Obituary

Obituary

Tribute to Johan Neethling, SABC Education. 

WE are saddened by the loss of a dear colleague and key partner within the JHHESA family.

I first met Jo at the annual partner meeting in Stellenbosch in 2006. I was taken by the senior role Johan played in SABC education, yet the humility and gentleness about him. He would easily fit into any discussion over tea or lunch, was always attentive and had a deep appreciation of the work of various partners. From that initial meeting, every JHHESA partner meeting was not complete without having engaging conversations about work, his breakfast runs and life in general of course. His deep concerns for the importance of research informing the development of SADC educational programmes was something we often spoke about.

Jo was key to enabling the study conducted by one of CCMS’s MA students, Gerald Coetzee, titled “Open Sesame! Learning Life Skills from Takalani Sesame: A reception study of selected  Grade One learners in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa (supervised by Prof Ruth Teer-Tomaselli). He also was a key collaborator for the development of Tsha Tsha and Intersexions which is extensively studied by our students at CCMS.

My last conversation with Jo earlier this year was once again his attempt to convince SABC on the importance of having their programmes evaluated in communities, and he wanted to explore how CCMS students could facilitate this progress. Sadly, the conversation stopped there, but the legacy that Jo has left in his support for social development through educational initiatives, will still benefit generations to come.

CCMS extends our deepest condolences to the JHHESA partners, SABC and most especially his family.

Eliza Govender

and Prof Keyan Tomaselli