Second SAPHE Conference: A Resounding Success!

The inaugural SAPHE Excellence Awards 2024 celebrated a significant milestone in recognising academic excellence within the private higher education sector. As an exciting new initiative by SAPHE, these awards recognise excellence across the three core business areas: Teaching and Learning, Research and Innovation, and Community Engagement. Each category honours impactful contributions that advance education, foster collaboration, and benefit society. Dr Celia Booyse, one of the judges, noted that a rigorous evaluation process was followed. The panel developed criteria as bases for the deliberations on each submission, the reasoning for evaluation and as qualitative and quantitative evidence. Key questions guiding the evaluation included assessing whether contributions represented new developments, their relevance to education and/or society at large, the level of collaboration and cooperation involved, and the rigour of research practices. The criteria helped assess whether a contribution was outstanding, remarkable, or average. An outstanding contribution was characterised as significant, noteworthy, and impactful within its domain, representing an excellent achievement for the broader educational sector. A remarkable contribution was recognised for its originality and innovative practices that exceeded conventional norms, standing out as well above average and surpassing minimum standards Entries from Boston City Campus, The Da Vinci Institute and Tsiba secured the winning trophies in the categories of Teaching and Learning, Research and Innovation, and Community Engagement respectively.  The SAPHE Excellence Awards 2024 underscored the invaluable contributions of private higher education institutions in advancing innovation, education, and societal impact. These remarkable achievements provide inspiration and a benchmark for future endeavours. SAPHE Award winners: Teaching and Learning : Boston City Campus, with academics Dr Rob Stegmann, Ms Colette Heunes, Prof. Cobus Oosthuizen, and Dr Janet Viljoen taking the trophy for their multi-faceted entry. Research : Dr Tadi Rampai (Posthumous) from The Da Vinci Institute. Community Engagement : Mr John Durr and Mr Earl-Djehuti Erasmus from Tsiba. Runners-up: Teaching and Learning : 1st runner-up, Ms Annetjie Pretorius (The Independent Institute of Education); 2nd runner-up, Ms Riana Prins and Dr Cecelia Rosa (IMM Graduate School). Research: 1 st runner-up, Ms Jaclyn van Rensburg (Red & Yellow Creative School of Business); 2 nd runner-up, Dr Rob Stegmann (Boston City Campus). Community Engagement : 1st Runner-Up, Ms. Sarina Till (The Independent Institute of Education); 2nd runner-up, Dr Daud Taranikhe (The Da Vinci Institute).

On Monday, 30 September, Deputy Minister of Higher Education and Training, Dr Mimmy Gondwe, met with SAPHE to familiarise herself with the association’s achievements and challenges, and to foster stronger relations between the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and SAPHE. Dr Gondwe has been tasked with overseeing private higher education (PHE) institutions as part of her portfolio. According to SAPHE Chair, Dr Carin Stoltz-Urban, the introductory meeting was conducted in a collegial and positive spirit. "It was clear that the Deputy Minister is well-informed about the department's priorities and eager to cooperate with stakeholders in the private higher education sector, such as SAPHE," noted Dr Stoltz-Urban. Compliance, a significant focus given the recent deregistration of some PHEIs, was one of the key topics addressed. Dr Gondwe emphasised the critical role SAPHE can play in promoting compliance and good governance within the sector. She encouraged SAPHE to establish a resource centre to provide institutions with access to documents, advice and guidance on compliance matters, to compile best-practice guidelines, and offer capacity-building workshops, peer learning opportunities, and networking events for PHEIs. In addition, Dr Gondwe urged SAPHE members to conduct employability studies, specifically on job placement, highlighting the importance of measuring the impact of private higher education on job creation and inclusive socio-economic growth. She invited SAPHE members to an Employment and Investment Summit the department will be hosting in November which will involve key industry stakeholders. Representing SAPHE at the meeting were Dr Carin Stoltz-Urban, SAPHE CEO Nancy-Anne Anderson, and Shirley Ferndale from the IIE, who is also actively involved in the broader higher education sector through the Registrars' Forum, among other initiatives. The SAPHE team took the opportunity to present the association’s role and mandate, while also discussing issues such as disparities in the higher education sector and the policy on institutional types. The constructive meeting set a positive tone for future engagement. "As SAPHE, we are encouraged by the Deputy Minister’s willingness to support the private higher education sector, and we are dedicated to working with the DHET to advance quality higher education overall," said Dr Stoltz-Urban.