Die Duine Primary School’s new principal, Anthea Adriaanse, hit the ground running when she took over leadership at the beginning of last month.
Ms Adriaanse, 49, started her teaching career as a substitute at Portia Primary School in Lansdowne and joined Die Duine Primary School in 1992 as an Afrikaans teacher for various grades.
Being familiar with the school and its strengths and weaknesses, Ms Adriaanse is hoping to continue building on the foundation that was laid by previous principal Margot Kiewit.
“I have big shoes to fill. I am thankful for the leadership of my predecessor who was a major encouragement to me. Ms Kiewit laid the foundation within me and it was very daunting to take over from her but I’m hoping to continue her good work and make Die Duine Primary School even greater,” said Ms Adriaanse.
The new principal thanked her team of teachers.
“I value the teachers at our school because they go beyond the call of duty. They concentrate on the complete well-being of the child. There are so many challenges in our communities and the children are exposed to so many things but yet teachers put on a brave face every morning and we’re ready to take on the day. I couldn’t have asked for a better team to work with,” she said.
Ms Adriaanse said the school had been doing well academically but she wanted to improve their results.
She also plans to get parents more involved and start a forum to discuss issues in the community.
“I hope to build good relationships with parents and I want to implement more sport and cultural activities because we have a lot of talent but not a lot of resources and would appreciate a bit of help in
that department. We want to holistically build the child, not just academically. I will strive
to continue doing so in my
term as principal,” said Ms Adriaanse.
Anyone willing to assist the school with sport or cul-
tural activities can call 021 703 4165.