Paper short abstract:

This paper considers changes which have taken place nationally at South Africa's HEIs since 2015-2017. The discussion provides insight into the challenges experienced by the academy, in particular the humanities. It advances the case for multiplicity in the decolonization of the academy.

Paper long abstract:

South Africa has experienced important changes to its HEIs after the national student protests of 2015-2017. This paper offers insight into the changes experienced by the South African 'academy' as it seeks to decolonize after recent national student protests and in the face of declining economy. The discussion proposes that while humanities scholars advocate for change, humanities scholarship has not really been at the heart of the debates concerning the decolonization of the academy. The paper interrogates this situation by drawing on academics' and academic leaders' published narratives, as well as the author's own observations and experiences of leadership and management at a comprehensive university. The author proposes possible ways forward insofar as the decolonization of the academy in Africa is concerned, by turning to currently 'Othered' sources of knowledge.