Retiring with a legacy
Crawford Int’l schools–Profile & news feature
Retiring with a legacy:
Jenny Coetzee, the founding MD (Managing Director) of Crawford International School in Kenya has now formally retired after seven years of hard work and attaining the formal retirement age. She has retired to return to her home in South Africa in order to be with her family including her only son, daughter-in-law and four year old granddaughter. She says she has not lived in her house in South Africa for many years and shall now be glad to settle in and be free to closely relate with the family.
Jenny was born to an Italian father and an Afrikaans mother. “My father was captured at the Battle of Tubrook and then evacuated to South Africa as a prisoner of the 2nd World War where he became a labourer on a farm. Later, he met my mother, a South African who was Afrikaans and they got married. A catholic from birth, my father changed his faith to Protestant in order to be with my mother. The parents agreed that the children would officially speak English and follow the protestant faith,” recalls Jenny in an exclusive interview with the writer. With time, the father learnt Zulu and then went to work in the construction industry. The family was blessed with children who were raised to speak Italian, Zulu, English and Afrikaans languages.
“While my father was very loving & caring, my mother was the disciplinarian, indeed the discipline master of the home and also a very hard working person. My interest in teaching manifested very early in life and at three years I began teaching our dogs when my first born brother (seven years old then) left me alone when he joined school,” explains Jenny. “I also loved school and felt lonely so my mother asked the School Head where my brother had been enrolled to admit me and I then started schooling at four and a half years. My desire to teach never wavered. I proceeded well with my studies and even qualified to join University of KwaZulu Natal in South Africa, commonly referred to as a place on the hill by many,” adds Jenny.
She remembers that the family would once in a while visit her dad’s motherland (Italy) but would never stay long. “My father was more South African than Italian and I guess he knew that his Italian Society, which was very patriarchal, would possibly oppose one of their daughters studying up to university,” Jenny explains.
Married to Marcel Coetzee, a gentleman who has taken early retirement thrice from his work in order to support Jenny in her career progression journey (including travelling to Kenya to take up role as the founding MD of the Crawford International School in Tatu City), Jenny is very experienced and has a demonstrated history of working in the education management industry.
Further, she is skilled in Strategic Planning, Public Speaking and Mentoring. She is a strong business development professional with a 1977-1979 Bachelor of Arts (B.A. in languages—Zulu & Afrikaans; Psychology and Biology). She earned a Government Education Grant that enabled her to advance in English and Afrikaans teaching and thus left biology teaching. During her career progression (between 2007 & 2008), she was a part time student and only went to University lectures when schools were on holiday recess. “I was in the same university with my son who graduated with an Honours Degree. I was pursuing my Honors in Education (BED), Education Management, Policy and Law. As a distance education student for two years, I ended up as top distant-learning student in Africa and even earned a scholarship which I believe is still valid and pending,” Jenny recalls. Prior to joining University, Jenny had, in 1976, schooled at the Grosvenor Girls’High School in South Africa.
Her first teaching position was at an all-boys school where she was appointed as Subject Head and Head of Department for the junior boys, and where she adopted a very tough leadership style to establish herself in a male dominated industry. After four years, she applied to become a Deputy Principal at a girls’ school and later even assumed the position of Principal at her former school, Grosvenor Girls’High School. Jenny then joined private education as a Deputy Principal at a Crawford School in South Africa. “Graham Crawford the founder of Crawford School approached me as they were opening their 4th school in 1999 at La Lucia, Durban and I was the Deputy Principal in charge of Academics at the school,” she recalls. “My son also joined the school and was gifted in music and I knew his talent would be recognized and nurtured. I become the Principal in 2010 to 2015,” Jenny remembers. She said she struggled to get used to moving from a middle-class to an affluent area where the Crawford School was located. She admired and liked the top academic performance seen in the school where majority of the students always scored 4 straight A’s out of seven. “This was an amazing school,” she recalls.
Between 2015 & 2016, she was approached by Advtech Schools Management and invited to become a General Manager (GM) and she took up the role. During the same period, she attended an international education conference in Mauritius where she met Principals from all over Africa. Upon her return to South Africa, she made a request for the Group to consider giving her a role when launching schools in other parts of Africa and as destiny would have it, the opening of Crawford International School in Kenya was mooted and her request was granted.
“My husband has been super-supportive and took early retirement from his then job in August 2017 to support me as I took my Crawford International School job in Kenya. Jenny started working on the project in September 2017 and the couple then relocated to Kenya in January 2018 and started working on the project. Marcel was appointed as Operations Manager. “We worked diligently on the project focusing on issues such as the School’s physical structures, marketing, enrolment, recruitment of teachers and curriculum and from January 2018, we worked from an office at the Fairview Hotel, Milimani, in Nairobi,” recalls Jenny.
“By September of the same year, the Crawford International School main buildings at Tatu City were completed and the school opened. I was determined despite the fact that some parents were worried that learning wouldn’t happen seeing that the school wasn’t fully furnished with desks and other necessities. We had hired some staff in July of the same year and we got three expatriates in August and by September, our staffing component were 40 in number,” Jenny remembers. The school progressed with ups and downs including the Covid-19 shutdown and transitioning to online learning. “We’ve progressed very well and now have cordial relations with our pupils, students and parents,” Jenny affirms.
Personal experiences and lessons at the school: The school is guided by the Crawford culture which emphasizes that each child is a Masterpiece. “Here, each child is a central focus and we treat each individually. We provide triangular support where the apex of the triangle is the learner who is supported by the parent and the school at the base of the triangle,” Jenny expounds. Jenny’s lesson is that most teachers in Kenya and perhaps in the whole of Africa are not trained to deal well with parents. Teacher training in the country does not seem to instil proper confidence in teachers and there is therefore need for instilling of confidence in teacher-training education. Consequently, the school has equipped its teachers with confidence and skills that help them to relate well with parents for harmony. “The school has an ‘open door policy’. Parents can come to my office directly for any issues and then I involve the teachers if necessary,” she expounds, but generally the class or subject teacher will directly assist the parent.
At the school, clear communications channels are in place and there is a Parents-Teacher Association (PTA) which is very helpful and has facilitated in the school’s growth. “From my experience, some schools lack openness and transparency for fear of reputational damage if some truths are told. Here, we urge both parents and learners to listen to us and we also talk to them openly respecting their right to know what is happening in the school. We talk frankly and there’s no room for rumours and we’ve seen good discipline in the learners,” expounds Jenny. Jenny explains that staff members often have good ideas which are often ignored by school administrators. Yet when staff members’ ideas are listened to and adopted they feel valued. “At the school, we don’t like being complacent and we’re ever keen to aim higher,” explains Jenny.
“We get good ideas from our staff members and we encourage leadership and initiatives from them. We also listen to learners’ ideas seeing that a school is a very dynamic ecosystem,” Jenny reveals. The children present their ideas & proposals in their Council which the school management later questions and probes. For instance, there was a 2023 Charity Dinner proposal by year 11 students which was held the school hall. The students managed the entire process with the assistance of some teachers and it was a huge success. Due to this encouragement, the children become innovative and present credible ideas such as the ‘Game Jam’ and a merit reward system that was adopted by the school.
“I personally don’t entertain corruption at all and resists all innuendos that can lead to the vice,” Jenny affirms. She is a strong believer in giving to Caesar what belongs to Caesar as the Christians Holy Bible instructs.
Good teachers, good administrators: Good teachers must love learning, instructions and also love children. According to Jenny, teachers and administrators are gears in big machine and must be enthusiastic and professional. They must be able to meet deadlines, work well while respecting others, and be abreast with and in tune in with the institution’s culture. “When we hire teachers, they must embrace our culture and do it well. We don’t tolerate non-professionalism and our teachers must be team players who are also ready to go the extra mile. Apart from being specialists in their areas, they must also be positive change agents and be prepared to change with time,” Jenny observes.
On the other hand, administrators must be alert on the institutions’ culture and be development minded and conscious always looking out for chances of improving their institutions. “The administration must never become complacent and must consciously chart new and better directions for their institutions. They must also be in touch with the students under them as they learn from them as well and from the students’ alumni when possible,” she adds. She says that teachers are role models who must have self-knowledge in order to guide children in the best ways. She urges male teachers who often do not seem keen on self-knowledge and awareness, as contrasted to female counterparts, to proactively seek self-awareness. “Teaching should be the first choice career for teachers,” she emphasizes.
Is the current Competency Based Curriculum (CBC) in Kenya well understood? Jenny says the country is going in the right direction with CBC especially given its emphasis on the development of skills more than content cramming. “In the near future, education will rely a lot on artificial intelligence (AI) and acquiring the practical skills of communication, collaboration, critical thinking, analytical thinking will help children in knowing how to access and manipulate knowledge. The use and application of technology by the youth in Kenya and Africa is very high and continuing to give them practical skills is preparing them for the challenges of the 21st century,” she observes. She also appreciates that the CBC is instilling proper ethics that will produce responsible citizens.
Jenny’s legacy at Crawford International School– shall it hold?: “I’m leaving a very strong teaching and learning, ethical and disciplined culture at Crawford and I’m confident that Amanda Birkenstock who takes over is competent and able to sustain the school and take it forward to an even brighter future,” affirms Jenny. She reveals that she has known and worked with Amanda at various management teams during her years at the Crawford and government schools since 1993.
“Amanda was in my Crawford team in South Africa and I’m happy she’s in Kenya now since she had always wanted to come to this lovely country with her children who have also schooled at Crawford Schools. She has always been my right-hand person and a pillar of strength. She has also assisted the school a lot during the moments I’ve been away from the school. She also understands the school’s mission and vision very well. My exit and her assumption of office will be a seamless transition and I’m delighted that my exit has been very well planned by Advtech Management,” affirms Jenny. Amanda and the current management team are steadfast in their mission to continue to grow the Crawford International Schools in Kenya. The construction of new buildings to extend the Tatu City Campus will commence in the near future.
Future plans & hobbies: Jenny confesses that she is very keen about mentoring. “I would love to be in leadership mentoring and assist Schools and other learning institutions to perform better on consultancy basis.
“I may also write a book on my experiences and lessons in the teaching field,” Jenny reveals but also emphasizes her keenness and interest to remain in endeavours that promote professionalism of teaching as an important profession in the world. “I’m keen to remain close to this profession and especially to pass on knowledge,” she adds revealing that she was involved in the end of June 2024 International Global Peace Conferences in Nairobi.
Jenny also likes spending time with her husband—her biggest supporter, son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter; her son is a Chartered Accountant and daughter-in-law a Civil Engineer all who need her guidance and support. Jenny also loves reading all subjects, including comedy, and often reads 3 to 4 book simultaneously at any given time. “I like reading novels even those based on comedy/nonsense. I read historical books; currently I am reading on Russian history. I also listen to audio-books,” she adds. She also loves travelling and it is a hobby that she will pick up now that she will have some more free time. Jenny also loves craft work including sewing and embroidery & hosting her visitors.
She also likes going to watch movies including documentaries that make her think deeply on life. “I would wish to do movies critique for some publications,” she adds. Her other extra hobbies include visiting arts exhibitions, making art– collages & painting, photography and public speaking.
Jenny message to citizens everywhere: “Always be open to new ideas and never stop learning. Have a growth mind-set and acknowledge that change remains the only constant in life. Be courageous and speak out especially where things are going wrong,” Jenny says. She has enjoyed living Kenya, a very beautiful country. “Kenyans are very kind, friendly and a welcoming people. Personally, I can get emotional at times but I find most Kenyans calm, humble and open to visitors,” appreciates Jenny in conclusion. {Ends, Fred Ndungu, SME Business magazine}
