The outstanding achievements of more than 100 students were acknowledged and celebrated during the recent Faculty of Informatics and Design Student Awards.
Prof Tembisa Ngqondi, Dean of the Faculty, said the awards acknowledged excellence and were informed by the CPUT graduate attributes.
The guest speaker was Dean of Student Affairs, Nonkosi Tyolwana, who encouraged students to always have a spirit of gratitude and to always remember those who had supported them along the way. She thanked the lecturers for their contribution to the students’ success.
Awards were made in several categories ranging from best student volunteer to student ambassador in the media space while several students who had excelled in competitions were also acknowledged.
The ceremony culminated with the announcement of the five trophy winners. The awards and winners were as follow:
Resilience, Determination, and Achiever Award – Christelle Dreyer (Applied Design Department) - For managing to continue her Master’s studies in the face of multiple health challenges.
Entrepreneurial and Innovation Award – Ryan Shafer (Applied Design Department) - The Product Design Advanced Diploma students ran a coffee stall in the Design building, which in the absence of a cafeteria, has provided great joy to the staff and students. Ryan is a trained barista and the students raised a considerable amount of money towards their end-of-year exhibition.
Academic Achievement – Phumelela Mkapeni (Architectural Technology and Interior Design) - The student faced many adversities this year and still managed to achieve “more than well in all subjects”.
Innovation and Community Engagement Award – Goentse Mmekwa (Media and Communication Department) - Goentse has served as a student volunteer for the NGO, Village of Hope, and uses his skills as a student filmmaker to write social media content and scripts and produces and directs videos for the organisation for publicity, promotions and fundraising.
Design Innovation & FID Ambassador Award - Logan Daniels (Applied Design) - In recognition of the extracurricular activities that have contributed to the promotion of the Department of Applied Design, Fashion programme brand. He was a top 10 finalist in the All Fashion-Source Africa competition.
