Prime
Recent UCE results show St Leo’s efforts to recover from troubled past
St Leo’s College, Kyegobe was one of the most prestigious schools in the nation until a series of unfortunate events plunged it into a deep decline. PHOTOS/ COURTESY.
What you need to know:
The once academic and sports force in the country has endured tumultuous years of poor results, mismanagement and indiscipline down the road, but old boys of the college have been on a run to revive its past glory with some commendable success.
For a school that disastrously fell from grace at the speed of dominoes in the last decade-plus, St Leo’s College, Kyegobe will surely toast to the latest turn of events. The college, based in Tooro, has reason to celebrate because of the reasonable strides it has made in the just released Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) results.
Out of the 44 students that sat the 2020 exams, 11 passed in Division one, 26 in Division two, and six and one other in third and fourth division respectively. But worth noting is that the college was ranked 44th in mathematics in the whole country.
In Kabarole District, St Leo’s finished fourth in ranking. “Given where we are coming from,” said Trophy Atuhairwe, the college headteacher, “this is progress for us. We are competing with our past but continuously aspiring to do more and be among the best.”
Background
Established in 1921 by the White Fathers, St Leo’s was a known academic and sports force from the 1980s through to the early 2000s. Along the way, the college has produced some of the best students in both categories. Some of the marked academic excellence takes us back to mid-90s, when St Leo’s easily finished among the top 10 schools in the UACE in the country.
Some notable old boys include retired telecom engineer Kanji Patel in the UK, National Water MD Silver Mugisha, Umeme boss Selestino Babungi and politician Tom Butime, and they have all been influential in revival efforts at the college. Others are celebrated journalist Charles Onyango Obbo and former presidential contestant Prof. Venansius Baryamureeba.
On the sporting front, St Leo’s, boasting of most of sports disciplines’ infrastructure, held some of the best competitions in the country, including the Sprite Basketball Championship.
The college, in which the government of Uganda also has a stake together with the principal, the Catholic Church; was the first upcountry school (outside of mainstream Central Uganda schools) to ever win the national Post Primary Football Tournament.
Lumumba is one of the dormitories that have been renovated and furnished by the college’s old students.
Then in 1997 in Mbarara under Fr. Ryan, the celebrated American coach - St Leo’s swept aside everyone, conceding only one goal in the quarterfinals before thumping Kibuli SSS 4-0 in the final. Some of the notable sports stars from the college include former Uganda Cranes goalkeeper Posnet Omwony, and arguably the country’s greatest basketball player ever, Stephen Omony.
The decline
But unfortunate events in the later 2000s, where students engaged in malpractice and misbehaved on and off the school, coupled with the board’s determination to align them, saw a clash of egos leading to fast decline. Strikes, some so violent the government threatened to permanently close the school, became the norm.
Indiscipline and exam malpractice went so out of hand that some of the 2014 results were cancelled by Uganda National Examinations Board (Uneb), forcing parents to withdraw their children.
That saw a drastic fall in student numbers from about 800 down to under 200. The college also found itself in debt of Shs200m and dormitories became dilapidated. It was almost a white elephant. It was so bad that the old boys became concerned, and in 2015 began efforts to rescue the school from complete demise. Incremental gains have since been registered, with more than Shs200m raised by the old boys to help the school get back to its feet. Student numbers have also gathered pace, and the 2020 UCE results will have given the school the much needed ray of hope.
Recovery efforts
Actually, 2020 results is a marked improvement from 2019 - four years after the St Leo’s College Old Boys Association (Sleckoba) embarked on revival efforts. Then in 2019, only three students passed in Division one, seven in two, 19 in three and five in four. At the time, Sleckoba chairman, also the Principal Engineer in the Water and Environment Ministry, Emmex Turyatunga, opined. “Good results will only come in 2021,” he said, “So do not expect miracles. What is important is that we have 62 students in Senior Two this year, which is progress in itself.”
Strides so far
The OBs’ expectation is that with continued improved performances, the numbers will continue rising. “And with our affordable fees structure of between Shs600,000 - Shs750,000, and progressive performances, we are the right place for parents to bring their children,” rallied Turyatunga. “We shall continue to improve year after year until the greatness of the college is restored with support of OBs Scholarship Scheme,” assured Turyatunga.
According to head teacher Atuhairwe, who replaced retired Aloysius Rujumba, in February last year, the improved academic performance is partly because of the OBs’ efforts to restore the college to its past glory. “My predecessor had done a lot in restoring student and staff discipline,” he told the Daily Monitor.
“So although the challenges remain, I found where to start from. And with the help of the OBs, we managed to remunerate staff and also bring in some new ones as well to help competition amongst the teachers. It is because of the OBs financial support that we managed to do remedial teaching, day and night, and finish the syllabus after Covid-19 limited us,” says Atuhairwe.
Emmex Turyatunga, Chairman St Leo’ College Kyegobe old boys association.
The OBs have since established a scholarship scheme for 33 bright but needy students worth Shs63m per year. Sports facilities have also since got a facelift, as well as dormitories, with Lumumba and Kabalega among other houses fully furnished.
A Shs6.4b grant from the African Development Bank and the government also helped put up a new library and three laboratories, which OBs have restocked.
Meanwhile, the college made 100 years of existence in January 2021 but celebrations could not take place due to covid-19 pandemic. “Celebrations will take place once the situation has normalised,” says Sleckoba chairman Turyatunga.
Mr. Moses Nyakazingwa, the first black headteacher, Austin Mulengwa, Henry Basaliza and Brother John Flood among others have headed the college since inception.
Aloysius Rujumba is the most recent headmaster since 2016, but was early last year replaced by Atuhairwe after the former’s retirement.
