The Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Prof. Blade Nzimande joins the nation in mourning the passing of Dr. Jennifer Glennie.
Dr. Glennie, who trained as a mathematician, was not just a distinguished and lifelong progressive educationalist, but was also a tireless advocate for social justice, who made an immeasurable contribution to equal access to education for all and the transformation of society.
At the height of the anti-apartheid struggle, she initiated and participated in the formation of a number of progressive education initiatives and projects.
Through Khanya College, which was popularly known as the ‘people’s college’, she contributed to empowering black young people from marginalised communities and preparing them university education.
Her intervention in this regard, laid the basis for future policy thinking on the transformative power of people’s education and fed into and deeply informed the formation of the National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) in 1986 and its declaration for a radically new people’s education system.
In later years, as the founding Director of the South African Institute of Distance Education (SAIDE), she championed innovative and inclusive solutions, including the African Storybook initiative, which promotes home-language literacy for African children.
In her roles as Member the Council for Higher Education (CHE), Council and Broad Transformation Forum Member at the University of South Africa (UNISA) and Council Member at Sol Plaatje University, she made a significant contribution to shaping and strengthening higher education policy and governance in our country.
Owing to her lifelong commitment to educational development and social justice, Dr. Glennie was a recipient of a number of prestigious national and international honors.
These include being appointed as a Fellow of the International Commonwealth of Learning, the Chancellor’s Medal from the University of Pretoria for her contribution to education and the African Council for Distance Education Legacy Service Award for her exceptional contribution to the field of Open Distance and e-learning.
It is also worth pointing out that, her work in the field of education contributed to significant advances in related areas such as reading for meaning, technology for education, mother tongue-education and decolonisation.
Her indefatigable and visionary educational activism over the past five decades also intersected with the various grass roots interventions that were implemented by the liberation movement during the dark days of apartheid, under the vision of ‘A People’s Education for People’s Power.
More fundamentally, the sum total of her work contributed to a much bigger objective- which is building South Africa into a country wherein all its citizens would be able to realise their potential and do so regardless of their race, gender, class, religion or area of residence.
The passing of Dr. Glennie constitutes an incalculable loss to our country’s education and science fraternity.
Those of us who worked with her, will remember her as an irrepressible activist and ethical public servant, who dedicated her knowledge and skills to the building of a humane and just country and world.
On behalf of the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation and all the Entities in our National System of Innovation, I wish to extend my heartfelt condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Dr. Glennie.
Enquiries:
Veli Mbele
Media Liaison Officer and Spokesperson to the Minister
Cell: 064 615 0644
E-mail: Veli.Mbele@dsti.gov.za
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