Victory Park sad to see Principal Baker go

King David High School Victory Park Principal Andrew Baker has “terribly mixed emotions” to be leaving “this very special campus” after nine years.

“I feel a big tug on my heart with great sadness,” he told the SA Jewish Report following the school’s 60th birthday celebrations. “I’m very involved with the families here at Victory Park and leaving is going to be very difficult. But at the same time, I look forward to the new challenges that lie ahead. I’m excited and a little nervous at the same time.”

Baker, who is heading to Dainfern College on 16 October to serve as its executive head and high school principal, says one of his biggest achievements at Victory Park was rebuilding a large section of the school. “Previously, there were eight prefab classrooms, and we rebuilt in brick and mortar 10 new classrooms, a new art centre, and a big double classroom. That was quite a big milestone.”

They also set up the Centre of Educational Excellence, where pupils go for additional help, and an educational support department, which includes a social worker, an educational psychologist, and two face-to-face support specialists.

Another of his big achievements, he says, was “securing the school again after it had been through quite a rocky couple of years prior to my arrival in 2016. We helped settle the campus and the community of King David Victory Park again.”

He hopes the legacy he leaves behind is one of kindness, tolerance, and mutual respect. He has done his best to create a warm and homely environment in which scholars and teachers are respectful of one another.

Baker joined Victory Park from Redhill School in January 2016, having become acquainted with Rabbi Craig Kacev, the school’s general director at the time, while sitting together on a committee at the Independent Examinations Board.

“After six years of headship of Redhill, I felt this was an opportunity for a new challenge. As a non-Jewish head of a Jewish school, I was quite concerned about that aspect. But my concerns were very quickly allayed. The community of Victory Park really embraced me completely. The moment I stepped onto the campus, the reception I received from the parents and family was very warm. I felt included straight away.”

What further helped him integrate into the school was having been born and raised in the popular Jewish area of Sea Point in Cape Town. “My late father was a hairdresser who worked largely with the Jewish community.”

One of his biggest challenges was getting to know about chaggim, Shabbat, and Kashrut. He was helped by the school’s campus rabbi, Rabbi Mendel Rabinowitz, and Rabbi Ricky Seeff, the primary school head at the time. “They guided me very carefully into the appropriateness of the different festivals and protocols.”

Mandy Gruzd, deputy head of the school, describes Baker as an amazing leader, educator, incredibly special person, and inspirational mentor. “His warmth, humour, and calm demeanour helped us all get through challenging times,” she says. “He believes in people and always tries to get the best out of them. Mr Baker certainly helped nurture me and helped me grow as a teacher and deputy at the school. I will miss his advice, guidance, and decisiveness.”

Barbara Wolf, who with her husband Jeffrey, has been associated with the school for many decades, said that, “He has definitely brought stability to the school, which went through a very rocky period of having a number of heads who served the school for just a year or two. We are truly sorry to see him go.”

Baker matriculated at Sea Point Boys High School. “My matric class was 50% Jewish boys. After matriculating, I went to the University of Cape Town, where I studied botany and zoology for about 11 years. I then went on to do a teaching diploma, and my first teaching post was at Camps Bay High School, not far from where I grew up.”

Baker was a founder of Reddam House Constantia, the very first Reddam school, opened in 2000. “In 2004, I moved to Johannesburg to St Stithians College, where I became deputy headmaster. After that, Redhill was my first headship, and that was just before coming to King David.”

The role of executive head at Dainfern College tempted him as “it’s more an overarching role, looking after the whole campus. I will be the de facto head of the high school, which is what I’m familiar with, and will also be looking after the nursery school and the primary school. It’s a new stretch, and a new challenge, a new area of growth for me.”

Baker has enjoyed many memorable moments at King David Victory Park during his nine years. “One of the highlights that stands out for me is our annual musicals, the wonderful productions that Renos Spanoudes directs every year.

“One of the sporting moments that stood out was the year we won the Pirates B league rugby. We had an evening final, a real nail-biter of a final, at Pirates Club down the road, attended by lots of students and parents,” says Baker, who himself played first-team hockey at school.

Other highlights include Victory Park pupils winning the Israel Quiz, the unique way the school celebrates its matric results every year, and the exceptional matric results of pupils who came to the school from a remedial background.

In the short term, Baker will be succeeded by Gruzd. The permanent successor is likely to be announced within the next month or so.

Gruzd says Baker leaves a legacy of infusing the school with his warmth, optimism, and energy. “He has nurtured the Jewish ethos, traditions, and close family atmosphere of the school and has certainly left his mark. We will miss him dearly and wish him all the best as he starts his new chapter.”