Background
The Carnegie Diversifying the Academy (CDTA) is a programme of funding and support targeted at addressing the underrepresentation and ‘leaky pipeline’ of Black African/Coloured South African academic staff at Wits. The programme is managed by Wits’ Transformation and Employment Equity Office (TEEO).
The strategic objectives of the CDTA programme are to:
1. Develop a new pool of high-quality scholars and supervisors;
2. Diversify the pipeline of early- to mid-career academics in line with the Wits transformation agenda; and 3. Strengthen the research capacity of early-career researchers.
There are four kinds of grants:
1. New appointments (funding of new posts, usually for a period of two years or until institutional funding becomes available, usually as a result of a staff member retiring);
2. Enabling grants (to assist individuals to enhance their research productivity and outputs through funding for research-related activities or equipment, teaching buy-outs, etc. and thereby improve their chances of promotion);
3. Doctoral grants (to enable staff to complete their PhD degrees and thereby improve their chances of promotion); and
4. Postdoctoral grants (to enable recipients to improve their research independence and productivity or outputs).
How the CDTA programme aligns with the broader Transformation & Employment Equity Office (TEEO) mission
The work of the TEEO is about peace building. As an office, we contribute to peace through work that includes robust conversation, is deeply respectful and facilitates inclusion.
What the TEEO seeks to nurture in CDTA recipients: Ambassadors for transformation that have an anchoring effect
Wits is an anchor university within the South African Higher Education sector and within SA more broadly (‘anchor’ understood as playing a securing and holding role within each context, with potential to shape that context through leadership, excellence and confident participation in it). The TEEO is an anchor office within Wits and we want to facilitate skills in CDTA recipients to be anchors within their Schools, Departments and Faculties. We want to develop:
i. Self-aware & agentic academic leaders who are ambassadors for transformation
We want to develop people to have a strong sense of belonging, are resilient and have a sense of agency. They are confidently able to navigate the system of academia and Wits, and the people in it. They are authentic, speak their truth and don’t appease the old system. They promote peace by navigating conflict using skills of alternative dispute resolution and intercultural communication. They are grounded in the wisdom of their heritage and they, and their work, are connected to community.
ii. Academic leaders engaged fully and competently in the academic project
We want to attract and develop people who are engaged fully and confidently in the academic project – they publish; show innovation in their teaching, learning and research; are publicly engaged, socially conscious and aware of themselves and others i.e., social justice, aware of university policies and practices related to social justice and transformation and academic scholarship, as well as able to navigate the world of entrepreneurship/ business development in resourcing scholarship. They can articulate their unique contributions – intellectual, personal and cultural – to academia and show evidence of science communication skills and ability to engage publicly and in community.
How we support you on the grant
Personal and professional check-ins
Prof Antonia Wadley (Toni) provides academic support to recipients on the programme. She is available for check ins, and periodically will reach out to initiate these too. If you need support personally (with a challenge or needing a mental health referral) or professionally (such as clarifying training options or academic direction), please get in touch (antonia.wadley@wits.ac.za).
Coaching
Coaching is available to all CDTA grant recipients as part of the CDTA programme. Coaching is a non-hierarchical, non-judgmental thinking space. It allows you to reflect on where you are, and to be intentional about where you’d like to go. It’s a space that allows you to bring challenges and find new ways to deal with them.
When we think the same way, feel the same way and act the same way, we get the same results. When those results are no longer serving us, we can use the coaching space to explore new ways of thinking, feeling and acting so that we can become better versions or ourselves.
Coaching is a powerful, transformative tool for developing yourself, whether that be as a leader of yourself, or a leader of others. Topics that people often come with include: managing worklife balance, improving selfcare, conflict in relationships, reconnecting with a sense of purpose, preparing for a leadership position.
Toni is a professionally certified coach, registered and accredited with the International Coaching Federation, and an academic. To find out more and explore whether the coaching space might be right for you, email (antonia.wadley@wits.ac.za).
Group sessions
We run a variety of group sessions such as peer mentoring for PhDs and postdocs, talks by inspirational speakers, research presentations and networking events.
Training and workshops
We have training and workshops every few months. These sessions include topics such as science communication, presentation skills, academic leadership and more. We have superb facilitators for these sessions. Be sure to diarise and come!
Deliverables & requirements
Doctoral students: Progress towards completion of PhD on-time. At least one publication emanating from PhD should be accepted for publication or be published by the end of your grant period.
Postdocs: Supervise 3 postgraduate students, publish 2 articles in reputable peer- reviewed journals per annum or they should be accepted for publication and submit at least 1 grant application per annum
Early-career researchers (Associate lecturer or lecturer or equivalent): 1 peer- reviewed article per annum published or accepted for publication, submit 1 external grant proposal per annum, and supervise 6 postgraduate students each.
Mid-career researchers (Senior lecturer and above, or equivalent): publish 2 articles in reputable, peerreviewed journals per annum and submit at least 1 external grant application per annum, supervise at least 6 postgraduate students each.
We understand that outputs can vary between Faculty and discipline, for example, number of papers and postgraduate students. Prior to submitting all your required application documents, a discussion between you and your supervisor, head of department, head of school, mentor etc should happen that identifies your development goals and their timelines. This discussion should inform your deliverables for your CDTA grant as well. If these outputs are not appropriate for your setting, please contact Lethu Kapueja to set up a meeting prior to signing your contract, so that realistic goals can be set for you. Please note, the onus is on you to set up this meeting and renegotiate the terms.
Progress reporting
You will receive a prompt and link every 6 months to a progress report. Whilst the deliverables above are important, we are also interested in who you’re developing collaborations with, how you’re engaging with the public in your work, what things are enabling or impeding you, and how you’re growing and developing as a person and academic. The progress reports are different each time, capturing different information about your journey. “Following the prompt, we give you a period of 2 months to complete your report. As this is a grant requirement stipulated in your
Attendance at Carnegie visits: From time-to-time Carnegie visits us. Your attendance at those meetings is by invitation and is critical and acknowledges our funder, while ensuring that we display your achievements under the grant. Please make sure to attend if invited. (These meetings are compulsory)
Acknowledgements: Please acknowledge the Carnegie Corporation of New York in your publications. The wording to use is:
“The support of Carnegie Diversifying the Academy (CTDA) program at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg in the Republic of South Africa towards this research is hereby acknowledged. Opinions expressed and conclusions arrived at, are those of the author and are not to be attributed to the CDTA”
Completion of progress reports: Please see above.
Attendance at group meetings: We understand that there are multiple competing demands for your time and that you might not be able to attend every meeting. However, please do take up the offers of training and support available to you and come to sessions. Your presence, voice and development matters. Two group meetings per year are compulsory for you to attend.
Presenting your work: We run annual research presentation days and capacity development workshops in science communication. We expect at least one presentation of your research to the group during your grant and therefore at least one attendance at at least one workshop is compulsory. To support you in this, we offer research presentation skills to help in delivering a talk to a non-specialist audience.
What the CDTA grant money funds
New appointments: this grant money supports the salary of the recipient for the duration of the grant. For individuals who are nGAP recipients, the CDTA funding provides a top-up to the DHET funding to align it with Wits’ salaries.
Postdocs: the grant goes towards the postdoc’s salary. The grant is transferred to the Research Office and administered by them.
Doctoral grants and Enabling grants: these grants cover research expenses, equipment and teaching buyout. What exactly the grant covers is determined by the budget you submit with your application, and what is approved by the Transformation Implementation Committee at the time of your application review. The approved line items are specified in the letter you received with the positive outcome of your application.
How to access and use grant funds
You will receive an email from Audry Minya shortly after acknowledgment of your grant acceptance. This email, which will have your Finance manager cc’d, will contain your grant code.
You go about requesting whatever was approved on your grant budget in the standard Wits procure-to-pay process with assistance from your school finance office. i.e. getting quotes (1 quote for items R1-R20k; >2 quotes for R20k-R100k). Conference costs also go to your finance manager/administrator.”
Expenses that have been supported but are not part of the approved budget in your grant: In the case that there are additional expenses that the CDTA Program Manager or TEEO Director has approved, those expenses will be paid directly from the TEEO. In this case, procurement is done by the TEEO.
Post doctoral fellowship grant codes: In the case of post-doctoral fellows, the project code for your salary is communicated directly to the Wits Research Office for them to process the payments directly, with assistance of the Central Finance Office.
Rollover of funds: Funds will not rollover beyond your contract period. They must be used by the end of your grant.
If you resign before the grant period is over or are unable to spend the funds by the time the period ends, that will constitute a condition for money to be returned to the TEEO cost centre.
Budget changes: If you require money for something other than what was on the budget in your application you are welcome to request a change of line item on your budget. You need to submit a request letter for such a change that is signed off by both your Head of School and Dean. Please submit your letter to Lethu: lethu.kapueja@wits.ac.za
Holding more than one grant for the same outputs: If you are successful with another grant for the same outputs as the CDTA grant and do not need CDTA grant anymore, it is good grantsmanship to let us know and return the funds so that someone else can benefit. Please contact Lethu (lethu.kapueja@wits.ac.za) and Ntebo (ntebo.mampane@wits.ac.za) and they will arrange to take the funds back to the grant pool.
I can’t spend my grant money. What do I do?
We ask that recipients get on and use their grant money. If for some reason, you can’t use your money, please let us know and we will organise to take your funds back so someone else can benefit. It is good grantsmanship to liaise with a funder in this way.
Becoming a CDTA Ambassador
We are building a CDTA alumni network with its own set of activities that seek to establish a group of professionals that have benefited from the program and are paying it forward by becoming mentors to others in academia and beyond.
We invite you to join the alumni network as you exit the grant period and request you to update us on the continued impact the program has had in your own leadership journey.
CDTA team
Mr Lethu Kapueja
Programme Manager
Contact for any grant related issues or queries
E: lethu.kapejua@wits.ac.za
Ms Ntebo Mampane
CDTA Administrator
Contact for financial queries along with Lethu
E: ntebo.mampane@wits.ac.za
Prof Antonia Wadley Head of Academic Support & coaching
Contact for personal & professional support & coaching E: antonia.wadley@wits.ac.za
Dr Bernadette Johnson Director TEEO
Contact for mediation requirements in School/ Department, issues with bullying or discrimination
E: bernadette.johnson@wits.ac.za
www.wits.ac.za/transformationoffi
