Alisa Lochner woke up at 6am to the sound of her cellphone receiving the welcome message that not only had she passed Grade 12, but she had also been awarded eight distinctions.
Alisa Lochner woke up at 6am to the sound of her cellphone receiving the welcome message that not only had she passed Grade 12, but she had also been awarded eight distinctions.
Lochner, who is from rural Fort Beaufort, said she couldn't believe it as the percentages soared in the 90s, and kept checking the results against her identity number. She said her marks were usually in the 80s, but admitted she had given matric her all. "I worked very hard and I prayed very hard," she said.
Not content with the standard matric subjects, Lochner also challenged her talents with an additional mathematics course, which looks at probability, statistics and analytical geometry. Lochner said passing this course was an advantage when applying to universities – especially to study mathematics.
From Fort Beaufort Primary School, Lochner moved on to Victoria Girls' High School – known for strong music and art activities – which suited her down to the ground. She balanced here two practical subjects, music and art with her academic subjects.
"Music for me is like my therapy. It calms me down and makes me happy." Lochner is the sole musician in her family – her mother, Marita Lochner, and her three brothers, lean more towards art.
One of her three brothers, Emile, designs and makes swords as a hobby and is at Stellenbosch University studying electrical engineering after completing his Bachelor of Science degree at Rhodes University.
Eben Lochner is doing his Masters in Art History at Rhodes University and Hanno has had his hand in cartooning. Alisa said her achievement rested in understanding concepts. "I'm very bad at memorising," she admitted. "Understanding how things work is a deeper memory."
Proud mom Marita admitted that Alisa's results were "more than we expected", while Victoria Girls' High School principal Madeleine Schoeman said they were "overjoyed". Another top achiever at the school had been Danielle Wiblin, with seven distinctions.
Alisa is preparing to embark on a Bachelor of Science degree at Rhodes University. Her message for this year's matriculants was to "consistently work hard". She also encouraged them not to neglect their faith. "It is more important than you think," she said.
