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Extension of the 2019/2020 SRC term

31 August 2020 | Story Xolisa Mnukwa

SRC elections 2020/21 were due to take place before the end of August 2020 as prescribed by the ISRC constitution. However, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the consequent lockdown regulations and extension of the UFS 2020 academic year, the current SRC term will be extended until March 2021.

The decision to extend the term of the SRC was taken by the Rectorate following a recommendation made by the Division of Student Affairs (DSA), after consultation with

the ISRC.

The consultation process with the ISRC produced three options:

Proceed with SRC elections in August 2020;
Extend the current SRC term to align with the extended 2020 academic year; or
Elect a Transitional Student Council (TSC) from September 2020 to March 2021.

In view of the above, and considering current conditions amid the coronavirus pandemic,

online SRC elections are scheduled for March 2021.

This extension implies that the terms of all the sub-structures of the ISRC will be extended accordingly.

This communication serves as official notice to the Student Body about the extension of the

2019/2020 ISRC term and all its sub-structures as per the prescripts of the ISRC Constitution.

The DSA, with particular reference to the Student Governance Office (SGO), remains

committed to engaging with all parties of legitimate interest about matters arising from,

related to, and/or about SRC elections in all its permutations.

Should you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact the SGO:

Coordinator: Kamogelo Dithebe (DithebeKS@ufs.ac.za)

Faculty Coordinator: (MunzheleleD@ufs.ac.za)

Administrator: Rethabile Motseki (MotsekiR@ufs.ac.za)

News Archive

Monkey research attracts international attention

2016-07-11

Prof Trudy Turner from the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Prof Paul Grobler
from the Department of Genetics at the
University of the Free State, together with one
of the students researching monkey genes.
Photo: Siobhan Canavan

For this year’s Summer School programme, Prof Paul Grobler, from the University of the Free State Department of Genetics focuses on research about the conflict between monkeys and humans in areas where monkeys are regarded as problem animals.

Global expert part of research

This year, Prof Grobler is hosting a group of students and lecturers from the United States of America (USA). The group includes Prof Trudy Turner from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), a global expert on vervet monkeys. She has been working with the Department of Genetics at the UFS for the past fifteen years, and has also been appointed as an Affiliated Professor in the department.

“The Summer School programme is an opportunity for the American Primatology students to gain practical experience in Africa,” says Prof Grobler.

International interest in Summer School

This year’s Summer School programme involves four lecturers and nine students. The lecturers are from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Boston University, and Central Washington University.

“We use the genetic information to determine
how monkeys historically infiltrated the
different areas in South Africa.”

This year’s focus is on the genetic structure of the monkeys in South Africa, and research that is being done on the differences and similarities in monkeys from different areas. “We use the genetic information to determine how monkeys historically infiltrated the different areas in South Africa,” says Prof Grobler.

Local nature reserve acting as host

The group will perform field work, including observing monkeys in the Soetdoring Nature Reserve, as well as laboratory work in the department, where they will be assisted by two laboratory technicians.

Two years ago, Prof Grobler and his department tested this idea on a smaller scale, and now they hope to make this a regular event.

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