Prof Hester C. Klopper
Vice-Chancellor and Principal 

Prof Hester C. Klopper: Three Decades of Transformative Leadership in Higher Education

Introduction

Few figures in South African higher education embody the convergence of scholarly rigour, visionary leadership, and sustained commitment to transformation as compellingly as Prof Hester C. Klopper. Her career spans three decades, dedicating herself to advancing higher education, with work that includes serving as a global academic leader, competent executive, published author, proficient public speaker, and seasoned researcher.  From her roots in nursing science to the executive heights of university leadership, Prof Klopper's trajectory charts not only a personal ascent but a sustained effort to reshape what higher education means – in South Africa, on the African continent, and across the world.


Foundations: From Nursing to the Academy

Prof Klopper's journey into higher education began with a grounding in healthcare. Beginning her higher education journey in 1985 with a General Nursing Science and Midwifery qualification, her commitment to healthcare became a cornerstone of her professional identity.  This foundation proved not merely biographical but philosophically formative – it instilled in her an enduring belief that education and human well-being are inseparable.

After completing her Master's in Nursing Education, she became a lecturer and later pursued her PhD in Health Sciences, graduating in 1994. She then took up management positions in nursing training, working with the Department of Health to set up a youth health programme, and later ventured into the private and non-governmental sectors before returning to academia.  Each detour enriched her understanding of what institutions of learning must do if they are to serve society meaningfully.

A transformative moment came when she spent two years at the University of Alberta in Canada as co-director of the World Health Collaboration Centre – a stint that, in her own words, "opened the world" and taught her that global work does not require leaving one's country behind.  This realisation would later animate her most consequential institutional contributions.


Scholarship and Research Impact

At the heart of Prof Klopper's contribution to higher education lies a substantial body of original scholarship. She has been the research supervisor of more than 35 PhD students and over 45 master's students, has published more than 85 peer-reviewed publications and several books and book chapters, and has delivered keynote addresses at more than 150 international events and conferences. 

Her early scholarly work challenged prevailing pedagogical orthodoxies. Her 2002 paper explored and described a constructivist strategy for health science educators, noting that changes in the higher education field in South Africa had fundamentally impacted the practice of educators who could no longer view their teaching task simply as the transmission of content.  This insight – that teaching must evolve from transmission to transformation – became a guiding thread throughout her academic career.

Her expertise and research have encompassed higher education strategy, internationalisation, leadership development, and organisational excellence, forming an unusually broad intellectual portfolio that bridges the health sciences, management theory, and education policy.


Institutional Leadership: Building Structures for Excellence

Beyond her own scholarship, Prof Klopper has shaped institutions. As CEO of FUNDISA – the Forum of University Nursing Deans of South Africa – from 2013 to 2016, she elevated the standing of nursing and health sciences within the broader higher education landscape. Under her leadership, the Global Advisory Panel on the Future of Nursing and Midwifery (GAPFON) expanded its reach, advancing strategic dialogues on healthcare transformation across 95 countries. 

Her appointment as Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Strategy, Global and Corporate Affairs at Stellenbosch University in 2016 marked a new chapter of institutional stewardship. As DVC, she was responsible for five divisions: Strategic Initiatives, SU-International, Information Governance – encompassing data and analytics, institutional research and planning, and business intelligence – Corporate Communication and Marketing, and Student Recruitment.  Her tenure at Stellenbosch was marked by the development and execution of Vision 2040, an ambitious framework that elevated Stellenbosch University's global prominence. 

This breadth of institutional responsibility – spanning internationalisation, data governance, communication, and strategic planning – reflects a conviction that modern universities must be managed with the same sophistication demanded of world-class enterprises, without surrendering their academic soul.


Global Recognition and International Influence

Prof Klopper's contribution has been recognised not only nationally but on every continent. She was the first person outside of North America to be elected President of Sigma Theta Tau International, the second-largest nursing organisation in the world, in its 95-year history at that time.  This historic election signalled a meaningful shift in global nursing and health education leadership away from its traditional North American centre of gravity.

She is a Fellow of the Academy of Nursing of South Africa (FANSA), an inductee into the Sigma International Hall of Fame for Research Excellence, the FUNDISA Hall of Fame, and a member of the Institute of Directors of South Africa (IODSA).  Crucially, she was the first South African to be inducted as a Fellow into the American Academy of Nursing (FAAN) and is also a Fellow of the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf). In 2016, Oxford Brookes University in the UK awarded her an Honorary Doctorate for her contributions to nursing education and research globally. 

Her career spans more than three decades and includes eight postgraduate qualifications and leadership roles on more than 30 national and international boards.  Few South African academics can claim comparable reach across the full spectrum of scholarly, institutional, and global platforms.

Prof Klopper was recently appointed by the Premier of the Free State as a member of the Free State Human Resource Development Council (FSHRC) and serves as Vice-Chairperson of the Transformation Strategy Group of Universities South Africa (USAf). She received the 2026 Forbes Woman Africa Academic Excellence Award in recognition of her excellence in higher education, her commitment to mentorship, and her work in strengthening the role of universities in society. Through these roles, she continues to contribute strategically to the advancement of higher education, transformation, and human capital development in South Africa. 


A New Chapter: Leading the University of the Free State

In 2025, Prof Klopper assumed perhaps her most historically significant role. History was made at the University of the Free State as she was officially inaugurated on 9 June 2025 as the institution's 15th Vice-Chancellor and Principal – and the first woman to hold this prestigious position in the university's 121-year history. 

Her inaugural address, titled Walking Together with Purpose: Unlocking Excellence to Lead Change, signalled a bold vision for the future of higher education. Prof Klopper challenged the higher education sector to confront an uncomfortable reality: while artificial intelligence capabilities advance exponentially, educational systems remain fundamentally unchanged from their industrial-era origins. 

Her vision for UFS is concrete and wide-ranging. She outlined five strategic pillars to transform the UFS into a research-led powerhouse, announced major new funding initiatives including the VC-ISRC Imbewu Legacy Fund and the VC Talent Magnet Fund, and committed to leading educational transformation in the age of artificial intelligence while preserving African identity.  She also announced the establishment of a Transdisciplinary Innovation Hub to drive research, commercialisation, industry partnership, and student entrepreneurship, alongside a comprehensive transformation scorecard and a strategic people development initiative. 


Conclusion

Prof Hester C. Klopper's three-decade contribution to higher education defies easy summary. She is, at once, a pioneering scholar who challenged how health sciences are taught; a research mentor who has guided dozens of doctoral and master's students; an institutional architect who has built strategic frameworks at some of South Africa's leading universities; and a global ambassador who has carried African perspectives into the highest international forums of her disciplines.

What unifies these contributions is not merely capability but conviction – a deep belief that higher education must continuously interrogate itself, reimagine its purposes, and serve both the individuals who pass through its doors and the societies that depend on its graduates. As the first woman to lead the University of the Free State, she now carries that conviction into its most visible expression yet, demonstrating that the most enduring contribution any academic can make is not simply to advance knowledge, but to advance the institutions entrusted with its stewardship.

Contact:
Office Manager: Mmakoena Mpshane-Nkosi
+27 51 401 7000
MpshaneNkosiM@ufs.ac.za