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31 January 2018 Photo Charl Devenish
Kovsie Star of Stars winner believes that Geology rocks
Director of UFS Marketing, Nomonde Mbadi, with the winner of Kovsies Star of Stars for 2017, Palesa Modutwane.

Starting in 2016, UFS Marketing embarked on a project designed to help learners from less fortunate backgrounds to discover their potential. This competition, dubbed ‘Kovsies Star of Stars’, designed to help recognise excellence and reward disadvantaged learners from Quintile 1 to 3 (non-fee-paying) schools. The project’s motto is ‘Aspire to Inspire’, with the goal of discovering the potential hidden beneath the hard-packed surface of poverty.

Two of the five Free State districts were identified, namely Xhariep and Motheo, where the initiative is currently being conducted. In 2016, Grade 12 learners were invited to participate, with ‘Doctor’ Tshepo Thajane, from Lefikeng Secondary School in Botshabelo, being selected as the winner of the inaugural competition. He was pursuing a degree in Actuarial Sciences at the UFS, and towards the end of 2017, he was offered a scholarship to study abroad. This outstanding initiative by the UFS Marketing team was honoured with an award from the organisation Marketing, Advancement, and Communication in Education (MACE) in November 2017.

“We hope to give
… life and hope.”
—Nomonde Mbadi,
Director: UFS Marketing

Initiative seeks to ‘give life and hope’
Nomonde Mbadi, Director of UFS Marketing, whose brainchild the project is, says, “In spite of living in the depths of poverty, taking each day as it comes, these learners have more drive and passion than many others.”

Ms Mbadi and her team, including Chantel Koller, project lead on Star of Stars, aim to "give these learners life and hope" by means of the project, she says.

The winner of the Kovsie Star of Stars for 2017 is Palesa Modutwane from Ipetleng Secondary School in Petrusburg, Free State. She says of her achievement: “This means that all the hard work that I invested in my studies and in community projects is being recognised, and I feel like a new chapter of opportunities has been opened to me. It means that my background does not determine my future. Despite all of this, I still managed to conquer.”

Palesa will be studying Geology at the UFS. After all the hard work getting into her chosen programme, she is up for the challenges and is ready to represent women who were denied the opportunity in a previously male-dominated industry. She says, “I want to show that we have the same potential and wisdom as men.”

News Archive

Government to benefit from training of interpreters
2009-03-31

 
Pictured, from the left, are: Prof Theo du Plessis (Director: Unit for Language Management, UFS), Ms Mokone Nthongoa (HOD: Sport, FS Department of Sport, Arts and Culture), Mr Khotso Sesele (MEC: FS Department of Sport, Arts and Culture) and Prof Engela Pretorius (Vice Dean: Faculty of the Humanities, UFS).
Photo: Mangaliso Radebe
Government to benefit from training of interpreters

The fourth phase of a project to train eight conference interpreters and 30 community interpreters to assist government departments at service delivery points in the Free State was launched this week.

The project is part of the Multilingualism Information Development Programme which brings together the Free State provincial government, the Province of Antwerp and the University of Antwerp in Belgium and the University of the Free State (UFS).

Speaking at the launch of the fourth phase of the project, the MEC for Sport, Arts and Culture in the Free State, Mr Khotso Sesele, said: “The fact that we have been through the first three stages of this project, and are now launching its fourth phase, is indicative of the magnificent progress that has been made. This is a sign that through partnerships we can achieve more.”

The MIDP IV consists of two pillars, namely a practical and a research component. Its aim is to generate interpreting capacity within the provincial Department of Sport, Arts and Culture. The focus is on training an interpreting team over three years which can be employed within a governmental context at various service points.

“As we approach the 2009 FIFA Confederation Cup and the 2010 FIFA World Cup tournaments, it will be important for our communities to be able to interact with millions of foreign nationals who will be in our country from different world destinations during and beyond these two important soccer events,” said the MEC.

“The focus on interpreter training by this fourth phase of MIDP is thus an important factor in ensuring better communication during and beyond these important soccer spectacles that will take place in our country.”
The focus of the first three phases of the MIDP was on the main official languages of the province. This fourth phase, which started in 2008, will run until 2010 and its focus is on the Xhariep District Municipality.

“The provision of interpreting services and its further extension to district municipalities will provide the necessary interpreting skills to our communities that will enhance better interaction amongst ourselves,” said Mr Sesele.

He said the fact that indigenous languages have been “elevated from their marginalised status to being languages of business and commerce” is an important milestone that must be cherished.

This fourth phase of MIDP will also incorporate sign language as part of its focus on interpreting services.

“In our quest to ensure a multilingual dispensation in our province, we need not neglect to remember people with disabilities,” he said. “This is a matter of principle that does not require debate.”

“We should thus ensure the realisation of the goal of MIDP IV which is to ensure smooth communication interaction within the wider public, including the deaf community.”

“This is a wonderful project,” said Ms Mathabo Monaheng, one of the students in the MIDP. “As a sign language interpreter trainee this project will empower me with the necessary skills to be able to make a meaningful contribution to the deaf community in terms of communication.”

The MIDP is funded by the Province of Antwerp and successfully implemented by the Unit for Language Management at the UFS.

Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt.stg@ufs.ac.za  
31 March 2009

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