Durban - Austin Green-Thompson, a dedicated teacher, committed family man, an inspirational leader in the organised teaching profession and a well-known former principal of Haythorne High School in Pietermaritzburg, died on August 3 at the age of 85 after a long fight with Parkinson’s disease.
During his tenure at Haythorne, the school became synonymous with discipline, top achievement and exemplary leadership. Green-Thompson influenced the lives of numerous pupils, teachers and community members over several decades.
He spent his formative years in Ingogo, north of Newcastle, and educated at Little Flower School in Ixopo. He studied towards his BSc degree at Fort Hare University, Eastern Cape, as did so many other great African leaders and was an early member of the ANC Youth League.
He was a brilliant academic, and author and co-authored several books such as Life, the approved biology textbook in many high schools.
He taught Grade 12 biology and physics at Little Flower School for many years before becoming principal at Haythorne in 1981 until his retirement due to ill health in 1993.
Green-Thompson will especially be remembered for his leadership as president of the Society of Natal Teachers (Sonat) from 1981 to 1993 and as deputy president of the Union of Teachers’ Associations of South Africa.
During those turbulent times, he was always prepared to rise to the challenge. Green-Thompson and his contemporaries - who included Franklin Sonn, Pat Samuels and Professor A Le Roux - fought passionately against an increasingly hostile regime.
He also championed the formation of Association for Professional Educators’ with the amalgamation of Sonat and NTS, which was later re-named National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of SA (Naptosa).
Green-Thompson believed that a teacher’s place was in the classroom delivering quality education and embraced the term “quality public education”.
Consequently, he believed that protest action such as strikes and protest marches by teachers should be a very last resort. He firmly believed that principle should always guide one’s actions.
“Austin Green-Thompson has left an indelible mark in education and on society for which we are deeply indebted. One of the giants of integrated free education has fallen.
“His legacy lives on. His fight continues as the ideals he strove for remain elusive even today,” said one of his Naptosa colleagues.