Rhodes>Isivivane

About


Isivivane Fund, an integrated approach to building and maintaining life-long relationships with stakeholders based on the development of a unique and special partnership between Rhodes University, its students and alumni, and donors.

Inspired by the Zulu proverb “Ukuphosa itshe esivivaneni” (literally mean to throw one’s stone on the pile/monument) to make a personal contribution to a great common cause. This contribution is made in the spirit that everyone buys into and does their bit to create a motivating vision of the future. The arrangement of stones in an Isivivane is contributed by diverse people over time and so another way of seeing isivivane is as a form of collectively performed memory.

The main GOAL of Isivivane Fund is to secure sufficient funding from the community of Rhodes and beyond to ensure no academically capable but financially needy student (undergraduate and postgraduate) is refused entry to Rhodes University. 

At Rhodes, we believe that if students have the academic ability and will to succeed, then their financial circumstance should not be a barrier to acquiring higher education. This is not a public relations exercise but a commitment made by our university that we want to be a university that is fully committed to accepting and supporting the most deserving students, regardless of their financial backgrounds or circumstances.

We understand that a campus composed of exceptional students, including those of meagre means, is a core element of a world-class university. When at Rhodes, students, are provided with intensive support structure and residential environment that is conducive to good scholarship and collegiality.

Today, our ability to attract the best talent from any and all backgrounds is still a defining characteristic of our university and something we take pride in. Through Rhodes’ generous student financial aid we have managed to transform lives, create dreams and hope where there was none. We want to continue with this trajectory but are mindful of cost implications attached to such a discourse.

We hope to achieve all this through the following objectives:

  1. Ensure undergraduate opportunities
  2. Increase post graduate intake
  3. Heighten student experience
  4. Grow endowment to ensure sustainability

Just as Rhodes will never stop seeking the best students, we must also constantly reaffirm our commitment to making a Rhodes education accessible to everyone. This initiative is our opportunity as a Rhodes community to make a significant statement to the world that we are truly “where leaders learn”.

It is our hope that you will see value in SUPPORTING this CAMPAIGN.

Why do I give to Rhodes

Making a difference is something that I have wanted to do from a young age.     It is my deep desire that I am able to leave a legacy to the next generation.  In his address Dr. Mabizela said two things that stayed with me.  The first was that Rhodes commit to ensuring that a quality education is provided to all academically deserving students and that no academically deserving student should not be afforded an opportunity to study at Rhodes because they are born into family of meagre means.  The second was to brighten the corner where you live.  By donating to the Isivivane Fund I feel that I am contributing to creating a lasting legacy that will make a difference in the lives of not only the young people who will study at Rhodes University but that as they become the leaders of tomorrow that they will have a lasting impact on the lives of ordinary South Africans.  By giving to the fund in small way it does brighten the corner where I live and work.

 

By Sue Robertson

Why we do this

My name is Bongi Khumalo, a proud Zulu girl from Mpophomeni Township. I and my orphaned cousins have been raised by a strong woman, a general worker (cleaner) at the Howick Municipality. My mother and I always had big dreams. She ensured that I attend the best schools inspite of her minimal income. I aspire to be a lawyer. I am 19 years old from a township that is notorious for teenage pregnancies, party culture and lack of progression to higher education. I wanted to be different.  I chose a university that has a sense of unity, a university where students care about other students, academically demanding and challenging.

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