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Trailblazing win: UFS wins its first-ever Andrew Murray Prize

31 January 2024 | Story EDZANI NEPHALELA | Photo ANJA AUCAMP

In a historic triumph that reverberates over four decades since its inception, the UFS has clinched the coveted Andrew Murray Prize – now renamed the Andrew Murray-Desmond Tutu Prize – for the first time. Standing shoulder to shoulder with institutions such as the University of Pretoria (UP) and Stellenbosch University (SU), this achievement marks a significant milestone in the UFS’ journey.

At the heart of this accomplishment lies the profound contribution of Dr Martin Laubscher, distinguished Senior Lecturer specialising in Practical and Missional Theology in the Faculty of Theology and Religion. Dr Laubscher’s dedication and scholarly prowess culminated in the groundbreaking work titled Publieke teologie as profetiese teologie? (Public theology as prophetic theology), a revised edition of his doctoral thesis, which was originally crafted at Stellenbosch University in 2020, with a focus on the eminent Karl Barth.

Dr Laubscher received the Andrew Murray Prize for Theological Books in Afrikaans for his research and insightful analysis. The journey started when he realised, under the guidance of his study leader, Prof Dion Forster, that his script had the potential to be published in Afrikaans. Sun Media’s interest in publishing this work in Afrikaans, led to it being the first-ever published thesis in Afrikaans. Dr Laubscher recalls, “I was grateful and excited about Sun Media’s interest. The book emerged within a year, and during a celebratory launch Prof Forster suggested I submit it for the Andrew Murray Prize.”

Earlier this year, Dr Laubscher was excited to learn that he was being shortlisted for the prestigious award. Reflecting on the significant moment, he shares, “The elation I felt upon receiving the news was unparalleled. I was not only celebrating a personal triumph, but also etching my name as the first laureate from our faculty to secure this prestigious accolade.”

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UFS staff attend conference in Poland

2006-07-21

Staff members of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences' Department of Public Management at the University of the Free State (UFS) attended the conference of the International Association of Schools and Institutions of Administration (IASIA) in Warsaw, Poland. During the visit the delegates also met the South African ambassador in Poland, Ms Febe Potgieter-Gqubele.

From the left: Prof Hendri Kroukamp (Programme Director: Public Sector Management); Prof Moses Sindane (Departmental Chairperson: Public Management); Ms Potgieter-Gqubele, Dr Liezel Lues (lecturer); Mr Lyndon du Plessis (lecturer) and Prof Koos Bekker (lecturer).

Prof Moses Sindane, Departmental Chairperson of the Department of Public Management at the University of the Free State (UFS), received the Pierre de Celles award for the best paper delivered at the IASIA's conference that was held in Miami in the USA in September 2003. The title of the paper was 'Public administration versus public management: Parallels, divergences, convergences and who benefits?'.

During the award ceremony were from the left: Prof Sindane, Prof Turgay Ergun (President of IASIA) and Prof Hendri Kroukamp ( Programme Director: Public Sector Management at the UFS and member of the management of IASIA).

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