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20 March 2019 | Story Xolisa Mnuwka | Photo Charl Devenish
Stagedoor Finals
Houses Vergeet-My-Nie and NJ van der Merwe won over the judges at the 2019 Stagedoor finals.

‘Vergeet van der Merwe’, a hybrid of female residences Vergeet-my-Nie and NJ van der Merwe, are the 2019 Stagedoor competition’s overall winners. The dynamic girl duo showed up and showed off during the 2019 Stagedoor finals in the Kopanong Auditorium on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus over the weekend.

The girls enthused the audience with a soul-filled sing-off and a relatable theatrical performance, which earned them both the audience’s and the judge’s best votes. Teams Welwitschia and Imperium (Welperium), and Outeniqua and Soetdoring (Outdoring), walked away with the second and third positions respectively, as each of the residences were recognised for team excellence and spirit when it came to creativity and overall acting in each of their performances.

The UFS Stagedoor competition is an annual event that employs first-years to take cognisance of the day-to-day societal issues and pressures that university students are faced with. In 2019, the event was for the first time entirely organised and ran by students for students.

The competition has over the years become a major highlight on UFS students’ arts and culture calendar and continues to be a platform of expression for residence and off-campus first-year students. Stagedoor performances are traditionally themed to tackle modern-day issues such as infrastructure and economic inequality, land reform, and education. However, this year’s competition engaged students in telling their stories without any restrictions, and still being able to effectively examine the pressures that come with varsity life, and many other issues that face South Africa, but more specifically the youth. The 2019 Stagedoor event was successfully coordinated and structured by UFS Bloemfontein Campus SRC: Arts and Culture, Patrick Chirilele, with help from Residence Committee (RC) Culture members.

News Archive

UFS a much safer place
2011-09-20

 
First-year students Chuma Nyiko (left) and Mabasa Teleni next to one of the red poles installed on our Bloemfontein Campus.
Photo: Amanda Tongha

Students and staff at our Bloemfontein Campus can feel even safer, with several initiatives being put in place to ensure their safety.

The stop-and-search actions of the recent past, which are being carried out at all the main gates of our Bloemfontein Campus, seem to be successful, since car theft has decreased on the campus. Mr Willie Frankim, Head of Protection Services, says the stop-and-search actions are carried out sporadically, but have a definite effect on crime at the campus. Mr Frankim says only one vehicle has been stolen in the past two months as opposed to the many more that have been stolen in the past.

The message that safety is viewed in a serious light reaches as far as our university’s parking areas and walkways, which are being patrolled by security staff. Mr Frankim says a security officer is placed in all the large parking areas, while other personnel are distributed across the entire campus, especially at key areas, such as at the library and student centre.

Our university also recently installed more than 30 red poles across the entire campus. Each of these red poles is fitted with a panic button by means of which help can be summoned. Should a student or staff member feel unsafe, all they have to do is press the button and cameras, which are installed in the vicinity, will focus on the pole and Protection Services will send assistance. Twenty five of these poles are already working and ten more still have to be activated.

Students and staff can also phone Protection Services on 051 401 2911 if they feel uncomfortable about their safety. They can use this number, for example, to ask a security officer to accompany them to their car.
 

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