Latest News Archive
Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
17 June 2020
|
Story Dr WP Wahl
The Division of Student Affairs (DSA) prioritises innovation to meet the challenges of food insecurity and malnutrition among students. To this end, several student volunteers and student governance structures are collaborating with the DSA on various initiatives.
During 2019, various conversations were held about the possibility of creating a health-promoting food environment at the UFS where students and staff are well informed and empowered to take appropriate action regarding their food and nutritional needs. These conversations resulted in an institutional strategy to address the food environment at the UFS. Student representatives serve on a technical committee that directs the implementation of this strategy. In this regard, several initiatives have already been launched.
Students from residences and other student communities have planted vegetable gardens on the Bloemfontein Campus with the assistance of KovsieACT and the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences. Students and staff are already harvesting and distributing vegetables to needy students every week. Measurements were put in place to continue this during the COVID-19 period. The following vegetables were planted: spinach, cabbage, beetroot, broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots.
Food parcels, donated by Tiger Brands and Gift of the Givers, are continuously handed out by DSA staff and student volunteers. In this regard, 540 food parcels have already been handed out on the Bloemfontein Campus during the COVID-19 period alone. During the same time, 117 students received food parcels on the Qwaqwa Campus. The innovation of this food parcel project rests on the fact that business, NPOs, UFS students, and DSA staff are collaborating to address food insecurity and malnutrition.
More collaborative initiatives will be implemented over the next 12 months. The DSA staff and students are already working with the Department of Dietetics and Consumer Sciences to create information packages about the preparation of low-budget nutritious meals.
Related article:
Vegetable tunnels established to continue the fight against food insecurity
UFS postpones examinations to Monday 2 November 2015
2015-10-23
The management of the University of the Free State (UFS) decided today, in line with other universities in the country, to postpone the main examination to Monday 2 November 2015 and the additional examination to 23 November 2015.
The decision comes after students across the country took part in a protest action against the increase of fees in 2016. Students from the UFS participated in the protest from Tuesday 20 October 2015.
Moving the examination by one week will afford all students the opportunity to prepare for their examination and to take the additional assessment opportunities they missed during this past week to make up their predicate mark.
The exam timetable sequence/order remains exactly the same as scheduled and the changed examination timetables have been published on the UFS website; Official Timetables. Students are requested to note the exemptions to the postponement. These exceptions are also published on the UFS website.
Academic and administrative activities will resume on all three campuses of the UFS on Monday 26 October 2015.
New dates and FAQS
Released by:Lacea Loader (Director: Communication and Brand Management)
news@ufs.ac.za
+27(0)51 401 3422
+27(0)83 645 2454