Latest News Archive
Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
01 January 2020
|
Story Eugene Seegers
|
Photo Kaleidoscope Studios | Sonia Small
Dr Maria Madiope took over the reins of the UFS South Campus at the beginning of January 2020.
The Council of the University of the Free State (UFS) approved the appointment of Dr Maria ‘Marinkie’ Madiope as Principal of the South Campus for Open Distance Learning (ODL) during a meeting held on 20 September 2019. Dr Madiope took over the reins of the UFS South Campus at the beginning of January 2020.
Educator at heart
Educating and empowering others are key aspects of Dr Madiope's life. She has served as the Director for University Teaching and Learning at Unisa since 2015 and takes her role incredibly seriously, achieving a transformative curriculum at the colleges under her care since her appointment.
Dr Madiope holds a PhD in Education from Unisa, with a specialisation in Didactics; her next two degrees where completed at the then RAU, which is today known as the University of Johannesburg: a BEd in 1999, followed by an MEd in 2001, both specialising in Computer-based Instruction. She previously obtained her BA Ed in 1985 and a BEd in 1988 from the University of the North. Her initial training as a teacher was from the Hebron College of Education from 1980-81.
Dr Madiope is also the editor of the only journal in ODL, Progressio, since 2016. Her expertise in E-learning is another of her strong points. Together with her team, Dr Madiope designed and developed the first online course in Curriculum Transformation, which is being piloted at Unisa. Her work has been rewarded with awards such as the Unisa Gender Activism: Advocacy and Promotion of Women’s Rights 2013, Unisa Woman of the Year 2013, and Unisa Best Performer 2013.
Dr Madiope brings with her a wealth of experience to UFS and her vision is to increase access to a wider base of learners with potentially having more African learners enrolled. The first point of call would be to have more learners coming from Lesotho and then the rest of the SADEC region, having the UFS become a leading distance-learning university. One of the key projects that Dr Madiope wishes to tackle is early childhood development. “I believe in educating educators to ensure that they are best equipped to provide the latest and relevant Early childhood and development practices that are on par with the rest of the world,” she says.
Community leader
In addition to being an experienced educator and administrator, Dr Madiope is instrumental in community projects that lie close to her heart. Whether it is large-scale advocacy for women’s rights or her personal involvement in the supply of sanitary towels for schoolgirls as part of a programme to empower the girl child through exposing them to options, it is humbling to watch her compassion in action.
She further intends to strengthen the relationship of the university with TVET Colleges and community colleges by providing mutually beneficial programmes that will up-skill those colleagues by giving them an opportunity to work with experienced UFS staff members. She says, “Reaching out to colleagues in TVET and Community colleges will offer them the opportunity to advance their lecturing and learning programmes, which will only lead to benefiting their learners and South Africa as a whole.”
Law students triumph in Africa
2007-08-16
 |
|
Pictured with the trophies they have won are, from the left: Ms Qaqamba Vellem (fourth-year LL.B. student), Prof. Johan Henning (Dean of the UFS Faculty of Law), Prof. Loot Pretorius (Head of the Department of Constitutional Law and Philosophy of Law), Ms Lucy Nthotso (fourth-year LL.B. student), Ms Thapi Matsaneng (moot coach and lecturer in Corporate Law at the UFS) and Mr Johnny Modipa (third-year LL.B. student).
Photo: Stephen Collett
Law students triumph in Africa
A team of students from the Faculty of Law at the University of the Free State (UFS) has won the first prize at the 16th African Human Rights Moot Court Competition held in Senegal last week.
The UFS team consisted of three L.L .B. students, namely Ms Lucy Nthotso, Ms Qaqamba Vellem and Mr Johnny Modipa, and beat teams from numerous South African law faculties as well as from the rest of Africa.
The Moot Court Competition is an event where students from law faculties across Africa argue a hypothetical case on human rights issues pertinent to the continent. This year’s competition dealt with the issues of refugee status, nationality, HIV/AIDS and the right to education.
Over and above the UFS team’s success as the overall competition winners, the UFS team came first in the written memorials category (written substance of the argument of the particular party), beating seventy teams from both the English and French speaking African countries.
To further add to their splendid overall team performance, team members Ms Vellem and Ms Nthotso were selected amongst the top fifteen students for their oral arguments out of the hundred and forty who took part in the competition. Ms Vellem came tenth and Ms Ntshotso eleventh.
According to the Dean of the Faculty of Law at the UFS, Prof. Johan Henning, the faculty is extremely proud of this achievement of its students in such a highly regarded competition.
“This success shows that the quality of legal education and training we provide here at the UFS, both through the 4- and 5-year L.L.B. options is rated among the best in Africa, if not the world,” Prof. Henning said.
He said it also showed that the faculty is committed to producing black law graduates of substance who are second to none.
The three students were coached by Ms Thapi Matsaneng, a UFS law graduate who is completing her Ph.D. at the University of London and who was groomed by the UFS as part of its Grow Our Own Timber programme, aimed at producing black academics.
Prof. Loot Pretorius, head of the department of constitutional law and philosophy of law at the UFS, acted as a consultant to the team. Ms Matsaneng also accompanied the three team members to Senegal.
The panel of judges who determined the winners comprised of the commissioners of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, a South African Constitutional Court judge as well as other respected members of the legal community.
Media Release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt.stg@ufs.ac.za
16 August 2007
|