| SMK St. Teresa | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Jln Tun Abg Hj Openg, 93000, Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia. Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia |
|
| Information | |
| Type | All-girls convent |
| Motto | Amare Et Servire (Love and Serve) |
| Established | 1885 |
| Number of students | approximately 1,300 |
| Medium of language | Bahasa Malaysia, English |
| Classrooms | *A 3-storey classroom block with 15 classrooms is used by students of Form 1, Form 2, Form 3 and Form 5
Currently, plans are being made to build a new block for the "floating" classes. |
| Colour(s) | Brown |
| Yearbook | The Looking Glass |
| Affiliation | SMK St. Joseph, Kuching |
| Website | *http://www.smkst-teresa.edu.my/
|
SMK St. Teresa is an all-girls' secondary school in Kuching, Sarawak, East Malaysia, founded in 1885. The school is located opposite SMK St. Joseph, which is an all boys' school.
[1]Situated at Jalan Tun Abang Haji Openg, the school continues her mission of providing quality and holistic education with the aim of producing individuals of calibre and integrity. The school comprises 5 buildings altogether. The convent block, built in 1925, holds ST. Teresa's Secondary School's Administrative office.
The school is divided into two sessions, morning session (upper secondary students of Form 3, Form 4 and Form 5) and afternoon session (lower secondary students of Form 1 - Form 2)
The current principal is Madam Mary John. The previous principals were Mr Su Hiong Ai and Mr. Christopher Tan. The school founder was Sister Teresa Cheetham.
The school is one of the premier schools of Sarawak, acing in both education and co-curricular activities. It has also been known as one of the most sought after school to study in ever since the 80s.
It is a tradition in SMK St Teresa to hold a biennial Food and Fun Fair for fund-raising purposes to improve the school's surrounding and to add facilities. Tickets are to be bought from the students and teachers.
The school holds dinners and events every year such as reunion dinners and school anniversaries.
SMK. ST. Teresa celebrated her 125th Anniversary on a glorious night of May 29th, 2010 at the Rainforest Ballroom of Four Points by Sheraton, Kuching.
[2]Today, the school has approximately 1300 girls with 74 teachers. The school has 35 classes with each form comprising 7 classes. There are 4 science stream and 3 arts stream classes for Form 4 and Form 5.
St Teresa’s School was named by Reverend Father Jackson MHM in honour of a renowned Carmelite sister. He arrived in Borneo in 1881 upon the invitation of Rajah Charles Brooke to established Catholic mission schools in Kuching and Kanowit. The name chosen for the convent and school was in fulfillment of a promise made many years ago before by Rev. Father Jackson. While still a student, he found great difficulty in mastering Philosophy and Theology. In his distress he appealed to the great Saint Teresa of Avila to intercede for him and promised he would do something in her honour, if his wish was granted.
St Teresa was born in Avila, Spain in 1515 and died in 1582. She came from a noble family with high moral values. However, she gave up all her material possessions and became a Carmelite nun in 1536. Because of her great wisdom, intelligence, humility, diligence and integrity she was declared a Doctor of the Church in September 1880. Since it’s foundation in 1885, our school has been entrusted under her patronage and protection; and therefore it is expected that the students of St Teresa’s School emulate and uphold her outstanding qualities and virtues.
St Teresa’s School in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia had its beginnings in a small shop, at 149 Yorkshire Street, Rockdale, in England. The shop was kept by Alice Ingham and her widowed stepmother. Both were devout and hardworking women.
Alice and a small group of friends understood the human need for spiritual and physical food and clothing. They helped whatever way they could. They conducted religious classes for children; they nursed the sick; they assisted with parish work. After a few years of this, Alice was asked by Bishop Herbert Vaughan to undertake the management of domestic affairs at a newly founded missionary college in Mill Hill, near London.
This meant that she was to be in charge of household toil- cooking, cleaning and pressing linen with heavy charcoal irons until 2 in the morning with four sisters. They no longer taught, nursed nor earned money for their many charities.
In 1883, the Congregation of St Joseph’s Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart was officially formed. Some of its members grouped in communities outside the college, but Mill Hill was where Mother Francis (Alice Ingham) lived. It (Mill Hill) was the Congregation’s centre of gravity- it was also the link between Sarawak and Rochdale.
A political exception in its day, Sarawak in the late 19th century was an oriental principality founded by Sir James Brooke 1841, who expended the boundaries of Sarawak, until his death in 1868, he left a sizable amount of land to his nephew, Charles Brooke.
Rajah Charles Brooke had been in his uncle’s service throughout his adult life. He thoroughly knew and loved Sarawak. He knew what was best for his land and his people.
Rajah Charles disliked European commercial influence of the money-grabbing kind. The Borneo Company was the only foreign firm allowed to operate in Sarawak for a long time. He believed that unchecked western influences was sure to exploit and spoil the natives of Sarawak, and was more than half inclined to add the Christian missionaries in his suspicious, remarking once that Bishops are a bit of a nuisance out here and the missions do not benefit the Dayaks.
The Rajah expected the missionaries to settle the Dayaks; to cure them out of their roving habits and aggressive ways: to transform them into law-abiding citizens of the sturdy gentlemen type. When Rajah Charles mentioned the Dayaks, he usually meant the Ibans, Sarawak’s largest tribal group, and the one he understood and loved the most.
And so, when a letter came to him from the Bishop Vaughan requesting permission to set up a Catholic Mission in Sarawak, he wrote back: “… the Sarawak Government will have no objection to there being a Catholic Mission. I would recommend that your missionaries, on their arrival, to a district of Dayaks who have been almost untouched by teachings of any sort. This district would not be far from the capital, in which almost everything in the way of clothes, etc. can be obtained…”
Gemilang dalam semua aspek pendidikan menjelang tahun 2015 (To excel and be the best in all aspects of education by the year 2015)
Menyediakan pendidikan berkualiti dan holistik untuk menghasilkan modal insan berkaliber dan berintegriti (Providing quality and holistic education to produce human capital of calibre and integrity)
It is expected that members of the school community will show:
Berdiri bangga indah sentiasa,
Sekolah kebanggaan kita semua,
ST. Teresa, ST. Teresa,
Sekolah yang ku cinta,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
Berbudi pekerti prinsip semasa,
Menyeru kami setiap masa,
Supaya semua bekerjasama,
Agar berjaya di hari muka.
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
Semua kaum belajar bersama,
Ilmu dituntut seikhlas jiwa,
Agar jadi orang berguna,
Kepada bangsa negara.
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
Perpaduan disiplin diutama,
Nama ST. Teresa dijaga sentiasa,
Berbudi berbakti prinsip semasa,
Dipegang bersama.
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
ST. Teresa sejahtera,
Kami puteri ST. Teresa,
Every year, Sports Day is held during the early part of the year. Students are divided into different houses (usually when they first enrolled into the school, without any specific classifications. Students are not allowed to switch between houses.) and compete with each other to earn the title of "Best Sports House of The Year". Each house has different colours. These houses include
Previously, names of flowers were used instead.
Students are encouraged to be involved in at least one club of each category.
The school is very strict regarding the students' behaviours. Breaking of rules will cause the students to be reprimanded in the form of demerit points. However, if a student shows any positive behaviours such as representing the school in any competitions, honesty, improvements in academics and everyday behaviours, the student will be awarded with Merit points. The student with the highest number of Merit points will be given an award the year-end Award and Prize Giving Ceremony (Hari Kecemerlangan Teresian).
The accumulation of demerit points will cause the parents of the student to be called to the school to discuss about her misbehaviours. If she fails to improve and continues to receive demerit points, she will be suspended from school and eventually, if the problem persists, she will be expelled from school.
The board serves to make sure that the students of the school do not break any school rules. Prefects are divided into different units (usually in a cycle every month) :
The councils include the Head Prefect, Assistant Head Prefect I, Assistant Head Prefect II and followed by the head of every unit.
Both sessions (Morning and afternoon session) have different councils and at times have different ways of implementing the school rules.
However, these prefects work together during big school events like Sports Day, Teacher's Day, school-level Independence Day Celebration and so on.
Wednesdays are declared throughout all public schools in Malaysia as "Hari Memakai Pakaian Unit Beruniform" where all students are instructed to wear their uniform bodies uniform.
Students without these uniforms, are allowed to wear a standardized white T-shirt (differs with every club) with the school's track pants.
School prefects are exempted.
Composed by: Clarissa Chai (4 Science 1/2010)
Performed by: Clarissa Chai (4 Science 1/2010) and Alicia Eng (4 Science 1/2010)
What do we gain everyday?
Coming to school so we can grow up to be
somebody in the future
Not just another failure
ST. Teresa will lead the way
We'll stand proud
and show them that we are the best
'gainst all odds
We'll get through and rise to the top
We're Teresians
So let's give it all we've got
Never short of the words to say everyday,
Laughing and making jokes with each other,
Never forgetting that
we're here to fill our minds
with the knowledge
without which we can't live
ST. Teresa will lead the way
We'll stand proud
and show them that we are the best
'gainst all odds
We'll get through and rise to the top
We're Teresians
So let's give it all we've got
ST. Teresa jadi petunjuk semua
Berdiri bangga
Kami terbaik mari buktikan
Semua cabaran kami tempuh dan capai kejayaan
Warga ST. Teresa
mari buktikan segala usaha
But when we leave
Those years will stay in our memories
and knowing that
That's where it all began
...yeah.