News of 7 July 2026

KNOCK-ON-WOOD FESTIVAL 2026

The biennial Knock-on-Wood Festival took place at Woodridge College from 11-14 May. This event provided valuable opportunities for our learners to gain experience, receive constructive feedback from adjudicators, and represent the school with pride.

65 performances:    

Bronze 12

Silver 2

Gold 17

Double gold 12

We are proud of all our music learners and staff.                 

BRONZE:               Oyinthanda Mehlo – flute                                    

                              Boledi Chuene – flute                                                           

                              Amilcar Hermans – flute                                      

                              Amahle Makedama - voice

                              Nilaya Pillay - voice

                              Siphosobomi Hadi – vocal duet

                              Lipata Mohale – vocal duet (hand shake – only 1 certificate)

                              Simnini Jafta - clarinet

                              Min’entle Mlambo – clarinet

SILVER:                  Jenna Eaton – flute & bronze for voice and vocal duet

                              Sibusiso Notshe – flute

                              Kumele Jack – voice

                              Iva Funani – voice

                              Minenhle Maisela – voice

                              Sachi Adams – vocal duet

                              Onwaba Ndlaleni – vocal duet (hand shake – only 1 certificate)

                              Nilaya Pillay – vocal duet

                              Aishwarya Ranjith – Saxophone

                             Yolo Jakavula – clarinet

                             Caryn van Heerden – violin duet

                             Lakhiwe Booysen – violin duet (hand shake – only 1 certificate)

                             Unako Nondlazi – violin

                             Lwanda Mvinjelwa – violin & bronze for flute

                            Caitlin de Souza – violin

                           Jessica Eaton – saxophone

                          Victoria Burger – saxophone

GOLD:               Iminathi Malusi – voice & vocal duet

                         Luminathi Gedze – voice & vocal duet

                         Greer Oliviera – piano

                         Abbygail de Lange – piano

                         Caitlin van Heerden – vocal trio

                         Cwenga Williams – vocal trio & silver for voice

                         Likhanye Jam Jam – saxophone

                         Amahle Sinyahla – saxophone

                        Siyasanga Magqwana – saxophone

                       Megan Woolward – piano

                       Lisa Langenhoven – trumpet

                       Erin Keen – piano

                      Olivia Freercks – piano & bronze for clarinet

DOUBLE  GOLD:        Hayley van der Riet – piano & gold for clarinet

                                  Rachel Meyer – piano

                                  Jannah de Wet – piano & silver for violin

                                  Aisha Mxokozeli – vocal duet & silver for voice

                                  Katherine Wilson – vocal duet & gold and silver for voice

Arabella Sponneck – piano & gold for flute

Avethandwa Goboza – voice & silver for clarinet

Asemahle Nomnganga – saxophone & silver for clarinet & medal winner of the Gr 4-6 Woodwind section

Avethandwa Mehlo – euphonium and medal winner of the Gr 4-6 Brass section

String ensemble (Leader: Cailin Louw) – silver

Flute ensemble (Leader: Eden Oliver) – gold

C of Saxes (Leader: Phillipa Stevens) – double gold

Claribelles (Leader: Clarice Pieterse) – double gold

Choir (Leader: Aisha Mxokozeli) – double gold & medal winners of the Choir category

THE HERALD YOUTH DAY SUPPLEMENT

The following learners were selected to appear in The Herald Youth Day supplement:

Art

Jordyn Kapp, Grade 11

Shiloh van Eerden, Grade 12

Kristen Botha, Grade 12

Emily Handley, Grade 12

Hannah Andrews, Grade 12

Poetry

Madison Everts, Grade 12

Thashanti Harts, Grade 12

Prize-Winning Entries - Poetry

Emily Ball, Grade 12

Rania Yon, Grade 11

First Runner Up – Art

Emma Jack, Grade 12

Anika Ferreira, Grade 11

Winner: Poetry

Elizabeth de Kock, Grade 11

Winner: Art 

Lilian Krige, Grade 12

Here is a selection of their work:

Escape from reality

By Madison Everts 

I close my eyes,

Its dark, I hear faint noises in the back of my mind,

then a heaviness comes over me,

And it's not the heaviness of a restful mind but rather one filled with agitation.

Not knowing what I'm going to do with my life or who I’m becoming,

So many undecided decisions.

Homework due, tests, orals, projects, assignments, 

And along with a weekend of no physical break but rather a break from reality.

The cold, fresh air of a Saturday morning.

The sound of rugby boots clacking on the concrete, 

Bodies colliding, whistles, shouting, cheering.

An indescribable atmosphere created with the only stress being the numbers on the score board.

My eyes open and I'm staring face-to-face with a stranger I’ve never met.

We shove, argue, and fight,

And just for that moment in time...

Reality is forgotten. 

Our minds are clear from the stress, pressure and noise of school.

We are united through something far greater than the game.

And as the final whistle blows, we return to reality stronger than before,

Not because that heaviness disappeared,

But because for those few minutes on the field,

We remembered who we are beyond it. 

Mommy, what's a polar bear? 

By Elizabeth de Kock

I stare into her big, curious eyes
a picture held up for me.
I cough into my sleeve
with words I don't trust 

The thought too much to bear
"They were white and fluffy,
big and so ambitious -
Now only fictitious" 

"But why aren't they here?"
The sky is grey
The ground choking on trash
The trees burnt to ash 
 

The Native Tree

By Emily Ball

You would think that a tree could not think for itself 

or that a person “lesser than” could not form a thought in their head,

but a tree like myself, and a person such as them,

can only think, and not speak, of how you do harm us till we’ve bled. 

You have made me into shelter, my corpse becomes your home. 

They have sheltered you on their land, yet you claim it is now yours. 

You demolish all that is in your path, like a stampede of wild things,

because you do not think of turning when you tread upon ours. 

Is my bark too dark for your liking?

Is their skin not as fare as you’d bare?

Shall you shred my flesh for your decrees

that bar them from having a share?

My home is torn down to build your own

where you abuse and mistreat those with the same blood. 

You’d rather exist far out in my forest, far from your recreated home,

than amongst others whom you would not recognise in your mirror. 

Tell me, do you enjoy the oxygen that I give?

Do you not relish in their many traditions?

Do you not pluck the many fruits that I have nurtured?

Do you not force them into submission?

I have watched for years, wrinkles not yet shown, as they worshiped our roots,

as they respected and loved all things. 

I have watched, wrinkled and worn, as you came on your ships,

as you burned and killed all things. 

My branches do not differ

from the strength of those that you claim. 

The first to break the soil of the land

should not be broken just the same. 

One day you shall meet a fate

that sprouts only from revenge. 

Beware, or you next shall suffer. 

Our homeland we shall avenge. 

Because of Us

By Thashanti Harts

They tell us youth is meant for dreaming,
for laughter and late-night drives,
for finding pieces of ourselves
inside other people’s eyes

But nobody really talks about how deeply young people love 
how love at this age never feels ordinary,
it stays with us almost like a memory

They say teenage love is temporary,
as if youth makes what we feel less real

It’s staying awake over messages left unanswered,
replaying moments in your head,
and finding comfort in music when nothing else is said

Sometimes it’s soft, sometimes it hurts,
but most times it teaches us things
no one should have to learn 

And even when you think you’ve let it go,
it still moves through you quietly, like the tide that won’t let go 
like Dory and Nemo, always drawn back to what they know

My dream about you was never just a song 
it became a feeling I did not know how to name,
and maybe that is the strange thing about growing up.
People enter your life so quickly,
yet leave traces that never really fade.

Maybe youth is not just about exams, careers,
or figuring out the future,
but also about learning how to love,
how to lose,
and how to keep going

Because youth ends, people leave your life quietly,
but you don’t move on, you just move forward....

100%

By Rania Yon

Perfectly round letters

turn crooked,

beginning to slur

and suffer.

Bleeding dry—

those highlighters and pens.

Gone, the brightest yellow,

My perfect blue.

Temporary numbers,

words and cues

building houses upon my brain

out of sticks and glue.

And then comes the waves

of positive red

or, maybe,

definitive dread.

EASTERN CAPE JUNIOR WIND ORCHESTRA AND EASTERN CAPE JUNIOR STRING ORCHESTRA

At the end of term one, some of our music learners took part in the Eastern Cape junior Wind Orchestra and Eastern Cape junior String Orchestra courses. A selected few musicians were included into this course and we congratulate them for being proud ambassadors of our Music department. We also would like to commend Ms van Vledder for being selected as the tutor for the Saxophone section of the orchestra. The course ended off with a public concert on the Sunday. 

Likhanye Jam Jam       Eastern Cape junior Wind Orchestra

Sibusiso Notshe          Eastern Cape junior Wind Orchestra

Zara Simons                  Eastern Cape junior String Orchestra

Caryn van Heerden    Eastern Cape junior String Orchestra

Lakhiwe Booysen        Eastern Cape junior String Orchestra

CONCERTO FESTIVAL WITH THE EASTERN CAPE PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA 

On 21 June, the ECPO celebrated Youth Month with a spectacular Youth Concerto Festival for gifted young soloists at the Feather Market Centre. Asemahle Nomnganga’s performance on the saxophone was captivating and exquisitely beautiful and Olivia Freercks wowed the audience with her technical skills on the clarinet. What an incredible opportunity it has been for both girls to perform with the orchestra. An afternoon to remember!

OLD GIRLS’ REUNION

Half a century ago, a group of matric girls celebrated their Valedictory. This month, nearly 400 of them returned to mark a very special milestone.

 It was 1976. A group of young women walked out of the doors of Collegiate Girls’ High School for the last time as pupils, led by the skirling of bagpipes into the next chapter of their lives.

Fifty years later, those same women walked back in, led by the very same sound.

Close to 400 Old Girls made their way back to school this week for the reunion, travelling from near and far to be there.

Among them was Sue Leppan, who flew in all the way from Sydney, Australia. In the comments section of a recent post shared by the school, she left a rare and treasured photograph of the Class of 1976 on their valedictory day (see above).

A special moment of the 50-year reunion came at the front doors of the school, where the returning class was led inside just as they had been half a century before, by a piper.

Merrill Wicht (née Cooper) had been a piper in the Port Elizabeth Ladies Pipe Band back in 1976, leading her fellow matrics to their valedictory. This week, now a member of the Nelson Mandela Pipes and Drums in Cape Town, she returned to do it again.

https://www.goodthingsguy.com/old-girls-50-year-reunion-collegiate-girls/

SA U17 AND U18 HOCKEY TEAM 

SA 18A - Kerrin Gillies (midfielder of the tournament)

SA 18B - Ayanda Klaas and Eden Oliver

SA 17A - Emihle Mazomba

Michael Abrahams, our Collegiate 1st team coach, is also the SA u17 boys assistant coach.

We are incredibly proud!

INTER-HOUSE WINTER SPORTS WEEK

After the June Examinations our girls took to the sports fields for some spirited competition during the various Inter-House Competitions.

Congratulations to all our athletes! 

67 BLANKETS CAMPAIGN

More than 110 years ago our school sent clothing and knitted garments for the relief of poor and destitute families during the war. Our sisters of old received thE certificate as acknowledgement more than a century ago. To this day, the tradition of knitting continues, as we are knitting squares to make blankets for less fortunate families as part of Nelson Mandela Day. All contributions are welcome. Facta Non Verba -Deeds Not Words.

TOP 12 – HOCKEY

We have received our formal invitation to the Top 12 Hockey Tournament and we celebrate the ethos, hard work, spirit, camaraderie, talent, grit and determination of this team and their coaching staff. We will be glued to our screens from 7-10 August 2026 to support our girls. Now, the hard work continues and we cannot wait to play in the blue and the white and the navy, proudly sponsored by MOLO.

CHOIR

In May, the Choir participated in the regional AKTV-Applous 2026. Our Choir received a gold award with brilliant feedback for the Merit Girls Choir section. They sang an original Afrikaans song composed by a South African composer with the title: My ma in See majeur. We are proud and excited to announce that our Collegiate Girls' High School Choir has been selected to participate in the Final round of the national ATKV Applous 2026 Choir Competition. We are one of four girls' choirs chosen nationally, in the Merit Category. 

The competition will be held from July 29th to August 1st at the Cape Town City Hall. This is a tremendous honour, and we extend our heartfelt congratulations to our choir and Mrs Gustel Agenbag for this remarkable achievement. 

We wish our choir the very best and look forward to celebrating their success

PROVINCIAL REPRESENTATION

We are proud to announce that our school boasts Eastern Province Hockey Representatives in the following teams:

• U14A
• U14B
• U16A
• U16B
• U18A
• U18B 

AQUATICS OPEN WATER CHAMPIONSHIPS

Congratulations to Sienna Gouws on her selection to participate in the African Aquatics Open Water Swimming Championships in Mauritius in June.

We are proud of Jemmah Roman on winning a Gold medal in the 200m Butterfly at the African Swimming Championships in Algeria.

SQUASH

A huge congratulations to the following players on their Eastern Province Squash selections:

Nuha Packery – U17A, Faatima Packery, Chloé Loyson – U15A, Lily Mao- Cheia – U15B

Ella Grobler – Non-travelling reserve

Your hard work, commitment, and passion for the game continue to inspire those around you.

We would also like to congratulate our captain, Madison Everts, on achieving her 50th cap for the First Team — an incredible milestone and a true testament to her dedication, leadership, and consistency over the years.

HOCKEY AND NETBALL VERSUS DSG

Hockey vs DSG: Our Hockey Term Two programme drew to a close today against DSG in a spectacular fashion. With Kate and Jade both celebrating their 100 caps for the first team and our girls playing some stellar hockey. The results are as follow:

14C lost 0-9

14B lost 1-5

14A won 3-0

16D drew 1-1

16C lost 0-4

16B drew 1-1

16A won 3-0

4ths lost 2-3

3rds lost 2-3

2nds lost 0-2

1sts won 5-1

Well done to our girls and coaches.

Netball: Term Two netball ended on a high note with our derby against DSG in Makhanda. We are proud of a successful term, and we cannot wait to continue next term. The results of today are as follow:

1st won 32-28

2nd lost 10-12

3rd lost 13-14

4th lost 10-13

16A won 27-10

16B won 10-9

16C won 12-3

15A lost 12-16

15B won 10-6

15C lost 1-14

15D won 13-9

14A won 17-11

14B won 12-10

14C won 18-7

14D lost 6-8

14E lost 1-16

14F won 6-4

HOCKEY AND NETBALL AGAINST KINGWOOD

Our Hockey teams travelled to Makhanda for our derby againts Kingswood. The results are as follow:

U14B 0-2 loss

U14A 1-0 win

U16D 6-0 win

U16C 1-1 draw

U16B 4-0 win

U16A 4-1 win

3rds 0-1 loss

2nds 3-0 win

1sts 7-0 win

We are proud of our girls!

We want to congratulate our Netball Teams who travelled to Kingswood for an afternoon of quality Netball. The results are as follows:

1st won 25-23

2nd lost 6-11

3rd lost 12-13

4th lost 13-17

5th won 7-2

16A won 20-19

16B drew 9-9

16C won 17-4

16D won 13-5

15A won 16-13

15B won 16-1

15C won 16-0

15D won 11-0

14A won 14-11

14B drew 9-9

14C won 10-1

14D won 19-0

NETBALL AGAINST NICO MALAN

We welcomed our friends from Humansdorp as our Netball Teams took on Nico Malan in May. We would like to thank all our supporters next the courts. 

Results of the day:

14A lost 10-16

14B lost 11-23

14C lost 13-19

14D won 11-4

15A lost 12-14

15B lost 8-16

15C lost 4-23

15D lost 3-14

16A won 17-11

16B lost 8-9

16C lost 14-15

1st won 24-23

2nd lost 12-13

3rd won 13-8

4th lost 9-14

HOCKEY AGAINST OUTENIQUA

Outeniqua Hockey is always a pleasure to host, and what an evening of beautiful hockey it was. 

U14A 2-1 win

U16B 3-1 win

U16A 3-0 win

2nds 3-0 win 

1sts 7-0 win

QUEEN VICTORIA HOUSE DAY

Queen Victoria House Day is where we celebrate the house and the achievements of our learners in Sport and Culture. We were privileged to have Mrs Lucia Mtshake, a profound speaker who adressed the audience with a speech on kindess, care and compassion.

ENVIRONMENTAL OUTING

What a way to spend a Saturday: Our Environmental group and friends went to Van Stadens Wild Flower Reserve and took a hike through the Forest Trail. Nothing beats connection with nature after the exams!

SISTER VISIT

On Friday 19 June , we welcomed the Grade 6 learners from Collegiate Junior to spend a day with their big sister school. They spent an enjoyable day participating in various lessons, including interactive Science experiments; baking in Consumer Studies; drawing ; learning some French and isiXhosa as well as being part of a Drama and Music lesson . Another highlight was playing soccer and dodge ball with the Sports Department. We are looking forward to them joining the high school family.

BELGOTEXT SPORT GIRLS HOCKEY CHALLENGE

Hoërskool Waterkloof has won the 2026 Belgotex Sport Girls Hockey Challenge title with a 1-0 victory over Collegiate Girls’ High School.

Playing at the Western Province Cricket Club in Newlands in May, Waterkloof secured the win by a late goal from Elaine Haycock in a tightly contested final. The decisive moment came in the 57th minute of a match that appeared destined for a penalty shootout.

Collegiate, known for their tactical discipline, restricted Waterkloof’s attacking freedom for much of the encounter.

Collegiate coach Michael Abrahams said his team had relied on structure and cohesion throughout the tournament.

“We made sure that we stuck to our processes and principles. We also made sure that we were always team-oriented and just supporting one another,” he said.

Despite falling short in the final, Collegiate reinforced their status as one of the top schoolgirl hockey teams in South Africa this season.

Their campaign included notable wins over Rhenish, Oranje Girls High school, and Diocesan School for Girls (DSG) Makhanda, following a strong showing at the National All Girls Festival earlier in the year.

https://insideeducation.co.za/waterkloof-edge-collegiate-to-claim-belgotex-girls-hockey-title/

Our U16A Hockey team participated in the Belegotex Girls Challenge in Cape Town. 

1-4 loss against Our Lady of Fatima

3-0 win against St Marys Waverley 

0-4 loss against Herschel

3-0 win against Durbanville

0-0 against St Cyprians 3-4 loss in shoot outs to end 14th out of 24 teams. We are proud of their achievements

The U14A travelled up to Cape Town to compete in the Belgotex Sport Tournament. The team learnt some valuable lessons and improved each and every game, ending on a high.

Results are:

Collegiate vs Durbanville 0-3

Collegiate vs Parel Vallei 1-2

Collegiate vs Reddam Constantia 3-6

Collegiate vs Fairmont 4-1

Collegiate vs York 2-0

SOUTH AFRICAN LIFESAVING WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

We are pleased to announce that Sienna Gous has been selected to represent the South African Lifesaving Team to take part in the Lifesaving World Championships to be held from 2 - 6 December 2026 in Gqeberha.

LITERARY FESTIVAL WINNERS

We celebrated our annual Literary Festival in April with a theme of preserving our world through the power of words, heritage and nature. In May we handed out the prizes:

Book Character Dress up Day 

Most original/creative interpretation of a character (clever /unexpectedly appropriate portrayal): Mario Cart: Iviwe Nonganga (Gr12), Ayola Mnqokoyi (Gr8) and Onwaba Ndlaleni (Gr8) 

Best dressed duo (Old/New pot characters coordinated based on chosen story): Bananas in Pajamas : Madison Everts (Gr12) and Arabella Sponnick (Gr8) 

Best dressed Old Pot: Candlestick from Beauty and the Beast: Vanydie Ntumbu 

Best Dressed New Pot: The Beast from Beauty and the Beast: Caryn van Heerden

We would like to congratulate the star readers and the fundraising champions. 

The class who raised the most money in each grade received a civvies day on 23 June 

• Grade 8 – A1
• Grade 9 – B4
• Grade 10 – C5
• Grade 11 – D2
• Grade 12 – E2

A Prize for the top fundraiser in each grade:

• Grade 8 – Siphosobomi Hadi
• Grade 9 – Kiara Mugwagwa
• Grade 10 – Amilcar Hermans
• Grade 11 – Michaela McKerr
• Grade 12 – Emily Ball (black bag with ipad bag inside)

A Prize for the learner in each grade who read the most during Readathon: 

• Grade 8 – Skylar Swartz
• Grade 9 –  Leah Terblanche
• Grade 10 – Lisa Langenhoven
• Grade 11 – Elizabeth de Kock
• Grade 12 – Peyton Brooks (laptop bag with items inside)

We would like to thank the sponsors of these prizes: Fogarty’s Book Store, Baywest Mall, Mrs Karen McKerr of Go Brand Marketing and Super Value Stores. 

The amount raised: R 74 729.36.                                                   

 These sponsors donated prizes for Readathon and Book Character Day prizes: Cold Storage Group (Supa Value Foods) Kariega, Fogarty’s Bookshop, Baywest Mall, Two Pairs Deli and Karen Mc Kerr of Go Brand Marketing.

Social Media Advice for Parents

Best resources to learn about settings, apps, websites and games: Common Sense Media, Bark, Protect, Young Eye

Best tracking app – Life360

Best monitoring app – Bark (Promo Code EMMABARK)

Best free parental control – Google Family Link

Remember – the best line of defence against all online harms is active, involved, engaged, aware parents

Rule of thumb: The billboard test - if you wouldn’t put the content on a huge billboard next to your name, your face and your school’s name don’t let it exist ANYWHERE in digital format. 

Have a Smartphone contract with your child – download a free one here: https://www.thedigitallawco.com/parents/smartphone-contract-teenagers/

ALL devices out of the bedroom at a fixed time every night

Agree on a time budget with your children. Set time limits on their devices.

Set up some ground rules for the sharing of personal information. All social media accounts must be private. Teach your children to presume everyone they meet online is dodgy until proven otherwise. Do a reverse Google Image search (or use a website like Tin Eye) if you suspect that someone you meet online is not who they say they are. Catfishing is real! Teach your children the joy of blocking people and the power of a short, sharp NO! No need to give reasons or excuses. No means NO! If your child is being cyberbullied – teach them to BET - 1) Block (don’t report, if you report the chat gets deleted) 2) Evidence and 3) Tell an adult.

Consider your child’s privacy when posting photos of them. No naked, embarrassing, shaming content. If your children are old enough, ask them if they are happy with you posting pics of them.

Model good phone behaviour. Check your own use and addiction!

Device-free times and locations at home.

Device-free meals.

Remember the 6 P’s – If you wouldn’t want the content to be seen by any of the 6P’s, don’t let it exist in digital format.

· Police

· Parents

· Potential university/employer/scholarship provider/sponsor

· Pedophile or Predator

· Principal

· Phisher

The age of full criminal capacity is 14 but can be as young as 12. Crimes committed by teenagers on their phones include crimen injuria (infringement of dignity eg. cyberbullying, doxxing, image-based violence, racism etc), hate speech, fraud, threats, incitement, sexting, sexual exploitation, grooming, exposure of pornography to a minor, hacking, password abuse, non-consensual distribution of private/sexual/images or films, extortion

 Acknowledgement: The Digital Law Company