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07 December 2020 | Story Dr Cindé Greyling | Photo Sonia Small
From the left; Lelanie de Wet; Andre Damons; Ilze Bakkes and Barend Nagel.

The University of the Free State Department of Communication and Marketing (DCM), together with Student Recruitment Services (SRS), have managed to bring home four awards during the annual IABC Africa Silver Quill Awards programme. The Quill Awards programme salutes and recognises business communication excellence across the continent. It is the second time this year that DCM has received recognition from the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC). Earlier this year, Barend Nagel: Audio-visual Specialist, won a 2020 IABC Gold Quill Award of Merit for his Gender-based Violence awareness campaign photographs.

Furthermore, André Damons, who was recently appointed as Senior Media Relations Officer at the UFS DCM, won two 2020 Vodacom Journalist of the Year regional awards for the Free State, Northern Cape, North-West and Limpopo region in the features and sports category for work done while he was still a Network24 journalist in Bloemfontein. 

During a time like this

Effective communication is always important, but even more so during times of uncertainty and change. 2020 has created numerous challenges for any communications team, but also several opportunities. In true Kovsie spirit, the UFS managed to not only survive, but also to thrive. Lelanie de Wet from the DCM won two Awards of Excellence. One for the Kovsies Multilingual Mokete in the communication management category for diversity and inclusion, and one for the UFS Virtual Graduation in the special and experiential events skills category. The judges praised her entries for its exceptional quality and standard: “Brilliant. Congratulations on a significant accomplishment.” 

Doing the same, differently

Barend Nagel from the DCM and Ilze Bakkes from Student Recruitment Services both entered the UFS Virtual Open Day (VOD). Barend received an Award of Merit for his website-related work for the VOD in the skills category. Besides being commended for his innovative and resourceful approach, Barend impressed the judges with “superior production values and strong images”. Ilze Bakkes from the UFS SRS entered the VOD as a campaign to showcase the work her team has done to conceptualise and facilitate this first-of-its-kind open day. The entry received an Award of Merit for its detailed target audience insight and short production timescale, among others. The judges were also impressed by the innovative approach and effective use of internal and external resources. “It is our first Silver Quill,” Ilze beamed, “we are over the moon!”

A step ahead

The competition during this year’s Silver Quill Awards were tough, seeing that all communication teams had to reinvent and rethink the best way to reach their stakeholders with limited communication channels. “It is a huge honour to again be recognised by the IABC for our projects and campaigns. I am very proud of my colleagues, who not only worked right through all the national lockdown levels to keep everyone informed, but also managed to maintain and exceed their level of operation,” said Lacea Loader, Director: Communication and Marketing at the UFS.   

News Archive

Meet the person behind the new #FaceOfFacebook
2016-05-19

Reuben “R” Davids

The votes have been counted, and we have a winner! After much excitement and a fairly close contest, Reuben “R” Davids emerged victorious from the top five contestants selected by our panel of judges. We chatted with the vibrant and enthusiastic Mr Davids to get a sense of the person who will be our Facebook ambassador for the next year.

What does the “R” stand for?

“Interestingly, some also know me as Vuyo. It's not a name on my birth certificate or anything; I just really like it. And I also coincidentally found out that it means “joy/happiness”, and I do enjoy being happy.”

What is your field of study, and how far along are you?

“I am pursuing a career in the economics field as a third-year BCom Accounting student in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences here at the University of the Free State.”

Are you originally from Bloemfontein?

“Yes, born and bred. I've been a Bloem Kid since day one.”

How is it that you ended up here, studying at the UFS?

“The UFS has always been one of my favourite universities. During my high school period, I was constantly exposed to people from my neighbourhood as well as schoolmates who performing excellently here at UFS, and it didn't go unnoticed. So I have always been drawn to the prestige that UFS carries.”

Which residence are you in, and what do you enjoy most about res life?

“I currently stay at home with the family, but for my first 2 years of study I resided at ConLaurês. What I enjoyed the most about res life is the freedom and independence that you get. It also enables one to participate in campus life much easier. It actually helps one grow and mature into the adult you're supposed to become with all the challenges and responsibilities that you're faced with.”

What do you hope to accomplish during your term as the #FaceOfFacebook?

“I enjoy the art of presenting (as well as being an MC), and being the #FaceOfFacebook will enable me to exercise that skill. Also, my interaction skills will be exercised. That being said, I would like to have those skills developed further by the end of my term as #FaceOfFacebook.”

What is your motivation in your studies, in taking part in this contest, and in life?

“I am an adrenaline junkie. I like taking on challenge; so what I normally do is I set a certain goal for myself and then take on the challenge to achieve that goal. That's my number one motivating factor. And I think I'm also inspired by the failures and successes of myself and of those around me.”

Reuben has already been featured in a #PeopleOfKovsies post on Facebook, and appeared in his first Facebook video covering the Open Day on our Bloemfontein Campus.

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