Through her work at Stellenbosch University (SU), Nondumisa Phenyane hopes to impact the lives of many young people.
Growing up in the dusty streets of Kwa Debeka in KwaZulu-Natal, Nondumisa had no idea her life would be what it is today.
Nationally recognised for her contribution to the law sector, and celebrated as one of Stellenbosch University's (SU) youngest black lecturers in the Faculty of Law, the 28-year-old says she aims to contribute towards transformation at the institution.
Expressing her passion for the youth, justice and equality, Nondumiso says: “We often expect young people in urban townships to make good decisions, but we seldom consider how much of a tall order it is to achieve this when you are mostly surrounded by brokenness. Through my work as an academic and a businessperson, I hope to affirm and uplift young people in urban townships.
“Working as an academic at SU, I want to contribute to the transformation of a predominantly white profession, and I believe young black students would like to see people who look like them in lecture rooms."
At the Faculty of Law, Nondumiso teaches the Law of Evidence and Mercantile Law and has the responsibility of being the course convener for the Law of Evidence course at the faculty. She holds a Bachelor of Social Science, postgradiate Bachelor of Law (LLB) and is currently reading for her LLM. She was also named one of 2019's Mail & Guardian 200 Young South Africans in the education category.
“Being on the list is an affirmation that I am doing something right and that I am on the right track," says the young lecturer.
Nondumiso shares the story of how she had to deal with losing her mother at the tender age of nine years. “Life had not always been easy for me and my sibling. We moved around quite a bit until she lost the battle to HIV/Aids.
“When my mother passed away, our maternal grandmother and aunt took both me and my sister in and ensured that we had a 'normal' childhood and upbringing. The move to my grandmother's house gave us the freedom to be children. We played, had big dreams and most importantly, we had people who believed in these dreams with us," she says.
Prior to joining SU, Nondumiso worked as a legal researcher at the Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein and during her time there she worked on high-profile cases such as Gauteng vs Oscar Pistorius and Van Breda vs Media24 Limited.
Nondumiso hopes to publish extensively on the topic of access to justice and eventually obtain a professorship at Stellenbosch University .
“Access to justice is the ability to seek remedy either through formal or informal institutions of justice in conformity with human rights standards." Nondumiso says her research interest is of critical importance, as traditional means to justice are either slow or expensive, especially for South Africans living in townships.
