Farewell to Cheryl de la Rey

UCT formally bid farewell to Prof Cheryl de la Rey, who leaves at the end of April - after 12 years at UCT - to take up the reins as CEO of the Council on Higher Education.

At a farewell last week, Vice-Chancellor and Principal, Prof Njabulo S Ndebele, commended De la Rey for her role as deputy vice-chancellor in the university's Emerging Researcher Programme, the upward trajectory of UCT's research performance, and the development and implementation of a number of signature research themes, among other initiatives.

He also sang the praises of her more personal qualities - her keen strategic sense, her sharp eye for processes, and her attention to detail. "I've often told her that most of us have just one of these qualities," said Ndebele. "To possess all three is a gift."

In turn, De la Rey thanked her erstwhile colleagues in the Department of Psychology - her first stop when she joined UCT in 1995 - and the Research Office, as well as her fellow DVCs, for their support over the years. She also singled out her PA, Julia Novella, and, finally, Ndebele, for his "great intellectual depth" over their many official and more-informal discussions.