Rate My Professor Vasu Reddy

Prof Vasu Reddy is the Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation and Postgraduate Studies at the University of the Free State. He holds a BA, BA (Hons) and a Higher Diploma in Education from the University of Natal (Durban), a master’s degree in comparative literature from Wits University, and a PhD in gender studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He began his academic career in 1993 as a lecturer in languages, comparative literature and gender studies at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, advancing through the ranks to senior lecturer, associate professor, honorary professor and research fellow. He later served as Executive Director of the Human and Social Development Research Programme at the Human Sciences Research Council before joining the University of Pretoria as Professor of Sociology and Dean of the Faculty of the Humanities, a position he held for two terms beginning in 2015.

Prof Reddy is a member of the Academy of Sciences of South Africa and a B1 NRF-rated scientist. His research focuses on African sexualities, genders and inequalities, with particular attention to sexual cultures, sexual diversity, rights, well-being and dignity, including work aligned with HIV/AIDS. He has supervised numerous postgraduate students and contributed extensively to peer-reviewed publications as author and editor. Notable book-length publications include Queer in Africa: LGBTQI Identities, Citizenship and Activism (2018), Queer Kinship: South African perspectives on the sexual politics of family-making and belonging (2018), State of the Nation: Poverty and Inequalities – Diagnosis, Prognosis, Responses (2019), The Fabric of Dissent: Public Intellectuals in South Africa (2020), State of the Nation: Ethics, Politics, Inequalities: New Directions (2021), University on the Border: Crisis of Authority and Precarity (2021) and Texture of Dissent: Defiant Public Intellectuals in South Africa (2022). He has secured substantial research funding for projects on gender-based violence, affirmative action, poverty, food security, sexuality, education and equality, and maintains active international collaborations and media engagement in his areas of expertise.

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