by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 20, 2025
Prof Jace Pillay is a registered educational and counselling psychologist and the South African Research Chair in Education and Care in Childhood in the Faculty of Education at the University of Johannesburg. In February 2024 he was appointed a UNESCO Chair in Mental Health and Psychological Support for Teachers and Learners in SA. His previous positions at UJ were the Head of the Department of Educational Psychology and Vice Dean in the Faculty of Education. Currently, he heads a research team focusing on the mental health of learners and teachers as well as psychosocial support in schools. As an academic he has published more than 100 journal articles, book chapters and conference proceedings both nationally and internationally. Also, he has supervised numerous postgraduate students and Postdoctoral Research Fellows. Prof Pillay is a keynote and invited speaker in numerous international conferences and has several international research collaborations. In addition to his academic stature, he serves on the Professional Board for Psychology. Also, he serves on the National Steering Committee for Care and Support for Teaching and Learning and chairs the CETA Programme for the Department of Education.
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 20, 2025
Prof Ronelle Carolissen is a clinical psychologist and full professor of Psychology in the Department of Psychology at Stellenbosch University. She is an NRF rated researcher and the current president of PsySSA (Psychological Society of South Africa)
Her predominantly qualitative research expertise and publications explore transformation in higher education. Her research focuses on decolonial feminist pedagogies and critical, decolonial community psychologies in higher education contexts, highlighting experiences of marginalised university students and academic staff. She is the co-editor of the books Community, self and identity: Educating South African university students for citizenship (Human Science Research Council (HSRC Press, 2012), Discerning critical hope in educational practices (Routledge 2014), Transforming Transformation in Teaching and Research in Higher Education (African Sun Media, 2018) and Community Psychology: South African Praxis (2022).
She serves on South African and international journal editorial boards that intersect in the fields of education and community psychology and serves on managing boards, most notably the SAMRC (South African Medical Research Council 2019-present). She holds the 2016 Psychological Association of South Africa award for excellence in teaching psychology in higher education. She was a visiting professor at Stanford University’s Bing overseas community engagement programme in Cape Town (2015-2019) and is a Fulbright research scholar (2021-2022) alumni and a member of ASSAF (Academy of Science of South Africa). She is the Chief Editor of PINS (Psychology in Society).
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 20, 2025
Dr. Ewald Crause is a counselling psychologist and trained teacher with professional experience in both South Africa and New Zealand. His career combines direct psychological services with broader work in education, health, and system development. In New Zealand, he contributed to integrating business intelligence systems into psychological practice, shaping his current focus on the use of digital tools and AI to expand access and improve service delivery.
He currently leads work that brings together psychological expertise, artificial intelligence, and digital innovation to support practitioners, educators, and policymakers. His focus areas include ethical frameworks for AI in psychology, scalable and preventative mental health interventions, trauma-informed practice, suicide prevention, and the training of practitioners for diverse contexts.
Dr. Crause also chairs the PsySSA Division for Artificial Intelligence, where he advances professional discourse on the responsible use of AI in psychology.
by PsySSA-Web Support | Oct 20, 2025
Anne Kramers-Olen obtained her Masters degree in Social Science (Clinical Psychology) from the then named University of Natal (Pietermaritzburg campus). She completed her internship at the Midlands Hospital Complex in Pietermaritzburg during 1998 and is currently employed at Fort Napier Hospital. She has worked in the public and private sector, and has published papers in the area of ethics, forensics, intellectual disability and psychosocial rehabilitation. She is an associate editor of the South African Journal of Psychology and honorary lecturer at the Department of Behavioural Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal.
