Sponsored Content
BUSINESS NEWS - Oakhill School’s Matrics of 2023 have once again made themselves and the school incredibly proud, both individually and collectively in their final Independent Examinations Board (IEB) Exams.
“The key takeaway is that Oakhill’s Matric results consistently reflect the school’s philosophy of developing self regulation and character formation. This is how, year after year, Oakhill continues to achieve such consistently impressive results’’ says Head of School, Mr Graham Howarth.
With a total of 63 distinctions, Oakhill School’s 31 matriculants achieved an average of 2.03 distinctions per candidate. In addition to the continuous record of a 100% pass rate since inception over 30 years ago, a total of 30 of the 31 candidates achieved a Bachelor’s Degree pass (University Exemption) which allows them access to tertiary institutions anywhere in the world.
“Oakhill’s belief that each child is worthy and capable and, given an opportunity, is able to successfully navigate the challenging, robust and demanding IEB examinations is undeniable and at the same time a source of great joy” says Mr Howarth.
Of the total of 63 subject distinctions, eight were marks above 90%. Two Oakhill pupils, Grace Ash and Kelly-Storm van Onselen placed in the top 1% of candidates in individual subjects nationally and deserve wholehearted congratulations. Of noteworthy mention too is that all of Oakhill’s subject averages were above the IEB National average and the Matric 2023 cohort remarkably achieved a grade average of 71.5%.
Oakhill Dux Scholar, Grace Ash achieved 5 distinctions and an overall aggregate of 85% followed by Cinzia Perosino and Kaylin Jacobs also with 5 distinctions each. Four distinctions each were awarded to Kelly-Storm van Onselen, Olivia Smith, Jared Shutte, Max Hayward and Joshua Westcott. Charial Reynders, Tamar Zimerman, Dennis Zhu and Fenella Hill each earned three distinctions. Several other students made up the balance of the distinctions.
The top three students shared their personal aspirations and also some inspiration for younger students.
Grace Ash as Oakhill’s 2023 Dux Scholar achieved various cultural and academic awards at Oakhill, including Grade 7 in the Trinity International Music exams in Piano and vice captain for Jubilee House.
Grace shares that a special aspect about Oakhill was that she was able to be involved in so many spheres of the school - from music, to art, hockey and water polo teams while pursuing her academics too. She says that 2024 will be centered on various jobs and volunteer positions, before continuing to do BA Fine Arts at University in 2025. Her personal motto and wisdom for younger students is “Do as much as possible - make the most of the opportunities you’ve been given. Work hard, play hard, rest and enjoy all of it!’’
Cinzia Perosino was actively engaged in both sports and academic pursuits, consistently securing top academic standings at Oakhill.
She shared that her experience at Oakhill far exceeded her expectations. Having relocated from Johannesburg at the peak of the pandemic, she says she swiftly found acceptance within the Oakhill community. A highlight of her College was the Oakhill Odyssey in Grade 10, which fosters self-sufficiency, identity exploration, patience, collaborative endeavors and that overall hard work truly pays off. Cinzia is pursuing a degree in Visual Communication at the Stellenbosch Academy of Design and Photography. Cinzia’s advice to younger students is simple “embrace challenging opportunities and to recognize that hard work yields valuable results”.
Kaylin Jacobs who started at Oakhill in 2020 participated in the President Award and was secretary of the Interact Committee, finding Oakhill’s community projects very rewarding.
At the age of 16 years, Kaylin was the youngest person in South Africa to complete a course in Good Clinical Practice (GCP) scoring 100% and also completed a short clinical research course through the University of Leeds. In keeping with her career aspirations of a BSc degree in Human Life Science at Stellenbosch University, her favourite subjects were Life Science and Chemistry, especially the practical experiments in Oakhill’s laboratory. When asked to share her thoughts with younger students, Kaylin says she’d like to remind them “that quality education, like Oakhill is a privilege; so study hard, dream big, make the most of every opportunity and don’t forget to keep a good work/life balance!’’
For students aspiring to join Oakhill College, there are wonderful opportunities available through the Oakhill scholarship exams conducted annually. Oakhill attracts students across the country and region as a high performing school with a wide offering of co-curricular activities to develop students into well rounded individuals. For more information see the Oakhill website: https://oakhill.co.za/
‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’
