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DR SAMUELS PRESENTED WITH LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Pictured: Dr Lavern Samuels receiving his BMI/Times Higher Education Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Director of International Education and Partnerships at the Durban University of Technology (DUT) and President of the International Education Association of South Africa, Dr Lavern Samuels, was recently awarded the BMI/Times Higher Education Lifetime Achievement Award for his outstanding contribution in shaping the International Education landscape in South Africa and abroad.
He received this highest honour at the NAFSA 2024 Annual Conference and Expo, which was held in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.
Dr Samuels regards this award as an acknowledgment of the international education work that has been done at DUT as well as his own contribution. He sees it as a motivation for him to continue making a difference in the world, first among DUT students and staff, linking them up with the rest of the world. He has accepted the award with deep humility, acknowledging the different teams he has worked with at DUT, as well as the different organisations in South Africa and abroad.
He believes he would not have achieved this award without working collaboratively, being highly motivated by the African proverb:“If you want to go fast go alone, if you want to go far go together”.
Commenting on his accolade, Dr Samuels said it came as a surprise to him as he had attended the NAFSA Conference to present two papers, not knowing he was going to receive this award at the end of the conference.
“The NAFSA Conference is an event that I normally attend, but I had no idea that I was attending to receive my award. I thought I was invited to the dinner because I was one of the speakers at the conference. Strangely enough they sent a second request for me to confirm my attendance, I didn’t realise that there were people put in charge to get me into the event on time.At the dinner they announced that they would be giving out awards and when it came to my award they started reading out a citation, which I didn’t realise
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DURBAN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY