Leadership Development Programme for School Principals kicks off in Pretoria

The first workshop of the third annual Leadership Development Programme (LDP) for School Principals kicked-off at the Innovation Hub in Pretoria on Monday, 23 May 2016.

Fifteen principals in the Tshwane South District who were nominated by the Department of Basic Education (DBE) will be attending this exclusive leadership development and skills training programme with eight workshops throughout the year, sponsored by Enterprises University of Pretoria (Pty) Ltd (Enterprises UP).

Aimed at equipping them with the tools and techniques they need to optimise on the strengths of their school teams’ unique capabilities, while also achieving the vision and mission of their schools, the programme ignites a catalytic experience that will transform these principals into drivers of technological and entrepreneurial change.

The delegation of principals was welcomed by Mr Deon Herbst, CEO of Enterprises UP, on the morning of the first workshop with a message of empowerment and championing the process of change.

“If we can empower you as individuals, we empower thousands of other people – your pupils and the community that you actually serve and where you operate in,” Mr Herbst said.

Launched in April 2013 with a group of 14 principals from the district in cooperation with the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), Enterprises UP initiated an introductory workshop in leadership training for school principals that would eventually would become the company’s flagship Corporate Social Investment (CSI) initiative.

Ten of the nominees on the pilot workshop went on to complete the full programme in September 2014, with a second group of 12 principals successfully completing the programme in October 2015.

With its significant impact on the quality and outcomes of professional skills development for school principals in the district over the past three years, the third instalment of the programme in 2016 was again welcomed and commended by the DBE.

Through the experiential learning model that is applied throughout the programme, each principal is guided through on-the-job action planning and problem-solving processes to help them sharpen their awareness of and apply the knowledge that they gain by tackling real-life leadership challenges.

Funded through corporate-to-principal sponsorships, organisations and other CSI sponsors also have the opportunity to invest in the sustainable development of the selected principals. Not only can they spend their leadership development budgets on improving and developing individuals’ professional skills, but they also have the chance to work in conjunction with these principals to effectively lead change at their schools and in their communities.

Mr Herbst left the principals with the challenge to adopt Enterprises UP’s motto while they are engaged in the programme by shifting knowledge to insight, and taking that insight to go out and change their schools and communities for the better.

The LDP for School Principals runs until the end of November 2016 where the delegates who successfully complete the programme will be presented with certificates by the University of Pretoria in recognition of their professional skills development efforts.

Above: Mr Deon Herbst, CEO: Enterprises University of Pretoria, welcomes delegates on the first workshop of the 2016 Leadership Development Programme (LDP) for School Principals in Pretoria.