CELEBRATION: Graduates in B.Com Hospitality Management and B.BA Disaster Management at Stenden SA toss their mortar boards up into the air in celebration after their graduation ceremony at the Royal St Andrews Hotel on Friday May 16. Pictures: TESSA BURRELL PHOTOGRAPHY
Stenden South Africa graduates in B.Com Hospitality Management and B.BA Disaster Management were royalty for the night on Friday May 16 as they celebrated their graduation with their families, friends, fellow students and faculty at the Royal St Andrews Hotel. The pride of families and local mentors was tangible (and audible!) as 20 students were awarded their Bachelor of Commerce in Hospitality Management and 14 received their Bachelor of Business Administration: Disaster Relief Management.
Sinovuyo Dlepu, Sasha Anna Mavolwane and Bianca Stoltz (hospitality management) achieved theirs cum laude. In disaster management, cum laude was achieved by Avile Macingwane, Ann Moll, Takura Murengwa and Alex Nyashana.
Student Affairs and Marketing Manager Ronel Bartlett, MC for the night, said the smaller cohort was as a direct result of the Covid-19 pandemic and the bans on travel that this imposed.
The students were addressed by Stenden SA Executive Dean Dr Wouter Hensens, Director International Relations and Strategy at NHL Stenden Dr Wayne Johnson, and Stenden SA Academic Dean Dr Juliet Chipumuro. The Keynote speaker was Clare du Plessis, director of National Academic operations at Southern Cross University in Australia.
Du Plessis began her career in the South African hospitality industry managing safari lodges, cricket stadiums and academic facilities before moving into academia. To the students’ delight, she recounted her own time at Stenden 18 years previously, as part of the institution’s third intake – “just five students – all women!” – whose real-world learning experience had been at Halyards.
One of the most valuable lessons she’d taken away with her, she said, was the Importance of listening and observing before speaking, or stepping into a new situation. It was advice shared by Hensens at her own graduation.
“Listen with curiosity before you speak with confidence,” she said. “Success isn’t about achievement: it’s about presence. Respect local knowledge: your ability to tune in before you take charge will set you apart. You’re not just graduates, you are global citizens.”
As is standard practice at the institution, the 2024 Stenden SA graduates completed their research projects at establishments across the continent and the world, where they were based for the practical component of their training.
Emotional intelligence was a theme throughout the speakers’ presentations. In fact it is a specialisation of Dr Juliet Chipumoro, Academic Dean: All Programmes, who emphasised how proud she was of how the graduates had persevered.
“You embraced new ideas and grew as leaders,” she said.
“The world is waiting for your brilliance, your creativity, your energy; but more than anything, the world needs your goodness. Choose good – over and over again.”
Alongside EI, the subject of AI featured across the speakers, with Du Plessis’ current research focus being generative AI in teaching practice.
Hensens earlier told graduates that the problem-based learning approach they’d enjoyed at Stenden SA woud stand them in good stead when it came to working with artificial intelligence.
This article was first published in Talk of the Town, May 22, 2025. The newspaper serving the communities of Ndlambe and the Sunshine Coast, with a weekly wrap of Makhanda news, is available at stores from early on Thursdays.
