ARCHBISHOP Emeritus Desmond Tutu had a history of teaching in his blood and served as the University of the Western Cape’s (UWC) chancellor for 25 years, during South Africa’s turbulent apartheid-era.
Tutu, who was South Africa’s last living Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, became UWC’s chancellor in 1987 and served in that role for 25 years as South Africa formally ushered in the country’s dawn of democracy.
“We are working for a new South Africa and we are committed to non-violence,” UWC reveals he said during his acceptance speech as chancellor.
“The University of the Western Cape is a first fruit, a promise of what that new South Africa could be like. Let us go for it!” Tutu went on to say.
Professor Tyrone Pretorius, UWC rector and vice-chancellor, said: “His service as chancellor for the University of the Western Cape over an unprecedented 25 years, helped to build the foundation of what we are today.”
“We’ve gone from a Bush College to an engaged research-led, learning and teaching university that is ranked among the world’s finest – and we couldn’t have done it without Desmond Tutu’s leadership, and his inspiring example,” Pretorius said.
