From 13 to 14 November 2020, the Faculty of Law (UP Law) at the University Pretoria (UP) held its first staff retreat for lecturers and senior lecturers focused on academic career planning and development. The main purpose of the retreat was to provide early-career academics in the Faculty with the tools, resources and support needed to shape the direction of their work as scholars, teachers and academic citizens.

Staff were engaged in a comprehensive programme covering themes such as “The scholarly journey – signposting your career from lecturer to professor”; “The scholar as researcher: defining your area of scholarship”; and,“The scholar as teacher: curriculum matters and hybrid learning”. Dean Professor Elsabe Schoeman also addressed colleagues on their role in advancing the vision and strategy of UP Law based on the principles of inclusivity, interdisciplinarity and excellence.

The keynote presentation was delivered by theologian and public intellectual, Professor Tinyiko Maluleke, who is currently based in the Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship.  Entitled “The idea of the university and the vocation of scholarship in Africa”, Prof Maluleke’s presentation drew on many insights in higher education scholarship to underscore the need for multiple ideas of UP to exist side-by-side and in contestation with one another.  He also challenged colleagues to reflect on what it means to do research in light of our situatedness on the African continent and its history – including the interconnections between colonial power and knowledge.

The retreat also provided colleagues with an opportunity to get to know each other and cross departmental boundaries in the spirit of building an inclusive and intellectual rich space for teaching and research.  It is planned that the retreat will become an annual fixture on UP Law’s calendar.