Leadership at Loyola Jesuit Secondary School is being understood not simply as a position to hold, but as an invitation to serve.
The school’s newly elected Students’ Council has completed a leadership formation programme under the theme “Creating Positive Change Through Responsible Leadership,” bringing together reflection, practical leadership skills, prayer, fellowship and recreation.
Officially opening the formation programme, Head Teacher @Fr Kenneth Simalalo, SJ, invited the young leaders to begin their journey by looking both backwards and forwards — reflecting on the school’s story while discerning the kind of community they want to help build.
“We need to look at where we are going and be focused, but before we do that, we need to look at where we are coming from.”
His message placed leadership within the Jesuit tradition of discernment: knowing where one comes from, paying attention to the present, and prayerfully considering where one is being called to go.
Fr Simalalo challenged the student leaders to understand authority as a responsibility entrusted to them by the school community. He encouraged them to lead with discipline, respect, responsibility and a spirit of service, while reminding them that teasing, bullying and behaviour that diminishes others have no place in the Loyola community.
For Mwaiwao Kandiero, one of the participants, the formation has given her renewed energy as she prepares to begin her new responsibility.
“This training has given me the energy to start working,”
she said.
For her, leadership begins with the simple things that can easily be overlooked. One of her immediate priorities is to encourage students to respect the school’s rules, including those small expectations that are sometimes taken for granted.
The formation continued on Saturday with a journey to Nkhotakota, giving the student leaders an opportunity to step away from the classroom, strengthen friendships and experience the importance of community beyond formal leadership sessions.
The day began with Holy Mass celebrated by Fr Izequiel da Costa, SJ, grounding the activities in prayer and reflection. The students then made their way to the shores of Lake Malawi, where swimming, beach games, music and a braai created space for laughter, relaxation and fellowship.
The experience offered another dimension of leadership: the recognition that communities are strengthened not only through work and responsibility, but also through friendship, joy and shared experiences.
At 3:30 p.m., the group began its journey home, making a final stop at a lakeside site where the Jesuits are planning to establish a pastoral centre. The visit offered the students a glimpse into the wider pastoral mission of the Society of Jesus and its commitment to accompanying communities in the places where they live and work.
The journey back also took them through Nkhotakota Wildlife Reserve, where the young leaders encountered some of Malawi’s wildlife, including elephants, monkeys, buffaloes, antelopes, and duikers.
For the newly elected Students’ Council, the experience was more than a leadership workshop. It was an opportunity to reflect, pray, listen, learn, build relationships and discover that leadership is ultimately about others.
As the new academic year begins, these young leaders return to Loyola Jesuit Secondary School with a responsibility to serve their fellow students and contribute to a school community where every person is respected and valued.
In the spirit of Jesuit education, their leadership journey now moves from formation to action, from learning about service to living it.
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