A Tel: (011) 577-6000/6387 (Direct);
Fax: (011) 789-7519
ST STITHIANS COLLEGE
Private Bag 2, RANDBURG, 2125
Saints Honour:
Honour God, Honour
Others, Honour Self
NEWSLETTER NO. 08 – 13 OCTOBER 2006
FROM
THE DESK OF THE RECTOR
Dear One & All
WORLD TEACHERS’ DAY
The week commencing 02 October, was designated
as Love your Teacher Week. On 03 October, the Parents’ Association
arranged a wonderful function for the staff on Baytopp Field, which included a
guest speaker and songs by the students singing their teachers’ praises. It
was a wonderful message of support and appreciation for the staff of St
Stithians College. (I think a number of
teachers were squirming with embarrassment in their seats, as generally
teachers do not like to be at the centre of attention!) On behalf of the College, may I convey my
sincere thanks to all the parents who sent treats for the staff and to the
Parents’ Association, in particular Toni Serra, Bev Loxton and her team, for
arranging such a wonderful event.
Our
learners also honoured their teachers and celebrated their accomplishments in a
variety of ways that week, e.g. special Chapel Services were arranged, staff
were given roses in the Girls’ College, and the Boys’ Prep arranged a picnic
for their teachers.
Recognition
of this kind does much to keep educators passionate about their profession and
to raise the public status of teachers.
Well done, One & All - our
teachers felt truly valued by learners and parents. Thank you for taking the time to show that
you care.
I have
enclosed, for information, an article by Professor Peter Vale from
SECURITY
Following a security
scare at the start of the term, a number of parents e-mailed me, in response to
a letter circulated to the Saints Community, with some suggestions and to
express their concerns. May I thank all
the parents who took the time and trouble to write to me in this regard and
bring you up to speed on the actions that have been taken.
Together with the Management Committee and
Operations Manager, we have met with both our security company (Gremick) and
our security consultants (IMP) to discuss implementing new systems and
controls. We have also undertaken a
thorough security review, looking at all sorts of possible threats and how to
best counter these. Some of the ideas
discussed include an identification system for all Saints parents, pupils and
staff; enhanced CCTV systems; improved boom and access control at the
gates. Already steps have been taken to
control pedestrian access, with the guards enforcing the rule of all
pedestrians signing in.
However, the implementation of additional
security measures is both complex and costly.
In addition, for all these measures and new systems to be effective, the
College continues to be reliant on the co-operation and assistance of the
Saints community. Rest assured that we
take security and the safety of our Saints learners very seriously.
Once new measures have been decided upon, we
will communicate these details to all.
DIBAKOANE CHILDREN’S TRUST
The Trustees have
asked me to write to thank the members of the Saints Family, who to date have
responded so generously to our appeal of 04 August 2006 asking for donations to
the Trust.
In that letter, I
advised the Saints Community of the progress that has been made by Gladwell (presently
a Grade 10 boarder in Collins House), but failed to update you on Daniel’s
progress. Daniel
is currently studying Electrical Engineering at the
Once again, I am appealing to the Saints family
for donations to this Trust to ensure the well-being of these two young men. Cheques can be made out to St Stithians College - The Dibakwoane Trust
and either forwarded to the Bursar, Mr J Smith, or deposited directly into the
following bank account:
St
Stithians College - The Dibakwoane Trust Account
Bank: Nedbank
Branch: Commercial
Account No.: 1469029995
If you have any queries please don't hesitate to
contact me or any of the Trustees concerning the Trust. The Trustees are: Messrs Stephen Lowry,
NEW ASTRO APPROVED
Announcing Advertising
Opportunities at the St Stithians Hockey Astros
Parents, Old Stithians,
existing Astro advertisers, regular suppliers to the College and other
stakeholders are advised of a window
of opportunity over the next 2 months to secure advertising space around
the perimeter of the existing Hockey Astro and the recently approved 2nd Hockey
Astro, which is due to be installed in time for next year’s festival. Interest is high in securing brand awareness,
via advertising boards, around the Hockey Astros
The existence of two
Astros will elevate the Hockey facilities at St Stithians College to national
and international standards, so that advertisers will be assured of reaching
audiences extending beyond the College fraternity, e.g. to participants or
spectators attending provincial tournaments.
Additionally, plans are in place to upgrade the entire hockey precinct
over the next few years.
Having two Astros will
also have a positive impact on the internal development of the sport played by
both boys and girls on the campus. The
energetic Hockey Supporters Committee will appreciate the flexibility afforded
to their planning of the annual Easter Hockey Festival. Furthermore, the
external development aspect of the sport can now be expanded, which is also of
interest to potential sponsors.
Advertising packages
have been designed for either a single or pairs of boards, with a monthly
rental over 3 or 5 years. As an
indicator, a twin double-sided board rental over a five-year period will cost
an advertiser R1700 per month.
Alternatively substantial discounts of the order of 40% are available
for up-front single payments of rentals.
Advertising on the
light stands (similar in size to that on the soccer club lights) is another
option. A three-sided advertisement will
cost R6000 per month over 5 years – again with discounts applicable for
advertising on multiple light towers and for making up-front payments.
Do not miss out on
this once-off opportunity – contact our Sponsorship Consultant Colin Hudson (on
083-628-6406 or 011-706-1657) or Allan Mclaren of Media In Sport Investments
(on 082-551-2006 or 011- 797-8400) for further information, and to obtain the
agreement documentation.
SAINTS FAMILY NEWS
·
We wish to express our sincere
condolences to the following members of the Saints Family on their loss of
loved ones during recent weeks. Please
keep these families in your thoughts and prayers.
o The
Van den Houten on the tragic death of Robert (Matric Class on 2004);
o The
Khoza Family (Bethwell, Support Staff Department) on the death of their father,
Obed, in
o The
Walker Family (Mike, Grounds Manager) on the tragic death of their daughter,
Joanne;
o Mark
and Mary (Gillet) de Klerk (PA & Council member) and sons on the death of
Mary’s father in
Congratulations to:
o Ken
Krige on his appointment as Head of Felixton College, with effect from January
2007. We wish Ken, Fiona and their sons
every happiness and success.
o Nico
& Sylvia (Operations Department) van der Walt on the birth of a son, Sean,
on 20 September 2006.
o Rev
Ndikhokele & Pumla Mtshiselwa (Probationer Chaplain in the Prep) on the
birth of Nwabisa.
o Paul
& Lina Woodard (Sports Teacher & Diving Coach, Girls’ Prep) on the
birth of their first granddaughter, Jessica.
QUESTIONS FOR THE RECTOR:
If there is anything you would like more
information about, please do not hesitate to send your questions to me at rector@stithian.com. Learners as well as parents are quite welcome
to send their questions.
THE
HISTORY OF ST STITHIANS COLLEGE
As announced at Founders’
Day 2005, Mr Walter Macfarlane, former Head of the Boys’ Prep, was commissioned
some years ago to write the history of the College. Mrs Sandi Arrenbrecht, a former parent, of
CREDA Publications has assisted Walter Macfarlane with the design and layout of
this wonderful coffee table book and has done a magnificent job. The History is currently available for
purchase from the Bursar’s Office at a cost of R295, 00 and make wonderful
Christmas presents.
IMPORTANT
DATES FOR 2006
Please
diarise the following important dates:
·
The College Report Back
The next College Report
Back session for parents is scheduled for Tuesday,
17 October 2006, at 19:00 in the General Lecture Theatre (GLT) situated at
the Girls’ Prep.
·
Calendar 2007
It was drawn to our attention that the 2007
Calendar, received from ISASA and circulated to parents, contained an error (1st
Term, Half-Term dates, highlighted on the attachment). Enclosed please find a corrected calendar.
GOOD NEWS
COLUMN
It is always
gratifying to receive letters of praise and congratulations about our staff and
learners. Should you wish to contribute
any Good News, please send the details to: rector@stithian.com. It gives me great pleasure to share the
following e-mail, which I recently received, with the Saints Family:
Dear Mr Lowry
Thank you
for your letter regarding the support and assistance to Daniel and Gladwell
Dibakwoane and the request for donations towards their wellbeing. I wish to
thank you individually as well other members of the trust for the compassionate
and humane undertaking that you have initiated to bring normalcy and hope
for the future in the lives of these two unfortunate and vulnerable young men.
Although we may not be able to assist everyone in similar circumstances, our
intervention in helping Daniel and Gladwell, characterizes our desire and
aspirations to respond positively in alleviating the plight of all others.
This gesture exemplifies the spirit and character that we are trying to
inculcate in the minds of our boys at Saints as we strive to mould them
into responsible members of our society. I shall very honoured to be
associated with this effort and plan to make a contribution that I will shortly
convey through the Bursar.
Please
keep up the good work, your wonderful effort and sacrifices do not always make
the headlines but are greatly appreciated.
Regards
Arthur
Chingono
STEPHEN LOWRY
RECTOR
ST STITHIANS COLLEGE CALENDAR FOR 2007
(CORRECTED: 12 OCTOBER 2006)
TERM 1 (58 days)
Staff
Development Days: Monday, 08 &
Tuesday, 09 January 2007
School Commences: Wednesday, 10 January 2007
Ends: Wednesday, 04 April 2007
Half
Term: 12:00 on Thursday, 15
February 2007 to
07:00 Tuesday, 20 February 2007
Saints School Holiday Thursday, 05 April 2007 (for learners & academic staff)
Public
Holiday/s: Wednesday, 21 March 2007
(Human Rights Day)
Friday,
06 April 2007 (Good Friday)
Monday,
09 April 2007 (Easter Monday
________________________________________________________-
TERM 2 (63 days)
Staff
Development Day: Monday, 30 April 2007
Commences: Wednesday, 02 May 2007
Ends: Friday, 03 August 2007
Half Term: 12:00 Friday, 22 June
2007 to
07:00 on Monday, 02 July 2007
Public
Holiday/s: Tuesday, 01 May 2007
(Workers’ Day)
Saturday, 16 June 2007
(Youth Day)
_____________________________________________________
TERM 3 (64 days)
Staff
Development Day: Monday, 03 September
2007
Commences: Tuesday, 04 September
2007
Ends: Tuesday, 04 December
2007
Half Term: 12:00 on Thursday, 18
October 2007 to
07:00 on Tuesday, 23 October 2007
Public
Holiday/s: Monday, 24 September
2007 (Heritage Day)
2008:
School commences – Wednesday, 09 January 2008
