UKZN Academic Awarded Second Honorary Doctoral Degree

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Professor Vishanthie Sewpaul of the School of Applied Human Sciences (Social Work) has been awarded an Honorary Doctoral degree from the University of Miguel de Cervantes in Chile.

This is her second honorary doctoral degree, the first being from Mid Sweden University.

In awarding the degree, in terms of its Statutes, the university in Chile acknowledged Sewpaul’s outstanding academic trajectory, and her contribution to ethics and social work, women’s equality, the fight against HIV and AIDS, and the struggle for human rights on a global level. 

Sewpaul also delivered a paper during the presentation ceremony titled: “Alternatives to Neoliberalism and the Erosion of the Socio-Cultural Spaces of Care in Latin America”.

Sewpaul, recently nominated by a student for the LeadSA Hero programme based on her emancipatory teaching and community engagement philosophy and practices, says teaching remains her main passion. 

‘The national, regional and international work and recognition become salient only insofar as they coalesce with my interactions with students, serving as a catalyst for them to re-think their identities and the world that they live in, and to build their self-esteem and courage so that they can become constructive agents of social change,’ she said. ‘I have seen students spread their wings by getting involved in global justice issues – that is my reward.’

Sewpaul is the President of the Association of Schools of Social work in Africa and Vice-President on the Board of the International Association of Schools of Social Work in Africa. 

She has been elected to later this year deliver the prestigious Terry Hokenstad Lecture at the Annual Programme Meeting and Conference of the United States Council on Social Work in Denver.

 Melissa Mungroo