Unisa online - UNISA hosts a delegation from Columbia University, New York

L-R UNISA Registrar Prof Louis Molamu, Director: International Relations Ms Siza Magubane, Vice Principal: Strategy, Planning and Partnerships Prof Narend Baijnath, Prof Mamadou Diouf, Dr Hlonipha Mokoena, and Pro Vice-Chancellor Prof Mandla Makhanya

During 21-23 July UNISA hosted two high profile academics from Columbia University, New York, USA where they engaged UNISA postgraduates in many discussions. Prof Mamadou Diouf, a renowned West African scholar and historian as well as Head of the Institute for African Studies at the School of International and Public Affairs, and Dr Hlonipha Mokoena, an Associate Professor of Anthropology and a teaching professor, whose main area of interest is South African intellectual history, had intriguing debates which were supported by the Kellogg Foundation.

The academics from Columbia University held conversations with various colleagues mainly in the College of Human Sciences and CARS as well as UNISA postgraduate students. The conversations were focused on, among others:

Possible collaboration in scholarship and development of young, women and Black scholars, African studies, supervision of postgraduate students, ODL, academic identity and transformation at UNISA, contextualisation of curriculum, exchange of scholars and postgraduate students, South-South studies, regional collaboration, Native-American studies, and publishing of journals.

Roundtable discussions

The three days of conversation ended with round table discussions chaired by the Pro Vice-Chancellor, Prof Mandla Makhanya. The roundtable discussions were focused on the overall visit to UNISA, synopsis of the three days of discussion and agreements on ways of taking the collaborative process forward. In essence it was agreed to explore collaboration in a number of areas such as:

Engage the Kellogg Foundation about non-residential programmes (distance education),
External examination of postgraduate students in areas such as African history,
Involvement in the Editorial Boards of some UNISA journals,
Holding an annual workshop on agreed readings and objectives across the field of African studies,
Academic exchanges including exchanges at doctoral and postdoctoral levels,
Regional exchange programme, capitalising on UNISA profile in Africa,
Supervision and mentoring of students,
Involvement in the Columbia University workshop on genocide.