The successes of the Strength of St Mark's College in their various endeavours and the recognition the school received in different platforms bear testament to these.
Who can forget that for two consecutive years, 1997 and 1998, St Mark's College was rated among the top 100 effective schools in a report published by the Sunday Times! The honorary doctorate conferred to our founding principal in 1997 served as affirmation of the respect the school commanded both in South Africa and abroad.
As people who love St Mark's College and appreciate what it has done to their personal lives over the years, we are duty-bound to ensure that the next forty years are made more glorious. Not doing so will be to fail South Africa!
In pondering about the current situation at the school and the kind of future we desire for the institution, I am reminded of these words by Peter Anderson, "We are building a school that will last for hundreds of years because it is based on principles that will stand the test of time." The last two decades have certainly tested our endurance and the strength of our foundation. The school could have closed its door granted the many setbacks it faced for many years, but it is the tireless efforts of the likes Peter Anderson that ensured that we live to face another day and its challenges. We should seize this opportunity to rebuild this wonderful brand into a world class African school.
The Council has, after extensive consultations, resolved to reposition our institution. To this end, we have decided to turn St Mark's College into a School of Mining, Engineering and ICT. We would like the school to play a far bigger and meaningful role in the socio-economic development of the region.
A school of this nature is so needed in the Sekhukhune district, bearing in mind that mining is said to be essential to the local and national economy. We believe this move is both necessary and timely. Our president affirmed this viewpoint during his presidential imbizo held in the Burgersfort area on 14 July 2023. He reiterated that there is a need to have mining schools in the district given the mining activities.