Spotlight on outstanding alumni in July 2021
-
Catch up on a round-up of latest awards, appointments and newsmakers.
Honours
Nominees for 2021 CFO Awards were announced. Dubbed as the “Oscars of the finance profession” the winners among Africa’s top finance professionals will be revealed in November 2021. 
Four Wits alumni were among the 24 nominees: Prof Carolina Koornhof (MCom 1992), executive director of finance at the University of Pretoria, Glen Pearce (BCom 1987) CFO at Sappi, Dirk Viljoen (MSc 2012) Group CFO at Hollard Insurance and Sean Capazorio (BCom 1986, BAcc 1987) CFO at Aspen Pharmacare.
Innocentia Mahlangu (BSc Eng 2011, MSc 2018) a senior engineer and project manager based in Hatch’s Johannesburg office, has been honoured on Project Management Institute’s (PMI’s) 2021 Future 50 list, which recognises 50 rising leaders that are creating, building, and transforming the world through notable projects.
Dr John Sampson (BSc Eng 1971, PhD 1992), an ex-partner and now consultant to JG Afrika, received a Distinguished Fellow of the Southern African Transport Conference Award at this year’s virtual event. Dr Sampson is one of only eight people who have received this prestigious award.
The director of the Wits Cardiovascular Pathophysiology and Genomics Research Unit, Professor Gavin Norton (BSc 1982, MBBCh 1986, PhD 1993), is one of only 30 fellows to be elected into the prestigious International Union of Physiological Societies.
The University of Pretoria (UP) bestowed an honorary Doctorate of Medicine on Charles Feldman (MBBCh 1975, PhD 1991, DSc Med 2009), professor of pulmonology in the Wits Department of Internal Medicine. He was honoured for the role his work has played in academic medicine worldwide.
Rusten Abrahams (BHSc 2019, BHSc Hons 2020) represented South Africa in the men’s hockey team at the Tokyo Olympics, while Nomnikelo Veto (BA 2020) and Robyn Johnson (BA Ed 2014) made the cut for the SA women’s hockey team.
Gabriella Blumberg (BA FT 2017), producer of the film I Am Here, was successful at the recent Encounters Documentary Festival winning the Audience Award for Best Documentary at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival and was also screened at the Miami Jewish Film Festival earlier this year.
Appointments
The Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni appointed Muvhango Lukhaimane (MBA 2013) as head of Advisory Board to the Government Pensions Administration Agency for a three-year term. 
Alberta Investment Management Corporation announced the appointment of James Barber (MBA 2000) to the role of executive vice president, Public Equities in Canada. He is an accomplished investment executive with global experience.
Ann Lamont (BA 1986, LLB 1988) was appointed as chairperson to the Two Oceans Aquarium Education Forum.
Dr Charmaine Gittleson (BSc 1990, MBBCh 1993) was appointed to the board of George Medicines as an independent non-executive director. Dr Gittleson held various senior roles in clinical research, medical safety, medical and patient-related ethics, strategic product development, planning and implementation across multiple therapeutic and rare disease areas. She also holds an Australian Medical Council Qualification and is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Stanford University's Company Directors Course.
Dr Jasvina Ranchhod (MBBCh 1997) was appointed as specialist neurologist at Life Wilgeheuwel Hospital.
Doreen Karake (LLM 2009, LLM 2010) was appointed to the board of Rwanda’s sovereign wealth fund Agaciro Development Fund. She is an experienced investment negotiator and transactions advisory expert. She is currently working with the transactions structuring and support division at the Rwanda Development Board, and leads the team.
Professor Barry Dwolatzky (BSc Eng 1975) has been contracted as director of innovation strategy at Wits.
Dr Katherine Skinner (BA 1990, MA 2006, PhD 2017) was appointed as an executive director of the Association of Independent Publishers.
Newsmakers
Michael Avery talked to Gareth Friedlander (BSc 2007, BSc Hons 2008) deputy chief executive officer at Discovery Life, where he has been an instrumental part of the company’s innovative research and development for over a decade and he talked about trends in the life cover space, pointing to an increase in demand for life products in the wake of the global pandemic.
Prof Daynia Ballot (MBBCh 1982, PhD 1989) writes about the impact of neglected infrastructure on academic hospitals in Gauteng.
Wits graduates Mbuso Thwala (BPharm 2020) and Mpho Maake (BPharm 2020) were awarded seed funding for their automated, antimicrobial pill-dispensing innovation, Ra-Pill.
Patrick Soon-Shiong (MBBCh 1986) is backing a COVID-19 vaccine candidate that he sees as having potential as a universal booster of other pandemic shots. ImmunityBio, of which Dr Soon-Shiong holds about 13%, is developing a vaccine called hAd5 that’s intended to specifically activate T-cells that scientists believe are a key part of the immune response against COVID-19.
Dr Tendesayi Kufa-Chakezha (DTM&H 2010), Dr Cheryl Cohen (MBBCh 1997, DTM&H 2008), Nicola Chiwandire (MSc 2021) write why it is possible for children to return to school safely during the pandemic.
Jo Vearey (PhD 2010) and Fatima Hassan (BA 1993, LLB 1995) co-author an article to advocate for vaccinations for the undocumented.
Singer Ndivhuwo “Elaine” Mukheli (BA 2021) recently graduated and released a music video for her single Right Now on her debut album released in March.
Miss SA Shudufhadzo Musida (BA Hons 2021) made headlines with her graduation. She has also just published a book about her childhood and bullying trauma in a children’s book Shudu Finds Her Magic. The book, set to hit stores at the end of August, will be published in six SA languages – Afrikaans, English, Sesotho, Venda, Xhosa and Zulu.
Professor Catherine Burns (BA 1987, BA Hons 1988) investigates why Britain is being asked to pay slavery reparations to Jamaica. This following a move by Jamaican lawmakers who are in the process of submitting a petition seeking reparations over the enslavement of Africans who were forced to work on plantations years ago. An estimated 600,000 Africans were shipped to toil in Jamaica, according to the National Library of Jamaica.
Peter Tshisevhe (BProc 1995, LLB 1997, LLM 1999) is chairman of TGR Attorneys, a boutique law firm that specialises in inter alia Mergers and Acquisitions and was profiled by GQ.
Research
Dr Jennifer Fitchett (BSc Hons 2012, MSc 2013, PhD 2015) says Jacarandas in parts of South Africa are flowering earlier.
Samantha Brooks (BA 1992, LLB 1994) from the Neuroscience Research Laboratory in the Department of Psychology (Witsneurl) at Wits published a paper which looked at the association between weight status and school-related psychosocial characteristics in high income countries, investigating the relationship between weight status and psychosomatic and school-related complaints with a focus on gender differences.
Professor Heather Zar (MBBCh 1985), head of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health and director of the School of Child and Adolescent Health at the University of Cape Town, announced breakthrough TB vaccine study which sees drug-resistant TB being treated in six months. A potential novel TB vaccine being developed will replace the 100-year-old bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine according to a new study by Wits University and TB Alliance, and among others confirmed in its phase 3 clinical trial in SA that a high, relapse-free cure rate among participants can be achieved safely in six months.
Send your news and updates to alumni@wits.ac.za