Communicare has also been providing bursaries to tenants and their children for the last 30 years. This is one of the services that are available to families who need the support to get a post matric qualification at higher education institutions.
Over the years, students have qualified in a diverse range of skills and professions from law, business, education to public health and human resources. We even have a fibre optic technician in our midst as well as tradespeople and a few hairdressers.
The scheme offers a generous bursary of R30 000 towards university fees and an additional R3 500 towards books for students who qualify. Some courses are not as expensive like doing a trade. In such cases Communicare covers the full tuition costs.
“We don’t only provide houses. We provide a steppingstone for our communities to achieve greater things. Apart from the bursary scheme, we have sporting and cultural activities to help integrate the diverse communities that are now part of the Communicare family. Our new developments also have play areas for children and community halls for our tenants use. This is part of growing a society that we’d all like to share,” said Anthea Houston, CEO of Communicare.
The bursary scheme is part of a larger programme run by Vulamathuba, the foundation that was established by Communicare that implements all its social development activities. We help tenants develop job market skills and also offer life skills like financial literacy and debt management. Some of the students have also passed their drivers licence with the support of Communicare.
“Our graduates should be extremely proud of their achievements. These are people who are the change makers in our community. I look forward to following their progress and success,” said Houston.