Parktown Boys' High School is a publicEnglish medium high school for boys situated in Parktown, a suburb of Johannesburg in the Gauteng province of South Africa. It is one of the oldest schools in Johannesburg.[1] Parktown Boys' sister school is Parktown High School for Girls.
The school was founded in 1920, and was originally known as North Western High School.[2] The original school was based in disused wood and iron buildings which had previously been police barracks at the top of Canary Street in Auckland Park. There were eighty-seven pupils in five Form II classes, four for boys and one for girls, with acting Headmaster, C. Hare. The site is now occupied by the South African Broadcasting Corporation.
The Acting Director of Education, W.E.C. Clarke, the Inspector of High Schools, officially opened the new school with an address to the scholars and staff. He apologised for the lack of decent furniture and playing fields and promised that a new modern high school for boys would be built on the Parktown Ridge overlooking Milner Park and a new high school for girls near Zoo Lake.
The first Headmaster, P.M. Druce, arrived at the beginning of 1921 and, in February, the name of the school was changed to North Western High School. In April the first hatbands and ties arrived. The colours were purple and white.
On 1 September 1921 the school was divided into five houses: Romans, Spartans, Thebans, Trojans and Tuscans. On 19 September the name was changed again, this time to Parktown Boys' High School with the motto Arise, and the school badge a rampant lion. When the Rand Revolt took place in 1922 the school, which was in no-man's-land, had to be evacuated for a short while.
At the beginning of 1923 the school boys moved to new buildings on Parktown Ridge.[2] They took little with them except the school name, motto and badge, the names of the five houses and the traditions they had built up. When the school reopened in the new premises, there were 435 boys on the roll and the school colours were changed to red and black. The girls remained at Auckland Park.
The Old Parktonian Association, which was formed in 1925, bought the grounds in Bedfordview but later moved to Craighall Park. Strong links with the school are maintained.
When Mr Druce retired in 1938 he was succeeded in turn by B.A. Logie, C.A. Yates, F.J. Marais, J.A. Cameron, N.A.M. Scheepers and T.P. Clarke, Parktown's previous Headmaster for a record 23 years, as well as Mr C. Niemand, and Mr D. Bradley.
In 1985 Druce Hall was opened to accommodate boarders and following the school's tradition in the classics, in 1987, the name Vulcan was given to the sixth school house to which all boarders belong.
Parktown Boys' High School was the first government school to allow boys who were discriminated against because of their colour into a mainstream 'white' school in 1991.
Parktown Boys' High School was the first school in South Africa to install an international standard water-based Astroturf playing surface. This surface has hosted many national and international games.[3] More recently, Parktown has built Surgite House overlooking the McCorkell Oval (named after Neil McCorkell the school's former cricket coach and former Hampshire county cricketer who became a centurion in March 2012) to incorporate the administration and entertainment needs of Old Parktonians, as well as the Sydney Klevansky Sports and Cultural Centre.[4]
Parktown Boys' is consistently rated as among the best performing schools in South Africa, as well as in Africa.[5][6]
Parktown Boys' has a history which includes the use of boaters (called 'bashers'), a distinctive red and black uniform, school songs, and particularly 'Parktonian' language which has evolved over the years. The school motto is 'Arise' ('Surgite' in Latin).[7] The original school buildings have provincial heritage sites status.[3]
Mr Kevin Stippel is the current headmaster at Parktown Boys.[8] Previous headmasters were (from 1920): Mr C. Hare (Acting), Mr P.M.Druce, Mr B.A. Logie, Mr C.A. Yates, Mr F.J. Marais, Mr J.A. Cameron, Mr N.A.M. Scheeper, Mr T.P. Clarke, Mr C. Niemand, Mr R. Pillay (Acting), Mr D. Bradley and Mr Malcolm Williams.[9]
The school is divided from Grades 8 to 12 (Matric), and grades are referred to as 'Forms' at the school. Cultural activities refer to all extramural activities excluding sporting activities. Cultural life also extends to visits to musical performances.[10]
Numerous summer sports are offered by the school.[11]
Druce Hall
The School's Mascot – The Rampant Lion, with members of the Cadet Band performing the school War Cry.
The school has a weekly boarding establishment (i.e. from Sunday evening to Friday afternoon), which is known as the Druce Hall. It was officially opened on 9 June 1985 and is named after P. M. Druce, the first headmaster.
The boarding is supervised with a ratio of one master to every 15 boys.
Traditions
Orientation and initiation
As part of their orientation and initiation into the school, all 'formies' (Grade 8/Form I) receive a coloured button to wear on their blazer which indicates their 'formie' status as well as what house they belong to for the duration of their Form I year. At the end of their second week of school, all formies are assigned a Matric 'Old Pot' who will help and guide that formie through their first few months at the school. The Old Pot/New Pot braai is held in the first term.[citation needed]
Harmful 'initiation' is banned throughout the school. However, there have been numerous incidents at the school which have been widely publicized.[citation needed]
Cadets
Parktown Boys' High School is one of the few schools in South Africa that still continues with the tradition of Cadets and Cadet practice every week that involves many push ups and exercise for younger grades.[citation needed]
Memorial parade
Parktown conducts a Memorial Parade and Service on the Sunday nearest 11 November (Remembrance Day) every year for Old Parktonians and South Africans in general who have died in various conflicts around the world. It is compulsory for all Form Is and IVs to attend.
Third Cricket/Hockey v Teachers Matches
Every year a hockey and cricket matches are held between the staff and Third teams.
Old Parktonians
The Parktonian Foundation,[12] Surgite House, the Parktown Waterpolo Club,[13] a Facebook page,[14] the annual Surgite[15] publications and the Old Parktonian Sports Club,[16] all aim to foster the Old Parktonian Community.
Old Boys' Day
Every year in the first term Old Boys are invited to play against current school First Teams in a variety of sports. The day culminates in rugby and hockey games between the Old Boys and the recently announced First teams.[citation needed]
Notable alumni
This article's list of alumni may not follow Wikipedia's verifiability policy. Please improve this article by removing names that do not have independent reliable sources showing they merit inclusion in this article AND are alumni, or by incorporating the relevant publications into the body of the article through appropriate citations.(April 2020)
Past Matriculants of the school have gone on to be leaders in all fields of South African life, from leaders in commerce, Members of Parliament, renowned academics, Springboks rugby players, other internationally renowned sportsmen, musicians and artists.
Wayne Ferreira, international tennis player and Olympic silver medalist,
Eric Sturgess, international tennis player who reached the finals of three Grand Slam singles tournaments and won six Grand Slam doubles tournaments,[20][3]
Joseph Wolpe, psychologist and psychology theorist,
Byron Bertram, South African professional tennis player,
Jackie Mekler, long distance runner. Three ultra marathon world records, five Comrades wins and ten Comrades gold medals amongst numerous other athletic feats.
Old Parktonians who have played for the national hockey side are:
Lance Louw, Neville Berman, Justin Rosenburg, Noel Day, Andre du Preez, Keith Jones, Dylan Coombes, Ricky West, Miguel Da Graca, Matthew Brown, Brian Morton[31]
Music and Art
Some notable musicians and artists who attended Parktown Boys' High School are:
Parktown Boys' High School has also had some notable associations including:
Jake White[34] coached the 2007 IRB World Cup winning Springboks and started his rugby coaching career at Parktown Boys' High School in 1982.
Controversies
In September 2018, the former water polo coach at Parktown, Collan Rex, pleaded guilty to 144 charges of sexual assault against multiple Parktown pupils and was subsequently sentenced to 23 years in prison.[35][36]
On 15 January 2020, a 13-year-old pupil drowned while attending orientation camp at the Nyati Bush and River Break lodge, near Pretoria. The principal was dismissed in October 2020 following an investigation.[37][38] The principal was subsequently reinstated after being cleared of any wrongdoing with the latest investigations being focused on Nyathi Bush and River Break lodge. [39]
Related Research Articles
Kearsney College is a private boarding, English medium high school for boys in Botha's Hill, a small town between the provincial capital of Pietermaritzburg and Durban, in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa.
Westville Boys' High School, often referred to as WBHS or "boys high", is a semi-private high school for boys located in Westville, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.
St. Andrew's College is an Anglican high school for boys located in Makhanda (Grahamstown), Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It was founded in 1855 by the Right Reverend John Armstrong, the first Bishop of Grahamstown. It is a semi boarding school, with a number of day boys. St. Andrew's College caters to 480 pupils from around the globe. The school is also a member of the G30 Schools group and closely associated with its brother school, St. Andrew's Preparatory School, and its sister school the Diocesan School for Girls.
The Diocesan College is a private, English medium, boarding and day high school for boys situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The school was established on 2 October 1849 by the Anglican Bishop of Cape Town.
Jeppe High School for Boys is a public English medium high school for boys in Kensington, a suburb of Johannesburg in the Gauteng province of South Africa. It is one of the 23 Milner Schools, and its sister school is Jeppe High School for Girls.
Maritzburg College is a semi-private English-medium high school for boys situated in the city of Pietermaritzburg, in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It was founded in 1863 and it's the oldest boys' high school in KwaZulu-Natal – and one of the oldest schools in South Africa. As of December 2021 it is attended by 1 265 students, of whom approximately 470 are boarders.
Alexandra High School also known as AHS is a semi-private public high school in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It offers a co-educational environment.
St Stithians College is a private Methodist school situated in the suburb of Lyme Park in the border of Sandton and Randburg in the Gauteng province of South Africa. Founded in 1953 by Albert Collins, William Mountstephens and Gilbert Tucker, it has consistently ranked amongst the top performing independent schools in South Africa. It follows a co-ordinate educational model within a village of schools consisting of boys' and girls' colleges, boys' and girls' preparatory schools, and a junior preparatory. It is built on a 100 hectare estate, one of the largest school campuses in the country.
St Charles College, founded in 1875, is a Christian, independent boys college situated in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, catering for day boys from Grade 000 to Matric, with boarders from Grade 4 upwards.
St. Alban's College is a private, boarding, English medium and day high school for boys situated in the suburb of Lynnwood Glen in Pretoria in the Gauteng province of South Africa. It was founded in 1963 by Anton Murray. Its history, influence, wealth, and academic reputation have made it one of the most prestigious schools in South Africa. The sister school is called St. Mary's Diocesan School for Girls, Pretoria.
Wynberg Boys' High School is a public English medium boys high school situated in the suburb of Wynberg of Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Founded in 1841, it is one of the best academic schools in Cape Town, it is believed by scholars and old boys to be the second oldest school in South Africa, however, there are several schools that were established at earlier dates as far back as 1738.
Hoërskool Waterkloof is a public Afrikaans medium co-educational high school situated in the eastern suburbs of Pretoria in the Gauteng province of South Africa. It is one of the most expensive Afrikaans medium schools, the fee per child amounting to R 32,400 per annum. It has received the award for academic school of the year from the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) in 2004, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. In 2018, it received the award for best academic school in Gauteng province, the ninth time since 2009. It claims a 100% matric pass rate for 30 consecutive years.
Potchefstroom High School for Boys is a public English medium high school for boys situated in Potchefstroom in the North West province of South Africa. It is one of the oldest schools in South Africa.
Kimberley Boys' High School is a state secondary school or high school situated adjacent to the Honoured Dead Memorial, in the arc between Dalham and Memorial Roads, Kimberley, Northern Cape, South Africa – a site it has occupied since January 1914. The school was founded, along with what would become Kimberley Girls' High School, in 1887, under the name Kimberley Public Undenominational Schools. In July 1970 it gave rise to Kimberley Boys’ Junior School which in turn united with Belgravia Junior School in January 1977 to become what is today Kimberley Junior School.
Milnerton High School is a public English medium co-educational high school for Grades 8 to 12, situated in the Milnerton suburb of Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa.
Die Antwoord is a South African alternative hip hop group formed in Cape Town in 2008.
Watkin Tudor Jones, better known by his stage names Ninja and Max Normal, is a South African rapper, songwriter, record producer, performance artist, and director. Jones found international success as a member of Die Antwoord, with Yolandi Visser. He was formerly a member of Max Normal and The Constructus Corporation.
Alan Menter is an English-born dermatologist, and former flyhalf rugby union player for the Springboks.
Hoërskool Eldoraigne is a public Afrikaans medium co-educational high school situated in the suburb of Eldoraigne in Centurion in the Gauteng province of South Africa. It is one of the most academic schools in Gauteng and its learners are known as Eldo's.
Boksburg High School is a public high school in Boksburg, a suburb of Ekurhuleni, South Africa. The school was founded in 1920 as the Rand East Training and Preparatory College under its first Principal, Mr Charter. In 1925, the school changed its name to Boksburg High School. Over the years, substantial additions to the campus grounds were made such the absorption of Leeuwpoort Primary School. The school has had seven Principals over its nearly 100 years history and its enrollment rate expanded from the first class of the REPTC which consisted of 13 students, to approximately 1600 students as of 2019, acceptance to which being highly sought after with the school often receiving more applications for admission than places available. The school is among the top performing schools in its district.
↑ Parktown Old Boys Facebook Page Retrieved 22 April 2011
↑ Parktown Old Boys Facebook Page "Parktonian Foundation". Archived from the original on 2 October 2011. Retrieved 25 April 2011. Retrieved 22 April 2011
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
