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19 July 2018 Photo Supplied
AEVGI advances Next-Generation Sequencing in Africa
Prof George Armah, Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research, Ghana; Prof Carl Kirkwood, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, USA; Cornelius Hagenmeier, Director: Internationalisation, UFS; Prof Gert van Zyl, Dean: Health Sciences; Dr Martin Nyaga, Senior Lecturer in the NGS Unit; Prof Joyce Tsoka-Gwegweni, Vice-Dean: Health Sciences; Dr Glen Taylor, Senior Director: Research and Development; Prof Jeffrey Mphahlele, Vice-President, South African Medical Research Council.

The inaugural edition of the University of the Free State (UFS) Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) Data and Bioinformatics Workshop, hosted by the UFS-NGS Unit in the UFS Faculty of Health Sciences, marked a new beginning for the advancement of NGS in Africa under the auspices of the African Enteric Viruses Genome Initiative (AEVGI), which was recently funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The AEVGI will generate rotavirus genomes at the UFS-NGS Unit to investigate the long-term effects of the introduction of the monovalent RV1 vaccine in three African countries – Ghana, Malawi, and South Africa.

The workshop attracted over 90 participants from 15 national and international institutions, with organisations from seven different countries as well as company representatives attending the event. The workshop kicked off with a courtesy call to the Rector and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Francis Petersen, followed by a stakeholder meeting with the executive management of the UFS.

The funding was secured through an award to the principal investigator, Dr Martin Nyaga, and sub-awards to co-investigators, Dr Khuzwayo Jere, Dr Francis Dennis, and Dr Valentine Ndze. According to attendee evaluations of the workshop, the remarkable performance of the workshop instructors was outstanding. Through practical sessions, participants were equipped with knowledge on how to apply several tools of genetic data analysis, using the rotavirus genome as a model to construct and interpret different genomic datasets.

A total of 65 students attended the hands-on workshop, the majority of which were from South African higher-education institutions. The organisers are grateful to the sponsors, particularly to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the University of the Free State, for making the workshop a success. Whitehead Scientific and the South African Medical Research Council also played a major role in the success of the workshop. The local organising committee consisted of Dr Martin Nyaga (host, convener and chair), Dr Saheed Sabiu (secretary), and Mr Stephanus Riekert (principal ICT support).

News Archive

UFS provides support network in each faculty
2016-10-28

Description: UFS provides support network in each faculty Tags: UFS provides support network in each faculty

Photo: iStock

Faculties at the University of the Free State (UFS) have been affected differently by the interruption of teaching time over the past few weeks.

Some faculties, like the Faculty of Law, have completed their curriculum, while other faculties like the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences require more teaching time. The Faculty of Health Sciences, for instance, cannot do teaching through alternative modes of delivery.

According to their needs, each faculty has prepared all the necessary learning material and instructions to support student learning. The standard and quality will be the same as if students have been attending classes. Some faculties require practical laboratory work as part of their curriculum and the necessary arrangements and adjustments have been made per department/faculty.

Constantly check official platforms
In order to assist with successfully completing the 2016 academic year, the UFS has launched the Academic Reboot Pack 2.0. It provides information around the carefully-crafted UFS academic rescue strategy and how to go about completing your work.

It is paramount to constantly check your faculty’s Blackboard organisation, the university’s main page, and your ufs4life emails to stay informed with emerging information regarding the state of the campus.

Faculties communicate work directly
Faculties at the UFS will communicate all outstanding academic work directly to the students registered in the faculty. For this, the university has created a UFS Support Network. Students should not hesitate to email or call if they need support.

Important contacts:    

Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences
Faculty Manager: Lizette Pretorius (LPretorius@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 2173)
Teaching and Learning Manager: Dr Corlia Janse van Vuuren (JanseVanVuurenEC@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 3691)
    
Faculty of Education    
Faculty Manager: Charmell Cardoso (CardosoC@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 9264)    
Teaching and Learning Manager: Prof Adri Beylefeld (BeylefeldAA@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 3125)
    
Faculty of Law    
Faculty Manager: Adri Kotze (Kotzea@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 2735)    
Teaching and Learning Manager: Dr Manie Moolman (MoolmanHJ@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 7084)

Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences    
Faculty Manager: Lee-Ann Frazenburg (DamonsLE@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 3199)    
Teaching and Learning Manager: Elzmarie Oosthuizen (OosthuizenEM@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 2934)

Faculty of the Humanities    
Faculty Manager: Marica Coetsee (coetseem@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 2369)    
Teaching and Learning Manager: Jackie Storer (storerja@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 9579)
    
Faculty of Theology    
Faculty Manager: Ingrid Mostert (MosterIE@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 9079)    
Teaching and Learning Manager: Dr Thomas Resane (ResaneKT@ufs.ac.za or +27 51 401 9331)

Get your copy of the Academic Reboot Pack 2.0 on Blackboard under announcements or click here to download it.

The Academic Reboot Pack 1.0 is also available for you.
 
If students have any question or queries regarding the Academic Reboot Pack, they can send an email to: advising@ufs.ac.za

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