St John’s College honoured two Old Johannians, namely Professor Tshilidzi Marwala and Professor Jerome Loveland, with the 2020 Golden Eagle Award.
The award was introduced in 2004 by the Old Johannian Association, in partnership with the school, to recognise and celebrate the extraordinary impact that Old Johannians have made in South Africa and internationally.
The executive headmaster at the school Stuart West said, “St John’s College is proud to recognise and celebrate the valued, lasting contributions of these Old Johannians who have made a difference in our world.”
Previous winners of the award include Professor Revil Mason, Professor John Gear, Hugh Lewin, Kutlwano Masote and more.
Prof Marwala is a renowned academic thought leader in the fields of mechanical engineering, artificial intelligence and computer science.
After graduating from the post-matric programme at St John’s Sixth Form in 1990, he studied mechanical engineering at the Case Western Reserve University in the USA, obtained his masters in mechanical engineering at the University of Pretoria and completed his PhD in artificial intelligence at the University of Cambridge.
Today he is the vice-chancellor and principal of the University of Johannesburg, a position he has held since 2018.
Prof Marwala has received numerous awards and honours including the prestigious Order of Mapungubwe – South Africa’s highest honour of achievements in an international arena.
The school wishes to acknowledge Marwala who has tirelessly developed research and human capacity in the field of artificial intelligence and has led scholarship in understanding and leveraging the importance of the fourth industrial revolution for the African continent.
Marwala said that he was honoured to receive the award, which is made more special because of his involvement in the St John’s community.
Professor Loveland is currently head of paediatric surgery at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital and the founder of the Surgeons for Little Lives charity.
Loveland also matriculated from St John’s College in 1990 and completed his medical degree at Wits before specialising in paediatric surgery and becoming one of South Africa’s leading transplant surgeons. He was appointed clinical head of paediatric surgery at the Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital where he helped to train the next generation of paediatric surgeons and create a world-class facility. He has also developed a keen interest in research and has published widely in fields of paediatric surgery and transplantation. His charity has raised over R50 million to change the lives of thousands of South African children who have needed surgery.
The presidency has recognised Loveland for his ‘excellence in paediatric surgery’ and Wits has recognised him for his exceptional service and research. He represents the St John’s ethos of selfless service to others, encapsulated in the St John’s College motto Lux Vita Caritas, which is evident in all he does.
Loveland said, “I am blown away by this award. It’s amazing that out of all these years of people I have crawled away with an award and been found as an example. It is made even more real by the fact that I attended St John’s from Grade 1 to matric. The school was a huge part of my life and my son even attends St John’s now.”
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