St Bonaventure's High School

St Bonaventure's High School
St Bonaventure's High School
Address
	Foujdari Road, Saddar ; Hyderabad, Sindh , 71000; Pakistan
Coordinates	25°23′37″N68°22′03″E / 25.393515°N 68.367534°E
Information
Former name	St Bonaventure's Boys' High School
Type	Private primary and secondary school
Motto	We hold the Fort
Religious affiliation(s)	Catholicism
Established	1920s–1930s
Founder	Archilles Meersman
Local authority	Catholic Board of Education ; Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Hyderabad
Oversight	Catholic Board of Education
Principal	Saleem Anjum (City Branch)
Gender	Boys (Saddar); Co-educational (Qasimabad);
Age	4to 15
Enrollment	Established 2,000 in City branch (usually 200 students per class of three sections each)
Campus size	Saddar:; 117,040 sq ft (10,873 m2); Qasimabad:; 88,610 sq ft (8,232 m2);
Houses	Ayub ; Jinnah ; Liaquat ; Tariq ;
Color(s)	White, atomic tangerine and brown
Affiliations	Aga Khan University ; St Mary's Convent High School ;

Last updated March 10, 2024

St Bonaventure's High School (formerly St Bonaventure's Boys' High School) is a private Catholic primary and secondary school, located on Foujdari Road in Saddar, Hyderabad in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The school has another branch in the Hyderabad town of Qasimabad. The school is operated by the Roman Catholic diocese of Hyderabad.

History

In the years between the 1920s and early 1930s the missionary establishments in the southern Indian subcontinent laid foundations for a school in Hyderabad run by the church to impart education to the masses.^[1] It was, however, during the years of the partition and the formation of the nation of Pakistan (1945–1948), Archilles Meersman, a parish priest, born to a Dutch mother and a Belgian father, at the Franciscan seminary at Karachi, built the new school.^[2] With deeply rooted Franciscan ideologies, Archilles named the school after the saint Bonaventure of Bagnoregio. Although some suggest that the school was named after the Rt. Rev. Bonaventure Patrick Pau], former bishop of Hyderabad.^[3] It was later given the status of a high school after the partition and was formally called St Bonaventure's High School.^[4]

The Catholic Board of Education took charge of the development and running of the school and erected a church in the memory of Saint Francis Xavier for his services in Central Asia and India. The church and the school buildings are regarded as cultural heritage monuments in Hyderabad.^[5] Formerly a coeducational institution, the school was divided into two schools, one for boys and one for girls named St Mary's Convent High School. Running under a Christian administration, the schools imparted education to upper and middle-class students until the 1970s when these were nationalised and taken over by the socialist government of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.^[1]

When in 1972, all privately owned institutions were nationalised under the Government of Pakistan, most lost their quality and charm. The government administration failed to deliver quality education through these schools.^[1] It was not until 1992 that with the change of government the schools were denationalised and the rightful ownership was returned to the Roman Catholic diocese. Most Christian institutions in other parts of the nation were denationalised later on in June 2001.^[1]^[6] The current principals Mr Bertram DeSouza and Mrs Angela DeSouza were former teachers at the school during the early 1960s and later married, becoming joint principals in the late 1970s.

Qasimabad branch

The school administration expanded its operations in 1990 towards the town of Qasimabad and opened a branch there. Once built, St. Bonaventure's Qasimabad branch became one of the largest schools in the city. With its significant growth in educational services, Aga Khan University extended an offer for affiliation in 2007 for curricular material to be introduced to enable the school to attain the status of a college.^{[ citation needed ]}

Administration

The school is administered by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hyderabad. The day-to-day affairs and the running of the school are headed by the principal, who is also charged with the recruitment of teachers and staff.

Fr. J. B. Todd OFM was first vice-principal and later principal of St Bonaventure's High School from 1958 to 1974.^[7]^[8] He was also instrumental in starting the school band in 1958.

Bertram DeSouza and Angela DeSouza are joint principals.

The office superintendent of the school is Mr Benedict Francis.

Activities

Extra-curricular activities are organized annually and include drama, sports, Award Day, Pakistand Independence Day celebrations, and Eid Milad-un-Nabi. Annual competitions include debating (English, Urdu, Sindhi), elocution (English, Urdu, Sindhi), CSE (AKU-EB Section), science exhibition, singing competition, computer quiz and exhibition, and drawing contest. Based on the performances in academic and extra-curricular activities, houses are awarded an Honour Flag each month. Student groups include school prefects, Scouts and Cub Scouts, school band, gymnastics and houses.

Related Research Articles

Hyderabad is a city and the capital of Hyderabad Division in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It is the second-largest city in Sindh, and the fifth largest in Pakistan.

Hyderabad District, is a district of Sindh, Pakistan. Its capital is the city of Hyderabad. The district is the second most urbanized in Sindh, after Karachi, with 80% of its residents live in urban areas.

Latifabad is a township in the southern suburbs of the city of Hyderabad, in Sindh, Pakistan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Patrick's High School, Karachi</span> School in Pakistan

St Patrick's High School is a Catholic primary and secondary school located in Saddar Town, Sindh, Karachi, Pakistan. Founded by the Jesuits in 1861, the school is the second-oldest school in Karachi. Since 1950, it has been run by the diocesan clergy of the Archdiocese of Karachi.

Tando Adam is a city in Sindh, Pakistan. It was formerly under Nawab Shah district until 1955 and later became part of Sanghar District. It is the 57th largest city in Pakistan, Tando Adam was founded by Mir Adam Khan Mari, which is called "cantonment" for "Tando" in Balochi. Tando Adam is known for its industries and its agriculture; crops raised nearby include sugar-cane, wheat, cotton, bananas, and mangoes. It is the most populous city of Sanghar District with a population of 152,025 according to the 2017 census.

Saint Joseph's College for Women is located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. It is a college for women, owned by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Karachi.

Qasimabad is a town/city in the western side of Hyderabad City in Sindh province of Pakistan.

Hyderābād City (Haidarābād), headquarters of the district of Sindh province of Pakistan traces its early history to Neroon, a Sindhi ruler of the area from whom the city derived its previous name, Neroon Kot. Its history dates back to medieval times, when Ganjo Takker, a nearby hilly tract, was used as a place of worship. Lying on the most northern hill of the Ganjo Takker ridge, just east of the river Indus, it is the third largest city in the province and the eighth largest in the country with an expanse over three hillocks part of the most northerly hills of the Ganjo Takker range, 32 miles east of the Indus with which it is connected by various routes leading to Gidu Bandar.

Nabi Bakhsh Khan Baloch was a Baloch research scholar, historian, sindhologist, educationist, linguist and writer. He predominantly wrote in Sindhi, but sometimes in Urdu, English, Persian and Arabic. He has been described as the "moving library" of the Pakistani province of Sindh.

St Mary's Convent High School is a private Catholic primary and secondary school for girls located on Foujdari Road in Hyderabad in the Sindh province of Pakistan. It was founded as a part of St Bonaventure's High School specifically aimed at the educational needs of girls in the city. The convent is run by resident nuns of the Catholic Diocese of Hyderabad.

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Hyderabad is a diocese of the Latin Church of the Roman Catholic Church in Pakistan.

Mithiani, is a town in the Naushahro Feroze District, of Sindh, Pakistan. It is 15 km west of Naushahro Feroze City, according to 2017 censes of Pakistan it had a population of 97,734. There used to be a railway service in Mithiani which connected Mithiani with rest of Sindh. railway station, which is now defunct. Mithiani is situated on the right bank of River Indus, the town is protected by a massive bund against high flooding in the River Indus, which was constructed in 1920. Mithiani is connected to every major city and town of Sindh and Pakistan.

The Catholic Board of Education is the arm of the Roman Catholic Church in Pakistan responsible for education. Each diocese has its own board. Collectively the Catholic Church runs 534 schools, 8 colleges, and 7 technical institutes in its 2 archdioceses, 4 dioceses, and one Apostolic Prefecture.

The Franciscan Portiuncula Friary is the oldest friary in Pakistan, founded in 1940. It is located in Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Karachi, adjacent to the Christ the King Seminary. It is the Pakistani base of the Order of Friars Minor, a mendicant Catholic religious order founded by Saint Francis of Assisi in 1209.

St Lawrence's Convent Girls' School is a private Catholic primary and secondary school for girls located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Founded by the Sister of the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary in 1936 as a co-educational school, the school is now part of the Archdiocese of Karachi.

St. Mary's High School is a private Catholic co-educational primary and secondary boarding and day school, located in Sukkur, Sindh, Pakistan. Founded in 1881, the school is administered by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hyderabad in Pakistan.

St. Francis High School, formerly known as Government St. Francis High School is a private Catholic school for boys, located in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. In spite of its name as a high school, the school delivers a primary and high school education.

Samson Shukardin is the bishop of the Diocese of Hyderabad, Pakistan.

Mariyam Sultana Noohani was an educationist and academic leader of Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan. She headed All Pakistan Women Association and the Federation of Pakistan Women Organisation. She imparted education and training especially to the girls and apprised them with the importance of schooling. She also remained associated with the Sindh Public Service Commission and the Sindh University as a subject expert. She served as Director of College Education of Hyderabad Region. She is popularly known as "Apa Mariyam Noohani". She was awarded title of Ummul Kalam Apa Mariyam due to her services towards education of the people of Sindh.

St. Teresa's Hospital is a hospital in Mirpurkhas, Sindh, Pakistan.

References

1 2 3 4 "The Vanishing Glory of Hyderabad (Sindh, Pakistan)" (PDF). Unior.it. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
↑ Diehl, Katharine Smith (August 1978). "Review: Catholic Religious Orders in South Asia (1500-1835)". The Journal of Asian Studies. Vol. 37. Association for Asian Studies. pp. 699–711. doi:10.2307/2054372. JSTOR 2054372. S2CID 162254500.
↑ "Colvale - Village with a view". Goacom. Archived from the original on 9 April 2013. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
↑ "St Bonaventure High School, Hyderabad". heritage.eftsindh.com.
↑ "List of old historical building". Hyderabad District Government. Retrieved 25 May 2008.^{[ dead link ]}
↑ "News from Pakistani missionary schools". Goanet USENET forum. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
↑ Newspaper, the (2 December 2015). "Father Todd's 94th birthday celebrated". DAWN.COM.
↑ "Dawn". 18 December 2005.