Balance Integrity Grace Community Accountability Trust

SentinelJanuary 2018St Andrew’s newsletter

A Word from Ivanka 24

68

1012141618

CONTENTS

Founders’ Day

St Andrew’s HistoryBoarders’ WeekendNew StaffGrade 2 FunGrade 8 & 12 CampPreschool FunMatric Results

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A Word from IvankaDear Parents, Staff and Girls

A warm welcome to all our parents, staff and children to 2018. May it be a happy and healthy New Year, filled with the richness of God’s blessings.

The school year began with invigorated staff. My first staff meeting was all about CALLING and teaching as a calling. I concluded with a poem by John O’Donoghue which I’d like to share with all of you at your place of work and for your calling as parents:

A BlessingMay the light of your soul guide you. May the light of your soul bless the work you do with the secret love and warmth of your heart. May you see in what you do the beauty of your own soul. May the sacredness of your work bring healing, light and renewal to those who work with you and to those who see and receive your work. May your work never weary you. May it release within you wellsprings of refreshment, inspiration and excitement. May you be present in what you do. May you never become lost in the bland absences. May the day never burden. May dawn find you awake and alert, approaching your new day with dreams, possibilities and promises. May evening find you gracious and fulfilled. John O’Donoghue

This is also the term that we call on your voices in contribution to our whole school STRATEGY ENVISIONING for St Andrew’s School for Girls going forward. The school would like the input of all stakeholders: staff, parents, girls, and alumni. Soon you will have the opportunity in a survey monkey called “St Andrew’s set to thrive in an uncertain world” to add your voice to the interests of our school.

Richard Rohr put it this way:

“When we celebrate New Year, we celebrate the rebirth of time. We wait for our God to do new things. We wait for who we are, and who we are to become. We wait for the coming of grace, for the unfolding of mystery. We wait for the always bigger truth. We wait for the vision of the whole. But we cannot just wait. We must pray. Our prayers then start naming and defining us. When we hear our own prayers in our own ears and our own heart, we start choosing our deepest identity, our biggest future and our best selves.”

The start of our school year saw a welcome to our new Head of Operations, Andrew Murray. We wish him a fabulous stay at St Andrew’s.

I had the privilege of also wishing our outsourced staff – catering, cleaning, grounds and security – a wonderful New Year. The work they do is so essential to our well-being at school.

St Andrew’s School for Girls is 116 years old. Our Founders’ Day on Wednesday 24 January, which began with the blessing of our pool, was celebrated in style. This together with my official induction as executive head of St Andrew’s School for Girls. Although

the tea lawns were beautifully prepared, the falling rain forced us to go into the hall like sardines. However, this was not an unpleasant experience! The little ones sat on our senior school girls’ laps which they thoroughly enjoyed. There was a wonderful intimacy and a generous flexibility. The St Andrew’s spirit was witnessed by all. Visitors and VIPs were overwhelmed by the joy and sense of blessing we all experienced.

The sunflower arrangements, the beautiful choir piece from Josh Groban and the staff choir singing and dancing was a wonderful celebration. The staff choir used the imagery and analogy of my role being that of a giraffe for their t-shirts. It was a fantastic and inclusive acknowledgement.

Every girl was given a blessing for St Andrew’s and a dove carrying an olive branch representing peace. The blessing reads as follows:

Blessing for St Andrew’s School for Girls from Psalm 85:

May mercy and truth meet here, May righteousness and peace kiss. May truth sprout from this ground, And righteousness look down from the heaven. The Lord will certainly give us what is good. May this place produce a harvest.

On that same day at 1:00pm, our school community took some time to pray for rain, particularly in the Western and Eastern Cape.

uBambiswano It was a privilege to welcome all our new grade 4s into the uBambiswano programme on Saturday with the handing out of a badge. uBambiswano means ‘holding hands’. (pic)

We held hands together and prayed for the start of the year asking for inspiration, a fabulous work ethic and commitment.

We could achieve this by holding hands as a TEAM: Together Everyone Achieves More.

Please contact Annette dos Santos if there is more you could offer our programme.

In conclusion, enjoy the rest of the year incorporating our St Andrew’s values - Accountability, Balance, Community, Integrity, Grace, Trust.

Ivanka Acquisto, Executive Head

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Founders’ Day & InductionOur Founders’ Day celebration this year culminated in the induction of Ivanka Acquisto as the school’s executive head. Venerable Shona Fleming led the ceremony and guided the school and Mrs Acquisto through our promises to serve one another and the good of the school community faithfully. Representatives from the junior school read the following descriptions which remind us of our values and how we hope to display them daily in all the different sections of the school.

Balance means I find fun in all I do, whether it is work or play. I rest when I need to and I take good care of my body, my mind, my emotions and my spirit.

Integrity is that feeling you get when you know it’s the right thing to do and doing the right thing when no one is looking. Integrity means always telling the truth even when it is hard.

Grace means there is always another chance. It is ok to make mistakes. We treat one another better than we deserve because of God’s unconditional love for us.

Community means looking after one another and being a caring friend. No fighting. We all take turns. Community means I belong here and so do you.

Accountability means I am part of a team. It means I make a plan, not a fuss. It means I look after my things and clean up after myself. I am reliable and I take control of my own actions. I know how to say sorry and I don’t give up.

Trust means jump and I will catch you. Trust is when I know I am in safe hands.

Blessing of the PoolThe earth is the Lord’s and everything in it: the world and all who live here. Bless, Lord, this swimming pool and all who use it. May it be used with care and vigilance. May this centre be a safe place for all who meet here, may the doors open to joy and harmony, may all who enter this pool be refreshed in body and immersed in your love. May each one be protected and healthy. May the use and enjoyment of these facilities speak of your goodness and love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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A Short History of St Andrew’sSt Andrew’s School for Girls was founded in early Johannesburg by two Scottish women, Jean Fletcher and Jessie Johnston, on 22 January 1902 in Esselen Street, Hospital Hill. Before long, the school had outgrown the Esselen Street premises and in June 1904, St Andrew’s School for Girls moved into the newly built schoolhouse on the corner of Girton and Hillside Roads in Parktown.

In 1920, Jean Fletcher purchased 108 morgen of Bedford Farm land and the homestead, Bedford Court, from the deceased estate of Sir George Farrar. Sir George was a well-known South African figure during the early 1900s: a Randlord, mining magnate, leader of the opposition party and chairman of the Chamber of Mines, until his untimely death on 20 May 1915.

St Andrew’s School for Girls opened its doors again in 1921. To this day, St Andrew’s School for Girls has been housed on the land that was once Bedford Farm and in the beautiful Sir Herbert Baker-designed homestead, which was once the residence of Sir George and Lady Ella Farrar and their six daughters!

After 116 years of excellence in education - St Andrew’s remains one of the country’s foremost historic schools.

Photographs supplied with the kind permission of the St Andrew’s School for Girls archives.

An aerial view of our St Andrew’s grounds in 2015.A view of Bedford Court taken in 1907, showing the extent of the homestead.

A view of Bedford Court taken in 1907 with the head gardener in the foreground.

Miss Jessie Johnston

Lady Ella Farrar

Miss Jean Fletcher

Sir George Herbert Farrar

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Boarders’ Weekend

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New Staff

Andrew Murray

Naomi Anna Feist

Bianca Jansen van Rensburg

Kim Saunders

Nomcebo Mabuza

Bronwen Venkatasami

Lisa Petrie

Leanne Stonier

Abby van Niekerk Thandazani NgubaneGail Murray

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? Rivers Church in Sandton

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I have enjoyed woodwork and metalwork since I was a toddler.

In three words, describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. Invigorating; Inspiring; Oh yes, and pretty Intense. (Steep learning curve!)

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? Eden School, Lyndhurst

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I am a mother of two little children and family means the world to me. I also love to keep active through squash, tennis and hiking.

In three words, describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. Welcoming, friendly, structured.

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? Bedfordview Primary School

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I enjoy activities such as photography and cricket in my free time.

In three words, describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. My experience at St Andrew’s has been lovely; the staff have all been very supportive and welcoming.

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? I worked as head of the Therapy and Assessment Centre and at Eden College Lyndhurst as well as in part time private practice.

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I am one of a triplet.

In three words, describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. Stimulating, developing, full of comradeship.

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? Kingsmead College

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I am a person who enjoys learning new things.

In three words, describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. Amazing, loving and beautiful.

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? Hatfield Christian School

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I love dancing and hiking.

Describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. A fantastic start to the year!

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? Sacred Heart College and St Stithians Girls College

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I love coffee.

In three words, describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. Friendly, supportive environment.

Where were you working before joining the St Andrew’s family? De La Salle Holy Cross College

Tell us something interesting about yourself. I am a very busy mum with 2 toddlers (under age 3) and another baby on the way, so not much time for anything else at the moment.

Describe your experience at St Andrew’s so far. It’s been great. People are really friendly and everything has been very straight forward and user-friendly so far. Thank you. Looking forward to a great term at St Andrew’s.

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Back to School Fun in Grade 2

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Grade 8 & 12 CampThe start of term 1 2018 was an exciting one for our grade 8s and 12s. They spent two days together making matric dance dresses out of newspaper, swimming, riding bicycles and bonding with their buddies.

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Preschool Fun Prayer for RainLord God

We pray for South Africa and its people, especially in the Western and Eastern Cape in this time of drought. We pray for those on farms and in the cities who are losing hope as well as for all the animals that do not have water to drink.

We ask you God to have compassion on those who are suffering and to heal our land with the gift of life-giving rain. May the dams be filled, may the rivers flow again and may the crops grow.

Forgive us for any greed or selfishness we have shown, where we have taken more than our share. May we all take responsibility for looking after our resources, especially water.

Please help our leaders to act decisively and to do what is in their power to avoid a crisis.

In Jesus’ name

Amen

Is your child destined to be ‘Skilled for Life’ at St Andrew’s?

Open DayJoin us for our

17 February 2018Grade 0 2019 presentation 08:30

Grade 8 2019 presentation 10:00

Open Day 08:00 - 11:00

Congratulations to our 2017 matric class and their teachers for achieving an exceptional milestone. We are proud to call you Andreans.

2017 matric results 217distinctions

100% pass ratefor the 29th successive year

Balance Integrity Grace Community Accountability Trust www.standrews.co.za . 011 453 9408

6 Disti ncti ons

Emma Carrington

Jessica van den Barselaar

Tanushri Pillay

5 Disti ncti ons

Elizabeth GroseGaelyn Arlow Mari-Jeanne Steenberg

Shannon Katzlberger

Solyle Frankle

9 Disti ncti ons

Lamisah Seedat* KatherineTregoning

Hee-Sun Kim Yongezwa Mbayise

8 Disti ncti ons

7 Disti ncti ons

Alexandra Van Veijeren

Gabriella WillisJenna Long*Karla Anic Mahlogonolo Kabi

Skye Kampmann Verushca Labuschagne

Wyome Frankle

* IEB Outstanding Achievement List.• The 29th year in succession that our matriculation class has achieved a 100% pass rate • 97.3% Bachelor Degree pass• A total of 217 distinctions• An average of 2.86 distinctions per learner• 38% of all results were above 80% • 73% of all results were above 70%• 90% of all results were above 60%• 20 out of the 23 subjects were above the IEB average• 16 learner results were in the Top 1 % in the relevant subjects• An average result of 75% was achieved by the year group.

“We are proud of our girls and believe that our philosophy, Skilled for Life, has empowered them to achieve their very best.”Mrs Jeffrey - Senior School Head

“We encourage all our girls, those with talents and also those who struggle, to excel against their own personal benchmarks and the goals they have set for themselves.”Mrs Acqusito - Executive Head