The North-West University (NWU) rewarded its exceptional staff during the annual NWU Excellence Awards ceremony, which took place in Potchefstroom on 21 November.
More than 130 staff members received recognition for their outstanding contributions in teaching and learning, community engagement, and research and innovation respectively.
Prof Bismark Tyobeka, principal and vice-chancellor, congratulated the recipients. “We are honouring the dedicated and hardworking colleagues across our faculties and campuses for their cutting-edge research, innovative teaching and impactful community engagement, which are crucial pillars of our mission to connect academic excellence with social impact.”
He says the awards demonstrate the commitment of NWU staff who see education as a bridge to the communities the university serves and recognise that the NWU’s work has the power to make an impactful difference to humankind and the planet.
“These recognitions are a call to all of us at the NWU to continue fostering an ethos of community-centred excellence. We need to be inspired by these remarkable contributions to deepen our commitment to engagement, making our academic work ever more relevant and impactful as it is clearly articulated in our strategy document, Taking the NWU Forward: 2024 and beyond.”
NWU celebrates the best of the best in teaching and learning
The university celebrated leading lecturers from across the faculties in seven categories for their work in taking teaching and learning to continued levels of excellence.
This year’s recipients of the University Teaching Excellence Award (UTEA) were Prof Lida Holtzhausen of the Faculty of Humanities and Prof De Wet Wolmarans from the Faculty of Health Sciences.
Adri Olivier (Faculty of Education) and Prof Lynndle Square (Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences) each received an Innovation in Teaching and Learning Award. Elizma Visagie of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences was the recipient of the Teaching with Information and Communication Technology Award.
Recipients of the Novice Teacher Award included Vernique Diedericks (Faculty of Education for best portfolio), Cila Botha (Faculty of Engineering), Sheurl Davis-Esterhuizen (Faculty of Theology), Thomas Erlank (Faculty of Humanities), Dr Rosa Modiba (Faculty of Education), Dr Zukile Ngqeza (Faculty of Theology), and Nomfundo Sibiya (Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences).
The Blended Teaching Award went to Dr Annamagriet de Wet of the Faculty of Education.
The Team Teaching Award was presented to Dr Christiaan Bekker, Dr Christo Bisschoff, Prof Christmal Christmals, Prof Yolande Heymans, Dr Anitia Lubbe and Prof Jessica Pool, all from the Faculty of Health Sciences.
Staff honoured for their community engagement excellence
Five champions of community engagement received their due in four categories. Lemogang Masethe of Marketing and Student Recruitment received the Engaged Teaching and Learning Award for her work in the Ikateleng Project. Dr Benita Taylor (Faculty of Health Sciences) was honoured with an Engaged Research and Innovation Award for her work on the Bafenyi Project, with Jéan-Pierre van Deventer of the Faculty of Engineering receiving the Novice Award in this category for his work on STRIDE.
Prof Janelize Morelli (Faculty of Humanities) was the recipient of the Scholarship of Engagement Award for the Musikhane Community Music Engagement Programme, and Bathandekile Myeni (Faculty of Humanities) received the Discipline-based Outreach Award for the School of Music Food Bank.
Tor read more about the NWU’s Community Engagement projects, visit: https://services.nwu.ac.za/sustainability-community-impact
Researchers shine through expertise
Prof Anita Pienaar of the Faculty of Health Sciences was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award. Her expertise is in the longitudinal analysis of health, growth, physical activity and fitness in children. She also focuses on affordances of motor development and motor proficiency in children and the improvement of motor problems in children with differing needs aged 0 to 13 years.
Prof Gabila Nubong of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences was the NWU’s Most Productive Senior Researcher, with Prof Howard Chitimira (Faculty of Law) and Prof Anél Petzer (Faculty of Health Sciences) being the first runner-up and second runner-up respectively.
The Most Productive Emerging Researcher Award went to Dr Chantel Muller of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences.
Prof Oliver Fuo (Faculty of Law), Prof Rose Hayeshi (Faculty of Health Sciences), and Dr Fortunate Phaka (Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences) received recognition for their national and international memberships.
The Top Inventor Award went to Prof Byron Bunt and Dr Lance Bunt from the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences respectively.
Prof Erica Derbyshire (Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences) and Prof Byron Bunt (Faculty of Education) respectively received the Innovation Impact Award and the Creative Output Award.
The Vice-Chancellor’s Medal went to Inge Delport (Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences) and Nicola Royce (Faculty of Health Sciences). Jonathan Stephanus Troskie of the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences received the S2A3 Bronze Medal.
Faculty Teaching Awards give recognition for teaching excellence
The annual Faculty Teaching Awards, one of the NWU’s flagship initiatives, celebrate outstanding lecturers across the university's eight academic faculties. This initiative, led by the Centre for Teaching and Learning in collaboration with the faculties, highlights the NWU’s commitment to fostering an environment where teaching and learning thrive.
Earlier this month, 49 exceptional academics were honoured with Faculty Teaching Awards as university lecturers by their respective faculties. These recipients represent the pinnacle of commitment and quality in teaching, and we proudly acknowledge their hard work and dedication. To further celebrate this achievement, an announcement video was created to honour the Faculty Teaching Award winners and pay tribute to their contributions to the university’s teaching and learning landscape.
The 2024 awards showcased the dedication and collaboration of various stakeholders who contributed to the programme's success. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the office of the deputy dean for Teaching and Learning, faculty-appointed coordinators, academic developers, external contributors, resource providers, administrators, and the Teaching Awards Work Group and evaluation panels in faculties. Their combined efforts ensured a rigorous and rewarding process, reflecting the university's dedication to excellence in education. For a full list of all the winners visit: https://www.nwu.ac.za/sites/www.nwu.ac.za/files/files/i-news/electronic…
