We have come to the end of another successful year. The theme for this year was again to “Get Involved” and a great deal of our boys did exactly that. As in previous years, a large number of our boys have excelled in a number of areas and have made us, as a school, extremely proud. The Grade 12s of 2016 in particular set the example and were simply outstanding. As seniors they took the school to new levels of excellence.
The NSC Examinations went well and I am sure we will have good results. I want to thank Mr Shore who runs this process extremely well every year. Academics at DHS continue to be strong and we will continue to make it the No. 1 priority in the School.
On the sporting front we made great strides with Rugby, and Sevens Rugby in particular did very well in 2016. We had a number of KZN representatives and I predict that next year will be one of the best in the history of the School. We are putting a lot of effort into Hockey and Cricket and I have no doubt that we will again become a power house in these sports in the near future.
The highlight for me on the cultural side has been the opening of the state of the art Chris Seabrooke Music Centre. This was my dream from early on in my tenure here at the School and I was delighted that it became a reality before I left.
Blackmore House continues to be the “backbone” of the school. We had committed staff involved and we will continue to go from strength to strength.
I also want to thank my staff, and in particular my Management Team and EXCO under the leadership of my Deputies, Mrs Vermaak, Mr Norton and Mr Hellenberg and our Business Manager, Mr Chris Green, for their support and hard work this year.
A large number of our educators went off again at the end of last week to mark the NSC (Grade 12) papers. It is a credit to the school that so many have been identified to mark and for their own personal growth, it is good that they will interact with other educators, from other schools, at this level.
We wrote quite a lot about our 150th celebrations this year but it was a fantastic year and again I want to thank Mr Norton and the organising committee for all their hard work in making it a memorable year.
The fields, pool and gardens are in good condition after the rains we had recently and I want to thank Mr Maree and the ground staff for that. Our new Victor Diatz Maths and Science Building is nearing completion and looks fabulous. The educators and boys are going to enjoy the new addition next year.
A lot still needs to be done, but a lot has happened over this year for me to be confident that we are well on our way to becoming the school we all want DHS to be.
As I mentioned a few times before, a good school is a busy school and a significant number of our boys are involved in various activities over the December Holidays.
This is my final report and I want to say that I am very sad to leave DHS. The School, parents and boys, staff and Old Boys have all crept into my heart and I will never forget what they have done for me. There were ups and downs, but this is a fantastic school and is well on its way to again become one of the best in the country. I want to wish every member of the DHS family safe travels and a blessed Christmas I want to also wish acting Head Master Mr Alan Norton all the best for 2017.
Leon Erasmus
14th Head Master
