Associate Professor Lis Lange (1961–2025)

22 May 1961–8 October 2025

The University of Cape Town (UCT) community mourns the passing of Associate Professor Lis Lange, a respected scholar, academic leader, and advocate for transformation in higher education. She is a former deputy vice-chancellor for Teaching and Learning. Born on 22 May 1961 in Argentina, she passed away on 8 October 2025.

Associate Professor Lange leaves behind a remarkable legacy of intellectual rigour, social conscience, and a lifelong commitment to advancing the public good through education. Her intellectual journey spanned continents and disciplines, reflecting her deep curiosity about the world and her conviction that education is a profoundly political act.

A scholar and leader of transformation

She earned her BA (Honours) in History from the University of Buenos Aires in 1984, followed by a master’s degree in African studies from El Colegio de México in 1988. She later completed her PhD in History at the University of the Witwatersrand in 1998. Having made South Africa her home, she became a permanent resident and devoted her career to shaping the country’s higher education landscape during a period of great transformation and debate.

Lange’s distinguished career reflected her ability to bridge scholarship, policy, and institutional leadership. Before joining UCT, she served as Vice-Rector: Academic at the University of the Free State (UFS), where she was instrumental in advancing teaching and learning initiatives and promoting academic renewal in the post-merger era. Before that, she headed UFS’s Institutional and Academic Planning and Research department, bringing a critical and evidence-based approach to the university’s academic planning processes.

Her national influence on higher education policy was equally profound. At the Council on Higher Education (CHE), she held several key leadership positions, including as executive director of the Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) from 2006 to 2010, and acting CEO of the CHE between 2007 and 2008. During this period, she played a pivotal role in developing quality assurance frameworks and promoting a deeper understanding of transformation within higher education institutions. Through her work at the CHE, she also secured international funding from organisations such as the Fulbright Foundation, Nuffic, the Carnegie Corporation, and the Ford Foundation, enabling critical research into higher education systems in South Africa and beyond.

Championing decolonial and democratic education

In February 2018, Lange joined UCT as deputy vice-chancellor for Teaching and Learning, where she provided intellectual and strategic leadership in shaping the university’s teaching and learning vision. Her portfolio encompassed oversight of curriculum transformation, quality assurance, and academic planning, as well as support for deans and directors across UCT’s faculties and academic units. She was a leading voice in discussions about the decolonisation of the curriculum, urging the higher education sector to move beyond access and towards epistemic justice and inclusivity in knowledge production.

Lange’s research and writing reflect her deep engagement with the philosophy and politics of education. Her scholarship interrogated transformation, curriculum, and pedagogy through the lens of social theory and democratic education. Among her published works are White, Poor and Angry: White Working Class Families in Johannesburg (Ashgate, 2003) and the co-edited volume #MustFall: Understanding the Moment (UKZN Press, 2018). Her numerous book chapters, policy reports, and journal articles, including contributions to the Journal of Education and Critical Studies in Teaching and Learning, have influenced generations of scholars and policymakers.

Her intellectual contribution extended well beyond South Africa. She served on international boards and committees, including the International Network of Quality Assurance Agencies in Higher Education (INQAAHE) and UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP), where she contributed to global dialogues on governance, quality, and transformation in higher education. Lange was also a sought-after keynote speaker, known for her thoughtful reflections on citizenship, freedom, and the purpose of the university in contemporary society.

Throughout her career, she was deeply committed to the public mission of the university – to produce knowledge that serves democracy, equity, and human development. Her reflections on academic freedom, quality assurance, and transformative education continue to shape debates in South African higher education today.

Her passing is a profound loss to the higher education community in South Africa and internationally. Her work, ideas, and example will continue to resonate through the many scholars, educators, and students she influenced over the decades.