VC’s Excellence Awards nominations and other updates

Dear colleagues and students

Nominations are open for the Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Awards, which honour the dedication and contributions of the University of Cape Town (UCT) staff. Read more about this and other recent developments on campus.

1. Vice-Chancellor’s Excellence Awards

Over the course of the year, the UCT leadership has made it a priority to recognise staff dedication and hard work in various ways. The upcoming UCT Annual Awards in November 2024 provide yet another occasion to celebrate those who have gone above and beyond the call of duty.

Staff are invited to nominate individuals or teams who have made a significant impact for the VC’s Excellence Awards. Nominations for Professional, Administrative Support, and Service staff for the Global Citizenship Award and the Service Excellence Award are particularly encouraged. Additionally, all staff involved in transformation efforts are welcome to apply for or nominate colleagues for the Transformation Award.

The deadline for submission is Friday, 11 October 2024.

• Read more on the guidelines and criteria for the awards.
• Download the nomination form.
• Read the full VC Desk: Nominations open for VC’s Excellence Awards 2024.

Please submit nominations to vc@uct.ac.za.

2. Second edition of Disability Matters magazine now out

The second edition of Disability Matters (DM) magazine has been published by the Office for Inclusivity and Change’s Disability Service.

In the first edition of DM, readers learnt more about – among others – the autism spectrum as well as a specific sport designed for visually impaired persons but can be played by sighted people too. 

The second edition, which coincides with Deaf Awareness Month commemoration in September, kicks off with an educational article by a deaf student who has written about his lived experience. In this edition, the Disability Service shares some resources around South African Sign Language (SASL), lip-reading, references to SASL courses and educational materials as they advocate that you do your part in learning SASL.

The magazine celebrates one of UCT’s very own alumni, Mpumelelo Mhlongo, for winning a gold medal at the 2024 Paralympics, and readers get to learn more about wheelchair rugby. Readers are also invited to engage with the “Food for Thought” piece about a Deaf girl named “Tumi” by emailing the DM team.

• Read the second edition of DM magazine.

3. UCT Lead Academy to host project management session

The UCT Lead Academy, through its Capacity Building Pathway, will host a project management fundamentals session on Friday, 13 September 2024 from 16:00 to 17:30 at CS203, Computer Science Building on upper campus. The goal is to help students enhance their project management skills, focusing on administrative and organisational skills learnt in previous sessions.

Key learning outcomes include:

• defining project scopes, setting objectives, and establishing timelines
• applying these concepts in a project simulation activity
• exploring how project management skills are essential for organisational success through practical examples.

The session is open to all students.

• RSVP for the session.

4. Please complete the students’ well-being survey

Students are reminded to complete the ongoing survey on mental well-being and counselling preferences, conducted by the Department of Student Affairs’ (DSA) Student Wellness Service (SWS).

Students’ participation is entirely anonymous. By sharing their experiences, students can help enhance the mental health support available to UCT students.

• Complete the survey.
• Read the full Campus Announcement: SWS student mental well-being survey and health promotion month.

Any questions or concerns regarding the survey should be directed to the SWS practice manager.

5. ICTS to host Techfest 2024

Staff and students are invited to the Information and Communication Technology Services (ICTS) Technology Festival (Techfest) on 17 and 18 September 2024 at Molly Blackburn Hall, upper campus, from 09:00 to 15:30. The two-day event will showcase the latest technology and innovations from UCT’s IT vendors, with interactive demonstrations and information sessions. For a chance to win amazing prizes, be sure to bring your staff or student card.

• Read more about the Techfest.

6. ICTS scheduled maintenance on Sunday, 15 September

Please note that Sunday, 15 September 2024 will be an ICTS scheduled maintenance slot from 07:00 to 17:00. Unless advised to the contrary, do not expect any on-premise ICT services to be available for the duration of the maintenance slot. Cloud-based services (including Amathuba, email, Microsoft 365 services, and ServiceNow) are not impacted and can still be accessed.

Please remember to consult the scheduled ICTS maintenance slots page before planning any teaching, conferences, meetings, etc that require ICT services. 

For more information, see the article on why ICTS schedules regular monthly maintenance slots.

7. Support services offered by the postgraduate studies office

The Office for Postgraduate Studies and Researcher Development (OPGS), situated within the Research Office, offers workshops, seminars and information sessions to support and enhance the academic learning of UCT's postgraduate community. The office strives to develop postgraduate students and fellows by teaching essential skills in areas of writing, research ethics, self-management and supervision – to name but a few.

These offerings are publicised on the OPGS workshop calendar. Based on feedback from postgraduate students, postdoctoral research fellows and staff members who have benefitted from this resource, everyone is encouraged to keep an eye out for what might be of interest to them and relevant to their academic journey. 

For more enquiries, please contact Postgraduate Development.

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