CHEC Secretariat
Prof Eugene Cloete
Chief Executive Officer
Prof Eugene Cloete was appointed as the new CHEC CEO. He took up office on the 1st of September 2022. Microbiologist and water expert Prof Cloete was the Deputy Vice Chancellor: Research, Innovation and postgraduate studies at Stellenbosch University for the past ten years. During his tenure as DVC Stellenbosch University became internationally recognised as a leading research-intensive university.
Deborah Meyer
CHEC Administrator
Debbie's duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to the overseeing of all office administrative functions. She handles enquiries and rerouting where necessary, as well as liaison between the CHEC Universities, partners and board.
Sharman Wickham
Consultant: Regional Public Partnerships
Sharman's main role at CHEC is in facilitating university / government partnerships with the Western Cape Government and the City of Cape Town. This includes drafting annual research calls for dissemination in the universities, overseeing the selection of proposals, monitoring the progress of the research projects, and supporting the researchers in completing these projects.
Publishing Liaison Office (PLO)
Lemeez Hendricks
Manager: Publishing Liaison Office (PLO)
As Manager of the Publishing Liaison Office at CHEC, Lemeez oversees the copyright clearance process and ensures adherence to the Copyright Law for all four universities in the Western Cape, liaising with academic staff, publishers, and institutional stakeholders.
Dual Higher Education Project (DHEP)
Antoinette Smith-Tolken
Project Director
Dr Antoinette R. Smith-Tolken is the Project Director of the Cape Higher Education Consortium (CHEC) Dual Higher Education Project (DHEP). This innovative project is a Collaborative University Capacity Building Programme, funded by the Department of Higher Education and Training.
Agatha Africa
Administrator Assistant / PA to DHEP Project Director
Agatha is the personal assistant to the Project Director and assists with the day-to-day administration of the project.
Estian Behrens
Stakeholder Relations Coordinator: DHEP
Estian serves as the Stakeholder Relations Coordinator on the Dual Higher Education Project (DHEP), focusing on university–industry relations and partnership coordination across the consortium.
Regional Leadership and Management Development Programmes
René Pellissier
Consultant
René is professor of research and innovation and works as strategist, researcher and systems engineer in the international arena. Her expertise lies in the world of future work based on developments in AI, technology advances and the digital transformation.
Sisipho Zweni
HELA Administrator
Sisipho is the CLE administrator, dealing with queries, facilitating and monitoring CLE Zoom sessions, and managing and scheduling meetings.