College of Human Sciences

'Cheers to 32 years in academia' - CHS bids farewell to School of Arts Director

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Prof Nombeko Mpako

Following a successful career of 32 years in academia, Prof Nombeko Mpako, Director of the School of Arts in the College of Human Sciences, will be retiring at the end of this year. Mpako has been with Unisa for the past 12 years since joining as a senior lecturer in 2009. She climbed the academic ladder and will now retire on 12 December 2021. 

She will be closing this chapter with a solo exhibition entitled "Obu Bubomi Bam: 8 out of 8. I Teach Art", which will be open from 24 September to 25 October 2021.  

"Obu Bubomi Bam", which is translated in isiXhosa as "This is my life", is Mpako’s visual autobiography in which she shares some of the great and sad moments she came across in her life. The exhibition will be held on the ground floor of the Kgorong Building at the university’s Muckleneuk Campus. It will also be available virtually due to Covid-19 restrictions.  

There will also be a lecture series with participants from Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa. Some of the invited guests include Unisa’s Vice-Chancellor, Prof Puleng LenkaBula, and former Principal and Vice-Chancellor, Prof Mandla Makhanya. 

Mpako joined the university after 20 years in academia of which 8 were in academic management. This prepared her to deal with the various issues she encountered in her academic career. Some of which include the time when her qualification was under scrutiny. She said this stemmed from the fact that it was unusual for a black woman to have a PhD in Art.  

"So, first, I had to prove that my PhD was indeed legitimately in Art Education and not in Education. It was only after Prof Moeketsi told me how glad she was that she found me because she had been trying to find black academics of my calibre but was continually told that 'blacks are good at producing art and are good singers too, but they cannot write about music and art, and they are not good as academics'. So, I think the scrutiny of my PhD may have emanated from this belief," she said. 

She was previously a lecturer, senior lecturer, school director and the dean of a faculty in many other institutions. This equipped her with the relevant skills, such as people skills.  

"So, my Unisa experience was to improve on the already acquired skills from my previous academic positions."

She said the most important thing to mention about the university is that I received a lot of support from my line managers and this was good for my growth and I shall be forever thankful and grateful to them, starting with Prof Rosemary Moeketsi, Dr Britta Zawada, Prof Majanja, Prof Andrew Phillips and the current dean, Prof Kgomotso Masemola. "Maze' nethole kuni nonke Maqhawe naMaqhawekazi uyabulela uMatyani," she said.

She advised those who wish to follow in her footstep to not be afraid to consult knowledgeable people when making a decision that involves other people and learn to be a listener. 

She is excited about her retirement and will now concentrate on supervising students, doing art, writing about it and travelling.  

All the best to you, Prof Mpako! 

#TheWinningSchoolofArtsTeam 

* By Tebogo Mahlaela, Communication and Marketing Specialist, College of Human Sciences. 

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Publish date: 2021-09-28 00:00:00.0

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