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Marking 101 years of ST Theresa girl's school
Sister Mary Valentine Nabbosa posses for a photo with some of the school’s pupils. Today, the school is celebrating its 101 anniversary since its establishment in 1915. PHOTO BY FAUSTIN MUGABE
St Theresa Girl’s Primary School in Kisubi, Entebbe is 101 years old. Today, October 1, the school will be celebrating the 101 anniversary since it was started in 1915.
It was established by the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa, the White Sisters, as a female Catholic Instruction School to mainly teach catechism and basic education including learning to read and write, moral teaching, socialisation as well as hygiene.
The White Sisters had arrived in 1905 and settled at Kisubi. By 1922, their work had attracted the attention of parents around who requested them to allow their young boys to attend classes with girls. The nuns accepted about a dozen of young boys whom they would meet twice a week from 8am - 11am and teach them how to read and write.
Letting in the boys
In the late 1920s, the school had 45 girls. Although the boys had been earlier allowed to attend classes with girls, it was not until 1931 that they were formally admitted to the formerly all-girls school, according to Sister Mary Valentine Nabbosa, the school’s current Head teacher. Also in the same year, a boarding section for the girls coming from far was inaugurated.
The following year, a boarding section for the boys was also established at the school. And by February 1933, the number of boys had grown from 13 to 15 five in number. The boys were always between seven-eight years old. In 1933, the first boys from St Theresa left after primary level to join Kitovu Junior School in Masaka.
In 1938, the school, which had been established as St Theresa Central School Kisubi, changed its name to St Theresa Full Primary School Boarding School.
The number of girls had also grown from 99 to 160 in the boarding section, and 61 were day scholars. A new syllabus introducing new subjects: English, Biology, Geography Hygiene and history was inaugurated.
After the Second World War, for the academic year 1946-1947, the number had more than tripled to 300 with six classes. The records also indicate that the school had the best performance in schools in Buganda region.
Boys leave St Theresa to girls
In 1957, it was decided by the Catholic Church to permanently make St Theresa a girl’s primary school, so, the boys were transferred to Kabojja and Savio Junior schools. In 1966, after 51 years since the school was founded, the numbers of pupils had increased from a dozen girls to 765 pupils with 226 in the boarding section. One hundred and one years later, the school has a total population of 1,010 pupils.
Some of St Theresa’s old girls
St Theresa has produced thousands of reputable women who, according to the headteacher, Sister Mary Valentine Nabbosa, are all over the world.
They include Elisabeth Bakibinga, Legal Advisor to the Commonwealth Secretariat London, United Kingdom; Judith Muhongerwa, Director Human Resource BRD bank in Kigali – Rwanda; Flavia Tumusiime, a popular news anchor on NTV-Uganda; and Christine Wekesa, Legal Advisor East African Community Secretariat, Arusha Tanzania, among others.
