Prof. Debra Meyer was appointed as the third vice-chancellor and principal of the Sol Plaatje University (SPU) in Kimberley, effective 1 January 2026.
Meyer will serve as the vice-chancellor designate throughout 2025, working closely with the current vice-chancellor and principal, Prof. Andrew Crouch, as part of the leadership transition.
During this period, she will retain her role as deputy vice-chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Postgraduate Studies at the SPU.
Meyer, as a distinguished academic leader, has a wealth of experience in higher education. She has been instrumental in driving the SPU’s research agenda and enhancing its postgraduate programmes. Her career reflects a strong commitment to excellence, equity, and the transformative power of education.
According to a statement from the SPU, Meyer’s vision for the future of the university, with her knowledge of its unique geographic and socio-economic positioning, made her an outstanding choice to lead the institution into its next phase of growth and development.
“As the SPU approaches its second decade, her leadership will be critical in driving initiatives that ensure financial sustainability, enhance student success, and strengthen the university’s impact locally and globally,” the statement read.
Amongst other, Meyer holds a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of California in America and completed her MSc: Biochemistry at the Rand Afrikaans University, now the University of Johannesburg (UJ).
She is the recipient of numerous research awards, and contributed to the fight against AIDS through multidisciplinary research, public lectures, articles for research, and community service projects
Meyer is also an accomplished author, poet, and public speaker. She presented the weather on SABC2 twice a week from 2000 to 2012, and in 2014 launched a science-based programme, Debra deel, on kykNET.
