??The Faculty of Science takes pleas?ure in welcoming Mr Mbuso Dludlu as its new director of faculty management from 1 April 2025.
He will be taking over the reins from Ms Mariétta van den Worm who has held the position for the past 25 years, and who will retire at the end of 2025.
With over 16 years of experience in the higher education sector, the last six years as departmental manager of SU's Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, Mbuso says he is looking forward to combining his passion for science with management and leadership in his new position as faculty director.
Mbuso was born in Piet Retief in Mpumalanga, but raised by his late grandmother, Mrs Teressa Mazibuko, in a village called Makhosini outside the small town of Nhlangano in Eswatini. He completed a BSc in Chemical Technology at the 肆客足球 of KwaZulu-Natal in 2008, followed by a Bachelor of Technology in Polymer Technology in 2014 and a Masters in Polymer Technology in 2016 from Tshwane 肆客足球 of Technology (TUT). At the time, he was working as senior laboratory manager in TUT's Department of Mathematics, Science and Technology. It was during this time that he also lost both of his parents, Sizakele and Comfort Dludlu.
Currently pursuing a PhD in Polymer Science at SU, Mbuso says he will always be indebted to his grandmother for seeing to it that he got an education from selling handcrafts in the streets of Soweto and Johannesburg: “She wasn't educated, but she valued the importance of education. Today I am passionate about education, and I strongly believe in lifelong learning. I think it is for this reason that I have a teachable spirit, which is key for leadership."
For the past 25 years, he has been providing career guidance to learners through the not-for-profit organisation “Brighten-up your Future" which he established in 2007. He is also mentoring 12 university students at eight South African higher education institutions, pursuing studies in different fields – from the Sciences and Engineering to the Social Sciences, Economic and Management Sciences and Arts.
For his PhD, Mbuso is investigating the prevalence of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances), commonly known as “forever chemicals" because of their persistence in the environment, at wastewater treatment plants and rivers and dams in the Western Cape. The objective is to develop a polymeric membrane with nanoparticles for enhanced removals of these persistent chemicals. His research is funded by the Water Research Commission and has been presented at two international conferences and to a panel of 30 City of Cape Town managers.
Mbuso, who joined SU in 2018 shortly after completing his MBA at Regent Business School, says he is deeply indebted to all his colleagues in the Department of Chemistry and Polymer Science, and specifically Prof. Peter Mallon, former executive head of department, who initially introduced him to the systems and processes at SU: “Coming in here, I was only armed with my knowledge and skills, while Prof. Mallon had the experience and understanding. Over the next five years, we became a formidable management team, working together to put the department on a sustainable footing."
For now, he is excited about his new role as director of faculty management: “I am grateful to be taking over from the current director, who is a wealth of experience and institutional memory. I would like to build on the foundation and legacy she has laid for the faculty and university over the past 25 years."
He is looking forward to working with and supporting the Dean of Science, Prof. Burtram Fielding, and the management team: “To me, leadership and management are all about serving people to the best of your ability in order to create trust. Trust is a very special human experience. And we can only trust others when we know they are actively and consciously concerned about us," he adds.
For Mbuso, the values of compassion, empathy and respect are at the core of his concept of servant leadership. These values also happen to form part of SU's ECARE values of Excellence, Compassion, Accountability, Respect, and Equity: “I will be taking these values with me in my new role, in service to my colleagues and contributing thus to the growth and success of the Faculty of Science."
Lastly, he honours his family and wife of 14 years, Mrs Lydia Dludlu, and his children Lwandzile (13) and Kagiso (9). The family loves hiking in the Helderberg Nature Reserve, travelling or inviting friends and family over for a braai. And, of course, nothing beats a refreshing beach walk, finished off with ice cream.
“My life is grounded in reading the Word and in prayer, which is one of the key underlying principles in my life and in raising my children," he concludes.
?Photo: Stefan Els
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