Renowned Art Journalist, Percy Mabandu will lead a panel of alumnus who will tell their “tales of two cities” at the upcoming Student Cities Summit to be held on 26-29 March 2017 at the Krystal Beach Hotel in Gordon`s Bay.
Derived from a novel by Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities (1859) the story is well known for its immortalized lines “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. The alumnus will tell their comparative student experiences at two different universities: one in South Africa and one internationally.
Author: A Girl Without a Sound
Director, Meraka Institute Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research
As part of her undergraduate degree studies at Rhodes University in Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape, Buhle Ngaba was offered a scholarship to further her studies in theater at the University of Leeds in the United Kingdom. Dr Quinton studied at both Stellenbosch University as well as Oxford University in the United Kingdom.
On the other-side, Tshepo Phetla and Dr Matata Mokoele completed their undergraduate studies at the University of the Western Cape in Bellvillle and the University of the North (now University of Limpopo) in Mankweng respectively. Tshepo Phetla went on to study at the famous Harvard University in Boston while Dr Matata Mokoele pursued his post-graduate studies at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia.
The brief of the session is for each speaker to talk about their overall comparative student experiences at their university towns in South Africa and university towns in the United Kingdom and the United States of America. Through his artistic acumen and experience as an interview and moderator, Percy Mabunda will take each speaker through the tapestry of their unique student experiences at their respective student cities.
This wealth of student experiences will hopefully lay a platform for the three day engagement of the theme of student cities internationally, and begin to discern symbiotic relationship between universities and municipalities. , or what the Americans refer to as town-gown relations.
The main thrust of the Student Cities Summit is aimed at helping campus and community leaders better understand how the twin components of the “town” and the “gown” come together to determine the relative health and well-being of relationships between institutions of higher education and the communities in which they are located.
The session will also respond to the question: What makes a student city a great study destination? Well this is what Ann Hidalgo, the Mayor of Paris had to say about her city as a study destination:
“Paris is proud to be ranked the best student city in the world! Our youth represents our greatest strength and incarnates our greatest hope. We carry an ambitious politic to make youth to be able to blossom, be successful, Be able to choose and to build its future. We will continue to support students by offering them opportunities, in an open, dynamic and creative city”
The City of Paris has much to offer to students: History, arts, culture – on top of its academic and scientific excellence! It is a unique place to learn, discover, study, engage and exchange, a place where dialogue, fraternity and freedom shall always prevail. Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris.
To register for the summit CLICK HERE
