New council chair welcomed at Penryn College

Penryn College has said goodbye to its former chair of council, James Aling, and welcoming a new one, Shirley Mnisi.

The council is the main governing body for Penryn and Penreach and the chairmanship is a part-time, pro bono voluntary position.

Aling, who had been the chair since 2012, spoke to Lowvelder about his time at Penryn, his fondest memories and his advice to Mnisi. An interview was also conducted with Mnisi in which she shared her plans for Penryn as the new council chair as well as her hopes and aspirations for the school.

Aling said he had taken on the position in 2012 as he had been on the council for some time as chair of the facilities and development subcommittee, and felt that continuity was important, especially during a time of transition when the headmasters of the college and prep were changing.

He said his fondest memories of his time at the school is the joy of happy children growing and developing into young adults, including his two daughters.

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He said he will also remember warmly the splendour of the most beautiful campus in the Lowveld and the many deep relationships formed with heads of school and a number of staff and colleagues serving on the council.

He said he has no doubt Mnisi would do well in the role.

Mnisi said she first got to work closely with Penryn through its community outreach programme, Penreach, between 2012 and 2016.

“Following that, I have been a Penryn council member since January 2017. I served on the governance and executive committees,” she said.

“It is an honour to have been nominated and eventually appointed as the first female council chair of Penryn College. I have always been very passionate about education, for the simple reason that it is the one opportunity we all have with which to change societies and transform globally.

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“For me education is the window through which we see the society we are building for tomorrow. An educated nation is a winning nation, and it is for this reason that I have always wanted to be more than just a community member, but to go beyond that and be part of an institution of Penryn’s calibre, which stands for developing future-fit children.

“The waters may be a bit rough now with the impact of Covid-19 on all our lives, a shaken economy and all that keeps us awake at times, but I remain firm in believing in our school’s ability to develop the future-fit child,” she said.

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