Lotus High in Grassy Park is brimming with pride. Once the worst-performing school in the province, with a 32% pass rate in June 2023, the matric class of 2024 has now scored an 83.3% pass rate.

There's no silver bullet in a turn-around strategy for struggling schools, but you can't get anywhere if you ignore the people, and making staff and pupils feel valued has been a winning recipe for success, says Stephen Price, Bergvliet High School’s former principal and current principal of Lotus High School.

“Not everything that I have tried at Lotus has been successful. I failed at times. I thanked my staff for giving me the grace to fail and allowing me the space to change things, but the real story is about these kids. They come to Lotus feeling proud, with a vision and hope now.”

The Diep River resident joined Lotus High in June 2023 for an initial six-month contract, aiming to make as many pupils as possible pass matric.

That December, this first target was achieved with a 65% matric pass rate.

When his stay at the school was extended by 12 months, he says he set more targets: to make quality education visible; to upgrade the facility; to call for community fund-raising, sponsorship and donations; to achieve an 80% matric pass rate.

To give pupils something to be proud of he wrote a school song and changed the “generic uniform of grey pants, black shoes, white shirts, and black jerseys, with no school branding” and made wearing a tie with school branding on it compulsory.

“Every teenager wants to belong to something, to a group. So we started to insist on making wearing a school tie compulsory. It was the cheapest uniform item, branded with a school badge and everyone could afford a tie, even if you had to lay-by it for a few months.

“It gave them a sense of belonging to Lotus High and once they belong, then you can start to motivate and encourage.”

Next up was making quality education visible.

“We started painting classrooms and tiling corridors, putting in sports facilities, and upgraded the staff room. The vision: to tell the kids that they were worth it.”

To encourage the public-private partnership necessary to make this change possible, he turned to the online presence he had cultivated in various southern suburbs Facebook groups during his time as Bergvliet’s principal.

“I told the Lotus story, and said to them, ‘I'm not telling you the story just for fun, I'm telling you because I want you to contribute in any way you can.’

“It was the community, the mother from Rondebosch and Constantia that enabled the vision for Lotus to move forward. I really encourage other principals to understand the power of social media to communicate our stories.”

Donations of textbooks, stationery, sports equipment and office equipment poured in. Lotus High also received R480 000 from corporates throughout the year. One benefactor, who requested anonymity, donated R236 000 which has financed school fees, uniforms and the renovation of the school’s consumer studies kitchen.

Mr Price finishes off as a principal at Lotus at the end of the first term, but he says he will remain a school ambassador, continuing to tell the school’s story, and, in April, he will begin a two-year contract with the School Evaluation Authority.

Riaan Visagie, the deputy chair of the school governing body and a father of a 2025 matriculant, says, this year’s matric results are the fruits of Mr Price’s support.

“It’s through a visionary and equally ambitious mindset that we have seen audacious goals being set and tangible results achieved. I've listened to and seen the heartbeat of Mr Stephen Price and it speaks heavily about giving opportunities to those who may not experience these otherwise.

“All of the upgrades and initiatives costing hundreds of thousands have materialised out of financial aid and sponsorships as a direct result of the personal input and negotiating prowess of Stephen Price. From my point of view, clearly the evidence of a leader consumed with passion, determination and sacrifice.”

The school’s mantra is painted on the school grounds as a daily reminder. Picture: supplied

Lotus High’s class of 2024 at their valedictory breakfast in October. Picture: supplied

The consumer studies kitchen looked dated before a donation from a benefactor. Picture: supplied

The consumer studies kitchen following its revamp. Picture: supplied