22 June 2018 Newsletter 7/2018
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JEPPE HIGH SCHOOL FOR BOYS GDE Registration No.130633 26˚12’S; 28˚5”58” E Good Hope Street Elevation: 1760 m Kensington 2094 PO Box 28923 Johannesburg Kensington Tel: (011) 614-1938/9 2101 Headmaster: D J Jackson: B.Com, B.Acc, PGCE Fax: (011) 6142527 E-mail: [email protected] www.jeppeboys.co.za 22 June 2018 Newsletter 7/2018 FROM THE HEADMASTER’S DESK Dear parents, The end of the term has reached us in a whirlwind of exams, sporting and cultural commitments and the frenetic pace of life so typical at Jeppe High School for Boys. I think everyone within our school community - boys, educators and parents - are eagerly awaiting the upcoming three week holiday! The second term is traditionally the busiest term of the year from an extra-mural perspective and Jeppe has enjoyed one of our most successful seasons in many a year. On the cultural front, our Pipe Band won all but one of their competitions and embark for Basel in high spirits and with great confidence whilst our Dramatic Arts department enjoyed a wonderful annual production and much success in the various festivals as did our debating and public speakers. Sporting wise, no other school in the province (public or private) achieved more provincial representatives in both hockey (34) and rugby (24) and, across the board, our results in our traditional fixtures throughout the season have seen a significant improvement on prior years. Ten Jeppe boys making the prestigious Craven Week team (as well as both Mr Spilhaus and Mr Hammond as coaches) is certainly a record for the school that we can all be most proud of, particularly when it is viewed alongside recent achievements of our Old Boys at SA U20, Super Rugby and Springbok (S'bu Nkosi) level. I would also like to pay tribute and to thank our parents, and particularly our patrons, for your support of our boys and our school over the past term. We appreciate the tremendous sacrifices many of you make in supporting our School, and your boys, and value it greatly. The support received - from boys, parents and the Old Boy community - is just one further example of why our school is such a wonderful place. Whilst pupils and educators will be on holiday, our campus will remain alive with ongoing developments, most notably the conversion of our last remaining prefab into three new classrooms / exam venue with funding once again generously received from Old Boys and the Droste Trust. Personally, I will be embarking on national and international trips over the next month to meet with Old Boys in Cape Town, Sydney, Auckland, Brisbane, London and Basel to continue to spread the good news about Jeppe and hopefully generate further support and funds for our future plans and developments. The second term has also seen Jeppe featuring regularly in the wider media and on the lips of the broader educational community, particularly relating to issues regarding transformation and following from Mr Leathem's assembly speech on "White Privilege". We appreciate that these topics evoke strong emotions amongst the broader Jeppe community but, as headmaster, I feel strongly that we have a moral, social and strategic obligation to not only address these challenges and opportunities but to lead the debate and dialogue in this important arena. As an educational institution, we feel a responsibility to challenge and stretch our boys - to expect them to question and query and to equip them with the tools for "how" to think and not to prescribe to them "what" to think. The transformation dialogue is complex, emotive and multi- faceted and we are attempting, through our Transformation Committee, Governing Body, speeches to boys, events such as the Freedom Day celebration and the upcoming third term 360 degrees school-wide survey to understand the different perspectives and communicate the strategy and views of the school leadership regarding transformation as effectively as possible. If we are to successfully achieve a sustainably transformed school in the future, not only will we have made our school stronger, but we will also have prepared our boys for life after school in our rainbow nation. Next term commences on Tuesday, 17th July (Day 7 on the timetable) and will once again be another extremely busy 11 weeks. Our eagerly anticipated, and compulsory, home fixture against KES will be sandwiched by fixtures against Waterkloof and then Parktown. An expanded soccer season, which will see Saturday fixtures for the first time, will then commence in addition to the highly enjoyable athletics season. We are also intending to make the "Parent Portal" on our Ed-Admin database system available during the course of the third term which is an exciting development which will enable parents to have far more insight and input into various aspects of their son's life at Jeppe, particularly more timeous communication of academic results. This will hopefully allow parents to partner with educators in the performance of their sons. As mentioned later in this newsletter, please could I request the support of all parents in ensuring that all learners return next term with appropriate haircuts and appearance. I have been disappointed, particularly with the Grade 10 group, in the number of pupils whose hair, in particular, has not conformed to the school rules over the closing period of exams. A zero tolerance approach will be adopted in this regard. I am pleased to announce that, for the third term in a row, our staff complement remains unchanged and that there will be no timetable adjustments or amendments next term. This is unusual in the context of our fellow public schools and is a testament to the loyalty, dedication and overall happiness of our staff. I am incredibly blessed to lead a group of professional educators who are so passionate about our boys and their academic, sporting, cultural and character development. Many of these educators have been working seven days a week during the past term, often to the detriment of their own families and children, and I would like to formally record my thanks to them and wish them a quiet, relaxing holiday with their loved ones. To all the boys and educators who will be participating in various sporting and cultural tours during the holidays, we wish you all the best. May you represent Jeppe with pride, play with passion and make lasting friendships. To everyone else who may be traveling, I wish you a wonderful holiday and a safe return to school on Tuesday, 17th July. Mr. D. Jackson HEADMASTER HAIR AND UNIFORM FOR TERM 3 School Regulations The school management team have, once again, taken the decision that boys who do not comply with the rules and regulations regarding appearance, will be sent home on the first day of Term 3 to rectify their appearance. For a complete explanation of the uniform and appearance requirements, please consult the school code of conduct on the Jeppe website at www.jeppeboys.co.za. As a basic guideline, please see the requirements below: School Uniform Plain white shirt (not a sports shirt), appropriate school tie, school jersey (black with two white stripes on the V-neck), school blazer, grey flannels neither tapered nor flared, plain grey socks and plain black, leather lace-up shoes (without buckles, patterns or embroidery). Slip on, square toed or fashion shoes are not permitted. Shoes must be polished The school blazer is to be worn at all times. Hairstyles Hair must be hygienically clean, neat, combed and respectable; Hair must be short, and must not touch ears, eyebrows or collar; All learners are encouraged to wear their hair natural / hair may not be unnaturally altered (no hair colour, relaxers, highlight etc.); Any change from one length of hair to another needs to be gradual and reasonable (e.g. hair clipper size #2 into a #1, or a #3 into a #2); ‘Steps’ or dramatic changes in hair length is deemed unacceptable and is not permitted; Boys may not shave lines, partings or patterns into their hair Boys may not have their heads clean-shaven unless required to do so by a cultural custom, in which case a letter from a parent/guardian must be provided to the headmaster and SGB requesting permission and/or notifying of valid reasons The management of the school is of the belief that these measures will help to maintain the high standards of excellence and discipline which are expected of Jeppe Boys and we thank you for your assistance and support. Mr. G. Kolkenbeck-Ruh DEPUTY PRINCIPAL: Discipline ACHIEVEMENTS Cricket Well done to Kgaudise Molefe on being selected to the Coca- Cola SA U19 cricket squad which heads to England in July. This is not the first time that Kgaudise has played for the SA U19 side and we congratulate him on maintaining his good performances. Musical The wonderful musical talent of Brett Harzon (Grade 10G) was on display when he was invited to play at the Rand Symphony Orchestra “For the love of Music” concert at the Linder Auditorium on Sunday 10 June. Brett played Kabalevsky – Piano concerto in D major, 3rd mov, which according to one of the Jeppe Boys staff members in attendance at the concert, was simply astounding. This multi-talented youngster who enjoys playing, arranging and composing music is also in the school Pipe Band going to Basel in July. Music, however, is not only where Brett excels, he came 2nd in the Junior section of the Schools Provincial Orienteering Championships and regularly features in the top 10 Academics in his grade. Pipe Band The Pipe Band who have once again been invited to play at the Basel Tattoo this year and leave for Switzerland during the July school holidays, kept up their winning ways at the Pretoria High School for Boys Gathering on Saturday 16 June.