HILLCREST High School is proud to share their SPAR star achiever this month, the multi-talented Grade 11 learner, Dani Jansen van Rensburg.
Along with sporting, service, academic and leadership achievements, having been elected on to the school RCL (representative council of learners), Dani was also selected to represent South Africa at the 38th Beijing Youth Science Creation Competition event, where she scooped second prize, an outstanding achievement. There are delegates from all over the world at this competition.
After the school science expo, Dani was selected to go to the Eskom Expo for Young Scientists regional round and from there went through to the nationals, held in Johannesburg, where she was short-listed for international selection and in November last year presented her project to a panel of 12 judges from across SA. After three nail-biting weeks, Dani received an e-mail notifying her that she had been selected to represent South Africa in Beijing.
The inspiration for Dani’s project came from a book called April Fool’s Day by Bryce Courtenay, a very sad, but true story about the life and death of his son, who contracted HIV after receiving an infected blood transfusion.
“It made me think about how many people are at risk when receiving blood and about how such tragedies could be prevented.” said Dani. Dani hopes to eventually work in the computer science field.
“Hillcrest High School has helped me to develop my learning of science. Every year since Grade 8, my teachers have encouraged me to participate in the science expo and have mentored me by questioning my ideas and suggesting upgrades to the many science projects I have done. I was excited about going to Beijing, as it was an opportunity for me to meet learners from all over the world and to exchange ideas that can help make the world a better and safer place to live in.” added Dani.
Her science teacher, Miss Natasha Badenhorst said: “Teaching science is such a fulfilling job, because of the joy that comes with seeing a learner finally grasp a challenging concept. I have been fortunate to teach many exceptionally gifted students over the past 10 years. Dani is most certainly one of them, she combines her natural ability with dedication whenever she tackles a project. I am extremely proud that Dani’s work ethic and ingenuity have resulted in her progressing to this level.”
Do you want to receive alerts regarding this and other Highway community news via WhatsApp? Send us a WhatsApp message (not an sms) with your name and surname (ONLY) to 060 532 5409.
You can also join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
PLEASE NOTE: If you have signed up for our news alerts you need to save the Highway Mail WhatsApp number as a contact to your phone, otherwise you will not receive our alerts
