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Prof Helena Strauss
Prof Helena van Zyl, Director of the UFS Business School, says the accreditation endorses their important role in empowering business leaders.

The Business School of the University of the Free State (UFS) received an International Qualifications Assessment accreditation by the Central and East European Management Development Association (CEEMAN) this week.
 
“This is an endorsement for the level of quality and relevance of the Business School. I’ve been inundated with well-wishes via phone and emails from current and former students. They all realise the tremendous benefits this holds for everyone affiliated with our Business School, as the quality of our qualifications are now recognised globally,” says Prof Helena Van Zyl, Director of the UFS Business School.

“On behalf of the executive management, I would like to congratulate Prof Van Zyl and her team on this fine achievement. The accreditation is a feather in the cap of the university and it is indeed an accomplishment to be proud of,” says Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS.
  
CEEMAN is an international management-development association with the aim of accelerating the growth in quality of management development in Central and Eastern Europe. The association has more than 220 members from over 55 countries in Europe, North America, Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

Thorough evaluation process

The accreditation is the culmination of two years of hard work – first to apply by submitting an overview of operations, then drawing up a self-assessment report with appendices of over 1 000 pages. Finally, a peer-review team with panel members from Latvia, Poland, and Mauritius came to the Bloemfontein Campus for an on-site assessment. In two and a half days, the panel conducted detailed, thorough interviews with 85 different people – from staff and students, to industry partners, the dean, and members of the rectorate.
    
Aspects which the panel focused on included the school’s mission and strategic focus, legal status and governance, research output, physical facilities, financial viability, contribution to the local community, use of technology, and even how environmental needs are met.

“It’s been an incredibly intense but very rewarding experience,” says Prof Van Zyl. “The review team was very professional and strategic in their approach and also gave valuable input and advice.” 

Team members were particularly impressed by the overwhelmingly positive experiences recorded by students, as well as the state-of-the-art facilities.

Passionate about people

“We think of ourselves as a ‘Boutique Business School’ ”, explains Prof Van Zyl. “We are focused on quality and are extremely structured and disciplined, which ultimately creates a safety net for students and staff. We’re also small enough to build personal relationships with our students.”

She believes this to be the secret of the Business School’s tremendous success record over the 20 years of its existence.

“We are passionate about people and believe in creating a caring environment for them while they’re here.”  

News Archive

HEDSA discusses better services for students with disabilities
2010-09-30

At the gala dinner were, from the left: Anlia Pretorius, Chairperson of HEDSA and Head of the Disability Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand; Dr Blade Nzimande, Minister of Higher Education and Training; Ms Hetsie Veitch, Head of the Unit for Students with Disabilities at the UFS; and Prof. Niel Viljoen, Vice-Rector: Operations at the UFS.
Photo: Leonie Bolleurs

The first ever General Meeting of the Higher Education Disability Services Association (HEDSA) was held on the Main Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) in Bloemfontein this week. HEDSA is a newly constituted body that represents the Disability Units from the various universities across the country.

The UFS is a member of HEDSA, which aims to work together to promote equal opportunities for students with disabilities in terms of access, participation and success in Higher Education.

The General Meeting forms part of the launching symposium with the theme: New Beginnings and New Directions. The symposium, attended by 15 higher education institutions in South Africa, served as a platform to explore innovative approaches to assist in improving services for students with disabilities.

Dr Blade Nzimande, Minister of Higher Education and Training, was one of the speakers at the gala dinner of this prestigious event. He said that there is still a lot of work to do to overcome discrimination against students as well as staff members with disabilities at higher education institutions. Minister Nzimande quoted from the Soudien report, a government-commissioned report that brought to light discrimination – especially racism and sexism – still endemic at South African universities. “Victims, in this instance referring to students and staff with disabilities, are denied the opportunity – either through a lack of access to opportunities or due to outright discrimination – to realise their full potential. In the process, the country is robbed of valuable but untapped human resources. Higher education institutions cause incalculable damage to South African society by failing to deal boldly with these issues. Where institutions have indeed taken action, the benefits to individuals, to the different social groups in the country, as well as to the institutions themselves, have been major.”

He stated that he believed that HEDSA as well as the symposium could play a vital role that would assist in this process.

Ms Hetsie Veitch, Head of the Unit for Students with Disabilities at the UFS, was elected as treasurer of this body for the following two years. Johnny Mokoka will represent the UFS in HEDSA’s National Student Organisation for Students with Disabilities that was established during the symposium this week.

Media Release
Issued by: Leonie Bolleurs
Strategic Communication
Tel: 051 401 2707
Sel: 0836455853
Email: bolleursl@ufs.ac.za  
30 September 2010

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