Combermere also referred to as "The University of Waterford" is one of the leading schools on the island being the third highest. Harrison College is first, followed by Queen's College followed by Combermere. Combermere School is certainly one of the oldest, if not the oldest, secondary school in Barbados. The foundation stone at the present site cast the origins of Combermere School to 1819. Research takes its origins back to Drax's will of 1682.
Combermere School which began as a co-educational institution in 1695, reverted fully to this status in September 1976 with the admission of thirty-eight (38) female students at the first form level and another thirty-one (31) between the fifth and sixth form. The number of females today has grown to about 51% of the school's present population of just over one thousand (1,000 students).
This school has established itself as a leading secondary school in Barbados, the wider Caribbean and beyond. Past students of Combermere know only too well what it is to be a Combermerian and it is for this reason that the Alumni Associations in Barbados, Canada, New York and the United Kingdom continue to flourish.
From September 1998 the school became one of the four secondary pilot schools involved in the Ministry of Education's Sector Enhancement Programme. Under this programme, the school's Physical plant was extensively renovated and refurbished. With the addition of new computers and technologies, as well as an enhanced curriculum, it is believed that Combermere School will be even more equipped to prepare its students for the challenges of the 21st Century.
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The school also offers a music program and the band has won awards at the National Independence Festival for the Creative Arts (NIFCA). Combermere has 54 teachers including one guidance counsellor. Most hold bachelors degrees in the subject area they are teaching, with at least three holding doctorates.
First Verse
Lives are in the making here
Hearts are in the waking here
Mighty undertaking here
Up and on, up and on.
We are arming for the fight
Pressing on with all our might
Pluming wings for higher flight
Up and on, up and on.
Chorus
Up then! Truest fame lies in high endeavour
Play the game, keep the flame burning brightly ever
Up then! Truest fame lies in high endeavour
Play the game, keep the flame burning brightly ever
Second Verse
Foes in plenty we shall meet
Hearts courageous scorn defeat
So we press with eager feet
Up and on, up and on.
Ever upward to the fight
Ever upward to the light
Ever true to God and Right
Up and on, up and on.
Chorus
Up then! Truest fame lies in high endeavour
Play the game, keep the flame burning brightly ever
Up then! Truest fame lies in high endeavour
Play the game, keep the flame burning brightly ever
The Prime Minister the Rt. Honorable David Thompson, cricketing great Wes Hall, author Sir Frank Collymore, UNESCO award winning film director and cultural historian Owen 'Alik Shahadah as well as the international pop star Robyn 'Rihanna' Fenty all attended the institution.