomplishments but also the profound and lasting impact he continues to make in the lives of young South Africans.
Tshepang Laurence Mahlatsi embodies the very spirit of the Chancellor's Distinguished Alumni Award. His journey from a University of the Free State student to a nationally recognised advocate, legal professional, and social entrepreneur is a testament to the transformative power of education and the enduring values that the University of the Free State instils in its graduates. He is not merely an alumnus who has achieved personal success; he is one who has consistently turned that success into service, using every platform and professional opportunity available to him to uplift others and advance the common good.
What sets Tshepang apart as a deserving recipient of this award is the rare combination of intellectual rigour, civic responsibility, and compassionate leadership that defines his work. At a time when mental health remains a deeply stigmatised and underfunded area of concern in South Africa, he has demonstrated remarkable courage and consistency in bringing this conversation to the forefront of public discourse. Through Next Chapter, he has created a safe and structured space for students to access peer support and professional mental health interventions, directly addressing a critical gap in the higher education landscape. The organisation, which he founded while still a student, continues to grow and serve communities, reflecting his long-term vision and unwavering dedication.
His contributions extend beyond advocacy into the realms of law, policy, scholarship, and media. He has authored institutional policy, contributed to internationally published academic research, and appeared on national television and radio platforms to champion causes that matter deeply to young South Africans. In doing so, he has carried the name and values of the University of the Free State into spaces of national and international influence, demonstrating the calibre of leadership that the institution nurtures and produces.
Tshepang's recognition by the Mail and Guardian as one of 200 Young South Africans in the Health category, alongside his Free State Premier's award and the University of the Free State's own Lifetime Leadership Award, speaks to the breadth and depth of his impact across sectors. These are not merely ceremonial honours; they are affirmations from peers, institutions, and society at large that his work is making a tangible and meaningful difference.