Professor Turns Around South Africa's Worst-Performing School

When Jonathan Jansen first walked into Cherry High School, students had their feet on desks, wandered out of class mid-lesson, and one boy was sliding down a drainpipe instead of using the stairs. The chaos wasn't what broke his heart—it was that nobody seemed to notice.

Cherry High had just hit rock bottom. The school recorded a 35.9% pass rate in 2023, the worst in the Western Cape province and a devastating fall from 88% just eight years earlier.

Jansen, a distinguished professor of education, couldn't ignore the crisis. The school sat just a short walk from his childhood home, and despite an overwhelming workload, he called the provincial education department with an offer: he'd volunteer full-time to help turn Cherry around, no payment needed.

Days later, he started work. What he found shocked him: students streaming in late, others loitering outside classrooms, and teachers valiantly trying to teach over constant noise and disruption.

The social scientist in Jansen wanted to understand why systems had failed these working-class children so completely. The teacher in him wanted to fix it immediately.

Over 22 months, Jansen worked alongside teachers in chaotic classrooms, studying what creates dysfunction in struggling schools and, more importantly, how to reverse it. His new book chronicles the journey with characteristic warmth, never blaming students, staff, or parents, but examining how social systems and government policies fail the schools that need support most.

Why This Inspires

Jansen's decision to return to his roots shows that expertise matters most when applied closest to home. Rather than theorizing from a distance, he rolled up his sleeves and stepped into the mess.

His approach focused on understanding before judging. Instead of demanding instant compliance, he studied the interlocking systems that had produced years of decline, building solutions that addressed root causes rather than symptoms.

The work drained every ounce of his energy, but Jansen calls it one of the most fulfilling commitments he's ever made. It transformed him as a person, reset his professional values, and proved that even schools in free fall can be lifted up.

Cherry High's story reminds us that no community is beyond hope when dedicated people show up.