St. Peter's Kubatana

St. Peter's Kubatana
Location
High Glen Rd., Glen Norah, Harare, Zimbabwe
Information
Type Jesuit, Catholic
Established 1963 (1963)
Director Mr. Wushe (technical school)
Principal Br. Dominic Shoniwa, SJ
Headmaster Mr. Makimeke
Enrollment 1,051
Tuition US $150 per term
Website AJOL

St. Peter's Kubatana in Glen Norah, Zimbabwe, includes both a secondary school and technical vocational training. It is situated in a high-density suburb of Harare, and was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1963.

History

In 1963 the Jesuit parish in the present Mbare area of Harare opened St. Peter’s Community Secondary School (SPCSS) for students engulfed in poverty.[1] At the time secondary schools were provided for only the top 12% of primary leavers. SPCSS enrolled 80 students out of 250 applicants, for a two-year course leading to the External Junior Certificate. It used the St. Peter’s Primary School classrooms after the primary students finished their day.

A training school for social workers, the School of Social Service, began operations in the Jesuit parish in the mid-1960s. It later became the School of Social Work (SSW), a degree-awarding department of the University of Zimbabwe. The first premises of SSW were the defunct Morgan High School, and SPCSS was for a time accommodated there also. But this was found to be against the apartheid policy of the government, since SSW was mixed racial and SPCSS all-black. A closed primary school facility in the new Kambazuma township was made available for SPCSS. In the mid-1960s local volunteers were joined by volunteers from Stonyhurst College in England, who were taking a year off for service before going to the university, to work in these Jesuit schools. In 1968 technical courses were introduced to SPCSS by a Stonyhurst engineering student, and this focus has persisted in the technical school. The high school was to grow to 1051 students and cover through sixth-form.

In the 1970s Kambuzuma’s population was growing and the primary school buildings were reclaimed for their original purpose. The secondary school was resituated on a 10-hectare site in Glen Norah, Harare, and SPCSS took its present name St. Peter’s Kubatana, Kubatana being a Shona word encompassing notions of mutual help and co-operation. Facilities include an administration block and Jesuit residence.[2][3] The high school has, by one account, been ranked as fourth best high school in Harare.[4]

St. Peters Mbare parish helps support orphaned and vulnerable children. A scholarship fund has been set up to subsidize the fees for 85 primary and secondary school children.[5]

Programs

St. Peter's Kubatana Training Centre in Highfield, Harare, has launched an arts and culture programme and helps students to pursue arts as a career. It also assists local artists with further training and offers space for work and for exhibitions. The technical school at St. Peter’s Kubatanahas has expanded to include welding, sewing, motor mechanics, automobile and mechanical engineering, construction and civil engineering, and woodworking.[6][7] Technical school graduates have risen to 120 in a year.[8][9] St. Peter's is also a part of a UN effort to strengthen vocational and technical education in Zimbabwe.[10]

Students from St Peter's won the Shoko Hub Unconference category of best idea on creative campaigns to increase citizen engagement through use of a social platform to act as the voice for school students in telling their own stories. The conference encourages creativity, innovation, and action and includes speakers from around Africa and from Europe on topics like new media, writing for the web, increasing social engagement, and the creative economy.[11] The facebook page IoT Makerspace St-Peters Mbare Internet-Society has been maintained by local students who were the beneficiaries of St. Peter's school of social services.[12]

The school boasts the "best known" marimba band in Zimbabwe.[13][14][15] Dancers from the school have attracted international attention.[16] Students from the school were also privileged to represent Zimbabwe at an African climate change conference in Nairobi, Kenya, in 2014.[17][18]

References

  1. ↑ Vambe, Stanley A. (2013-08-27). TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS IN ADVERSITY: The Chronicles of a Zimbabwean township up-bringing and the Diaspora Saga. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 9781483678535.
  2. ↑ African Journal of Social Work "Jesuits and Friends - Society of Jesus". www.jesuitsandfriends.org.uk. Retrieved 2016-12-24.
  3. ↑ "Setting Up St. Peter's School". Retrieved 24 December 2016.
  4. ↑ "St Peters Kubatana High School and 10+ more top High Schools near Harare". Glopoi. Retrieved 2017-08-07.
  5. ↑ "St Peter’s Mbare parish reaches out to orphans". Jesuits Zimbabwe - The Zimbabwe Province of the Society of Jesus. Retrieved 2016-12-24.
  6. ↑ "Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education - Courses". www.mhtestd.gov.zw. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  7. ↑ Taruva, Fortunate. "St Peter’s Kubatana Launches Arts and Culture Department". Jesuits Zimbabwe - The Zimbabwe Province of the Society of Jesus. Retrieved 2016-12-24.
  8. ↑ "120 grads". Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  9. ↑ "Enrollment". Retrieved 26 December 2016.
  10. ↑ "UNESCO-UNEVOC World TVET Database". www.unevoc.unesco.org. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  11. ↑ "St Peters Kubatana wins Hub Unconference award | Pachikoro". www.pachikoro.co.zw. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  12. ↑ "KDnuggets Top Blogger: An Interview with Ajit Jaokar, on IoT and Data Science". www.kdnuggets.com. Retrieved 2016-12-24.
  13. ↑ McCrea, Barbara; Pinchuck, Tony (2000-01-01). The Rough Guide to Zimbabwe. Rough Guides. p. 375. ISBN 9781858285320.
  14. ↑ "St Peter's Kubatana Marimba Band". Discogs. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  15. ↑ "* LP * ST PETER'S KUBATANA MARIMBA BAND - SAME (Africa 1980 EX-!!!) | For sale on Delcampe". Delcampe - The Marketplace for collectors. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  16. ↑ "US dancer for Jibilika finals | spiked". spiked.co.zw. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  17. ↑ "CYNESA expands in 2015 | The Global Catholic Climate Movement". catholicclimatemovement.global. Retrieved 2016-12-26.
  18. ↑ "Climate Change Toolkit". Catholic Youth Network for Environmental Sustainability in Africa. 2015-02-10. Retrieved 2016-12-26.

Coordinates: 17°54′19.5″S 30°58′59.77″E / 17.905417°S 30.9832694°E / -17.905417; 30.9832694

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