The Gordon Institute of Business Science (Gibs) in Illovo has handed over R20 000 worth of school jerseys to pupils from Ekukhanyisweni and Ikage primary schools in Alexandra.
Gibs believes that in order to continue making a meaningful contribution to business education in South Africa, there has to be development from the bottom up. The institute encourages its staff and students to get involved in supporting basic education institutions, especially in disadvantaged areas.
The school jersey drive is just one of the staff initiatives planned for this year.
With temperatures plummeting, the institute staff unanimously agreed on collecting funds for school jerseys. The recipients of the jerseys were hand-picked by the selected primary schools as being most in need because of their family situations, with learners either coming from child-headed households or having unemployed parents.
Speaking about the initiative, Kate Robertson, HR consultant at Gibs said, “In addition to keeping the children warm this winter, this donation will have a great impact on the academic experience of these pupils; it will allow them to feel they are part of the learning environment in their schools, [help them] focus on their class work and avoid the distractions and friction that can arise when they assess the differences in economic circumstances between themselves and their classmates.”
