University of Pretoria appoints Zimbabwean as first black Vice-Chancellor and Principal

Zimbabwean Professor Tawana Kupe has been named as the first black Vice-Chancellor and Principal in the 100-year history of the University of Pretoria.

UP made the announcement via its website.

Prof Kupe takes over from Professor Cheryl de la Rey, who will take up the position of Vice-Chancellor of the University of Canterbury in New Zealand.

Professor Kupe is currently the Vice-Principal of the University of the Witwatersrand, responsible for the daily running of the University and the coordination of operations across all executive portfolios. Prior to this appointment, he held the rotating Vice-Principal post for one year and also served as the Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Advancement, Human Resources and Transformation from January 2013.

Professor Kupe served as the Executive Dean of the Wits Faculty of Humanities for six years, between January 2007 and December 2012, after serving as the Head of the then Wits School of Literature and Language Studies, and the founding Head of the Media Studies Department.

Prior to joining Wits, Professor Kupe lectured at Rhodes University between 1999 and 2001, and briefly acted as the Head of the Department of Journalism and Media Studies. He joined Rhodes from the University of Zimbabwe, where he worked in various academic capacities from 1988, including as Chairperson of the Department of English, Media and Communication Studies.

Professor Kupe holds a BA Honours degree and Masters in English from the University of Zimbabwe, as well as a DPhil in Media Studies from the University of Oslo in Norway.

Government congratulates Professor Tawana Kupe on his appointment as the first black Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Pretoria (UP) in over 100 years and wishes him success in his new role. pic.twitter.com/a5ClVJbrZK
— South African Government (@GovernmentZA) November 23, 2018

In his statement of intent, Professor Kupe said, “Universities have a responsibility to develop educated, well-informed and professionally skilled people who can address local and global challenges and contribute towards creating successful and thriving societies. To be able to play these critically important roles, universities must enjoy academic freedom and institutional autonomy, allow for freedom of inquiry and be transparent, accountable and ethical in their practices in all respects.”

The African National Congress (ANC) in Gauteng has congratulated Professor Tawana Kupe “on his historic appointment as the first black vice-chancellor and principal of the University of Pretoria (UP) in over 100 years” and wished him success in his new role.

with information from UP Department of Human Relations