BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Werner Cloete
(CEO of Calling Education)
Werner Cloete
Werner holds a BSc(Ed) and BTh(Hons). He taught in the UK and at Paul Roos Gymnasium (where he matriculated as headboy in 1999). He served as head of character development and is a conference and staff development speaker on topics such as parental engagement, teacher motivation, positive discipline and value-driven schools. He is also the author of a motivational book for teachers.
Dr Philip Geldenhuys
Dr Philip Geldenhuys
Philip holds a BA, MA and PhD in Social Development. His research focused on school dropout amongst boys in low-income communities. Philip was involved with the establishment, and served as CEO, of a non-profit organisation, Community Keepers. He co-founded Triga Ventures in 2018, an accelerator programme for Christian businesses and non-profit organisations. While CEO of Triga Ventures, he continues to play an active part as adviser to Calling Education.
Willem Meyer
Willem Meyer
Willem was part of the PSG Group Private Equity team that built Zeder Investments. He was seconded to be CEO of Chayton Africa, a farming enterprise. He moved to Massachusetts where he helped start the African Agribusiness Knowledge and Innovation Leadership Initiative in collaboration with faculty and students of MIT and Harvard. He started Campitor Investments, focusing on an agribusiness value chain in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Pierre Malan
Pierre Malan
Pierre is the co-founder and majority shareholder of Acorn Private Equity. He is a qualified chartered accountant and has extensive experience in private equity in Southern Africa. He sits on a number of for profit and not for profit companies’ boards with serving God and others as a personal passion.
PATRONS
Prof John Volmink
Prof John Volmink
Professor Volmink holds a BSc, a BSc (Hons), a Masters and PhD in Mathematics Education. He was Director of the Centre for Advancement of Science and Mathematics Education and Pro-Vice Chancellor of the UKZN. He holds the position of Extraordinary Professor at NWU. He serves as chairperson of Umalusi. He was CEO of the National Education Evaluation and Development Unit. He is the Chairperson of MIET Africa and provides leadership on boards of several non-governmental development organizations involved in education, health and community upliftment.
Rev Cassie Carstens
Rev Cassie Carstens
Cassie is the founder of The World Needs a Father, an organisation established in 2011 to address the issue of fatherlessness worldwide. He is a highly sought-after speaker at international events and has trained fathers and leaders in many countries. He is the author of The World Needs a Father, a book that will soon be available in 19 languages.
INFORMAL ADVISERS
Dr Stephen Taylor
Dr Stephen Taylor
Stephen is the Director of Research, Monitoring and Evaluation in the Department of Basic Education. His work includes impact evaluation of education interventions, measuring educational performance and equity in educational outcomes. In 2010 he completed a PhD in economics at the University of Stellenbosch, analysing educational outcomes of poor South African children. He is a Research Associate at the Department of Economics and Stellenbosch University. His involvement at Calling is limited to occasional discussions about academic interventions and national education trends.
Dr Mallory Dwinal
Dr Mallory Dwinal
Mallory Dwinal is the Co-Founder & CEO of Oxford Day Academy, a multicultural social leadership academy serving high school students in East Palo Alto, CA. Mallory graduated summa cum laude from Northwestern University; additionally, she holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, as well as a Ph.D. in Education from Oxford University, which she attended as a U.S. Rhodes Scholar. Mallory was a 2011 Teach for America corps member, serving as a high school Spanish teacher in the Anacostia Ward of Washington, DC. She currently lives with her husband, Chase, in Oakland, CA. Her involvement at Calling centres on the implementation of the Oxford Tutorial Method and the collaboration between Calling Education and Oxford Day Academy.
Dr Sonja Strydom
Dr Sonja Strydom
Dr Sonja Strydom is a knowledgeable educator with extensive work experience that includes all phases from Foundation Phase to Higher Education. She is currently a Senior Adviser at the Centre for Learning Technologies at Stellenbosch University. Sonja is enrolled for her second PhD in Curriculum Studies where she specialises in the role of agency in technology-enhanced curriculum development. She obtained her first PhD in the field of Psychology and after her first teaching position in South Africa, worked in the UK as a lecturer in Psychology at a FE College. She played an important role in helping to develop the thinking around Calling’s integration of technology into teaching strategies.
Mike Darby
Mike Darby
Mike is the founder and CEO of The Social Project that runs a number of technology based education interventions. He was also the founder and director of Waterstone College south of Johannesburg. He was the college director and oversaw the growth of the school to over 1400 learners. He has been involved in a number of other education initiatives and also taught History and Life Orientation. He holds a B. Comm (Law and Economics), a PGCE and a certificate in Theology. His involvement at Calling was initially offering advice on the use of the tablets of School-in-a-Box. Now, he drops in for an occasional visit and giving his input on relevant matters.