The Story
Hi, I am Scott Giles, a teacher by profession, with a goal to empower people, particularly teachers and students. I realised early on that to make a difference in South Africa's education system, I could add the most value by empowering teachers. This involves instilling in them my passion for technology in education and providing easy access to professional development opportunities.
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Thanks to Covid-19, I was compelled to take my businesses online, making my training accessible anytime, anywhere, and on any device. after-school.co.za was born and instantly used to kickstart my dream of empowering every teacher in South Africa.
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With over 60 SACE-accredited courses and more than 50 recorded webinars, teachers can find courses of interest and complete them at their own pace and in their own space. Currently, our focus is on technology and soft skills. In 2025, we will start creating subject content to support teachers in delivering lessons to the millions of students in South Africa.
In 2023, I decided to inspire my family and return to one of my passions - triathlon - and surprisingly performed well after a 15-year break. With the successes in 2023, I pondered on how I could challenge myself and symbolize the struggles teachers go through. That's when the idea of being the first person to complete all 5 half Ironman races happening on the African continent in one calendar year, came to me.
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And so, the Empower 5 Challenge was born. I challenged individuals and companies to sponsor 5 teachers for a year's access to our Teacher training platform, and in return, I completed 5 Half Ironmans in a single year. Now, we are getting individuals and companies to come on board and support not only our teachers but also athletes with talent or a dream of entering races or events that cost a lot of money to partake in, as it is not only the race entry that costs a lot but transport accommodation etc.
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In 2025, I want to up the stakes, naturally by getting more individuals and companies son board to empower more teachers and now athletes too. I will be taking part in my first FULL IRONMAN and then competing at the Durban 70.3 Ironman with the goal of smashing my PB and going under 5hrs and finally taking Empower 5 to the World 70.3 Ironman world champs at the end of the year.
EMPOWERING TEACHERS
Access to the platform for a single sponsorship of a teacher is R200 per calendar year. You will be listed on the Wall of Fame, and throughout my year of racing, you will have marketing opportunities directly and indirectly tied to your contribution.
For companies that want to sponsor more teachers, our Diamond (1000 teachers), Platinum (500 teachers) and Gold (250 teachers) sponsors have the chance to get their branding on our race kits, bikes, travelling kits, website, and social pages. We have had to limit this offer to 6 companies to maximize their branding on the above.
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There are various ways in which you can empower our teachers:
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1) Make a straight sponsorship/donation
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2) In a partnership with Project Liberate (NPO 246-180), companies can use their Social Development or Corporate Social Responsibility Spend, and Section 18a letters are available for this sponsorship/donation.
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3) Some companies have chosen to donate and use this for marketing and do not follow the CSR or NPO route.
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4) If you or your company has eBucks with FNB, these can be used to sponsor teachers through our relationship with the eBucks team and store.
We report and provide feedback to teachers, schools, and sponsors should they require this to validate their interest and commitment.
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Maybe you know a teacher who could use this or even the school that your child attends. if you don't know anyone specific, we have a list of schools and teachers that have applied, and we will connect you with an individual/s or school/s that have applied.
If this interests you, please reach out. Let's empower teachers and, in turn, empower our students and our country.
The 2024 Empower Challenge Races
Our Partners
We have partnered with leading South African races, which truly is a partnership where Empower 5 supports and promotes the organisers and athletes, and the race entrants contribute to the Empower 5 Challenge and Empower teachers. These events not only inspire new athletes to join the sports but also push seasoned competitors to new heights. By collaborating with these races, we’re proud to contribute to the growth and evolution of these sports in South Africa.
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We are grateful to Japie from Trinity Sports and Retha from UltraTri South Africa for coming on board, please click on the above logos to find out more about the amazing races offered. More information to follow shortly!
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If you have a race and would like to get involved in supporting the Empower 5 Challenge, please contact us by clicking here.
Some of Our AMAZING Sponsors
Click anywhere below to find out more about our Corporate & Individual Hereos
To find out more or contact us
To find out more details of how you can get involved either by sponsoring, using your social spend or even using your eBucks click here
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To contact us directly
Please call Charne' on 011 068 6699
or email her at charne@techtacademy.com
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Individuals or Schools looking to receive the sponsored training,
click here.
Please SHARE with everyone you know - why not challenge someone yourself !