Latest News Archive
Please select Category, Year, and then Month to display items
07 March 2024
Photo Lunga Luthuli
Prof Francois Strydom, Senior Director at the Centre for Teaching and Learning and Simphiwe Kunene, the first African DREAM scholar and a master’s student from the Faculty of Education.
The University of the Free State (UFS) received recognition for its commitment to student success at the 2024 Achieving the Dream (ATD) conference which celebrated its 20-year anniversary. Simphiwe Kunene, an Education master's student originally from the Qwaqwa campus, was selected to represent South Africa as the first DREAM scholar from Africa as part of the conference.
The Achieving the Dream network of over 300 institutions, which is one of the largest movements in US higher education aims to transform colleges and universities so that students of colour and a lower socio-economic status are supported to earn a degree. The UFS is a leading partner in the Siyaphumelela Network, which has been working for 10 years with ATD to enhance the success of students in South Africa. Prof Francois Strydom, Senior Director at the Centre of Teaching and Learning (CTL), accepted the award on behalf of the institution.
Prof Strydom said that collaboration with the ATD and Siyaphumelela institutions has helped the UFS to develop cutting-edge approaches to “level the playing field” and support Kovsies to earn their undergraduate degrees.
The first African DREAM scholar
Kunene was selected as the first African DREAM scholar from the Siyaphumelela network. To select the DREAM scholar, each Siyaphumelela partner institution nominated one student as a preferred candidate. From the proposed candidates, the DREAM scholar was selected by the South African Institute for Distance Education (Saide) based on the following: demonstrating resilience, academic excellence, and a deep commitment to making a positive difference in universities and personal communities.
He addressed the conference of over 2 000 delegates and shared with them his hopes and dreams. Many members of the South African delegation said Simphiwe did his country proud. He had the following to say about his opportunity to be a DREAM scholar: “Being a DREAM scholar was life changing for me, exposing me to an array of opportunities I never knew were possible and available for me. It was as if, for a moment, the world had stopped to just listen to what I had to say."
The way forward
The UFS will continue its work as a partner of the Siyaphumelela network for the 2024-2026 cycle. The multi-stakeholder project team is focused on enhancing undergraduate students’ time, and to position the UFS as a thought and research leader in the area of student success as part of Vision 130.
History book available from UFS Marketing
2007-02-01
The university’s history book, "From Grey to Gold", is available from UFS Marketing.
The book will soon be delivered to persons who have ordered copies of the book. UFS Marketing is in the process of distributing the books.
However, persons are also welcome to collect the book from Rinda Duraan or Ronél Meyer at the offices of UFS Marketing in the Wekkie Saayman Building.
Additional copies in Afrikaans or English are also available from UFS Marketing at R380 per copy. Please contact Ronél Meyer at X2150 or Rinda Duraan at X2143 for inquiries.
A proud 100 years
The history of the University of the Free State is one of faith, hope, struggle and determination. In the course of a century, and from a poor Free State community, the UFS has developed into a strong and mature university. This book, richly illustrated with photographs, tells its fascinating story, including:
-
Its establishment
-
The role of the founding fathers
-
Black pioneers of transformation
-
The establishment and development of academic departments and faculties; student numbers
-
Pioneers and trends in research; academic entrepreneurs
-
Campus issues; campus politics
-
The UFS’s place in socio-political changes
-
Student life: Rag, intervarsity and cheerleaders; sport and Springboks; hostel traditions
-
The admission of black students; anguish about race, language and culture
-
The story of “digs” and hostels, of Tin Town and the “Vlei”, Darkest Africa and the Red Square
-
The development of the campus, of the Tickey and the Banana
-
Of hardships in the founding years, good times and turn-around strategies
-
Community service and regional involvement and a new focus on the African continent.
Some interesting reading:
-
More than 500 pages
-
Hundreds of photographs
-
Appendices on office-bearers; awards and achievements (including national sporting colours)
-
A time-line situating the UFS’s history in the context of the history of the Free State, of South Africa and of the world