Kearsney College

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Kearsney College
Kearsney badge
Carpe Diem
Established 1921
School type Private, Boarding
Locale Suburban
Grades Forms 2 - 6, Post-matric
Headmaster Elwyn van den Aardweg
Exam board IEB, A-levels
Location Botha's Hill, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Students 537 boys
Colors Burgundy, Navy blue
Mascot Greyhound
Fees R 85 860 p.a. (boarding)
R 58 160 p.a. (tuition)
Website www.kearsney.com

Kearsney College is a private boarding school for boys located in Botha's Hill, a small town that lies between the provincial capital of Pietermaritzburg and Durban, the largest city of KwaZulu-Natal, a province in South Africa. It is one of the most distinguished schools in the country.

The College competes intensely with Hilton College and Michaelhouse for the region's private boarding school market. As a result, all three schools are high-achieving and widely regarded as the elite schools of KwaZulu-Natal.

Contents

[edit] History

The college was founded in Stanger, north of Durban, in 1921 by Sir Liege Hulett, a South African sugar magnate. In 1939, it moved to its present location at Botha's Hill, near Hillcrest and overlooking the Valley of a Thousand Hills. On clear days, the Indian Ocean is visible to the south and the Drakensberg mountain range to the north.

The Administration Block
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The Administration Block

It takes its name from the village of Kearsney, near Dover in Kent, England.

It experienced a revival period under Owen Roberts, the headmaster from 1990 - 2000, who is credited with much of the school's recent status and excellence, turning it into a high-achieving school. He was succeeded by Elwyn van den Aardweg in 2001.

[edit] Headmasters

[edit] The Kearsney Badge

Kearsney's badge was designed by then headmaster, RH Matterson and the chaplain, Rev. HW Irving in 1923. The greyhound is taken from the coat of arms of the founder, Sir Liege Hulett. The scallop shells and dividing chevron are from the arms of John Wesley, founder of Methodism. The pheon, or arrowhead, is taken from the badge of Sidney Sussex College of the University of Cambridge, where Matterson studied.

[edit] Carpe Diem

The motto "Carpe Diem", traditionally translated at Kearsney translated as "Seize the Opportunity", comes from the Roman poet Quintus Horatius Flaccus, known as Horace, (Odes 1, xi, 8).

[edit] The College Today

The Henderson Hall
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The Henderson Hall

Kearsney retains its original English public school atmosphere, and accordingly the pupils are grouped into six boarding houses: Finningley, Gillingham, Haley, Osler, Pembroke and Sheffield. In addition, the school operates to a system of privilege, whereby the older pupils get greater privileges and freedom than the younger pupils, resulting in the sixth form (grade 12) students having more freedom and privileges than any of the other pupils, and so on. Most of the pupils at Kearsney are full-time boarders, however about one-third of the student population are day pupils who are fully integrated into school life. The school still places great emphasis on its Methodist character with daily services in the school chapel and a resident chaplain.

The academic system is rather different to most in that from 7:30 to midday the college's academic responsibility lies with the teaching masters. From midday till the next day, this is transferred to the various school houses. There is also a respected A-level course for post-matric students.

The student population is relatively small, consisting of only around 500 boarders and day scholars, who are taught by approximately 50 teaching staff. Kearsney has the most expensive tuition of any school in South Africa with fees of almost R60,000 in 2006.

[edit] Development

A R2 million donation by a benefactor will go towards an upgrade of the laboratories in the Science Wing (originally donated by Harry Oppenheimer.)

Other projects for 2006 include the extension of change rooms and floodlights for the artificial-surface hockey field.

R6 million is being spent on a new kitchen and dining halls in 2007.

The sports hall will be upgraded at a cost of R6.5 million to include two indoor basketball courts, an indoor hockey pitch, seven indoor cricket lanes, a new weights centre and a sports lecture theatre

The construction of a new R12 million theatre is being planned to further facilitate arts and culture and to better accommodate the Choir. Half of this has already been raised by a single benefactor.

[edit] The Choir

The Kearsney Chamber Choir was formed in 1996 and performs sacred, secular and ethnic music and gumboot dancing. During July 1997, the choir travelled to Vienna to compete in the 26th International Youth and Music Festival and was awarded second place in the choirs category. The choir performed many concerts in and around Vienna to standing ovations.

In March 1999 the choir toured Europe. In London they performed at Covent Garden and Leicester Square. In Paris they performed at Euro-Disney’s Fantasy Land Theatre. In Budapest they competed in the 7th International Musica Mundi Choir Competition where they achieved first place in the folklore category and second place in the mixed choir category. These achievements gained the choir automatic entry into the Choir Olympics which were held in Linz, Austria. There they achieved great success earning gold medals in the Folklore and Pop Choral categories and a silver medal in the Mixed Boys Choir Category.

In 2002, the choir was invited to sing with the world renowned Vienna Boys Choir in Austria. In 2004, the choir competed in the 33rd International Youth and Music Festival in Vienna where they were placed first in the Mixed Choir category. They were also awarded the ‘Prize of the City of Vienna’ which is awarded to the top choir/orchestra in the competition. 18 choirs and orchestras from 12 countries participated in this competition. The choir then went to Bremen in Germany to participate in the 3rd Choir Olympics. They won a bronze medal in the Contemporary Music Category, a silver medal in the Popular Choral Music Category and gold medal and Olympic champions in the Scenic Folklore Categories.

In July 2006 the Choir participated in the World Choir Olympics in Xiamen, China where they won two silver medals.[1]

[edit] Memberships

[edit] Admissions

Admission to Kearsney is competitive as applications exceed the number of places available every year and many applicants are turned away or placed on a waiting list.

Sons of old boys' are given preference and there are a number of scholarships and bursaries available.

[edit] Feeder schools

[edit] Academics

The years of study are referred to as forms 2 to 6. "Sixth form" is the equivalent of grade 12 or year 12 and has boys aged 17 or 18 and "Second form" is the equivalent of grade 8 or year 8 and has boys aged 13 or 14. The first form was abolished in 1997. All boys in the second form spend their first year at the junior house, Haley. Thereafter they are divided among the four senior houses - Gillingham, Finningley, Pembroke and Sheffield. A small group of boys also elect to do an additional "post-matric" year which they spend in Osler House.

The pupil-teacher ratio is 10:1, with larger classes consisting of 15 to 20 boys.

The College achieves consistently high results in the Independent Examinations Board exams.

IEB Results 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006
Number of candidates 98 132 99 111 121 94 112
Number of failures 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
University endorsement (%) 96 95 99 94 90.1 94
A aggregates (%) 26 13 20.2 19 29 30
A-B-C aggregates (%) 83 69 83 76 84 86
Subject distinctions 121 73 107 115 145
Number in top 50 1 1 1 1 1 3 1

The majority of its school-leavers attend top South African universities such as the University of Cape Town, the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Rhodes University, Stellenbosch University and Wits University, and a few attend overseas institutions.

[edit] Subjects offered

Cricket on the Smith Oval
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Cricket on the Smith Oval

[edit] Achievements

  • The dux (valedictorian) of 1994 graduated from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
  • Clifford Chandler (1995) graduated with an MBA from Harvard Business School in 2006.
  • In 2004, Kearsney had 3 pupils in the Independent Examinations Board exams top 50, the highest number of candidates than any school in its province or any boys school in the country.
  • In the 2005 ISPAT-ISCOR National Science Olympiad, many Kearsney pupils featured prominently including the top three pupils in the country and top three pupils in the province in grade 11 out of 14 500 entrants.
  • Out of all the boys taking Physical Science, 50% received distinctions in 2004 and 43% in 2005
  • In both 2004 and 2005, 24% of boys taking Mathematics received distinctions.
  • In 2004 one pupil achieved 9 distinctions, 2 achieved 8 distinctions, 2 achieved 7 distinctions and 2 achieved 6 distinctions.
  • In 2005 two pupils achieved 8 distinctions, 1 achieved 7 distinctions and 4 achieved 6 distinctions.
  • The dux (valedictorian) of 2005 was accepted directly into Harvard University[2], a rare achievement for a South African at school-leaving level.

[edit] Games

Hockey against Eton College on the Mason Field
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Hockey against Eton College on the Mason Field

Kearsney has a proud sporting history, and it works hard to maintain a high standard. Facilities include: several rugby pitches (one includes a grand stand), several cricket ovals, an artificial turf for field hockey, 2 Olympic-standard and heated swimming pools, an indoor gym with a high performance training centre and a nature reserve.

Many of the sports sides regularly tour overseas to compete with other schools. In 2005, the 1st hockey team toured England whilst the 1st XV rugby team toured Chile and Argentina.

At the end of 2005, Kearsney's 1st XV rugby and tennis teams were both ranked 4th in South Africa and its hockey and cricket teams were both in the top 20 nationally.

The following games are offered:

Kearsney has a sporting rivalry with other schools in the province, including Hilton College, Michaelhouse, Maritzburg College, Durban High School and Westville Boys' High School, as well as other schools that are prominent nationally such as St Stithians College, St John's College, St Andrew's College, Pretoria Boys High School (fixtures set up by an annual train trip) and Diocesan College (Bishops).

[edit] Clubs and Cultural Activities

The whole school supporting a game in the Medworth Rugby Stand
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The whole school supporting a game in the Medworth Rugby Stand
  • 12 Club (top twelve academics - 2005 tour of United States included Boston, New York, Washington, Harvard and Yale.)
  • Bird Watching Club
  • Bonsai Club
  • Chess Club
  • Choir and Chamber Choir
  • Conservancy Club
  • Debating Society
  • Angling Club
  • International Exchange Club
  • Orchestra
  • Photography Club
  • Students Christian Association

[edit] Old Boys

The Kearsney College Old Boys' Club is an active network of all old boys of Kearsney. They meet regularly at venues throughout South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia.

[edit] Notable Old Boys

Finningley House
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Finningley House

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ < SAPA, July 20, 2006.
  2. ^ < The Mercury, December 16, 2005.


KwaZulu-Natal Coat of Arms

KwaZulu-Natal High Schools

 Schoolhouse
Alternative schools
Crawford College, Durban | Crawford College, La Lucia | Crawford College, North Coast | Roseway Waldorf School
Private schools
Clifton College | Durban Girls' College | Epworth School | Hilton College | Kearsney College | Maris Stella School | Michaelhouse | St. Anne's Diocesan College | St. Charles College | St. Henry's Marist Brothers' College | St. John's DSG | St. Mary's DSG | Thomas More College | The Wykeham Collegiate
Public schools
Alexandra High School | Carter High School | Durban Girls' High School | Durban High School | Durban North College | Glenwood High School | Hillcrest High School | Howick High School | Kloof High School | Maritzburg College | Mathunjwa High School | Nansindlela School | Northwood School | Ohlange High School | Pinetown Boys' High School | Pinetown Girls' High School | Port Shepstone High School | Verulam Secondary | Westville Boys' High School | Westville Girls' High School
Vocational schools
George Campbell School of Technology
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