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Nyatsanza Primary reaches milestone

27 May, 2016 - 00:05 0 Views
Nyatsanza Primary reaches milestone

The ManicaPost

Samuel Kadungure Senior Reporter
NYATSANZA Holy Family Junior School in Hauna has undergone radical infrastructural and academic transformation that has seen construction of new classrooms and catapulted its pass rate to 79 percent.

The school, built in the early 50s had life breathed in its nerves sometime in 2012 when Mrs Cecilia Mandikiana assumed its headship following a routine transfer from Ruda Primary School.

Prior to 2013, the school was in an intensive care, desperate for a fresh coat of paint and infrastructural facelift.

In 2007 classroom block housing 120 pupils collapsed due to old age and efforts to replace it stalled owing to financial constraints.

However, with Mrs Mundikiana at its helm, the school had a new vision which ameliorated the teachers, parents and community into action.

And the school was never the same again as Mrs Mandikiana exploited her exquisite team-building and leadership skills and pushed for the participatory engagement of community.

Her inclusivity put parents and community at the centre of everything and ownership of the school, and this coupled with her own innovativeness and effective use of the little available resources, saw the Anglican Diocese of Manicaland-run school achieving a milestone least imagined in a rural set-up.

Mrs Mandikiana was posted to the relatively unknown school in 2012, then it was a physical eyesore and an academic non-performer, but her work ethic and zeal to succeed where others have failed has catapulted the school to stardom.

Major accomplishments by Mrs Mundikiana include the construction and completion of a four kilometre canal drawing water from a nearby mountain to the school. The canal was constructed by parents and without sourcing donations from outsiders.

Prior to the success completion of the water project, the school relied on borrowed water from the nearby Chasakara homestead.

The school now has running portable water with eight tapes dotted around it and as a result its environs have been enveloped by green flora, lawn, shrubs and flowers, all occasioned by sufficient and adequate water supply.

Agriculture was eventually introduced as a Tech Voc subject, and the school now owns a thriving horticulture venture with 4 200 banana plants, peas, vegetable and some madhumbes.

The projects are run by students, and the proceeds are used to pay fees for vulnerable children and orphans at the school.

The school also runs a poultry project and work is in progress to construct a huge fish pond so the school diversifies into commercial fishery.

Since 2007, the school has been experiencing critical shortage of learning infrastructure following the collapse of a block. Efforts to replace it stalled due financial constraints but in 2014 the school and parents raised funds to construct two classrooms, a computer laboratory and two administration offices for the head and deputy and furnished them.

The school has also installed 20 state-of-the-art computers that are connected to internet – which now affords teachers, students and the community access to research on a wide range of academic areas.

Mrs Mandikiana also spearheaded the fencing of the school yard and electrification of the whole school.

In 2015 the school had four students with four units, with an overall pass-rate of 79 percent.

The school has also become a model of horning teaching skills in student teachers as 10 students attached to the school last year were rated the best performers at Mary Mount Teachers College.

“We are targeting a pass-rate above 85 percent; it is achievable because i have a united, hard working, dedicated, creative, innovative and self-motivated staff, starting from the ancillary staff up to the administrative panel and SDC. We speak one language in our operations, and our philosophy is simple: a happy worker is a productive one,” said Mrs Mandikiana.

The school has lined up the construction of a science laboratory, staff room and library and a thriving fishery project, among others in its five-year development plan.

Mrs Mandikiana said attributed her success to the exposure she got from her visit in London organised by the Anglican Diocese of Manicaland and team-building training sponsored by the Ministry of Women Affairs and Community Development at Africa University.

“The two were similar in encouraging us to be self reliant, creative, innovative and developmental with very few resources to achieve goals of the organisation.

This developed me into a dedicated, self-motivated and innovative manager who utilises resources and manages resources effectively. The key is unity,” she added.

Provincial Education Director (PED) Manicaland Mr Edward Shumba has commended Mrs Mandikiana for overhauling the infrastructural outlook and academic fortunes of school within three years as he cuts the ribbon and unveiled the plaque on the new infrastructure.

He challenged other school heads and SDCs to channel their energy toward development of their institutions. Mr Shumba said: “Indeed the school is destined for dizzy heights, thanks to a dedicated, committed and result oriented staff. Nyatsanza Primary school uniquely achieved a life-long achievement and it is now the responsibility of every one of us to jealously guard our investment.

The school has become not only a fountain of education, but also of hope. Mrs Mandikiana, your trip to schools in the United Kingdom has indeed paid dividends.”

The Ministry of Women Affairs and Community Development used the occasion to celebrate the achievement of Mrs Mandikiana as evidence of ability and potential of women.

Ms ChidoTsinakwadi-Madiwa said the occasion was evidence of capacity women have, only that in most occasion they are not given chance to showcase. “We have a database of women in leadership in Manicaland, and each year we bring them together to identify gaps, and resources permitting, we take deserving ones for advancement training and this is how we identified Mrs Mandikiana and enrolled for capacity building at Africa University in team building. We have also earmarked her for another capacity building training at the University of Zimbabwe in monitoring and evaluation. What we have seen here is evidence of what women are capable of achieving when thrusted in position of power. We are proud to have a woman achieving so much where her male counterparts have failed,” said Ms Tsinakwadi-Madiwa.

Anglican Diocese of Manicaland Bishop Eric Ruwona said plans are in the pipeline to upgrade the school into a boarding.

“We have noted that the pass rate at our boarding schools is far better that day school, and we have put in place mechanisms to develop this school, along others into boarding institutions to improve the pass rate in rural communities.

We also want to vocationalise all our institutions so that we produce all round students,” said Bishop Rowona.

The Mutasa North Member of House of Assembly Cde Luke Masamvu bought a 5000 litre water storage tank for the school.

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