Tanya Kruger

After finishing her studies at the University of Johannesburg  in 1991, Tanya spent some time travelling through Europe and then settled  in France where she did some teaching and au-pairing.  After coming back to South Africa she spent some time working as a technical translator and interpreter for a mining company who had many clients in Francophone Africa.  However the world of education was beckoning her, so she returned to her first love which was teaching.  She taught French and Drama at various schools in South Africa such as Wordsworth High in Benoni, and Hyde Park High in Johannesburg.

Her exposure to the international teaching community started when she moved to the Middle East at the end of  1997.  She spent the next  7 years teaching French, English, Music and Drama at various schools in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia before returning to Africa in 2005.

Having returned to her own continent,  Tanya taught at the Lusaka International Community School (LICS) in  Zambia and then moved to Pretoria where  she taught at the North American International School.  It was here where she heard about African Leadership Academy and it’s inspiring vision for the future of Africa.

At African Leadership Academy Tanya is the Head of the French Department.  Apart from teaching French, she is also responsible for the smooth running of all foreign languages offered at ALA, such as Swahili, Arabic, Zulu and Afrikaans. These languages are offered on a self-study basis with the help of various tutors.  Tanya also teaches English as an additional language to all students who do not have English as their first langue and she is the Afrikaans tutor for the South African students who need to write their IGCSE exam.

Apart from academics, Tanya is very involved in the pastoral care and wellness of students on campus.  She is the head advisor for second year students which means that she holds regular talks with students to manage and maintain their well being on campus. She acts as mentor to younger advisors who have not had much experience as student advisors. She also works with the LEA (Leadership and Entrepreneurship) Department and life coaches to organise retreats and activities for the students as this forms  part of their Leadership curriculum.  She is one of the Christian Youth leaders and enjoys her role as students’ “mum.”

As far as cultural events are concerned, Tanya runs the African Dance club and is one of the organisers of all cultural events that takes place on campus.  ALA affords her the chance to exercise her passion for drama, dance and music through the various concerts and talent shows which the student partake and excel in.