Engaged Service Impact

My approach to Engaged Service is deeply rooted in my philosophy of Engaged Scholarship and the Mode 2 paradigm of knowledge production, which emphasizes the integration of academic work with real-world problem-solving (see my Engagement Section of my portfolio). This philosophy drives my commitment to service within the university and to the broader community, professional organizations, and academic disciplines. By actively participating in service roles, I aim to bridge the gap between academia and society, fostering partnerships that are ethical, inclusive, and focused on social justice. My service activities are designed to not only advance institutional goals but also to contribute meaningfully to societal transformation. At the bottom of this page are some Creative Commons tools and power hour training slides that I developed related to the following categories: 1)Community Development, 2) Postgraduate Capacity Building, 3) Professional Development of HEIs Staff and 4) Scholarship of Engagement for Societal Impact (SoE-SI).  These are freely available for anyone to use.

Service to the University

Positions/Roles Held:

1. Programme Coordinator:  Bachelor of Community Development (2021 - current) 

2. Vise-Chair: UWC Employment Equity Forum (2022 - current)

3. Acting Director: Community Engagement Unit (part 2015)

4. Acting Director: Division of Postgraduate Studies (part 2018 & 2019)

5. Member: DVC Academic APEX Project: Framework for Integrated Scholarship (2020 - 2023)

6. Member: CHE-UWC audit focus group 2 (2021)

7. Member: Senate Library Committee (part 2018 & 2019)

8. Member: Senate International Relations (part 2018 & 2019)

9. Member: SASI Road Map Project Steering Committee (part 2018 & 2019)

Contributions

1. BCD Administration: Streamlined BCD programme administrative processes to improve efficiency and support academic and administrative staff. 

2. UWC Engaged Scholarship Administration: Conceptualized and Implementation of a UWC Engaged Scholarship web portal: SoE-SI to streamline reporting, professional development and assess engaged scholarship of all staff, students and partners of UWC. 

3. Support and develop capacity of CHS staff for the hosting of Virtual Events: CHS Virtual PG Open Day (2022 & 2023); CHS Virtual Research Week (2023)

4. Support and develop capacity of faculty staff in using the Google Platform and related tools for administrative management and e-filing.

5. Support DSD and CDPs with providing the first ever Virtual Public Consolation platform for policy input and approval, inclusive a develop capacity regarding policy formulation and input.  SSP Bill (June 2020) which to date had the highest public input in the history of the democratic S.A and CD Professional Board establishment policy (June 2024).

6. Policy Making and Management: Key role in developing the Scholarship of Engagement policy/framework that promote and assess equity, inclusivity, and social justice within the university regarding engaged scholarship.

7. Staff Recruitment and Selection: Participated in hiring processes to attract and retain diverse talent.

8. Staff Mentoring: Provide mentorship to all staff for the new BCD programme, inclusive of supporting their professional development and academic success using an e-portfolio tool.

9. Representing the University: Represented the university at organizations and events to enhance its public image and engagement (see also detail in the section below)

Service to the Community, Profession, and Academic Discipline

Positions/Roles Held

1. CHE reference Group (i.e. CoP) 2024-2025: CHE Bachelor of Community Development Qualification Standards.

2. Academic Board member: The South African College of Applied Psychology (SACAP) (2023-current)

3. Executive Board member: South African Higher Education Community Engagement Forum (SAHECEF) (2022-current)

4. Vice Chair Operations: Community Development Society (CDS) and Board Member (2019-2021)

5. National member: Ministerial Task Team (MTT):  Community Development Professionalization. 

6. National member: Task Team: Drafting the Bill and Regulation Guidelines for Social Service Practitioners (SSPs). 

7. National member: RPL for Community Development Task Team

8. National member: SAQA NQF Articulation Task Team – Community Development Sector

9. Affiliate Faculty: School for International Training (USA Vermont) Master’s programme: Sustainable Development Practice

10. International member: Advancing Research Impact in Society (ARIS)

11. International member: Network for Advancing and Evaluating the Societal Impact of Science(AESIS)

12. International Registration: Australian Evaluation Association (AEA) 

13. International Affiliation: Community Development Society (CDS).

14. International Member: International Association for Community Development (IACD).

Contributions: (also see Impact of Publications section of my portfolio)

1. Community Development Professionalization Policy

2. Social Service Professions (SSP) Bill and Regulations

3. Community Development Norms and Standards for Practice

4. Community Development Supervision Norms and Standards for Practice

5. SSP supervision PGDip qualification framework for South Africa

6. CDS Principles (part of the international working group)

7. CDS board members selections working group

8. Continuing Education: Developed and delivered workshops and seminars for community leaders and professionals (see below the Creative Commons PowerPoints for the CD sector as well as HEIs regarding PG capacity building, Professional development SoE-SI to use for their own capacity building initiatives).

9. Panelist. Professionalising Community Development: Is this the end of community-based activism? Cornerstone Institute. 30 September 2022. 

10. UPEN International Panelist. Science advice at times of crisis: what roles for universities and academics? UPEN: Academia Europaea Cardiff Knowledge Hub. 25 April 2022. 

11. Keynote Address: UniZuly Teaching and Learning 5th Annual Conference. Scholarship of Engagement that Represents the Expected Innovations from Higher Education. 14 October 2021. 

12. Keynote Address: SUN DSI Annual Social Impact Symposium: Cross Sectoral Engaged Partnerships: Transformative Power of Higher Education to Deliver Effective Societal Impact. 2 September 2021. 

13. Keynote Address: Professionalization in Community Development within Global and SA Context. Conference:  Community Development in the West Coast Region of the Western Cape:  Toward Building a Programme of Excellence. October 2014.

14. Sub-Committee Chair: Ministerial Task Team (MTT) Community Development Professionalization: HEI Community Development accreditation, teaching & learning quality assurance.

15. Vice Chair Operations: Community Development Society (CDS) (2019-2021)