NPI CEO, Israel Noko, with Learners from Phomolong Secondary School.
On April 04th2018, Future Skills held its second annual Gauteng, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) focused Career Day. NPI Governance Consulting supported the initiative by sponsoring 15 learners to attend the event and to learn about the careers options available to the. The event was also aimed at providering learners from economically disadvantaged areas with information that will assist them in making informed career choices. The top ten academic achievers in each school, who have chosen Pure Mathematics as a subject were invited together with their Life Orientation teachers to attend the Career Day. The reason for inviting Life Orientation teachers to the Career Day is to ensure that they are able to share information that they received with the rest of the learners from their schools. NPI CEO, Israel Noko, who participated at the event, said “ we are extremely proud of the work that Future Skills is doing, and will be committed to a long term partnership with such a programme. Companies that financially or non-financially support this initiative can secure their BEE points on their annual BEE scorecard, and the social impact will make a difference.”
Some of the organisations that were represented at the Career Day include the South African Medical Research Council, the Department of Basic Education, Implats, Gauteng City Region Academy and the University of Johannesburg.
The Career Day, which was at no cost to the invited learners and Life Orientation teachers was made possible by the generous support of sponsor companies. NPI Governance Consulting sponsored Phomolong Secondary School learners and teachers to attend the Career Day. The sponsorship included transport from school to the Career Day venue, meals for the day, and a goodie bag to take home. Phomolong Secondary School is situated in Tembisa. Although the school is in an economically disadvantaged area with little resources it continues to produce top performing learners.
In 2017, a learner from Phomolong High School, Prosperity Sithole achieved 6 distinctions in his Matric final exams and is now studying medicine. Prosperity, who was part of Future Skills 2017 Career Day, with his school sponsored by NPI Governance Consulting to attend the event said that he was motivated at the Career Day by presentations made by those in the field of medicine and the information he received helped him in making an informed career choice.
Learners from Phomolong High School were again motivated at Future Skills 2018 Career Day, to strive for the best that they can be both academically and socially as they reach for their goals, “I have friends who completed high school but did not do anything after that. I was really touched when one of the speakers said we should choose friends that speak into my future and that I should run my own race. This made me realise that I need to change my circle of friends,” says Michael Sibande from Phomolong Secondary School.
Thendo Mudae, who is a top learner at Lesiba Secondary School says, “All I want is to maintain my position at the top of my class. Future Skills Career Day has been really helpful because I didn’t know what career to consider after Matric now after hearing about the career possibilities in mining it is field that I will be considering.”
