As part of the Community-Based Project module (JCP) for the Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology students are required to contribute 40 hours of community service to finish their degrees. The JCP module is unique as it encourages students to participate in community development in their own areas, providing not only development for much needed community infrastructures but also allows students to give back to the community, developing the personal skills of our students.

This year 6 schools that are in need of libraries were identified. From the beginning of June the 6 student groups of Publishing Studies identified the needs of the respective libraries of Boikgantsho Primary and Pfundzo Primary in Mamelodi, Jakaranda Primary in Eersterust, Boschkop Primary in Boschkop and Sunnyside Primary and Jopie Fourie Primary in Pretoria. By the start of the June holiday the students were ready to start painting and sorting away! Their first task was to identify which books the school already had which could be reincorporated into the library and which books are needed. The aim throughout this process was to be as representational of all of the languages in South Africa as possible. Several industry partners with this process were invaluable, Bargain Books Woodlands donated thousands of Rands worth of stock in the classics, fiction and non-fiction genres. LAPA publishers, NB publishers and Ebooks Lynnridge donated fiction in official languages, specifically English, Afrikaans, Zulu and Sepedi. With these donations the students were able to start work on their libraries.

Being approached by the Presidency to make the project part of their Mandela Day celebrations opened door to new donations and more volunteers. This partnership proved very fruitful, with over 70 volunteers from the Presidency arriving at the schools on Mandela day to help finish off the libraries. The partnership allowed for increased involvement from the government in charitable activities and allowed the students interaction with the governmental process. The identified schools of Boschkop, Boikganstho, Sunnyside and Jopie Fourie were treated to readings by Adult Basic Education Training personnel from the Presidency and were encouraged to stay in school and embrace education as the only way to further oneself. All 6 schools received donations of carpeting, heaters and pot plants from Builders Warehouse and shelving from the Presidency as well as several book donations collected by the Presidency in African Languages.

This project serves as a shining example of what the partnership between industry and the University of Pretoria is capable of. It is only through the kind donations of our industry partners that this project such a success. The students themselves are happy and satisfied with what they have achieved with the project, contributing not only to their own degrees and abilities but also to their knowledge of their future reading market and their industry leaders.

Their mentor, Laetitia Marais (an old JCP student and now a Publishing Studies assistant lecturer), the Publishing Studies students of the Department of  Information Science intend to continue the project in the future. Encouraging students, staff and industry partners to contribute what they can to help the community and provide access to books and basic literacy in underdeveloped schools as they believe that literacy in a basic and invaluable right of all children in South Africa. As Erin Rennie, one of the students involved in the Boikgantsho Primary school library stated: “We know how important reading and literacy is and we want to encourage it from young kids. If you can help, you should, especially on something which is important like this”.

We hope to rely on our current industry partners in future and involve this group of students as mentors in the following year, and look forward to new avenues and developments. Building not only libraries in needy communities but also a sense of the importance of community engagement in our students and industry partners is vitally important to us.

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