Latest News Archive

Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
Categories
UFS News Media Release Research
Years
2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Months
January February March April May June July August September October November December
Previous Archive
26 February 2018 Photo Eugene Seegers
Dutch scholar honours Faculty of Theology and Religion with special book dedication
Prof Bram van de Beek hands over his book, Mijn Vader, uw Vader, which contains his dedication to the UFS Faculty of Theology and Religion, to Prof Fanie Snyman, Dean of the faculty.

While surveying recent publications, staff members at the Faculty of Theology and Religion discovered, almost by coincidence, that a world-renowned systematic theologian and professor emeritus of the Free University Amsterdam (VU Amsterdam) in the Netherlands, Prof Bram van de Beek, had dedicated his most recent volume on Systematic Theology to the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the UFS in Bloemfontein.

Even before Prof Fanie Snyman, Dean of this faculty, had any knowledge of this special honour, Prof Van de Beek was invited to conduct the Scripture reading and sermon on the programme of the University of the Free State (UFS) Faculty of Theology and Religion’s official opening and Theological Day. This event provided the perfect opportunity for Prof Van de Beek to officially hand a copy of his book over to the faculty.

Prof Van de Beek accepted the invitation and on 19 February 2018 conducted the sermon in the Odeion Theatre at the UFS based on the theme of the Theological Day, Reconciliation: Biblical imperative and the South African reality. He then formally presented his book, with the title Mijn Vader, uw Vader, which contains the dedication, to Prof Snyman, saying: “It is an honour for me to have the opportunity to present my book today. It was a pleasure for me to dedicate it to the Faculty of Theology and Religion in Bloemfontein. I did so because of my great appreciation for the work these colleagues are doing.”

'It was a pleasure for me
to dedicate this book to the
UFS Faculty of Theology and Religion.'
—Prof Bram van de Beek
Dutch Systematical Theologian
and Dogmatician

Prof Van de Beek continued: “They keep to academic standards in difficult circumstances. It is not only the pressure of ‘publish or perish’ which must be resisted, but also the pressure of society, and most of all, of church members who want an adapted theology according to their desires. True theology, like any academic discipline, is interested in the truth and is not based on interests. I notice the courage by colleagues of this faculty to keep to this standard in both the training of students and in their research. They even had the courage to reflect on the very rationale of the existence of theology at a public university. Nothing can be taken for granted, for at the very moment we do so in the university, we lose our critical attitude, which is the basis for academic work. So it is with great esteem that I dedicated my book to this faculty.”

In his acceptance, Prof Snyman expressed his utmost appreciation that a European theologian of worldwide renown would take note of a university and faculty so far removed from his sphere of activity.

News Archive

State of our campuses: Impact of non-completion of the 2016 academic year on UFS students
2016-10-08

Dear Parents/Guardians and Students,

Impact of non-completion of the 2016 academic year

The University of the Free State (UFS) reiterates its support and commitment to the cause of free higher education. We have stated our position in all the available spaces. We want to work with UFS students to put pressure on the government to commit itself to accept the many suggestions put forward to make free education possible within a negotiated timeframe.

We are also seriously committed to our responsibility of providing education to all students enrolled at the university. We are doing our outmost to ensure that we can resume academic activities next week.

Description: " Academic non-completion 2016 Tags: " Academic non-completion 2016

We want to bring to your attention what will happen to individual students if the UFS cannot resume classes fully on Monday 10 October 2016.

Currently we have extended the academic year by one week. Some faculties are working on Saturdays and Sundays, starting earlier and finishing later to complete the material that needs to be taught and the practical work that students need to do to be able to write exams.

In the three biggest faculties at the university: Education, the Humanities, and Natural Sciences, this is what will happen:

  • Education will fail to graduate 1 193 students
  • Humanities will fail to graduate 1 125 students
  • Natural and Agricultural Sciences will fail to graduate 1 390 students

In the professional faculties: Economic and Management Sciences, Health Sciences, and Law, this will happen:

  • Economic and Management Sciences will fail to graduate 997 students
  • Health Sciences will fail to graduate 633 students
  • Law will fail to graduate 619 students

In total, approximately 6 000 students will not receive complete transcripts of their degrees and the certificates for their qualifications.

The university currently has 3 238 students on NSFAS bursaries. None of these students will be able to apply for bursaries for the lost year. They will be regarded as having failed or not completed their courses. They will not only miss this year, but the opportunity of studying in the future.

These students come from families to which their success in higher education was supposed to mean a change in the future of the entire family. Some parents/guardians hold more than one job to be able to pay tuition fees.

In not allowing the year to continue and students to finish, we are throwing away the efforts that entire families of poor people have made for four or five years to put their children through university. The promise of free education for future generations means nothing to these families who are poor in the present.

In terms of the academic calendar, it is a false argument to say that universities will be able to enrol first-years, because what 2016 students will miss, is the second semester.

We do not have the capacity to teach double the number of students in the second semester. This also misses the point that those students who were completing modules in order to graduate, will waste an entire year (assuming they have funding) to complete their degrees. This argument does not see the knock-on effect that students, not promoting in modules from first to second and second to third year, etc., will have. Finally, this also misses the point of what will happen to students who have to repeat first-semester modules.

In terms of academic staff, students are discounting the willingness of academic staff to teach double or to have the academic year extended by approximately six weeks between teaching and examinations. The same can be said for all the administrative and support staff required for running the university.

In our case, all the students in the University Preparation Programme (UPP) on the South Campus in Bloemfontein will be stuck without being able to move into mainstream modules, preventing a new intake of UPP students for 2017. These are the poorest and most disadvantaged students at the UFS.

It is absolutely necessary to find a means of protest and political action that will not jeopardise the future of current students and the country’s desperate need for critical skills.  The interdict against violent protest secured by the UFS is still in force. The police will intervene if the interdict is not respected and the UFS will have no control over police actions.

We trust that parents/guardians and students understand the implications of the situation.

Kind regards,

Prof Nicky Morgan
Acting Rector
University of the Free State

 

Released by:
Lacea Loader (Director: Communication and Brand Management)
Telephone: +27 51 401 2584 | +27 83 645 2454
Email: news@ufs.ac.za | loaderl@ufs.ac.za
Fax: +27 51 444 6393


State of our campuses #11: Academic activities on UFS campuses continue

State of our campuses #10: Impact of non-completion of the 2016 academic year on UFS students 

State of our campuses #9: Academic programme on all UFS campuses to resume on Monday 10 October 2016

State of our campuses #8:  UFS extends vacation as from 28 September until 7 October 2016, 28 September 2016

State of our campuses #7: All three UFS campuses will be closed today, 27 September 2016.

State of our campuses #6: All UFS campuses reopen on Tuesday 27 September 2016

State of our campuses #5: UFS campuses to remain closed on Monday 26 September 2016

State of our campuses #4: Decisions about the UFS academic calendar

State of our campuses #3: UFS campuses closed until Friday 23 September 2016 

State of our campuses #2: UFS Bloemfontein and South Campuses closed on Tuesday 20 September 2016 (19 September 2016)

State of our campuses #1: Academic activities suspended on UFS Bloemfontein Campus (19 September 2016)

We use cookies to make interactions with our websites and services easy and meaningful. To better understand how they are used, read more about the UFS cookie policy. By continuing to use this site you are giving us your consent to do this.

Accept