Rector’s eNews 24: 7 August 2024
/ UncategorizedDear Parents
A big thank you goes to those matric mothers who helped Mrs Visagie and Ms Cornelius with the organisation of the Matric Dance on Saturday evening. The Indoor Centre, which many of you would have seen, was decorated in the most stylish way, the result of much hard work and there was attention to detail in all the adjacent areas. The matrics certainly enjoyed themselves and have been full of praise for the event has a whole. We are grateful to parents who supported their sons on this big occasion.
At the end of last week we received some wonderful news that, for the second year running, Michaelhouse has had an Economics pupil recognised by the John Locke Institute which is based in the heart of Oxford and is led by professors from Princeton University and dons from Oxford. Under the auspices of the John Locke Institute, Reily Elliot (B Block East) entered a global essay competition: this invited students to explore a wide range of challenging questions well beyond the confines of the school curriculum. There were over 35 000 entries received from students across the world aged 17 or younger and Reily’s essay on the role of government in accurate news reporting has led to his being invited as a finalist to an awards ceremony to be held in London. Additionally, he will join fellow finalists from around the world at a conference and lectures led by distinguished academics from Oxford and Cambridge universities in Oxford. This is yet another remarkable achievement from a Michaelhouse boy and a huge credit to Reily and our Economics Department. He follows in the footsteps of Luke Kaufmann (A Block East) who, last year, had a similar experience which took him into the forum of the top academic scholars of his age from around the world. How remarkable it is that Michaelhouse boys shine intellectually on the international stage.
On Friday we will celebrate Women’s Day by means of a special service at Michaelhouse. This day has its origins in the commemoration of an event on 9 August 1956 when twenty thousand women of all races marched on the Union Buildings in Pretoria to protest against laws which forced black women (and men) to carry a passbook which, in turn, restricted their movement and, thus, opportunities for employment. They appealed in a peaceful way during a thirty-minute vigil for social justice and demonstrated their resolve to fight for equality.
In this era, we are called on to stand up for gender equality and to oppose most strongly violence towards women. We are called on to respect women and to value them in our society.
The Chairman of our Board, Andew Schaefer, has asked me to indicate to parents that interviews with new potential Rectors who would take my place when I retire at the end of 2025 are now well advanced. He hopes to be able to make a statement in this regard early in September.
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