IIE Varsity College celebrates Mandela Day with the youth of Afika Tikkun
Dr John Hunter of the psychology department at Varsity College in Sandton shares knowledge with the learners of Afrika Tikkun on the importance of mental health during Mandela Day.
For this year’s Mandela Day, the staff members and students of Varsity College Sandton hosted the youth of Afrika Tikkun for a day filled with education, fun activities and refreshments.
The day started off with the welcoming of the Grade 10 and 11 learners of the youth empowerment non-profit organisation. Learners were given refreshments on arrival and a chance to roam the institution with their chaperones on July 18.
Once the tour of the campus was complete, learners were escorted to a tutorial room were college lecturers of different departments discussed the importance of tertiary learning and maintaining a healthy lifestyle as a student.
Dr John Hunter, head of the psychology department, explained to the learners that the mind was just as important as the physical well-being.
“Imagine your brain as Manchester United, the entire staff is a collection of your brain cells and they all serve significant roles. In order for your brain cells to win, they need to communicate, train, score goals and avoid injuries,” said Hunter.
“Same applies with life, the brain is what keeps everything moving and in order to have a stable life, you need to avoid certain things that will deteriorate your mental being such as drugs, alcohol, stress and bad relationships.”
Learners were also given the opportunity to attend short lessons with lecturers Liechen Tonkin of the law department and Tebogo Ragogo who specialises in information technology.
“The goal of the day was to expose learners to university life and have fun. The highlight of the day was definitely seeing the children play sport and how the staff came together to make this possible. We had a lot of people going out of their way to make it special for the learners,” concluded Sibahle Mnisi, student wellness manager of Varsity College.
The learners played foosball, board games and had lunch with the team of the college.
Related articles:
https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/271412/afrika-tikkun-services-continues-to-empower-the-youth-during-lockdown/
https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/317785/brescia-keeps-up-their-commitment-for-mandela-day/
