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03 January 2023 | Story Lacea Loader | Photo Evert Kleynhans
Dr Dolf van Niekerk
Dr Dolf van Niekerk.

The University of the Free State (UFS) would like to express its condolences to the family and friends of South African author, Dr Dolf van Niekerk, on his passing.

Dr Van Niekerk, the recipient of an honorary doctorate from the UFS, passed away on 31 December 2022. The UFS awarded a Doctor of Letters to Dr Dolf van Niekerk during its April 2021 graduation ceremony. 
 
Dr Van Niekerk was a celebrated author who also achieved fame as a dramatist and radio presenter. An alumnus of the UFS, he received a BA degree from the university cum laude in 1949. He also played a role in academia and was an emeritus professor at the University of Pretoria until his retirement in 1994. His work includes 27 books in philosophy, poetry, fiction, drama, and memoirs, for which he has received numerous awards. These include the Eugene Marais Prize, the MER Prize, and the Scheepers Award for Youth Literature.
 
“Dr van Niekerk is a Kovsie alumnus with a deep connection to the Free State. He played a significant role in the country’s literary history, and it was an honour for the university to award him with an honorary degree. A wordsmith of note, Dr van Niekerk’s contributions to South African literature, radio, and stage will live on," says Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor.

News Archive

Eunice wins National Astronomy Quiz
2007-10-30

 

A team from Eunice Primary School won the National Astronomy Quiz last week. The team, who won the Free State leg of the competition held at the University of the Free State's Boyden Observatory, competed against five other teams from Soshanguve and Muldersdrift in Gauteng, Springbok in the Northern Cape, Khayelitsha in the Western Cape and Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal. The competition, held at the Hartebeeshoek Radio Observatory near Krugersdorp, is presented by the South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement (SAASTA), an agency of the National Research Foundation (NRF). SAASTA aims to advance public awareness, appreciation and engagement of science, engineering and technology in South Africa. Staff from the UFS Boyden Observatory provided advice and assistance to the Eunice team. Here are, from the left: Naomi Steinberg, Ms Mia Zeelie (team coach and teacher at Eunice Primary School), Jacquis Ras, Jodie Muller, Pragya Dawadi and Ms Ina Roos (Organiser of the National Astronomy Quiz from SAASTA).
Photo: Supplied

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