Will a girl finally win matric contest?
Group hopes to break pattern of male winner
WITH an array of sporting, cultural, leadership, academic and community outreach accolades to their names, a group of young women are hoping that, for the first time in six years, The Herald Continental Matric of the Year award will have a female winner.
The top 20 are in the running for the title and a four-year bursary to study at NMMU.
The winners will be announced at a gala evening on October 2.
Finalist Framesby High School headgirl Anel Gerber, 18, excels in both academics and sport, and has represented Eastern Province in biathlon since 2011.
She chairs her school’s Forum, Debate and Redenaars committees and is a member of the Junior City Council.
She also volunteers at the MTR Smit Children’s Home and the South African Marine Rehabilitation and Education Centre (Samrec), all while maintaining an A aggregate since 2013.
This year she passed her Grade 7 piano exam through the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music.
Clarendon Girls High School pupil Megan Medcalf, 18, earlier this year became one of only two females in East London to achieve South African Scouting’s top Springbok Award.
She has also competed in and won numerous regatta titles.
She has placed among the top 100 in several Olympiads since Grade 8, in subjects including English, consumer science, accounting and maths. She also achieves an overall A aggregate.
Megan is an avid dancer, achieving school colours for several dance forms.
Queenstown Girls High School prefect Jojisam Luzipo-Adu, 18, has been shifting between first and second place academically since Grade 6, twice acquiring school academic honours.
Jojisam is the head of her school’s tuckshop committee, director of its annual Shakespeare Festival plays and a member of the debating society, achieving a double gold award at the Queenstown Eisteddfod public speaking event last year.
The A aggregate pupil enjoys volunteering for needy causes.
Nizamiye Al-Azhar Institute deputy headgirl Sumaiya Naeem Raja, 17, won gold at regional level in the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists in 2010 and 2011.
Many of her weekends are spent helping out at the Malabar Old Age Home and handing out food to underprivileged residents in Malabar Extension 6.
She does nine subjects and maintains an A aggregate.