Cheryl de la Rey Vice-Chancellor and Principal Collection (2009 - 2018)

Cheryl de la Rey Vice-Chancellor and Principal Collection (2009 - 2018)

 

CV - PROF CHERYL DE LA REY

Prof Cheryl Merle de la Rey was born and raised in Durban. She completed her schooling at Parkhill Senior Secondary School in 1979 and completed her BA at the former University of Natal with distinction in Psychology in 1983. The following year she completed her Honours degree (cum laude) and in 1986 her Masters degree (with distinction).

In 1999 she was awarded a PhD by the University of Cape Town (UCT) after completing her dissertation which focussed on the career narratives of women professors.

She began her professional career as a teacher, initially at Parkhill Senior Secondary School and then at Marianridge Senior Secondary School. In 1987 she accepted an academic position in the Psychology Department at the former University of Durban-Westville (UDW).

In 1995 she joined the Psychology Department at the University of Cape Town (UCT), initially as a lecturer, moving up the ranks to senior lecturer in 1997 and to associate professor in 2001. While at UCT Prof de la Rey was seconded to the National Research Foundation (NRF) where she served as Executive Director: Research Promotion until her appointment as Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Psychology at UCT in 2002.

In 2008 she took office as Chief Executive Officer of the Council on Higher Education (CHE) and in July 2009 she was appointed as Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Pretoria.

Prof de la Rey has a notable publication record, having authored several journal articles, books and book chapters in her discipline, Psychology. Over the years, Prof de la Rey has played a key role in several education policy- and research-related committees. She is currently a member of the National Advisory Council on Innovation, the National Human Resource Development Council, the Council of the Botswana University of Science and Technology and the Planning and Review Committee of the International Council for Science. She is registered as a Psychologist by the Health Professions Council of South Africa; is a fellow of the Psychological Association of South Africa and a member of the Academy of Science of South Africa.

More information

Recent Submissions

  • Memorial Service in Honour of Nelson Mandela 
    De la Rey, Cheryl (2014-02-05)
    The speech of Prof Cheryl De la Rey, Vice-Chancellor and Principal at the memorial of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, 11 December 2013.
  • Shifting the publications game : the case of a textbook project at a historically black university 
    Duncan, Norman; De la Rey, Cheryl; Van Niekerk, Ashley; Diedricks, Margaret-Ann; Shefer, Tamara (Faculty of Education, University of the Free State, 1998)
    During 1995 a small group of psychologists initiated a writing project which has culminated in the publication of a textbook for South African students. This paper describes the conditions and factors which motivated the ...
  • Societal transformation : gender, feminism and psychology in South Africa 
    De la Rey, Cheryl; Kottler, Amanda (Sage, 1999)
    "Our focus is twofold: first, we use gender as a category of analysis to present a broad overview of societal transformation in South Africa since the first democratic elections in April 1994; second we review some of ...
  • Structural asymmetries and peace : hope or despair? 
    De la Rey, Cheryl (Taylor & Francis, 2000)
    This article suggests that where one is positioned in the current geopolitical system is likely to have an influence on whether one feels hope or despair. In this respect material asymmetry as a divisive influence is ...
  • Perceptions of psychosocial healing and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa 
    De la Rey, Cheryl; Owens, Ingrid (Taylor & Francis, 1998)
    Like many other societies that have dealt with the question of how to achieve closure of a past of oppression while simultaneously working toward national reconstruction and reconciliation, South Africa turned to the ...
  • Women's meanings of peacebuilding in post-apartheid South Africa 
    McKay, Susan; De la Rey, Cheryl (Taylor & Francis, 2001)
    Although women’s instrumentality in peacebuilding is internationally recognized, gendered meanings of peacebuilding are poorly understood. Our study was conducted to learn from a diverse group of South African women what ...
  • Black scholarship : doing something active and positive about academic racism 
    Duncan, Norman; Van Niekerk, A.; De la Rey, Cheryl; Seedat, M.; Gobodo-Madikizela, P.; Simbayi, L.C.; Bhana, A. (South African Journal of Psychology, 1997)
    This 'article' serves as introduction to the Special Issue: black scholarship. As such, it outlines the various articles contained in, as well as the rationale for the issue. In this article the authors argue that ...
  • Peace as a gendered process : perspectives of women doing peacebuilding in South Africa 
    De la Rey, Cheryl; McKay, Susan (International Journal of Peace Studies, 2002)
    This study builds on the pioneering work by feminists such as Birgit Brock-Utne (1985, 1990) and Betty Reardon (1985, 1990) in attempting to disrupt the male bias in peace research by examining the meaning of peace ...
  • Women's leadership programs in South Africa : a strategy for community intervention 
    De la Rey, Cheryl; Jankelowitz, Gia; Suffla, Shahaaz (Routledge, 2003)
    A central premise of this paper is that the training of women for leadership roles is a critical component of the development of communities as a whole. This was the central point of departure for a study that aimed to ...
  • South African feminism, race and racism 
    De la Rey, Cheryl (Agenda Feminist Media, 1997)
    Cheryl de la Rey critically discusses the shifting understandings of race and difference. She frames the possibility that even if anti-racism is made central to feminism, the idea of unity may be misplaced.
  • Intragroup accounts of teenage motherhood : a community based psychological perspective 
    Parekh, Angina; De la Rey, Cheryl (Psychological Society of South Africa, 1997)
    Using community based and women-centred perspectives, this study explored experiences of unplanned motherhood during adolescence. Ten African teenage mothers from a semi-rural area in KwaZulu-Natal volunteered to meet ...
  • Work-family interaction strain : coping strategies used by successful women in the public, corporate and self-employed sectors of the economy 
    Brink, Beatrix; De la Rey, Cheryl (Psychological Society of South Africa, 2001)
    The main objective of this study was to identify the coping strategies used by successful South African women of all races in dealing with work-family interaction strain. Using a transactional approach, the study also ...
  • Culture, tradition and gender : let's talk about it 
    De la Rey, Cheryl (Agenda Feminist Media, 1992)
    "South Africans often speak about traditional African cultures, Indian culture and Western culture placing emphasis on the differences and distinctions. There is indeed diversity, but during our workshop we observed ...
  • Race and gender constraints in SA road running 
    Paruk, Zubeda; De la Rey, Cheryl (Agenda Feminist Media, 1993)
    "Constraints on women that have emerged in other studies on gender and sport were all applicable to the runners in our research; black South African women, however, appear to face additional limitations to their ...
  • The call for relevance : South African psychology ten years into democracy 
    De la Rey, Cheryl; Ipser, Jonathan (Psychological Society of South Africa, 2004)
    A number of scholars during the 1980s and early 1990s questioned the relevance of psychology in South Africa. In this paper we characterise the nature of what became known as the ‘relevance debate’, and then investigate ...
  • Woman abuse : the construction of gender in women and men's narratives of violence 
    Boonzaier, Floretta; De la Rey, Cheryl (Psychological Society of South Africa, 2004)
    Violence against women is a widespread social problem affecting millions of women. For more than three decades, researchers have explored the experiences of women in abusive relationships. Victims’ accounts have been the ...
  • Inaugural speech 
    De la Rey, Cheryl (2010-05-13)
    Preface -- Changing context -- UP strategy -- Quality of the student experience -- Diversity and transformation -- Postgraduate education and research -- Sustainability -- Conclusion