Community Engagement Open Day, 11 October 2013
Learning to serve, serving to learn
The University of the Free State Community Engagement Directorate remains grounded on the vision and mission of the UFS to be an excellent, equitable and innovative university through quality education, research and community service.
Through a number of significantly identifiable projects, community engagement has been contributing towards a “scholarship of engagement” by responding to societal challenges, using teaching, research and community service to make a contribution to the development of the province and also of a wider South African region.
This year the directorate hosted its first Open Day where students from the various faculties of the university displayed their community service programmes. A reasonable number of community partners also had an opportunity to demonstrate their projects during the event. Satisfactory community participation reinforced acknowledgement for attainment of the objective for the day – that of raising awareness.
The programme for the day emphasizsd the meaning of community service programmes d the significance of partnerships. In recognition of outstanding service, commitment and excellence in the field of community engagement and service learning some staff members, researchers and partners received the Vice-Rector Awards for Community Engagement.
The interactions of the Open Day are expected to raise awareness, cultivate understanding among partners, encourage solid alliances and bring to the fore an acknowledgement of community engagement as the integral part of higher education.