Meet the Team

As the Zero Dropout Campaign’s Operations and Events Officer, Prea is the logistic powerhouse of the Campaign, planning its events in addition to managing its admin and procurement flows. She also has a Bachelor of Social Work and over a decade of experience in the field and mental health counselling, and most recently also obtained a Bachelor of Commerce Honours in Human Resource Management.

Sepeke holds a BCom degree in Business Informatics as well as certification in Business Administration. He is passionate about meaningful learning programmes to upskill learners in South Africa and is responsible for Data Administration as well as Monitoring & Evaluation of the Zero Dropout Campaign’s Accelerated Learning Programmes.

Sinazo is a Training Coordinator within the Zero dropout Campaign, implementing capacity building interventions to help learners catch up foundational numeracy and literacy skills. She holds a Bachelor of Social Work and an Advanced Certificate in Monitoring and Evaluation. Sinazo has over a decade of experience in the health and education sectors, addressing factors that contribute to learner dropout in primary and secondary schools.

Siyabulela is a Communication Officer for the Zero Dropout Campaign and joins us from the journalism industry. He holds and holds a Bachelor of Journalism and entered the education sector as a Presenter and Youth Mentor for Elevate Education, an international organisation that provides study skills workshops to learners across the country. Siya is passionate about bridging the disparity between the two ends in the wealth gap and an advocate for effective change in South Africa.

As the Programme Director of the Zero Dropout Campaign, Merle is responsible for bringing our vision to life and leads our team of implementing partners. Merle is committed to making visible the large number of learners who disappear from the school system each year by advocating for a proactive response to reducing the rate of school dropout. She is a trained social worker and holds an honours degree in Policy and Management. Merle has worked in the civil society space for more than a decade, largely focusing on education and philanthropy.

Colin is the Communication Lead for the Zero Dropout Campaign. Inspired by the Campaign’s advocacy and aims, he is working with the team to sound the alarm on this education crisis and seek solutions. He holds degrees in Political Communication from the University of Cape Town and Screen Media from Birkbeck, University of London. Colin has worked on and led communication campaigns in both the public and private sectors for over a decade. His work in the education sector began in 2020 where he helped various organisations and institutions overcome new challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic and respond to the international Movement for Black Lives.

Claudia is the project lead for the Accelerated Learning programme and works to implement quality systems and processes for the programme. With over a decade of experience in education, her dedication to literacy and learning is extensive. She holds a joint Master’s degree in Public Health Education and Natural Remedies from Sahmyook University in Seoul, South Korea, and a Bachelor’s degree from the University of the Western Cape. In her free time Claudia serves as a board member for Edtech Global Africa, with a focus in using technology for teaching and learning. Her involvement on the board emphasises her commitment to advancing educational opportunities through technology.

Abbey is the Zero Dropout Campaign’s Digital Strategist and fuelled by her passion for storytelling and engaging audiences via various mediums and platforms. Abbey holds an undergraduate degree in Marketing from CPUT and loves finding new and innovative ways to connect with people.