US undergoing transformation

2004-06-28 20:22

Lynn Bolin

Cape Town - Stellenbosch University (US), is currently undergoing a dramatic transformation process, according to vice-chancellor and professor Chris Brink.

Addressing members of the Black Management Forum (BMF) on Monday, Brink said that for 2004, 26% of its 20 979 students and 11% of its academic teaching staff were from historically disadvantaged communities.

He ascribed the relatively slow transformation of academic staff partly to their "long shelf life", which could be as much as 40 years at a tertiary institution.

Brink, the first "outsider" to be appointed to the top post, was previously involved in the transformation of other higher education institutions in South Africa and Australia.

"In the new global society, the wealth of nations is no longer measured by what one digs out of the earth, nor what one manufactures or grows, but by the size and quality of one's knowledge resources," said Brink.

Academics

"Knowledge has become the key driver of economic prosperity. Knowledge means power and money - and universities have suddenly been thrust into the spotlight as the custodians and 'traders' of this valuable commodity.

"Academics are bewildered by this sudden attention, much like an unknown tribe on whose land oil has suddenly been discovered.

"Whilst this is happening all over the world, in South Africa this development is compounded by factors such as overcoming the legacy of apartheid, the prevalence of mergers and incorporations, the surge of 'Africanism', the brain drain and HIV/Aids.

"Stellenbosch University is in the same boat as other South African companies embarking on a voyage of transformation.

"Our greatest challenge lies in the fact that not only do managers have to rebuild the ship while afloat on the open sea, they themselves sometimes form the actual planks of the vessel.

"You will inevitably face resistance from those who will be adversely affected by the changes so you need to find your support base from those who will benefit from the new dispensation.

Language policy

"Maties' major challenges are to change its corporate mindset, shed its staid image, identify champions for change, increase its diversity (not only of colour but of ideas) and legitimise Afrikaans, which distinguishes it from other universities.

"Our language policy is subsumed by the national language policy for higher educational institutions. The language of instruction for undergraduate courses is Afrikaans, but we have now reached a point where all students are made aware of the terms even before they join the university.

"The provision of resources such as class notes in both English and Afrikaans can be extremely draining and while we acknowledge that this will not be resolved immediately, we will manage the situation as we move along. In our post graduate courses where we are experiencing the biggest growth, language is a non-issue."

Can't fake change

During his two years of tenure, Brink has already implemented sweeping changes, which have shaken the university to its core.

"You can's fake change," he stated.

"We started at the top and in the first six months, we had overhauled top management, streamlining it to five managerial positions.

"This sent a signal for change, which cascaded down to other levels. Key people are not always those in leadership positions. Sometimes there are those at lower levels playing pivotal roles.

"Also, if the rules of the game are to perpetuate self preservation, you will need to change the rules," observed the vice-chancellor.

"At US a large proportion of students live on campus and thus dominate student politics. We changed the residence admission policy to include more black students and to get the incumbents to go with the new rules.

"It is also important to use symbolic events to signify change. One of our most revolutionary steps was to host the ANC's 2002 Conference at an institution and in a town sometimes regarded as the last bastion of the Afrikaner.

"For several days, the university, whose buildings are white and whose students were mostly white, was filled with thousands of black people. This symbolism was most pronounced when ANC president, Thabo Mbeki, addressed an audience of 5 000 mostly black people in the DF Malan Hall."

Western Cape President of the BMF, Joe Mwase, applauded Brink for his courageous stance in transforming Stellenbosch University into a champion of change in South Africa.

- I-Net Bridge (News24)