26°14′20″S28°10′52″E / 26.23889°S 28.18111°E /-26.23889; 28.18111
| St Catherine's School, Germiston | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 | |
Piercy Avenue, Parkhill Gardens , | |
| Information | |
| Type | Private, co-educational day school |
| Motto | Veritas (Latin: "Truth") |
| Religious affiliation | Catholic |
| Established | 1908; 117 years ago (1908) |
| Founder | Mother Rose Niland |
| School number | 011 827 4102 |
| Headmaster | Dennis Maritz[1] |
| Exam board | IEB |
| Teaching staff | 65 |
| Grades | 000-12 |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Age | 4 to 18 |
| Number of students | 601(2024) |
| Language | English |
| Campus | Metropolitan |
| Campus type | Suburban |
| Houses | St Catherine's St Dominic's St Patrick's |
| Colours | Black White Sky blue |
| Nickname | STC |
| Accreditation | UMALUSI OISESA IEB |
| Yearbook | St. Catherine's Chronicle |
| Affiliations | ISASA CIE |
| Website | stcatherines |
St Catherine's School is an independent, co-educational school inGermiston,Gauteng named afterSaint Catherine of Siena. A combined school, St Catherine's consists of a pre-school, a preparatory school and a senior school and is the oldest school in Germiston.
St Catherine's School was founded in 1908 by theDominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena,Newcastle,Natal in order to meet the increasing demand for education in the then 22-year-old mining town ofGermiston (a product of theWitwatersrand Gold Rush of 1886). The original school building was located on Hardach Street in central Germiston, and was built on land bought from theSimmer and Jack gold mining company. It was the first convent on theEast Rand and the first high school in Germiston.[2][better source needed]
By the 1940s, the school's environs in the GermistonCBD were undergoing rapidindustrialisation, concurrent with a general shift from north to south of much of Germiston's population, and in 1948 St Catherine's School relocated to the then newly developed suburb of Parkhill Gardens. Here there was also more space for sporting facilities.[2] The new school buildings were designed in a toned-downRomanesque Revival style, influenced by the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuryArts and Crafts Movement, by the Irish Catholic architect Brendan Joseph Clinch, an associate ofHerbert Baker.[3][4]
Toward the end of 1968 the school decided, in conjunction with its sister schoolSt Dominic's inBoksburg, to cater for primary school pupils only: girls up to standard 5 (grade 7) and boys up to standard 1 (grade 3). Additionally, in 1970 the Transvaal Education Department recognised and registered the St Catherine's pre-primary school.
The first reportedghost sighting at St Catherine's occurred on 17 August 1972, when a janitor cleaning the school hall after hours claimed to have been chased into the quad by an amorphous grey apparition or "spook" with "glowing red eyes".[5] From the beginning of 1977, a wave of sightings followed of a "grey, hooded figure swaddled in flowing robes", often accompanied by a "'wailing' sound". The ghost, said to haunt the school hall, the chapel, the basement and a number of classrooms in the eastern wing, was soon dubbed Patrick, after one of the school'shouses, St Patrick's.[5] After 1977, ghost sightings at St Catherine's mostly ceased, although stories ofparanormal happenings at the school persist to the present.[2]
In 1985, the school extended its education of boys to standard 5 again. This was followed in 1991 by the Sisters of St Catherine's moving into a private house, opening up more room in the school for classrooms.[2]
In 2001 theBoard of Governors approved the re-opening of the high school, and that year saw the first intake of grade 8 pupils since 1968. At the same time the school buildings were expanded, with the construction of a new wing that was completed and fully occupied by 2007. Mrs J. Crosby, formerly ofBoksburg High School, stepped in as high school principal in June 2007. In 2008 the school celebrated its centenary with a centennial mass, held under a marquee on the main soccer field which was attended by more than 800 pupils, parents, staff, past pupils and past teachers.[2]
In December 2015, Mrs V. Johnson became head of school.[citation needed] The new preparatory school principal, Mrs S. Rodrigues, began her term in January 2016. With the retirement of the pre-school principal, Mrs T. Henry, the new pre-school principal, Mrs C. Stewart, began her term in January 2016.
In May 2016, the head of school, Mrs Johnson, announced that she would be retiring in December of the same year. She was succeeded by Dennis Maritz, formerly ofCornwall Hill College inPretoria in 2017. The primary school is now known as the preparatory school and the high school is now known as the senior school.
The Aelred O'Donovan wing was completed at the end of 2018.[6] The wing consists of six classrooms which were built to accommodate pupils in Grades one and two. The wing bears the name of SisterAelred O'Donovan who was the lastNewcastle Dominican Sister to hold the post of head of school.
In 2022 the school opened and dedicated a STEAM Centre. The facility was blessed by theArchbishop of Johannesburg, Buti Tlhagale, and unveiled by Sister Stephany Thiel, the regional prioress. The STEAM Centre consists of an art studio and exhibition area, two laboratories, a computer centre and a robotics and coding venue. The Rose Niland Bell Tower, which forms an integral part of the centre, was erected to honour the school's founder, Mother Rose Niland.[7]
TheJohannesburg Heritage Foundation has recognised the historical and architectural significance of the St Catherine's School buildings, conferring ablue plaque on the school in 2021.[3]
St Catherine'smatriculants andgrade 9 pupils write exams set by theIndependent Examinations Board (IEB). The IEB is an organisation whose examinations are written by independent schools throughout South Africa. These examinations conform to the requirements of the National Senior Certificate and are recognised both internationally and by allSouth African universities.
The subjects taken from grades 1 to 3 (junior phase) are:
The compulsory subjects for Grade 4 to 6 (intermediate phase) and Grade 7 (senior phase) are:
The subjects offered from grade 8 to Matric at St Catherine's are:
St Catherine's pupils also participate in a wide variety of sports. Sports at the school includesoccer,cricket,tennis,netball, athletics and swimming. There are both male and female soccer teams representing the school with the girls' soccer team being a new addition, nicknamed the 'Saint's Soccer Team'. St Catherine's has also, since 2007, been competing in the Germiston inter-highswimming gala, where it has been somewhat successful.
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