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20 March 2019 | Story Zama Feni | Photo Rulanzen Martin
Prof Henning Melber
Prof Henning Melber, taking over the editorial-ship of the Acta Academica Journal.

The newly appointed editor of the University of the Free State(UFS) journal for humanities Prof Henning Melber had vowed to give the publication a deeper insight on critical issues ranging from decolonisation of knowledge to knowledge production.

In his first editorial opinion as the new Editor of the Acta Academica journal, Prof Melber said the publication has the declared intention to apply a critical social theory perspective.

“Dedicated to scholarship in the humanities, Acta Academica will henceforth be published annually with a minimum of two issues, plus an optional additional issues per year,” he said. 

Former Editor Professor Lis Lange, previously Vice-Rector: Academic at the University of the Free State (UFS), has moved to the University of Cape Town as Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning.

The journal publishes scholarly articles that examine society, culture and politics from a critical social theory perspective and it is also interested on scholarly work that examines how the humanities in the 21st century are responding to the double imperative of theorising the world and changing it.

Analysis on Africa encouraged for Acta Academica

As a journal promoting humanist values and ethics, Prof Melber stated that he would like to see Acta Academica publishing scholarly analysis and think pieces that engage with such challenges in a critical (and gendered) theoretical perspective. 

“We welcome in particular contributions that link to current themes and processes on the African continent and especially to Southern Africa, without abandoning the global context and the shared perspectives of committed
scholarship elsewhere,” he said.

Decolonisation of knowledge

“We will promote an emphasis on contributions in the fields of post-colonial, development, cultural, gender, international and African Studies aiming to support current efforts towards a decolonisation of knowledge and knowledge production. 
He said the journal will combine an international post-colonial discourse inspired by critical theory and other relevant schools of thought applied to and/or generated in a local and regional (African) context. 

“We also welcome efforts to contribute to the decolonisation of knowledge, which still to a large extent is anchored in the global asymmetries. We cannot pretend these asymmetric power relations and inherited structures do not exist.  “Nor will we be able to avoid their reproduction completely. But we can promote ownership of authors over their intellectual product and will disseminate the work as widely as possible,” he said.

New Editor calls for diversification of knowledge

In another efforts to decolonise, Prof Melber said they would also make special efforts to empower aspiring African scholars. As part of this endeavour, the UFS’s Centre for Gender and Africa Studies has for several years, been the partner institution of Africa Spectrum for the annual Young African Scholars Award. 

“We will try to create similar opportunities, encouraging early career scholars to submit articles. In addition, we would like to expand the character of contributions, by further diversification of forms of knowledge transmission through debate articles, reports, comments, review essays and other thought-provoking interventions. We hope to receive your support, as potential authors or as readers who contribute to or benefit from Acta Academica’s efforts to further a stimulating debate,” he said

News Archive

First-years at South Campus step into a bright future
2015-02-05

Photo: Stefan Lotter

This is the first step to a bright future.

This was the resounding message that welcomed first-year students to the South Campus. “Remember,” Tshegofatso Setilo, Manager of the University Preparation Programme said, “a journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.” But please do not get discouraged on your way, she urged, because “this is your first step to a bright future.

In his welcoming message, Prof Nicky Morgan, Vice-Rector: Operations at the UFS referred to the South Campus as the giant of the south. “This is one of the trailblazing campuses of the university,” he said. “No doubt what you’ll experience on this campus, you’ll never forget.”

This year, the South Campus boasts with 1 200 first-year students taking part in our University Preparation and Extended Programmes. These programmes allow students – whose matric marks did not reach the required total – the opportunity to study at the University of the Free State (UFS). The result? An astounding rise in pass rates. Some of the students on the South Campus outperform their peers studying at the Bloemfontein Campus, Prof Morgan remarked.

“You’ve got it in yourself. You’ve got the potential to unleash yourself on the world,” Prof Morgan said. You do not always realise the value of something that has come your way, he said. So, every moment you get an opportunity, he advised, use it to shape your future.

Addressing the newcomers’ fears, Prof Morgan urged each student to open themselves to the good and new experiences waiting for them. “When you find yourself in a new space, it always begins with you,” he said. Learn to understand how to live in harmony in different spaces.

Prof Morgan placed great emphasis on his closing remark: “At university, the more questions you seek to have answered – they’re worth more than the answers you have.”

 

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