It is with great sadness that PsySSA has heard of the passing away of its founding President Rachel Prinsloo, PhD.
Elected on 21 January 1994 as first PsySSA President at the Psychology Unity Conference that was held at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), Rachel had to manage the contentious issues of forming one national organisation for all of psychology. In leading PsySSA pre-democracy, Rachel charted a progressive path from our deeply divided racialised past, which saw calumny heaped on the nefarious roles that psychology played in our polity.
Rachel began her distinguished career in psychology at UWC, where she pioneered bridging activities during the apartheid era. She was HoD in the Department of Psychology for two terms and continued in various other positions at other universities, eventually serving as academic transformation specialist at UNISA. Her immense critical insight into curriculum design and theory for enablement of both academics and students will be sorely felt as our country grapples with the questions of decoloniality and relevance during a period of much economic uncertainty and social insecurity. Amongst her numerous accolades was the “Advocacy and Promotion of Women’s Rights” and overall “Woman of the Year Award” at UNISA in 2016. Rachel joins Professors Patrick T Sibaya and Siphiwe Ngcobo in PsySSA’s Posthumous Presidents, whose commitment and wisdom continues to guide PsySSA and the discipline of Psychology.
- A memorial service will be held from 19:00 – 20:15 on Wednesday 2 October 2019 at St Barnabas United Church, 21 Madeline Street, Florida, Johannesburg.
- A funeral service will be held at 10:00 on Saturday 5 October 2019 at the same Church.