New principal leads the way at Anton Lembede Academy

Dumisani Sibaya, principal of the newly-opened Anton Lembede Academy in La Mercy, has had a lifelong passion for education.

Sibaya was born and schooled in KwaMashu where he developed a particular interest in the fields of Mathematics and Science.

His teaching career began in Camperdown in 1992 where he served as a Mathematics and Science teacher for 2 years.

He moved to Nhlanhlayethu Secondary in Inanda in 1995, where he became principal in 2008.

“The area is notoriously crime-affected which often made getting through to the students very difficult,” said Sibaya.

To combat this, Sibaya started a number of community initiatives to try and involve the students and parents alike.

He reworked the idea of homework and how much could reasonably be expected of the children once they left the school.

“Many of these students are living in a one bedroom with other family members. How can you give homework when there is no home to speak of?”

Thus began an unprecedented drive to give students a real opportunity to excel in their studies.

The school was left open later so that students could use the facilities to complete assignments and their studies.

With a staff shortage, this meant parents had to step up and oversee the studies after school hours.

“I had many meetings with the parents and the response I received was both unexpected and overwhelming.”

Both parents and students were fully invested in the project which led to an increase in pass rate from 37% to 100% during his time as principal.

Nhlanhlayethu Secondary also became the top achieving school in the school district which includes Tongaat, Verulam, Phoenix and KwaMashu.

“It was very fulfilling to see the positive changes one can see in a community when everyone supports each other.”

A few colleagues recommended that he apply for the job at Anton Lembede and he finally left Nhlanhlayethu at the end of 2019 after 25 years at the school.