Three CPUT Women academia named finalists in the prestigious 2024 HERS-SA Higher Education Women Leaders Award

HERS-SA

Three outstanding CPUT women academics have been named as finalists in the prestigious 2024 HERS-SA Higher Education Women Leaders Awards.

The awards recognise the achievements of South African women in Higher Education who lead, inspire, and motivate those in and outside their institutions to be more and do more. It is aimed to inspire and attract new leadership talent to the sector, thus creating role models, advancing gender transformation, and creating visibility for higher education women leaders in South Africa.

The three CPUT finalists are:

Prof Kareemah Najaar, senior lecturer in the Department of Emergency Medical Sciences, who was nominated in the Women in STEM category. She is the leader of a community project that supports Life Science matric learners from selected disadvantaged schools in preparation for their final exams.

The project has been running for six years and has become a Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences service-learning project as well as an inter-institutional endeavour with the University of the Western Cape’s, Medical Biosciences Department.

Dr Gunjan Gupta, senior lecturer in the Department of Electrical, Electronics and Computer Engineering and F’Sati, who has been nominated for the Emerging Young Women Leaders (academic) Award. Gupta has published numerous technical papers in accredited journals, peer-reviewed conference proceedings, and book chapters. Her research focuses on LoRa Networks (Reliability and accuracy), LPWAN Technologies, LoRa-based Air quality IoT devices, LoRa WAN in satellite communication (CubeSats), and Satellite systems mission and design. Her current research activities include the Integration of LoRaWAN and 5G for IoT, LoRa Direct-to-Satellites, and IoT ground stations.

Dr Ekaterina Rzyankina, lecturer in the Department of Maritime Studies, who was also nominated for the Emerging Young Women Leaders (academic) Award. Rzyankina’s research area focuses on the education of STEM subjects in engineering. Rzyankina aims to support students by utilising digital technology to enhance their understanding. Her theoretical framework is rooted in Cultural Historical Activity Theory, which she uses to analyse and improve educational practices.