The Mandela Rhodes Scholars - Ms Nosipho Mngomezulu, Ms Laura Brook, Mr Alex Lenferna and Mr Jai Clifford-Holmes - for 2011 were recently honoured with a tea in the Vice-Chancellor's office.
The Mandela Rhodes Foundation is a unique partnership, bringing together as it does the legacy of leadership and reconciliation embodied by Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, an icon of the 20th century, and Cecil John Rhodes' legacy from the 19th century, which relates specifically to education and entrepreneurship.
The Foundation looks to build leadership capacity within Africa, and to create a network of talented, effective leaders defined by integrity and excellent education and training .
The Mandela Rhodes scholarships are a vehicle to realise this aim, and the scholarship programme looks to appoint candidates who identify with the values espoused by the patron Mr Nelson Mandela, Madiba to so many of us who have felt the power of his commitment to reconciliation working within our country.
There are four 'legacy' categories to which the Mandela Rhodes Scholarship Programme is intended to give practical expression. These are Leadership, which is defined by the Foundation as the will and capacities to use one's own personality and abilities to guide, inspire and develop fellow human beings.
The second category is Reconciliation, by which term the Foundation mean an embracing of human diversity, and a belief in a world in which all individuals and cultures enjoy equal rights and respect.
Thirdly, Education, which the Foundation clarifies as meaning not only the pursuit of a high minimum standard of scholastic achievement, but also a blend of character and intellect.
The final legacy category outlined by the Foundation is Entrepreneurship, defined as a belief in the critical role played by individual human effort, hard work, innovation and creativity, leading to the betterment of society and increasing the standing of Africa in the world.
Mandela Rhodes Scholars are outstanding students who aspire to become leaders in their fields, and to use their influence and skills to build capacity and impart a vision of a juster, more equal and humane society. They are the rare few who both talk the talk and walk the walk when it comes to the necessity of working towards reconciliation, the attainment of universal human rights and dignity, and the achievement of fundamental freedoms, and who consider this task among the highest callings a person can aspire to.
The Mandela Rhodes scholarship enables a scholar to study at a South African tertiary institution, registered with the South African Council of Higher Education, for an accredited postgraduate degree programme. The scholarship is awarded for one or a maximum of two years, and is currently awarded for an Honours or Masters degree.
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