Kutama College

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Classrooms and Administration Block of Kutama College, 1995.

Kutama College (officially St Francis Xavier College), is an all-boys high school located near the town of Norton in the Zvimba area, 80 kilometres southwest of the Zimbabwean capital Harare. Kutama has a student population of about 700 pupils, and is considered one of Africa's top 100 high schools. The school moto "Esse Quam Videri" is latin meaning "to be, rather than to seem". This is interpreted in the school as the more succint "be what you are", reflecting the school's aim to instill pride in its students. In addition to academic learning, students participate and compete in sports (including soccer, volleyball, basketball and table tennis), chess and (debating.

Like most high schools in Zimbabwe, which follow the traditional British school system, students at Kutama are divided into four houses. Each house has its own color: Champagnat (blue), Patrick (yellow), Chichester (red), and Michael (green). They are named after famous Marist Brothers, such as Marcellin Champagnat, the founder of the Marist movement.

[edit] History

Founded prior to the Second World War by Jesuits, Kutama was one of the first institutions to offer high school education to students of African descent in colonial Rhodesia. Its Jesuit origins are reflected in its official name, St Francis Xavier College. The school is part of Kutama Mission, a Catholic mission originally run by Jesuits but now run by the Marist Brothers, a Catholic order devoted to educational work.

The late Mr James A. Chinamasa, Kutama College Headmaster in the 1990s, with his wife.

The school's first Headmaster was Father Jerome O'Hea, an Irish priest after whom the local mission hospital is named. Its most famous Headmaster was James Anthony ("Jachi") Chinamasa , a Kutama College old boy and elder brother of Zimbabwean Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa. The current headmaster is Mr Stephen Muchenje, who served as Senior Master (equivalent to "Deputy Headmaster") in the early 1990s.

[edit] Kutama Old Boys Association (KOBA)

The Kutama Old Boys Association (KOBA) is one of the oldest 'old boys' associations in Zimbabwe, and actively invests in the continued growth and success of the school, as well as Zimbabwean society at large.

Kutama's most famous alumnus is Robert Mugabe, the President of Zimbabwe, who studied and taught there. Other alumni include author Alexander Kanengoni,accountant David Mautsa, freedom fighter the late James Chikerema, Zimbabwe's first finance minister Bernard Chidzero and several ministers in the Zimbabwean government such as Ignatious Chombo and Washington Mbizvo. Kutama has also produced teachers, engineers, doctors, lawyers, chartered accountants, and businessmen. The young generation of KOBA continues to represent Kutama and help the school to deliver high quality education.