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10th ASSAf Presidential Roundtable Discussion: The Threat to Leadership in South African Universities

In recent times university staff have been assaulted and killed on and around campuses across the country. The attempted assassination this month of the Vice-Chancellor of Fort Hare University and the tragic murder of his bodyguard has generated intense public reaction against the perceived lack of response from government, whether it be in bringing the criminals to justice or providing adequate support to university leadership when their very lives are at stake.

The Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) is hosting the 10th ASSAf Presidential Roundtable Discussion and the first in 2023 titled “The threat to leadership in South African universities”. The purpose of this roundtable is to ask deep questions about the threat to leadership in higher education. Why is this happening? Is government doing enough to support university staff? And what does these attacks mean for the future of South African universities in general and university leadership in particular?

We have invited three leaders in higher education to speak to these questions and more from their vast experience of crisis and distress on university campuses. These will include Prof Nomalanga Mkhize (Head of Department: History and Political Studies, Nelson Mandela University), Prof Mohamed Saleem Badat (Research Professor: College of Humanities, University of KwaZulu-Natal) and Prof Themba Mosia (Vice-Principal, University of Pretoria). We look forward to your participation as a guest.

The ASSAf Presidential Roundtables on Science, Scholarship and Society are evidence-based dialogues that bring together experts and stakeholders to address critical issues affecting society at large and are of interest to a broad audience. The roundtables are hosted by the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf) and moderated by ASSAf’s President, Prof Jonathan Jansen.

Jan 27, 2023 10:00 AM in Johannesburg