Vincent holds a BSc degree in Business Mathematics and Informatics (BMI) from the NWU’s campus in Vanderbijlpark and is currently a model implementation analyst at Standard Bank. According to Vincent there is no excuse for not achieving your dreams. “As a young man with a disadvantaged background, I was made to believe that success will pass me by and that I would not amount to much. Today, after tasting success and experiencing continues growth, I know that anything is possible,” says Vincent who - at the age of 28, enjoys acclaim as a poet, ‘n writer, a public speaker, a songwriter and a recording artist. He is also a member of the NWU Vaal Alumni Advisory Committee.
Paying it forward
Vincent is a firm believer in the pay-it-forward philosophy and as such he is involved in numerous community projects; from recruiting good performing maths students, writing poetry and music to inspire the youth, acting as a motivational speaker, serving as a leadership consultant and guiding young individuals through the uncertainties of life. In short: Vincent has grown from being a student to fulfilling the role as mentor.
With a passion and a knack for mathematics, Vincent excelled in the subject as a pupil of the Residentia Secondary School in Sebokeng and did not find it difficult to choose a field of study upon the completion of his high school career. Apart from equipping himself with academic knowledge and know-how, he felt a need to also assist those in a less fortunate position than himself and as such he started to host mathematics classes and motivational sessions for high school learners over weekends.
During this time he became a student facilitator for the statistics and mathematics subject groups and found himself lecturing to first and second year students at the university. Soon after he was appointed as a mathematics lecturer at the Sedibeng College in Vanderbijlpark and also rendered his services to an educational NGO as a mathematics project coordinator.
The more you do, the more you will attract things to be grateful for
Vincent’s passion the youth sees him heading-up several empowerment initiatives. One such an initiative is fittingly called: “Simply Vincent”, and aims to inspire young people to discover their purpose in life through various interventions that teach leadership through seminars, corporate presentations, workshops, music and literature.
He also successfully delivered upon an initiative called “The BMI Student Marketing Campaign” in collaboration with the NWU and ABSA. Through this initiative young disadvantaged pupils who performed well in mathematics were rewarded with bursaries to study towards a BSc degree in Business Mathematics and Informatics. Today the beneficiaries of these bursaries are young professionals.
Vincent’s latest project is titled “The Good News Injection” which consists of a book and a musical soundtrack. “Most of today’s young people are facing problems which they cannot address and which leaves them without a clue as to who to approach for guidance,” says Vincent and explains that what the project does is to give them the “intellectual and spiritual guidance” in a format best known to them, namely music and the spoken word. The Good News Injection digitally which is freely accessible via social media.
