PE College principal leaves proud legacy
● TVET educator hangs up his hat after 36-year career
Port Elizabeth College principal Khayalethu Matiso is turning 60 and has opted to hang up his hat after a career that has spanned more than three decades and seen him make an important contribution to higher education in SA.
After holding various positions in the education sector — including 18 years as dean of students at the Nelson Mandela University, Matiso turned his focus to the TVET (Technical and Vocational Education and Training) college sector, where he believes he made some of the biggest contributions of his 36-year career.
Aimed at educating the youth about the possibilities and potential of learning a trade and the growing demand for skills in the country, Matiso said despite him retiring at the end of April he would continue to advocate for the sector.
“I was approached in 2014 by the director-general of higher education and training, Gwebinkundla Qonde, saying there was a crisis at the [Port Elizabeth] College and could I please come to assist,” he said.
“I had been the dean of students at NMU for 18 years at that time and I was supposed to help the college for a year, and that was in 2014.
“We embarked on an awareness project where we travelled to rural villages like Peddie and Graaff-Reinet to inform pupils about the opportunities available at our colleges annually about 10 years back.”
Matiso said he spoke firmly against the stereotype that students who went to TVET colleges were less intelligent, arguing for instance that electrical engineering students could study for three years, proceed to do a test at a trade test centre and then become an artisan earning between R40,000 and R50,000 a month.
“I’m still campaigning for free education for all, because the Freedom Charter says so.
“The colleges aren’t funded enough and I will continue fighting for these things,” Matiso said.
He said some of his achievements included introducing other student organisations to the college and educating students about the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS).
Matiso also fought for
NSFAS assistance to be given to TVET students and said he felt more needed to be done for disabled students in particular.
He successfully advocated for 50 college buildings in SA to be upgraded through earmarked funding.
The college’s assistant marketing and communications director, Ntombekhaya Gwaqa, said Matiso was passionate about the development of students through education and had led the campaign called “It is cool to be an artisan” to help change the mindset of pupils about TVET colleges.
“He had the interest of students at heart,” Gwaqa said.
“He would go to churches and schools to make sure he reached as many children as possible. He was a visionary; whenever he addressed the first-year students he’d say they should further their education or be entrepreneurs.”
Among other qualifications Matiso has a B.Ed, a postgraduate diploma in international studies from Rhodes University, and an MBA from the former PE Technikon (now part of NMU).
Matiso, who is originally from Keiskammahoek, also helped to get a primary school built in the area six years ago.
Now the Steve Tshwete High School is also being built, and set to be a maths and science centre for the rural villages.