From the desk of Mike Thiel: Executive Headmaster Nobody can say that life in South Africa is boring! Whether it is the chess game that our politics seems to have descended into or the shocking realisation courtesy of our university protests that stability is only a shallow illusion - there is much to reflect on. In itself this is a good thing, and the opportunity to think through challenges, to seek out the problems, to debate and consider what responses to give must always be a part of our teaching and practice here at St David’s Marist Inanda. Our boys need to learn how to be positive ‘disruptors’ if they are to be effective global citizens.
In preparing for input I am giving at a conference on transformation in schools, I had my own chance to reflect on what the best way to be a positive disruptor is. More importantly, I reminded myself that if we are to disrupt our traditional thinking, our traditional structures, then we need to be sure that we have a common core – a set of principles, values and guidelines - to fall back to when our debate becomes heated, when our conflicts seem insurmountable. If we don’t have this agreed agenda, let’s call it our tradition with a “Big T”, our unchanging foundation, then our disruption becomes unhealthy with a murky agenda which will be hijacked by others. Too often in this case we find people retreating to their ‘known’ identities, fiercely fighting to protect their traditions with a “little t”, holding on to those ideas and practices which actually are not that important because they do not advance the noble cause that is the foundation of what we do.
Schools are places of hope – we have to be preparing the next generation for a positive future – but schools should also be places where we can celebrate confrontation and diversity, finding new and inclusive ways to interpret our core traditions. Focusing only on the negative and criticizing who we are does little more than break down both good and bad. In these moments the negative overwhelms the potential that exists and we fail to celebrate what is right. Like our schools, our universities should be healthy places of debate and disagreement, but places of balance where dialogue is celebrated and actions agreed. Unlike our schools, universities are big and finding core values is difficult and what starts as one issue often grows into another. As such it is in our schools where our children must learn this balance between debate and action, where they must understand that being a disruptor comes with responsibilities to those around you and the future of the institution.
St David’s Marist Inanda has creativity and innovation as key teaching tools and educational goals. In attending our annual Art Exhibition last night I was overwhelmed by the talent on display, but more importantly I spent some time paging through the visual diaries of the matric boys, diaries in which they document the creative process, the thinking that has gone into their work. These astounded me, reminding me that we do teach our boys to be problem-finders who know how to grapple with issues and find solutions. The dynamic and flexible approach evident in their journey excited me and I left convinced that our boys will be the most positive of disruptors in their adult world.
We will continue focusing on our core values at St David’s and articulating them, because living a Marist life has a 200 year foundation that we cannot argue with. If we do this for our boys then we are giving them that tradition with a “Big T”, that identity to fall back on when the discussion is challenging. It also gives us the space to talk about areas where change is needed, and I have challenged the College boys during assemblies to raise their points for debate. Our strength lies in our diversity, but more importantly in how we unite this diversity around our core values. I am extending the invitation to our wider community to engage with us in ongoing debate, so that our school’s ideals that we all love and cherish can be enhanced and not broken. If there are issues of inclusion, issues of practice and issues of identity which any of our community members would like to raise, please contact me and we can discuss how best to continue debate on that issue.
I recently heard someone say that we need to “get comfortable with being uncomfortable”. I would hasten to add that our comfort must come from the rock of our values, and the uncomfortable should be in our debate about how we interpret these values and in our ongoing checks and balances on whether we live up to and teach these values.
Next Friday, 28 October, is our celebration of Montagne Day which this year marks 200 years since our founder St Marcellin Champagnat visited the deathbed of young Jean-Baptiste Montagne. Realising that this young boy had received no education inspired him to start the teaching order of the Marist Brothers. You will be receiving a letter via email with more information about Montagne Day and we ask that you please look out for this as it will include an appeal for the boys to use their mid-term break to raise their R75 for the Montagne bursary initiative as well as information of the pledge that the boys will be encouraged to make.
This is a pledge that highlights our desire to start the next 200 years of Marist education living the Marist values as our foundation, as the place to judge our actions and practices. In a time of huge social upheaval and uncertainty, what better way to focus our lives and those of our sons than in the timeless values of humility, modesty and simplicity. Getting this right will allow our boys the secure space to strive for excellence and a school where hard work, conversations and relationships are the critical components of such success.
I look forward to developing these ongoing conversations at St David’s Marist Inanda and invite you all to be positive disruptors as we develop the next generation of South African leaders. Enjoy the mid-term break, find time for rest and family, and take courage as your sons do from a safe place to grow and learn.
BOARDING AT ST DAVID’S MARIST INANDA
I am pleased to announce, following the approval by both our Board of Governors and by the Marist Schools’ Council, that St David’s will change shape somewhat over the next few years, with the first of what we hope will be a number of family-unity boarding houses opening during 2017. Further details on cost and structure will reach all our current families in the next few weeks, as will an invite to apply for boarding enrolment. I look forward to the positive benefits St David’s will experience as it moves to a hybrid model of both day‑schooling and boarding in the years to come. Both will remain integral parts of our school, and together will strengthen who we are.
St David’s Marist Inanda Environment KSD and 75th Jubilee Tree-planting in Alexandra
Within St David’s each staff member elects to join a committee that focusses on one of the seven key strategic drivers of St David’s mission and vision. As one of their projects for Term 3 the Environment Sustainability KSD decided to focus on Arbor Week and to link this in to St David’s Jubilee Year by donating 75 trees to schools in Alexandra, plus plant a vegetable and herb garden for a school in need. The project was deferred to October and took place this week on Tuesday 18 October, in collaboration with the Prep School RE and Outreach and the College Environment portfolio
A team of 42 of us (including Grade 5H and ten Grade 11 boys from the four Houses) set off from St David’s for Ekukhanyisweni Primary School in Alexandra to plant 25 of the donated trees and to work on the vegetable garden. The project was facilitated by Food and Trees for Africa and made possible by the funds raised by St David’s through the Clothes2Cx initiative (which was originally named Clothes2Trees and intended for environmental development).
We arrived just after 9am at Ekukhanyisweni and were met by the Food and Trees team (Jeminah and Mike) and the Primary School management team. The formalities included a welcome speech by Ekukhanyisweni, a joint prayer (led by Mrs Smith), an explanation of Arbor Week and St David’s visit by Mr Ireland and a lovely performance of Zulu Dance and singing by the Ekukhanyisweni learners. Jeminah then gave a short introduction as to what we’d be doing for the morning and we went across to the playground area for a very entertaining tree-planting demonstration and talk by Jeminah and Mike. The Grade 5s were enthusiastic respondents to botany and soil questions posed by Jeminah and Mike but the Grade 11s did put in a sprint finish in terms of responses at the end! We all learnt very useful information about preparing the soil for a tree, including mulching and how to ‘drip-water’ the tree at the roots with a 2l cooldrink bottle.
The Grade 5s then set off with Jeminah, Mrs Hutter and Mrs Smith to prepare the soil and plant vegetables, herbs and seedlings in teams such as Team Lettuce, Team Tomato and Team Water and the Grade 11s set off with Mike and Mr Ireland, Mrs Kennedy,
Mrs Tangney, Mrs Fisher-Gietzman and myself to plant the 25 trees (a mix of indigenous and fruit trees) that had been donated to Ekukhanyisweni. The balance of 50 trees (to make up our 75 (Jubilee) trees are being planted at several other schools in Alex by Food and Trees). Some impressive pick-axe and spade work was demonstrated by the Grade 11s in digging holes for the trees and they were undeterred by obstacles such as bricks and the occasional quartzite deposit! The Grade 5s finished their tasks slightly before the Grade 11s so they had the opportunity to play with some of the Ekukhanyisweni learners during their break. We departed from Ekukhanyisweni at 12pm after saying goodbye to the principal (who hugged each one of the Grade 5s goodbye) and her management team, and the Food and Trees team. It was a very special morning, the boys were a real credit to St David’s and thank you to each and every one of the staff team who came along for ensuring everything ran so smoothly from their sides - it was lovely to have the Environment KSD, RE and Outreach components of the School working together on a project.
Fiona Budd
Foundation Manager (St David’s Marist Foundation)
Tree Planting in Alex by Matthew Truscott, Benedict Head of the Environmental Portfolio 2017.
On Tuesday the 17th of October, ten Grade 11 boys took a field trip to Ekhukhanyisweni Primary School located in Alexandra. We were accompanied by
Mrs C. Kennedy, Mr B. Ireland, Mrs. A Hutta’s Grade 5 Class, Ms Budd, Mrs Fisher-Gietzman and instructors from the Trees and Food for Africa Charity.
We arrived at 09:00, and were greeted by a very enthusiastic traditional Zulu dance performed by three students as well as a short motivational and welcome speech by the Deputy Headmistress of the Primary School. We were then promptly shown how to actually plant a tree. This was very interesting and the Grade 5s were in their element answering almost all the questions posed by the instructor from Trees for Africa, whilst the Grade 11s could hardly get a word in edgeways.
After the tree-planting tutorial, the Grade 5s were whisked away to the vegetable garden and the Grade 11 boys were tasked with planting about 20 trees in various locations around the property. This involved digging substantial holes in compact ground and using specific techniques while planting to ensure the survival of the saplings.
Although tough, everyone enjoyed themselves more than they originally expected and felt that they had made a real impact on the environment and the lives these small children. It was hard but rewarding work that will have a prolonged, positive effect on the School and its pupils. On behalf of the Grade 11 boys who participated and the 2017 Environmental Portfolio I would like to thank Mrs. Kennedy, Mr. Ireland and the other teachers who came with us, for making this wonderful service opportunity a reality.
End of Year House Dinners by Damien Wantenaar 11C
Last week the Grade 11 and Matric House Dinners took place, with The Bishops and Osmond on Wednesday evening and College and Benedict on Thursday Evening.
The annual House Dinners are a very special event in the school career of a young St David’s man. It symbolizes the handing over of House leadership responsibilities from the outgoing Matric group to the incoming Grade 11s, and it serves as a meaningful and intimate farewell to the Matric boys. Along with brilliant food, entertainment was also provided, with the grade 11s of College House performing an interesting karaoke rendition of Neil Diamond’s classic Sweet Caroline.
A special thank you is extended to the teachers, housemasters, our catering and support staff for all of their hard work in getting the venues decorated and creating a memorable and special evening.
COLLEGE SPORT
Public Relations Sports Report by Sihle Eyles 11T
For many Cricket, Water Polo and Basketball teams the past weekend was a very successful one as the College played a derby day against traditional rivals St Alban’s College, from Pretoria. Water Polo
The Water Polo boys recorded an excellent set of results, losing just one game throughout the age groups. The highlight of the day was the dramatic 1st Team’s game. Youngster and first team debutant, Nicholas Poole (Grade 9) scored two out of the nine goals for the boys in Black and Gold, changing a 4-1 deficit to come back and record an impressive 9-6 victory. Captain Richard Lehane praised the enthusiastic spirit that came from the Water Polo and Basketball players saying, “it was great having all the enthusiastic support.” It was certainly a fixture to remember. Cricket
Battling both the heat and St Albans, our cricket teams enjoyed many victories in all the age groups. Rupert Hartmann (1st XI) and Adam Gamsy (U15A) both scored centuries in their matches and are commended for achieving their centuries – something very special to all cricketers. Basketball
In this tough and physical fixture, bodies were put on the line, but unfortunately despite lots of grit and effort for the St David’s boys, St Alban’s had the better in most of the matches
With the Parktown Boys’ fixtures around the corner, Water Polo and Cricket players will look to continue with their good form, while Basketball Club will no doubt seek to bounce back to winning ways.
Cricket vs Trinity School (UK) by Fenner Barnard
On Saturday the 15th of October we welcomed 38 eager cricketers and 5 coaches from Trinity School in the UK. Our visitors were hosted by the members of the U14A, U15B and U15A teams, as we reciprocated the fixture our 1st XI had against Trinity during their tour of the UK earlier this year. We were Trinity’s first fixture of their five match tour – and we welcomed a rather jet lagged group of cricketers after our matches against St Alban’s on Saturday afternoon.
The matches took place on Sunday - an unusual occurrence for our lads, particularly after a full day of fixtures against St Albans the day before – but all three of our teams acquitted themselves extremely well. The U15A’s won the toss and batted first, and rollicked along to 110 runs for the loss of 1 wicket, before a major batting collapse saw us tottering at 128/8. James Adelaine joined Shaun Fitzgerald at the wicket, and they then scored 132 runs for the 9th wicket – which should be close to a school record. Shaun was eventually out for a belligerent 82 runs, while James followed shortly afterwards for 44 as we reached a pleasing 260 all out in the 45 over. We bowled our opponents out for 102 runs, the Trinity boys seemed shell-shocked by our fight back and were unable to muster any real resistance as they pursued our large total. Matt Cronson was the pick of the bowlers, picking up 5 wickets for 29 runs in his 10 overs.
The U15B’s made short shrift of their opponents, winning by 10 wickets. Both Hamza Dar and Stephen Buck made unbeaten half centuries in pursuit of their opponent’s total. The U14A’s bounced back from their loss against St Albans to win both of their matches against their opponents by large margins. Many thanks to our St David’s parents for opening up their homes to our visitors for two nights, in what proved to be an enjoyable experience for all concerned.
St David's vs St Alban's by Amarinder Bhinder
Congratulations to St David's cricket club for the performances over the weekend.
There were a number of convincing victories over St Alban's with the 1st and 2nd teams both scoring over 300 runs en route to winning those matches. The U15 age group won all three of their games. Well done to Rupert Hartmann and Adam Gamsy for scoring centuries and Matthew Cronson for taking 5 wickets.
Basketball vs St Alban’s Collegeby Duncam Butler-Wheelhouse
On Saturday 15 October we hosted St Alban’s college for basketball fixtures across all of our age groups. There were a number of hard-fought contests, and it was heartening to see how our young men took both defeat and victory with humility. Particular congratulations must go to our Under 14 age group, who recorded two victories out of three matches against their counter-parts from St Alban’s. In many other games it was missed lay-ups and defensive lapses which cost our teams, and the boys will have to continue to work hard in practices in order to avoid these disappointments in future matches.
A special thanks to our basketball supporters club, a group of parents who arranged a delicious spread of savouries and sweets for supporters on the day. It added mightily to the atmosphere and enjoyment of the occasion and we hope this is a trend that will continue later in the season as we host more home games.
Water Polo vs St Alban'sby Mathew Schneider
Last Saturday the St David’s Water Polo club kicked off the season with a triangular against St Albans and St Peters. The St David’s juniors were in a dominant mood winning all their games comfortably and setting up what proved to be a very rewarding day for the club. The U16’s had a hard fought win against a strong St Albans outfit.
The St David’s first opened their regular season against St Albans and after going four goals down in the first chukka, picked themselves up to put in a strong second, third and fourth chukka and come out eventual winners 9 – 6. They then went on to beat St Peters comfortably.
A small but very keen team of tennis players arrived at Brescia House early on Saturday morning to participate in the Catholic Schools Tennis Tournament. Fletcher Gebhardt, Matthew Fitzgerald, Araav Sojen and Ryan Gebhardt played well and enjoyed an excellently run tournament . Many thanks go to Brescia House for hosting the event this year and for a superbly stocked tuck shop!
Five boys teams entered the tournament this year with De La Salle the winners, followed by Sacred Heart, St Benedict, St Davids and Veritas. The girls event had eight teams participating.
Many thanks also to the parents for the early morning transport, you are every bit as keen for tennis as the boys.
There were six categories with eight to sixteen questions in each category; Rebus puzzles, Science and Biology, Our Country, Slogans, Literature and Sport.’ The boys were excited to be chosen and answered the questions with a great deal of confidence. They had a lot of fun.
It was a close competition with College and Benedict coming tie in first place.
The results of the quiz were:
College
Bishops
Benedict
Osmond
Grand Total
25
22
25
18
MARKET DAY
Grade 7 boys were involved in a Design Technology project which involved the design and creation of goods which were to be sold at their Market Day. Despite the early rain which threatened to spoil the event the boys had fun selling their goods to the Prep boys.
SPORT
The first half of the 3rd term has been exceptionally busy from an extra-mural perspective, and this will continue to be the case over the second half. A reminder that extra-murals remain compulsory, even with assessments coming up, as we aim to educate the boys in terms of valuable time management skills that will assist them in years to come as they progress through their schooling careers. I would like to thank everyone for their support up until this point and I look forward to your continued support for the remainder of the year.
EVENTS
On Monday night we were delighted to host the parents of all boys who will be joining us in the Prep School and Mini Marists, in 2017. We were able to give them an overview of what to expect as their sons’ begin their Marist journey with us. It was most rewarding and humbling to witness their excitement that their boys had been accepted to St David’s after many years of being on the waiting list.
Wednesday evening saw one of the highlights in our Junior Prep Calendar-the J.P. Cultural Evening. The Grade 2 and 3 Junior Choir and Marimba boys delighted their parents and grandparents with their rousing repertoire of songs, thanks to the efforts of Mrs Kantor and Mrs Hill. There wasn’t a dry eye as each boy stood in front of his mum, sang her a verse from ‘The Rose”, and then presented her with a white rose. Our Drama Club boys, under the enthusiastic guidance of Miss Booysen, delivered a rousing rendition of ‘Oh, the places you will go” by Dr Seuss.
This was such a wonderful opportunity for our Choir, Drama and Marimba boys to showcase their considerable talents. What struck me the most was the sheer joy and passionate commitment shown to our J.P Cultural Programme.
Headmaster
