Kearsney College
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.
 |
The Administration Block |
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.
It takes its name from the village of
Kearsney, on the London Road a few miles outside of
Dover,
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.
Headmasters
*D. Pyne Mercier (
1921 -
1922)
*R.H. Matterson (
Cantab) (
1923 -
1946)
*Stanley G. Osler (
1947 - ?)
*J.H. Hopkins (? -
1974)
*E. Colin W. Silcock (
1975 -
1989)
*Owen J. Roberts (
1990 -
2000)
*Elwyn D. van den Aardweg (
2001 - present)
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.
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).
 |
The Henderson Hall |
Kearsney retains its original
English public school atmosphere, and accordingly the students are grouped into five boarding houses: Gillingham, Finningley, Pembroke, Sheffield and Haley. In addition, the school operates to a system of privilege, whereby the older students 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 and regular services in the school chapel are compulsory for all boys to attend.
The academic system is rather different to most in that from 7:30 to midday the college's academic responsibility lies with the staff and teachers. 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. The fees are also comparatively high, at a price of over
R85,000 per annum in
2006.
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 construction of change rooms and floodlights for the artificial-surface hockey field and an indoor sports facility for eight cricket nets.
The kitchen and dining halls are to be upgraded in early
2007.
The construction of a new theatre is being planned to further facilitate arts and culture and better accommodate 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 will participate in the World Choir Olympics in
Xiamen,
China.
*
Independent Schools Association of Southern Africa*
Round Square*
International Boys' Schools CoalitionAdmission 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.
Feeder schools
*
Clifton School,
KwaZulu-Natal*
Highbury Preparatory School,
KwaZulu-Natal*
Cowan House,
KwaZulu-Natal*
Clifton Preparatory School, Nottingham Road,
KwaZulu-Natal*
Cordwalles Preparatory School,
KwaZulu-NatalIn the academic sphere, the college achieves consistently high results in the
Independent Examinations Board exams.
| IEB Results | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005|- | Number of candidates | 98 | 132 | 99 | | 111 | 121 | 94 | | 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 go on to attend top universities in South Africa such as
Rhodes University,
Wits University and particularly the
University of Cape Town.
The pupil-teacher ratio is 1:11, with larger classes consisting of 15 to 20 boys.
Subjects offered
|
Cricket on the Smith Oval |
*
Accounting*Advanced Mathematics
*
Afrikaans*
Art*
Biology*
Business Studies*
Computer Science*
Drama*Engineering Graphics and Design
*
English*
French*
Geography*
History (Travelled to
Russia and
London for 2006 History Tour)
*Life Orientation
*
Mandarin (The only non-Chinese school in South Africa to offer this subject)
*
Mathematics (Pupils regularly excel in the national Harmony Gold Maths Olmypiad)
*
Music*
Physical Science (
Chemistry and
Physics)
*
Zulu*
German,
Italian, and
Spanish available
Achievements
*The
dux (
valedictorian) of
1994 attended the
Kellogg School of Management at
Northwestern University.
*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, a rare achievement for a
South African at school-leaving level.
 |
Hockey against Eton College on the Mason Field |
Kearsney has a proud sporting history, and it works hard to maintain a high standard. In this regard, the school's sporting 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 regulary 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 sports are offered:
*
Athletics*
Basketball*
Canoeing*
Cricket*
Cross-country running*
Golf*
Field hockey*
Rugby*
Sailing*
Soccer*
Squash*
Swimming*
Tennis*
WaterpoloKearsney 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).
 |
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
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.
Notable Old Boys
 |
Finningley House |
*
Nico Breedt,
Sharks (rugby club) player
*
Bradley Barritt,
Sharks (rugby club) player
*John Couper (
1942), anaesthesiologist
*Etienne Fynn, national rugby union player
*Greg Goosen, Natal Wildebeest rugby union player
*H.M. Ndmase Ndmase,
King of Pondoland*Trevor Halstead, national rugby union player
*
Andrew Hudson, national cricketer
*
Justin King, national hockey player
*
Tony Leon, leader of
Democratic Alliance*
Douglas Livingstone, leading contemporary poet
*
Sir Ian McLeod*Steven Meyer (
2001),
Sharks (rugby club) player
*Harry Newton-Walker, national rugby union player
*Peter Rodda, apartheid activist and author
*
Matthew Stevens (
2001), England and
British and Irish Lions rugby union player
*
Owen Swanson (
1999), television actor
*
Andrew Tweedie,
Dolphins provincial cricket player
*
Peter Pharoah (
1986), artist
*
Shlobosenkosi Zulu, prince of
Zulu royal family
*
Kearsney College official site*
Kearsney College Old Boys' Club
