Her title may say principal, but parents and pupils call her a saviour. Zola Mburwana, the principal of Annshaw Primary School in Middledrift, has been praised for her work in turning the school around.
Doomed for closure in 2014 with an enrolment of just 18 pupils, the school was dealt another blow when a tornado ripped off its roof.
With no security in place, the school has also been a target for vandals and thieves and was constantly being broken into.
No blackboards, and a lack of furniture and proper toilets made the situation worse, resulting in parents moving their children to other schools.
But hope for change came when Mburwana took over as principal. Her first port of call was to source a donation from past pupil Bulelani Ngcuka and, armed with R35000, she bought burglar bars and gates.
After hearing her pleas for help, a local church donated a boundary fence while a construction company contracted by the education department to fix the three damaged classrooms went the extra mile and plastered and painted the walls.
The language of instruction was changed from Xhosa to English and a new school uniform was introduced.
Fifteen new computers are now waiting to be installed – courtesy of the department of environmental affairs – and computer lessons are on the cards.
“The parents actually came to get me at a school I was teaching at in Dimbaza,” said Mburwana.
“They asked me to please come and save their school because many of them know how I operate.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I arrived here. The children were learning outside because you could actually see the sky in the classrooms.
“The zinc slates, which once were the roof, were hanging precariously and I remember I was so afraid they would one day fall on a pupil.
“I immediately wrote to the department and asked for urgent intervention.”
In just six months, enrolment numbers jumped from 18 to 48.
School governing body chairman Milile Kolonzi said parents had received word of the changes and were bringing their children back.
“This school was completely dilapidated. It’s like a new building now and we are so proud of what we see,” Kolonzi said, adding their first project as the newly appointed SGB would be to build a new kitchen.
Food is currently prepared in one of the classrooms.
Parent Mbuyiselo Kame said what made the turnaround more significant was the fact the school was a heritage site.
“This school was established in 1826. In 1978, the community decided to build it using bricks made out of mud.
“Our parents went to this school and it has a lot of history. We were heartbroken to hear it was closing,” he said.
Next on Mburwana’s list are flushing toilets, the introduction of sport and a library.
“Irrespective of the conditions, the important thing is that teaching and learning at this school will not stop, but the school does need to change for the children’s wellbeing.
“Many of them come from impoverished homes so I would like them to feel like royalty, even for just a few hours, when they’re at school,” she said. — zisandan@dispatch.co.za
Principal ‘saviour’ of Middledrift school
Doomed for closure in 2014 with an enrolment of just 18 pupils, the school was dealt another blow when a tornado ripped off its roof.
With no security in place, the school has also been a target for vandals and thieves and was constantly being broken into.
No blackboards, and a lack of furniture and proper toilets made the situation worse, resulting in parents moving their children to other schools.
But hope for change came when Mburwana took over as principal. Her first port of call was to source a donation from past pupil Bulelani Ngcuka and, armed with R35000, she bought burglar bars and gates.
After hearing her pleas for help, a local church donated a boundary fence while a construction company contracted by the education department to fix the three damaged classrooms went the extra mile and plastered and painted the walls.
The language of instruction was changed from Xhosa to English and a new school uniform was introduced.
Fifteen new computers are now waiting to be installed – courtesy of the department of environmental affairs – and computer lessons are on the cards.
“The parents actually came to get me at a school I was teaching at in Dimbaza,” said Mburwana.
“They asked me to please come and save their school because many of them know how I operate.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I arrived here. The children were learning outside because you could actually see the sky in the classrooms.
“The zinc slates, which once were the roof, were hanging precariously and I remember I was so afraid they would one day fall on a pupil.
“I immediately wrote to the department and asked for urgent intervention.”
In just six months, enrolment numbers jumped from 18 to 48.
School governing body chairman Milile Kolonzi said parents had received word of the changes and were bringing their children back.
“This school was completely dilapidated. It’s like a new building now and we are so proud of what we see,” Kolonzi said, adding their first project as the newly appointed SGB would be to build a new kitchen.
Food is currently prepared in one of the classrooms.
Parent Mbuyiselo Kame said what made the turnaround more significant was the fact the school was a heritage site.
“This school was established in 1826. In 1978, the community decided to build it using bricks made out of mud.
“Our parents went to this school and it has a lot of history. We were heartbroken to hear it was closing,” he said.
Next on Mburwana’s list are flushing toilets, the introduction of sport and a library.
“Irrespective of the conditions, the important thing is that teaching and learning at this school will not stop, but the school does need to change for the children’s wellbeing.
“Many of them come from impoverished homes so I would like them to feel like royalty, even for just a few hours, when they’re at school,” she said. — zisandan@dispatch.co.za
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