Ms Nontlaza Sizani Elected as Deputy Chairperson of SMU Council

by Lorato | Jun 6, 2024 | All News, SMU Media, Student Media

At its meeting held on 9 May 2024, the Council of the University resolved to elect Ms Nontlaza Sizani to the position of Deputy Chairperson of Council. Ms Sizani, who has been a member of SMU Council since 2019, will replace Ms Mmanare Mamabolo in this role. Ms Sizani will assume her role from 23 June 2024.

In terms of her brief profile, Ms Sizani is an Accountant, who has served in this and many other capacities in various organisations for over 30 years. Ms Sizani holds Bachelor of Commerce; BCompt Honours; Certificate in Theory of Accounting (University of Transkei, now Walter Sisulu University) and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management (University of Kwa-Zulu Natal). In terms of professional membership, Ms Sizani is an Associate General Accountant (SAICA); Certified Director (IODSA); Association of Black Securities and Investment Professionals (ABSIP). Apart from her role on the SMU Council, Ms Sizani has served as a Non-Executive Director for other organisations, which has sharpened her experience in governance at an organizational level.

As we wish Ms Sizani well in this role, it is prudent to also thank Ms Mamabolo for the immense contribution she made to the work of the Council over the years, both as a member of Council and later as a Deputy Chairperson of Council.

Issued by the Office of the Registrar

SMU Executives off to Harvard

by Lorato | May 30, 2024 | All News, SMU Media, Student Media

There is no doubt that SMU operates in a volatile and competitive environment within the higher education sector. The downward spiral of funding for universities elevates the funding risk, requiring SMU and other universities to navigate through the uncertainty and ambiguity towards growth and financial sustainability. Therefore, to remain relevant, and a market leader in such a competitive market, SMU’s Management Team is compelled to come up with new and innovative ways that would place the University at a positive competitive advantage amongst its competitors. The higher education sector is evolving with tremendous speed and investment in employees who can tackle and respond to these demands is not optional.

Over the years, the University has invested in the development of its employees, including its management cohort. This has led to the concept of a Focused Leadership development approach which has been bearing fruit for the University in supporting the growth and development of the leadership cohort.

This approach commenced when more than eighty (80) leaders were trained on the Transformational Leadership Programme in partnership with the WITS Business School over the period 2019 to 2023. Through this program leaders were exposed to a set of competencies that have contributed to the shift in the University’s culture and climate. Following the success of this programme, the University took the Focused Leadership development to the next level when it introduced the Middle Management Programme in 2023, and which is also running in 2024. The intention is to have one hundred (100) Middle Managers trained in the SMU Middle Management Programme. This will bolster the quality of management at this supervisory level.

The Strategy: Building and Sustaining Competitive Advantage is a Certificate of Management Excellence (CME), and which forms part of the Executive Management Programmes of Harvard Business School. The programme will kick-start with a six-day contact session scheduled to take place from 02 June to 07 June 2024. Participants are expected to complete three selected topics for them to be awarded the Internationally Recognized Certificate.

The international programme is expected to amplify the Focused Leadership development plan and position the University in a favorable state towards the attainment of its strategic objectives. The SMU executive team will greatly benefit from a visit to Harvard University, given the new 5-year strategic plan in place, and where they are expected to acquire knowledge of novel strategies and devise preventative and innovative measures that are advantageous to the

institution. Having gained insights from global industry leaders, they are expected to return to the SMU community with more refined strategies and to impart their newly acquired knowledge. Long-term, the move is anticipated to be advantageous for both the executive members and the SMU.

All this has been made possible by a discretionary grant from ETDP-SETA. Should this programme prove successful and should the University be able to convince the ETDP-SETA to continue to fund the programme the University looks forward to sending more executives and members of the Senior Management Committee (SMC) to Harvard Business School.

The nominated delegates will travel out of the country on 29 May 2024.The University wishes Prof Matsha-Erasmus, Mr Manyawi and Ms Ramsingh well in the programme and is sure that they will make the University proud as they actively participate and excel in this programme.

From a delivery boy to a PhD graduate: Dr Abongile Bele’s story of perseverance

by Lorato | May 24, 2024 | All News, SMU Media, Student Media

Dr Abongile Bele was born on 14th April 1996. He grew up in the rural town of Bizana, Eastern Cape. He is the son of Ngangelizwe Howard and the late Nosipho Gladness Bele. He is number nine in a family of 12 children. However, all those who were born after him passed away at an early age due to   malnutrition. He also had a brother who was poisoned at the age of two. He lived with both his parents who were not working. Hence, from the age of 13 he had to find a weekend job so that he could assist his parents and finance his tuition. He did all this because he and his siblings would always wait for January for their results report due to tuition fee non-payment. He worked as a delivery boy (for furniture and hardware materials) until his second year at the university. As he reflected on his upbringing, he stated that “I grew up in a family where we did not know where our next meal would come from. The only time we would eat rice was during the Christmas holidays when my sister would buy 10 kg of rice. Our home had two rooms, a single flat and a rondavel. We all slept in the same room. These conditions drove my commitment to education where I always believed I would get redemption”.

Dr. Bele is now married and is blessed with two kids (a boy and a girl). Dr. Abongile Bele has just graduated with his PhD in Physics at the age of 28, is also a Lecturer in the Physics department. His journey and contribution to the field of physics is truly remarkable.

His passion for science and mathematics was evident from a young age. He excelled in his studies throughout his primary and secondary education at Ezizityaneni JSS and Chief Dumile SSS, respectively. He was admitted to the University of Limpopo, Medunsa Campus in 2013, where he pursued a Bachelor of Science in Majoring in Maths and Physics.

At SMU, Dr. Bele quickly distinguished himself as a dedicated student. His Honours research focused on the Mechanics of free-falling bodies, which laid the foundation for his future academic pursuits. After graduating with honours, he enrolled for the Master’s program at SMU, where he specialised in Condensed matter Physics focusing on semiconductor diodes fabrication.

Dr. Bele’s doctoral research at SMU has been groundbreaking. Under the supervision of Prof. Motloung (CUT), Dr Mhlongo (SMU) and Prof Koao (UFS), he focused on the development of mixed-phase nanophosphor materials (Materials Science). His thesis, is titled, “The impact of the rare earth ions doping on the structure and optical properties of the CaAl2O4/MgAl- 2O4/BaAl2O4 mixed phases phosphors prepared by sol-gel method.”

It presents a new understanding of the synthesis of these oxide mixed-phases nanophosphor materials using the sol-gel approach. These materials were activated or doped with various foreign ions (Sm3+, Gd3+, Eu3+, Tb3+, and Er3+). His investigation proposed the physics behind the observed emission colours associated with these materials. He demonstrated that the emission colours and energy bandgap can be tuned, which is essential for practical applications such as the fabrication of light- emitting devices such as LEDs.

His research work has been presented at national and international physics conferences. He has two articles published in DHET-accredited international peer-reviewed journals. Additionally, one manuscript is currently under review and two manuscripts are under preparation for possible publication.

Beyond his research, Dr. Bele has shown a commitment to mentoring undergraduate and supervising postgraduate students, inspiring the next generation of physicists. He has also been actively involved in outreach programs aimed at increasing interest in STEM fields among young students, particularly at his village in Bizana, Eastern Cape.

I hope that my story will inspire boys and girls from our villages and townships to aspire to become academic achievers, Dr Bele concludes.