University of Missouri School of Law Prof Rodney Uphoff, Marsha Uphoff, Sisonke Dyonta, Fred WhiteA University of the Western Cape (UWC) student doing her Master’s in Law in the United States inadvertently became a major fundraiser and a catalyst for a $1-Million (R18-million) injection into a Scholarship Fund.
It has been gifted to allow UWC students to do their LLM at long standing partner, the University of Missouri (MU) in the US.
The UWC Faculty of Law specifically enjoys a longstanding partnership with the University of Missouri School of Law. MU Professor Rodney Uphoff, who is also an Extraordinary UWC professor, has been bringing American law students to UWC and has taught in the UWC/MU winter school programme since 2004.
It was current UWC student Faith Maphutha’s gesture of gratitude after a dinner with the Uphoff family that sparked even further generosity. Maphutha is currently studying towards her LLM at MU.
Prof Uphoff recently gave $1million to endow scholarships for MU students to participate in the programme for years to come because he knows that both UWC and US students benefit from being in class together.
Faith Mpho MaphuthaYears ago, Prof Uphoff was able to persuade MU law graduate Fred White to give $400,000 (R7-million) to bring UWC law students to MU to study towards an LLM degree. That meant 23 UWC students graduated with an LLM in part because of Mr White’s generosity. But because of Maphutha’s gesture, Mr White has now pledged to give $1 million to endow the Ivan Rugema Fellowship. So that means that starting in the US autumn of 2026, two UWC students each year will be able to travel to MU for as long as it has an LLM programme.
The Ivan Rugema Fellowship, named after an exceptional UWC LLM graduate, supports UWC law students who wish to study at the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law.
Maphutha deserves a lot of credit for making this gift happen. She was having dinner with the Uphoffs and asked how the programme started. After hearing of Mr White’s past generosity, she decided to send him a thank you email. Her warm email prompted Mr White to reach out to Prof Uphoff to ask how MU was currently funding the programme. After learning of MU funding challenges, Mr White said he wanted the programme to continue and would support it by giving the $1-million gift.
“It's incredible how one event can alter the trajectory of your future. That's what being at Mizzou (the nickname for MU) has done for me,” said Maphutha. “I have learned so much and grown in many ways that I otherwise wouldn't have. I'm grateful for the people who made it possible for me to be here, and I hope to share my knowledge and experience with others.”
The UWC Faculty of Law is extremely grateful for the generosity from its American friends and looks forward to many more years of fruitful collaboration to the benefit of its staff and students.
