When you read this, the new semester will already have started. Before you know it, we will have to give attention to marking examination papers and finalising marks. But for now, many of you must embrace and settle in to your new reporting lines, be it a new supervisor, manager, director, executive dean or deputy dean. The appointment of more (academic) directors and deputy directors will follow soon.

 

In short, you have to cope with a few new (if temporary) challenges while dealing with all the normal academic or administrative work. I appreciate this and thank you for accepting the circumstances in good spirit.

 

As some of you may have seen in a video message from Prof Fika Janse van Rensburg, our deputy vice-chancellor on the campus in Potchefstroom and vice principal of the NWU, my office has moved to building F1. The same applies for the registrar, Prof Marlene Verhoef. This is symbolic of our move away from a “federal” model with three campuses and a “head office” (or Institutional Office, located in C1).

 

We will be joined there in due course by the new executive director for student life, Prof Lumkile Lalendle. With two deputy vice-chancellors in C1 (which has now ceased to be the Institutional Office) and deputy vice-chancellors and deans spread over all three campuses, we have effectively decentralised our senior management.

 

The suggestion that we have centralised management is thus incorrect, but it is absolutely so that campuses are no longer business units. Our eight faculties will be the heart of our university, led by executive deans.

 

We hope to make permanent appointments in the remaining vacant senior positions during the remainder of the year. Meanwhile acting deans and deputy vice-chancellors will take care of business. For this I thank them warmly.