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21 October 2019 | Story Thabo Kessah | Photo Tshepo Moeketsi
Qwaqwa research research
Mamokete Mokhatla (SRC: International Students Council), Pulane Xaba (Assistant: Afromontane Research Unit), Dr Hagenmeier, Morena Ntsane Mopeli, Prof Pearl Sithole, Chief Mlati, Kanego Mogotsi (Internationalisation: Qwaqwa Campus), and Prof Joseph Francis.

Communities are beginning to wonder if universities exist for themselves or for their communities. This is the view shared by Prof Pearl Sithole, Campus Vice-Principal: Academic and Research, during the opening of the two-day Travelling Seminar that was recently hosted on the Qwaqwa Campus. 

Research in communities

“This event is well-placed, considering what many communities are currently going through. We must ask ourselves what we are doing with and for our communities. We must be careful to not only reap data from them, but to be scientific in a way that accommodates our communities and allows the African and indigenous agenda into the world of science,” she added.

Providing background to the concept of homestays, the Director: Institute for Rural Development at the University of Venda, Prof Joseph Francis, acknowledged the role played by communities in research.

 “This seminar seeks to develop a testable framework for homestays; a concept enabling postgraduate students to be placed with rural families while conducting research in the area. It is also aimed at giving birth to a vibrant, community-based rural and regional development network connecting grassroots communities, business, government, and non-governmental stakeholders,” he said.

“We do not only train students for local deployment and within national borders. It is important to produce an ‘all-weather’ graduate who stands out wherever they are. Graduates must ask themselves, ‘what in me stands out among the rest?’ As a student and researcher, never see yourself as being confined to the space where you are,” he added.

Students as ambassadors

Cornelius Hagenmeier, Director: Office of International Affairs at the University of the Free State, said for internationalisation to work, it has to be inclusive and create student ambassadors. “As this seminar will show, our networks of stakeholder communities go beyond the national confines and borders. We must strive, through this project, to create ambassadors of the university, of communities, of the broader South Africa and Africa,” he said.

Participants in the seminar were academics and postgraduate students from both the Universities of the Free State and Venda. Also present were community and traditional leaders from Qwaqwa and the Vhembe District in Limpopo. 

News Archive

New SRC elected on UFS main campus
2006-08-23

 Ms Loraine Kriek, third-year student in B Consumer Sciences, was elected as SRC President of the Main Campus of the University of the Free State (UFS) for 2006/2007.  Ms Kriek was a member of the Student Parliament in 2005/2006.

 The most students in the history of the UFS – 6 353 in total – voted in this year’s election.  There were only 44 spoiled votes.  Last year 4 846 students voted.

 “Other than last year, minor incidences of vandalism occurred on the Main Campus by students who were unhappy with the outcome,” said Dr Natie Luyt, Dean:  Student Affairs at the UFS.  According to Dr Luyt minor damage was caused to the Thakaneng Bridge and some other buildings on the Main Campus.  

 Kovsie Alliance obtained no proportional representation on the SRC, SASCO obtain 3 seats and the FF+Kovsies obtained 6 seats.  

 This representation gave Kovsie Alliance 1 seat, SASCO 14 seats and the FF+Kovsies 25 seats in the Student Parliament, which consists of 40 seats.

 Nine of the 18 SRC members were directly elected and nine on the basis of proportional representation (PR).   The PR system was introduced after amendments to the constitution of the Main Campus SRC were approved by the UFS Council in June 2005. 

According to Dr Luyt elections on the Vista Campus will take place today (Wednesday 23 August 2006) and Thursday 24 August 2006.  The results will be announced on Friday 25 August 2006.  The SRC of the Qwaqwa Campus will be elected on Friday 25 August 2006.  If there are no objections to the final results, it will be announced that same day.

The Central SRC, made up of representatives of the 3 campus SRCs, will be announced towards the end of September 2006.

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Media Representative
Tel:  (051) 401-2584
Cell:  083 645 2454
E-mail:  loaderl.stg@mail.uovs.ac.za 
23 August 2006

 

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