| Graeme College | |
|---|---|
|
Virtute et Opera
(Courage and toil) |
|
| Location | |
| Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public high school[1] |
| Established | April 1873 |
| Headmaster | Peter Reed |
| Staff | 33 Teachers 13 Support Staff[2] |
| Grades | 1 - 12 |
| Gender | Male |
| Enrolment | 600 students |
| Color(s) | Navy blue and old gold |
| School fees | R10,100 p.a. (Day Scholar) R32,900 p.a. (Boarding Fee) (Calculation based on a Grade 10 Pupil, 2011)[3] |
| Information | graeme@albanynet.co.za |
| Website | www.gc.ecape.school.za |
Graeme College is a public school located in Grahamstown, Eastern Cape, South Africa. It caters for boys from Grade 1 to Grade 12 and offers both boarding and day options to its pupils.[4] It was founded in April 1873.
Contents |
Education in Grahamstown in the second half of the 19th century tended to divide the population along denominational and economic lines and, with few exceptions, was not altogether of a satisfactory standard. At a public meeting held in 1872 a resolution was moved to the effect that: "It is highly desirable to establish a high class nondenominational school in Grahamstown, with a view to providing an education which is not furnished by any of the present schools." And so in April 1873, with an enrolment of 25 boarders and 45 day boys, under the headmastership of the Rev. Robert Templeton, the Grahamstown Public School opened its doors in the Drostdy Barracks and the Drostdy House, newly vacated by the Colonial military authorities. Both these buildings have since been swallowed up in the Rhodes University campus.
The new school grew rapidly and within ten years the enrolment had reached 200. The first candidate for the matriculation examination was entered in 1874 and the school began preparing candidates for the examinations of the University of the Cape of Good Hope.
The political troubles at the end of the nineteenth century saw the British Army wanting their buildings back and the school moving to new premises in Beaufort Street in 1898. It occupied this site until moving to its present campus in Somerset Heights in 1974. The site in Beaufort Street has since been renovated and taken over by Victoria Girls' High School.
Over the years the name of the school has undergone several changes. During the period in which it offered matriculation classes to young ladies it was known as Victoria High School and finally in 1938 it adopted the name, Graeme College.[5]
Our Fathers passed thro' the Drostdy Gate
To the tiny school of a bygone day,
But the lesson they learned was of changeless date,
We learn it yet in the selfsame way;
And hither the sons of our sons shall throng
To learn their creed from the Graemians' song.
O "Courage and Toil" was the watchword then
'Tis the watchword now, and for days to come;
For courage and toil are the mark of men
On the fastest pitch, in the fiercest scrum,
At the hardest task when all goes wrong –
And this is the creed of the Graemians' song
We may wander away on the wings of hope
To distant scenes in the far off years,
But our hearts will return to the terraced slope
The gabled roofs and the winding stairs,
For time and distance but make more strong
The spirit caught from the Graemians' song.
Words : C.C. Wiles
Tune : S.J. Newns
First Sung : Speech Night 1932
Old boys of the school are called 'Old Graemians', and many join the Old Graemian Union. In March of every year the annual gathering of the union's members takes the form of a Founders Weekend, a programme of events beginning with a memorial service always held on a Friday.[6]