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20 December 2019 | Story Thabo Kessah | Photo Thabo Kessah
Digital Story Telling
Dr Deidré van Rooyen from the Centre for Development Support, Dr Jared McDonald (Department of History), Moodi Matsoso, and Bishop Billyboy Ramahlele with the mobile device.

In an effort to broaden the storytelling horizons and to answer to the demands of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Community Engagement on the UFS Qwaqwa Campus recently launched the Digital Storytelling project, aimed at broadening access to good community stories.

“We have partnered with the Common Good First initiative to enhance the service that we provide as a department,” said Bishop Billyboy Ramahlele, Director: Community Engagement.

“We challenge all academics, support staff, the SRC and students in general, to take advantage of this channel to communicate their stories to the world,” he said.

Histories of royal families

“The digital documentation of the histories of the royal families in the Qwaqwa area is in the pipeline and will be conducted in partnership with the Department of History. We have come to realise that with times changing, the younger generation loses track of the precious histories, and this platform will help in preserving that,” he added.

Community Engagement coordinator, Moodi Matsoso, also revealed that space has been identified for the lab. “At the moment, we are operating on mobile digital storytelling devices, with all the necessary equipment such as tablets and cameras. However, we will soon have a fully-fledged lab on campus,” she said.

This project is co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.

News Archive

Prof Finkelstein current and only A-rated researcher in Probability and Statistics in SA
2014-10-28



Prof Maxim Finkelstein
Photo: Johan Roux
Prof Maxim Finkelstein from the Department of Mathematical Statistics at the University of the Free State (UFS) received an A-rating from the National Research Foundation (NRF). This makes him the only A-rated researcher in ‘Probability and Statistics’ regarding Mathematical Sciences in the country.

According to the NRF-rating process, a person with an A-rating is a world leader in his field. 

Prof Jonathan Jansen, Vice-Chancellor and Rector, said: "I am absolutely delighted for Professor Finkelstein and for the fact that this is one of the clearest signs that the UFS has significantly increased its standards of research across the institution as a whole."

Prof Finkelstein says this rating means a great deal to him, since it is a reflection of his dedication and perseverance.

“Of course, the rating is not a goal in itself,” Prof Finkelstein says. “The goal is the high quality research and the rating is just an objective indication of this. Along with the satisfaction, this rating brings the responsibility for maintaining this high status in the future.”

Prof Finkelstein conducts his general research in the field of ‘Probability and Statistics’, but his specific area of focus is ‘Stochastic Modelling’. Prof Finkelstein solely lectures postgraduate students and also mentors a few master’s and PhD students. This affords him the time to mainly concentrate on his research.

“Finally, I wish to emphasise the fact that high-quality research became the prime goal at the UFS,” says Prof Finkelstein. He underscores the efforts of the Vice-Chancellor and the Vice-Rector: Research in creating excellent possibilities for researchers. This has already resulted in remarkable improvements in the UFS’s research outputs – and consequently an increase in the number of rated researchers at the university.

A total of 119 UFS researchers currently have evaluation and rating status from the NRF, says Nico Benson, Deputy Director: Research Development. Currently (October 2014) 29 researchers are still waiting for response from the NRF regarding applications submitted. A total of 16 ratings are already known. On the Qwaqwa Campus of the UFS, five researchers are rated.

Prof Finkelstein's A-rating will become effective from 1 January 2015. Ratings are valid for a period of six years and researchers are invited to apply for re-evaluation in the fifth year.


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