Mpho Motseki, Outstanding Student in the Social Responsibility and Sustainable Communities MA

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Congratulations to Mpho Motseki for being named the Outstanding Student in the MA in Social Responsibility and Sustainable Communities program.

Ms. Motseki is a Fulbright student, pursuing a Master of Social Responsibility and Sustainable Communities at Western Kentucky University. She holds a Master of Communication degree, which was conferred cum laude, from the University of Limpopo.

Ms. Motseki, who considers herself a gender activist, says, “working with communities has always been close to my heart and the SRSC taught me methodological techniques to use as a researcher, community member, or an outsider.  with this knowledge I am able to contribute and become a valuable member of the society. The SRSC program has afforded me the opportunity to work closely with the WKU Pride center, where I have conducted ethnographic research since 2019. The community has been very welcoming and easy to work with.  As part of the Fulbright mission I have also been involved with the international community on campus where we share our different culture through food, music and language. I have enjoyed being part of the 2019 WKU Homecoming, where I showcased my South African traditional clothes and flew my national flag higher and higher with other international students on campus. After completing the MA, I will go back to my home country to pursue my PhD and serve and give back to my community.”

As an activist in her home country, she co-founded Hope, a non-profit organization, with seven other University of Limpopo students in 2016. The organization assists learners in remote areas with applications to higher institutions, mentoring, and donations of sanitary towels as needed. She worked as a research assistant at University of Limpopo.

Ms. Motseki is also a recipient of academic honorary colors awards from her home country, South Africa. In 2016, she presented a paper at South African Communication Conference that was chosen as one of the top papers in the emerging scholars’ category. In 2017, she published a paper in the accredited Communitas journal. In 2018 she presented an award-winning paper that was rated among the best papers published in High-way Africa and South African Communication Conference open source platform. In the same year she presented at her first international conference, the Conference of Black Studies in Atlanta, Georgia. Her paper on black erasure and identity has been accepted for 2020 presentation at the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) in Finland.