North-West University pays tribute to its icons
The NWU honoured some of its most remarkable alumni at an awards ceremony on 11 October in Sandton. The university's prestigious Alumni Awards of Excellence gave recognition in eight categories to nine prominent alumni who have excelled professionally in their respective fields of expertise and who have made exemplary contributions to society, nationally and internationally.
This year's award recipients included a music promoter, a dynamic entrepreneur, a champion for quality education, a trailblazer in turning social responsibility into action, an influential leader in education, an experienced psychological profiler, a celebrated researcher, a sports icon, and a dynamic and versatile social media influencer.
Alumni Award winners
* Johan van Rensburg, music promoter and television producer, Arts and Culture Award* Maggy-Emilia Maliti-Ntshwe, a dynamic entrepreneur, Business Leadership Award* Frederik Louw, a respected educator who promotes quality education, Community Involvement Award* Pieter Twine, a dynamic fundraiser who turns social responsibility into action, Community Involvement Award* Prof Mamokgethi Phakeng, influential leader in education and university vice-chancellor in South Africa, Education Award* Elmarie Myburgh, experienced psychological profiler for the South African Police, Public Service Award* Prof Alta Schutte, NWU researcher in the fight against hypertension, Research Award* Caster Semenya, international sports icon and world record breaker, Sport Award* Nomsa Mazibuko, dynamic and versatile social-media influencer, Young Alumnus Award
(Full details of every recipient and photographs are available at http://www.nwu.ac.za/nwu-honours- excellence)
The coveted NWU Alumni Awards were presented to deserving alumni for the sixth time. Previous recipients include respected South Africans such as FW de Klerk, Prof Anis Karodia, Judge Yvonne Mokgoro, Dr Bismark Tyobeka, Prof Pieter Stoker, Katlego Maboe, Judge Frans Kgomo and Prof TT Cloete, among others.
Enabling people to soar
Prof Kgwadi said, through its tireless commitment towards excellence and innovation across all its endeavours, the North-West University boasts a healthy heartbeat. "Our commitment to our students has never been stronger. Our university - your university - is thriving."
He said the NWU is making an impact. "The university recently broke new ranking ground when the Times Higher Education World Rankings announced that the NWU had made it to position five in South Africa."
He said, globally, the NWU is ranked between number 501 and 600 out of the 1 396 participating universities. This ranking was based on the following performance indicators: teaching-learning, research, citations, internationalisation and industry impact.
He highlighted the NWU's many success stories, which include the Chartered Accountancy Programme being recognised as the best in South Africa for the second year running, the NWU's innovative research, sporting prowess, and the more than 250 community engagement projects that have taken place across the three campuses.
He said the NWU's new strategy and organisational structure, which were adopted over the past two years, have made the institution stronger and a more united university.
"Now that our strategy and structure have been finalised, we are using them as a foundation from where we will create value by enabling people to soar: to go higher and further in pursuit of their goals."