Meetings

Arrival at Cape Town 2/11/17

On Friday we went off to Stellenbosch for the first time to meet some of the people involved in NetAct. Professor Jurgens Hendricks had been the one to collect us at Cape Town airport and he met us again with joy at Stellenbosch University. NetAct mainly works from an office in the theological faculty which he shares with Dr Len Hansen (another NetActer) and in which Fraser now also has a desk.  Once Len and the two university theology faculty librarians had arrived, Jurgens opened the meeting by declaring the moment "a dream come true".

Rector Willie and Esmarie van der Merwe had brought us from Hugenote College in Wellington and as Esmarie and I were not needed in a discussion about libraries, theology and IT, we went off to wander round Stellenbosch. No photos this time but Fraser has to return for more meetings next week so I'll take the camera and do the touristy thing then.

We met up again for lunch and once Fraser (to his delight) had been issued with a unversity ID card (a wonderful thing which, as well as granting entry to university buildings, allows you to get into the botanical gardens without paying the R10 (60p) entrance fee and, more importantly, allows you to park in the university carpark) we went with the van der Merwes to their house for more relaxing chat and food.

The more I learn about the ethos of Hugenote College the more I like it. The aim of providing an opportunity for those failed by poor education or poverty but who have potential within themselves is laudable. Just because a person hasn't done well in her matric (end of school qualification) doesn't mean she'll be rejected by Hugenote. Such people are given the chance to undertake a year long course before signing up to a BA to see if they'd be able to cope with a degree programme. If they decide further studies are not for them, they can depart with dignity and a recognised lower level  qualification.

One aspect of Hugenote College is that it caters for students who are picked out by their employers as showing the potential to study social work. One such student was a sixty year old tea lady whose employers saw that she could do more if given the opportunity.  She was sent to Hugenote at a time of life when many are thinking of retiring. After the exam results were issued, Rector Willie heard the sound of jubilation in the corridor. It was this lady, thrilled to bits that at sixty years old she'd passed her first exam and got an A.

Another student who was identified as having potential by his employers was an imam.  It was explained to him that he was very welcome but that Hugenote College was a Christian establishment. They would continue to involve Christianity in the way they taught and the devotions that were held but that he was quite at liberty to remove himself from anything that made him uncomfortable without any prejudice to his studies. After a while he went to one of the tutors and asked if it'd be all right for him to start attending the Christian parts of college life. Of course he'd be welcome but what had changed his mind? The imam said that there must be something in Christianity if it inspired a place with such a good attitude and way of life and he wanted to learn more.

A Christian College teaches far more than just its academic subjects.