Fresh, Fun and forward thinking
Diepsloot hosts a leadership workshop for learners
On the 10th of March 2018 the IkamvaYouth Diepsloot branch held its first leadership workshop, facilitated by the founder of Bhekizenzo Foundation Mrs Phindile Ndlovu. Bhekizenzo Foundation works with government and other organisations to empower township and rural youth. The Foundation provides leadership, self-development and job preparedness workshops. Keeping with one of IkamvaYouths’ value of collaboration the Diepsloot branch saw the Bhekizenzo foundation as ideal for its career guidance sessions.
The workshop had a good attendance as learners from all the feeder schools in and around Diepsloot made a showing. The participation was also encouraging as learners seemed to have questions and eager to share their goals. All the activities that were partaken in were a step towards helping learners create their vision boards. These were collages designed to help learners envision the future they want to have.
Diepsloot learners Neo and Sivikele were one of the few learners who had the opportunity to present their vision boards. These learners stood out as they did not fail to mention how education would impact their dreams/visions. The IkamvaYouth vision is to change lives through education, tutors and staff alike were more than impressed to see learners share in our vision. We as the IkamvaYouth team can only hope that these leaners also share in one of our core values of paying it forward.
In the feedback part of the session, the learners thanked the facilitator for making time to engage with them through the workshop. It is always encouraging when efforts made by a tutor, mentor, facilitator or staff member are appreciated by the learners. IkamvaYouth has made a commitment to make an impact and when we see our work being appreciated we feel that this core value is achieved.
Class of 2017 with parents
It is IkamvaYouth’s custom to take time to analyse our journey every year, to reflect on what we did right and improvements to be made, to report to our stakeholders and the community we provide services to, and so this means dedicating a day and bringing all the parties involved and giving them feedback through an Open Day.
On the 20th of January IkamvaYouth Mamelodi branch held its annual Matric Day and Open Day, the event served as the official opening the year, and gave feedback on how the matric class of 2017 performed. Some of the organisations that contribute to the growth and sustainability of the organisation and the Mamelodi branch were invited.
Matric learner of the year (Archibald Letsoalo), who will be pursuing a Degree in Education at Free State University.
The event began at 09:00, with the Branch Coordinator (Neo Rakoma) welcoming the attendees and giving a brief introduction and overview on the purpose and significance of the day, she was then followed by the Branch Intern (Tokelo Hlagala), who gave an overview of the organisation’s model, which is basically the underlying principles and a framework which governs the programmes offered by the organisation, moreover he emphasized the importance of all parties working together in order to ensure that the learners receive ideal results, and this meant parents taking strides such as coming to the branch to analyse if their children are performing well, and if they are not, then what measures can be undertaken, by the parent, the learner and the organisation
Tutor of the year (Tshegofatso Sebata)
An address was also given by Tshegofatso Sebata who is both a tutor at the branch, and an alumni of the organisation, she shared her experiences on how the organisation helped her throughout her academic voyage, and also gave an overview of her transition from learner to tutor, her address was followed by that of another volunteer tutor, Piet Sathekge who specializes in the commerce subjects(Accounting, Economics).
Some of the learners that achieved Bachelor Passes
The attendees were also entertained with music, poetry, and some ice breakers in between the program. We had a motivational talk by Pastor Malinga from Themba Foundation. Mr Patrick Mashanda, the IkamvaYouth Programmes Manager addressed the attendees, giving a review of the matric results that the branch has achieved, and of the organisation at large, he further reiterated strides that must be undertaken to ensure that we build great societies, free from social ills, and that can be achieved through education. There was a prize giving and photo session following his address, which was was led by Miss Naledi Mokopakgosi, the Mamelodi Branch Assistant, and Unathi Mbanya from CCBSA. Several prizes and certificates were bestowed to learners for certain achievements, such as, learner of the year, best learner in English, and Matric learner of the year.
We ended off the day with a library dedication to Sonia Tibane, who was one of the dedicated volunteers in the Mamelodi branch following her sad passing in 2017, which was a great loss to not only her family and friends, the organisation, but also to the community at large. Sonia was also a dedicate scholar and was passionate about book hence the dedication.
2017 end year celebration at Emagqabini
National matric pass rate percentages belie the unacceptable reality that for the most part, those who perform well in matric attend good schools and receive the kinds of support that come with being middle class. The majority of South African learners’ destinies are in danger due to socio-economic realities that predetermine the quality of education and support they’re able to access. Thankfully, there are hundreds of initiatives across the country who are working to redress this inequality, by providing much-needed support across the country.
Behind every matric cohort are teachers, parents, siblings and friends who are dedicated to seeing learners achieve. Learners lucky enough to be part of after-school tutoring programmes have tutors and programme staff as part of these teams, who are committed to doing all it takes to ensure that learners succeed. IkamvaYouth and The Learning Trust have partnered to provide training and support to such programmes; fostering collaborative effort to achieve collective impact.
In 2017, ten partner organisations participating in the Community Collaboration Programme (CCP) supported 129 Grade 12 learners who collectively achieved an incredible 93% pass rate. 87 learners achieved either bachelor or diploma passes; evidence of the power of safe spaces where learners can access care and academic support after school.
Matric learners from the Boys and Girls Club South Africa with Nandi Ngubeni, CCP Partner Support Coordinator, on the right
One of the learners from Just Grace, Lisakhanya Mpeta says “Matric 2017 was tough; it required a lot of sacrifices and a shift in focus. I spent most of my time at school, day and night, but in the end, I made it with a bachelor pass and a distinction. This year I will be studying Mechanical engineering at CPUT”.
“It has been inspiring working with the various organisations who are passionate about the work and are constantly striving towards delivering programmes of high standard and quality to their learners. This has been continuously witnessed in the results achieved by partners over the years,” says CCP Coordinator Busiswa Dayimani. “This year we will be particularly focusing on strengthening the monitoring and evaluation processes for all our partners, this is to make engagement with data easier so that our partners can manage and track their impact.”
Just Grace Programme Coordinator, Yongama Fayi, said that “it was challenging and fruitful at the same time. We managed to build good relationships with schools as recommended at CCP meetings. Being a CCP member helped me a lot in many areas including brainstorming resolution to common challenges.”
The Learning Trust Programme Officer, Kylie Grigg, says “I am really proud of what our CCP partners have accomplished in 2017. They faced a fair amount of challenges and yet continue to add tremendous value to the children and the communities they serve. I look forward to working alongside them for even greater achievements in 2018!”
IkamvaYouth Gauteng branches participated in the Global Mentorship Walk that took place at the Voortrekker Monument Park in Tshwane to commemorate International Women’s day on Saturday the 11th of March 2017. The mentorship walk brought together girls and women from the region, including 11 Grade 12s from Mamelodi branch, 8 from Grade 12s from Ivory Park and 8 Grade 12s from Ebony Park.
The walk was coordinated by Hadithi Media as local organisers of this global initiative, a Vital Voices Global Mentoring Walk. This initiative comprised 132 walks which took place in 61 Countries around the world. The intention was to create an accessible platform for dialogue between mentor and mentee, whilst creating visibility around women leadership and mentorship, with the theme: Her Story, Your Story, Shared Stories. Importantly this day served to motivate women of different ages to voice their stories through writing and taking visuals of of their stories.
The day started at 8am, with registration and breakfast. Rehema Isa gave an overview of their organisation and why it is important for them to host such an event and what is the desired outcome they are looking for at the end of the programme. Rehema Isa further introduced the stakeholders and the roles they played towards making that day a success. Stakeholders that took part in the event were the US Embassy,The Passionate Professionals, Thadithi media as well as IkamvaYouth.Mamelodi intern Naledi was given an opportunity to explain what IkamvaYouth is and give a brief background about our organisation and why I think the event is relevant to our organisation.
Our Mamelodi branch intern, Naledi said “one of the things that stood out for me was that the event turned out well in terms of the interaction between learners and mentors as they all understood how the program and the purpose was. There was a paradigm shift as women of different generations established good relationships . The walk was quite fun as we had different topics to discuss amongst our pairs and shared some of our experiences and ambitions in life like how to tackle some of the obstacles that some of the mentors had gone through and how they made it work for them even if they were experiencing some challenges; this was one of the activities that were quite motivating because you got to realize that people had faced the same challenges you had and you needn’t be be hard on yourself, instead you should stay on course and keep your eye on the ball. We were grouped into teams of 3 which consisted of one mentor and two mentees. Amongst the topics that we discussed were academics; our well-being; how we cope under pressure; where we see ourselves in the future and what we expect from our mentors.”
Towards the end of the programme a collective feedback session in the respective teams was conducted and the teams were also given the opportunity to shoot videos that will be posted on social media and their website talking about their experience about the event.
The objectives of raising awareness about mentoring as a key tool for personal, professional and business development were achieved and the event brought together women professionals and emerging women in mentoring partnerships, creating a lasting network of role models for the mentees.
The benefits of women’s mentorship are numerous. It establishes camaraderie; creates gender-friendly environments; promotes a stronger environment for women’s success and expands horizons for further personal growth as women explore innovative leadership strategies.
IkamvaYouth’s mentoring programme enables Grade 12 learners to access post-school opportunities. Although the career guidance workshops increase learners’ awareness of post-school opportunities and ways to access them, IkamvaYouth learners need one-on-one support from a mentor to help them make the transition from secondary to tertiary education. The mentoring programme ensures that every Ikamvanite accesses tertiary education and/or employment once they matriculate.
COMMUNITY COLLABORATION PROGRAMME
Do you have an after-school education programme running in Gauteng?
Do you want to join a community of organisations working together to deliver collective impact: improved academic achievement, excellent matric results and access to post-school opportunities, for learners in township areas?
Would you like to receive training, support and funding to achieve more impact?
The Learning Trust (TLT) and IkamvaYouth have partnered to develop and expand the Collaborative Community Programme (CCP). The CCP is a growing network of after-school programmes in Western Cape and Gauteng, where members are provided with knowledge, skills and resource-sharing opportunities. CCP aims to increase the number of high impact, sustainable tutoring programmes in South Africa.
You can get involved in various ways:
- Become a member of the wider collaborative community, where you will be invited to take part in networking, skill sharing and targeted training sessions for coordinators and tutors.
- Be selected to attend a three day Programme Coordinator Training 4-6th April 2017, this will provide know-how and tools on implementing the model and achieving results.
- Following a 3-6 month probation period, could become a grantee of The Learning Trust and an IkamvaYouth Implementing Partner, and receive bespoke capacity support in all areas of organisational development, such as the areas of strategy and M&E, fundraising and governance, and financial controls.
- Join the movement to track and monitor collective impact: use the customised data capturing tool for monitoring and tracking, and become part of a community delivering collective impact and working together to build an effective sector of after-school programmes working in an increasingly aligned and collaborative way with Government.
Criteria and Eligibility to become an Implementing Partner
*The following criteria need to be met by any organisation wanting to receive intensive training, support and programme funding:
- Be a registered NGO/non-profit
- Have been working with a consistent group of 20+ high school learners (for more than 1 year)
- Have a track-record of some consistent quality service/programme provided for at least one year
- Be located close to the urban centres of Johannesburg or Pretoria
- Have access to a pool of volunteer tutors i.e. proximity to an university
- Have a Board established, be holding regular Board meetings, and have active board members who can avail themselves for interviews
- Have a secured venue for your tutoring programme to adequately support the number of learners you have registered
- Have at least 1 full-time or a committed founder/co-founder who has been involved in the programme for at least one year and is committed to making the programme work
- Have an assistant (can be a volunteer) and a committed team of volunteer tutors
- Have a collaborative mind-set and dedication to learning, capacity building and team and wider community development
- Align closely with the 5 core values of IkamvaYouth and The Learning Trust’s values of humility, diversity, honesty and a commitment to learning.
- Be an emerging community based organisation or a more established organisation looking to improve, grow, or change its tutoring model.
In order to receive this support, organisations will also be expected to work towards compliance with IkamvaYouth’s minimum standards of quality implementation:
- Commitment: Learners need to meet a minimum 75% attendance requirement to keep their place in the programme
- Individual attention: Learners engage in small group peer-to-peer learning, striving towards a 1:5 tutor: learner ratio
- Consistency: 3 tutoring/homework sessions held per week or equivalent to 6 hours
- Sustained support: Working with learners in grades 8-12; but not enrolling new grade 12s (ensuring 2 – 5 years’ involvement for each learner)
- Impact: Willingness and ability to recruit a cohort of at least 30 grade 10s and 20 grade 11s in 2017 and be willing to use the recommended data tool for standardised attendance and outcome tracking and submission of quarterly reports
- Learning how to Learn: Applying small group tutoring methodology and peer learning rather than traditional teaching methods (training will be provided)
- Enabling access to post-school opportunities: Each grade 12 learner is paired with a mentor who helps them to apply for tertiary education, learnerships or jobs and ensures that they enrol in a post-school opportunity after matriculating
- Democratic decision making: through inclusive forums and tutor meetings constructive feedback is received from beneficiaries and volunteers
- Parental involvement: A minimum of 3 parents’ meetings held per year
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
Complete application form online and submit a motivation letter by email to zoe@ikamvayouth.org by the deadline of Thursday 23rd March 2017. If you have any questions please contact Zoe Mann on 0744767965.
Please note that before you start your online application you should have as many of the following documents available as possible:
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Latest Annual Report
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Most recent and current financial year’s operating budget (secured funds)
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Latest Audited Financial Statements
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NPO registration certificate
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Successful applicants will be informed of next steps by end of day on Friday 24th March 2017.
Please ensure that at least one member of staff is available for a telephone/Skype call on Monday 27th March 2017. We will notify you of a time should your application be successful.
Please also ensure that at least two members of staff from your organisation are available for the full three day training 4th – 6th April 2017; this must include one Director/senior management and one Coordinator/Programme staff.
Don’t you hate it when big corporate organizations neglect their duty and promise to give back to communities they operate in? Well Coca Cola Beverages South Africa has been showing the community of Ebony Park, Rabie Ridge and Ivory Park that they give back to communities through various interventions.
On the 22nd of February, Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa together with the IkamvaYouth Ebony Park branch launched a Soul Ambassadors network for CCBSA employees and participated in the Ebony Park Mentorship day. The Soul Ambassadors are a network of CCBSA employees coming together for a good cause. Soul Ambassadors are CCBSA employees who are passionate about the community and give of their own time to deliver positive change in the communities where we operate. CCBSA supports these individuals by providing them with extra time outside of the one day community leave given to all employees to execute this work as well as funding to deliver the plan.
The idea is to offer CCBSA employees a chance to change someone’s life through mentorship; by helping learners / scholars move from their current state to their desired state. Learners from different schools around Midrand and Tembisa who are part of the IkamvaYouth family came in numbers to celebrate the day and also be part of the mentorship program together with CCBSA Soul Ambassadors. During the launch, the Ebony Park branch Grade 11 learners were all paired up with mentors from the CCBSA Soul Ambassadors and signed the IkamvaYouth Mentor-Mentee agreement.
The IkamvaYouth mentorship program enables learners to access post-school opportunities. Although the career guidance workshops increase learners’ awareness of post-school opportunities and ways to access them, IkamvaYouth learners also need one-on-one support from a mentor to help them make the transition from secondary to tertiary education. The mentoring programme ensures that every Ikamvanite accesses tertiary education and/or employment once they matriculate. Secondary objectives of the programme include developing communication skills, self-knowledge and self-esteem.
Ikamvanites who participate in the mentoring program get the following benefits:
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Increase in the mentee’s self-confidence
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Helps the mentee learn to take better control of his or her career
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Teaches the mentee how to speak up and be heard
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Educates the mentee on how to accept feedback in important areas, such as communications, technical abilities, change management, and leadership skills
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Improves the mentees interpersonal relationship skills
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Provides an important networking contact for the mentee
This mentor-mentee relationship also enables the CCBSA Soul Ambassadors to:
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“Give back” — to the organisation, the community and the mentee
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Reminds the mentor how to listen actively rather than passively
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Encourages the mentor to share knowledge and help shape the future of our youth
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Strengthens the mentor’s interpersonal relationship skills and perceptions of the various problems facing our country’s youth and education system
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Teaches the mentor about other areas/departments within the organisation
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Helps re-energize the mentor’s career
Ikamvanites had this to say;
“We all need that one person who can share knowledge with you and guide through your difficult time and also be there as a thinking partner”- Adele Kayitare
“It’s a good opportunity for me to know more about Coca-Cola as it is one of the biggest organisations in South Africa. Having someone from Coca-Cola to mentor me is a blessing and I’m looking forward to the relationship” Tsolofelo Moeletsi
As Ikamvanites take a journey to success, CCBSA Soul Ambassadors will be right there with them to ensure that they reach their desired outcome.
Their Future is in their hands.
Lloyd Lungu