Rondebosch Boys' High School
Encyclopedia
Rondebosch Boys' High School is a state secondary school
in Rondebosch
, a suburb of Cape Town
, South Africa
. It was founded in 1897 and is known by the acronym "RBHS".
Subsequent to RBHS's 2009 matric results, which were the best results ever achieved by RBHS, RBHS headmaster Martin Barker attended a function at the Presidential Guest House in Pretoria, where he accepted an award from the Deputy President, Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
, for Rondebosch having more than 100 matric boys writing higher grade mathematics
. There are only 13 other state schools in South Africa which attained this accolade. This is in addition to the award made to the school by the Premier of the Western Cape for Rondebosch being in the top 10 schools in the Province and for having the highest number of higher grade Physical Science
passes in the Province.
Rondebosch won the UCT Mathematics Competition
for eight of the ten years from 1999 to 2007.
The senior debating team won the Rotary
Trophy for three consecutive years from 1993-1995. The choir has performed in the Cape Town City Hall
on regular occasions, and the school has won many awards for music at Eisteddfods. The school puts on plays, both one-act and longer, and has won the Montague Play Festival recently. The annual "Cabaret in the Quad" is popular and is usually sold out before opening night.
as well as SACS
and WBHS
. Derby sport matches between the schools are played almost every weekend during the winter sports season a year in both rugby
and cricket
, as well as in a number of other sports. RBHS, Bishops and SACS
participate in the annual Triangular athletics
event.
competition in California, USA
, HD Ackerman, John Commins
, John Nel
, Jonathan Trott
, Kenny Jackson
, Paul Kirsten
, Bryan Baguley, Ryan Maron, Louis-Marc Germishuys, Ralph Coetzee, Andrew Puttick
: Gerald Thompson, Frank Mellish, Jackie Tindall, Willie Rousseau, Bennie Osler
, Stanley Osler, Jock van Niekerk, Mervyn Ellis, Jack Gage, Alvi van der Merwe, John Apsey, Dendy Lawton, James Starke, Mike Lawless, Ian McCallum
, Roy McCallum, Chris Pope
, Derek van den Berg, Joel Stransky
(at Rondebosch till his under 16 year), Gcobani Bobo
and Hanyani Shimange.
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
in Rondebosch
Rondebosch
Rondebosch is one of the Southern Suburbs of Cape Town, South Africa. It is primarily a residential suburb, with a medium-size shopping area, a small business district as well as the main campus of the University of Cape Town.-History:...
, a suburb of Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. It was founded in 1897 and is known by the acronym "RBHS".
Academics
Of the 150 final-year students in 2006, 58 achieved an "A" aggregate and over 90% achieved matric endorsement in the Western Cape Education Department exams and have had a 100% pass rate.Subsequent to RBHS's 2009 matric results, which were the best results ever achieved by RBHS, RBHS headmaster Martin Barker attended a function at the Presidential Guest House in Pretoria, where he accepted an award from the Deputy President, Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka is a South African politician who was Deputy President of South Africa from 2005 to 2008. She was the first woman to hold the position and was the highest ranking woman in the history of South Africa...
, for Rondebosch having more than 100 matric boys writing higher grade mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
. There are only 13 other state schools in South Africa which attained this accolade. This is in addition to the award made to the school by the Premier of the Western Cape for Rondebosch being in the top 10 schools in the Province and for having the highest number of higher grade Physical Science
Physical science
Physical science is an encompassing term for the branches of natural science and science that study non-living systems, in contrast to the life sciences...
passes in the Province.
Rondebosch won the UCT Mathematics Competition
UCT Mathematics Competition
The UCT Mathematics Competition is an annual mathematics competition for schools in the Western Cape province of South Africa, held at the University of Cape Town....
for eight of the ten years from 1999 to 2007.
Culture
The school offers a range of cultural activities and societies.The senior debating team won the Rotary
Rotary International
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help...
Trophy for three consecutive years from 1993-1995. The choir has performed in the Cape Town City Hall
Cape Town City Hall
Cape Town City Hall is a large Edwardian building in Cape Town city centre which was built in 1905. It is located on the Grand Parade to the west of the Castle and is built from honey-coloured oolitic limestone imported from Bath in England.-History:...
on regular occasions, and the school has won many awards for music at Eisteddfods. The school puts on plays, both one-act and longer, and has won the Montague Play Festival recently. The annual "Cabaret in the Quad" is popular and is usually sold out before opening night.
Sports
Rondebosch is the traditional rival of the nearby school Diocesan College (Bishops)Diocesan College
The Diocesan College, or Bishops as it is more commonly known, is an independent, all-boys school situated in the suburb of Rondebosch in Cape Town, South Africa...
as well as SACS
South African College Schools
The South African College Schools, commonly referred to as SACS, is a primary and secondary education institution located in Newlands, Cape Town, South Africa. Founded in 1829, it is the oldest school in South Africa and one of four schools expressly named by Cecil John Rhodes to offer an annual...
and WBHS
Wynberg Boys' High School
Wynberg Boys' High School is a public school for boys in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa.It was founded in 1841 and is the second oldest school in South Africa. It had humble beginnings in Glebe Cottage under first Headmaster John McNaughton and changed site three times before moving onto its...
. Derby sport matches between the schools are played almost every weekend during the winter sports season a year in both rugby
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, as well as in a number of other sports. RBHS, Bishops and SACS
SACS
SACS may refer to:* St Andrew's Cathedral School, an Anglican school in Sydney, Australia* The South African College Schools, a school in Cape Town, South Africa...
participate in the annual Triangular athletics
Athletics (track and field)
Athletics is an exclusive collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross country running, and race walking...
event.
Notable alumni
- John Allison (editor), publisher and editor of Opera magazine
- Ken AndrewKen AndrewKen Andrew is a South African politician. He was born in Cape Town and matriculated from Rondebosch Boys' High School as head boy. Andrew studied at the University of Cape Town were he achieved his BSc degree and later a Masters in business administration...
, politician - David Becker, professional speaker, coach and 'mindmaster'
- Justin Bergh, singer
- Sir Frank Berman, Member of the Permanent Court of ArbitrationPermanent Court of ArbitrationThe Permanent Court of Arbitration , is an international organization based in The Hague in the Netherlands.-History:The court was established in 1899 as one of the acts of the first Hague Peace Conference, which makes it the oldest institution for international dispute resolution.The creation of...
(‘the PCA’) in The Hague - Ryan CoetzeeRyan CoetzeeRyan Coetzee is a prominent South African politician and political strategist, and past CEO of the country's official opposition, the Democratic Alliance. He was a Member of Parliament between 2004 and 2009, and headed up his party's general election campaigns in 2004 and 2009...
, strategist for the Democratic Alliance - Michael Corbett, Chief Justice of South AfricaChief Justice of South AfricaThe Chief Justice of South Africa is the head of the judiciary of South Africa, who exercises final authority over the functioning and management of all the courts...
- Allan McLeod CormackAllan McLeod CormackAllan MacLeod Cormack was a South African-born American physicist who won the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work on X-ray computed tomography ....
, winner of the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
for work on the development of Computer assisted tomography (CAT scan) - Jannie de Villiers, former rector of the University of Stellenbosch
- David EarlDavid EarlDavid Earl is a South African composer and pianist. He was educated at Rondebosch Boys' High School. He made his professional debut at the age of sixteen when he broadcast Bach, Chopin and Chabrier on the SABC. In 1968, he performed Felix Mendelssohn's Piano Concerto No 1 with the Cape Town...
, composer and concert pianist - Robert FokkensRobert FokkensRobert Fokkens is a South African classical music composer. He is among a new generation of younger composers in post-apartheid South Africa. He was educated in Cape Town at Rondebosch Boys' School....
, composer - Nick GeversNick GeversNick Gevers is a South African science fiction editor and critic, whose work has appeared in The Washington Post Book World, Interzone, Scifi.com, SF Site, The New York Review of Science Fiction and Nova Express...
, science fiction critic and editor - Richard Haigh, Associate Director of Music and Organist at the Roman Catholic Cathedral in Dallas
- Tim JenkinTim JenkinTimothy Peter Jenkin is a South African writer, former political prisoner and prison escapee.Jenkin, a Cape Town resident and University of Cape Town alumnus, was charged with "producing and distributing 18 different pamphlets on behalf of banned organisations" including the South African...
, political prisoner, author, escapee from Pretoria Central Prison - Daniel RajnaDaniel RajnaDaniel Rajna born 1968, London, England, is a South African ballet dancer. After gaining a BSc in applied mathematics at UCT, he trained at the UCT Ballet school, Cape Town. He joined the former CAPAB Ballet in 1990, before leaving in 1997 to join PACT Ballet in Pretoria. He returned to Cape Town...
, principal ballet dancer with the Cape Town City Ballet CompanyCape Town City BalletThe Cape Town City Ballet Company, formerly known as the CAPAB Ballet Company, is based in Cape Town, South Africa.-History:The Cape Town City Ballet originates from the UCT Ballet Company, which was established by Dulcie Howes in 1934. This became the CAPAB Ballet Company under the directorship... - Mark ShuttleworthMark ShuttleworthMark Richard Shuttleworth is a South African entrepreneur who was the second self-funded space tourist. Shuttleworth founded Canonical Ltd. and as of 2010, provides leadership for the Ubuntu operating system...
, founder of Canonical Ltd, and leader for development of the Ubuntu operating system. - Richard SpringRichard SpringRichard John Grenville Spring, Baron Risby is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He served as Member of Parliament for Bury St Edmunds from 1992 to 1997, and for West Suffolk from 1997 to 2010....
, MPMember of ParliamentA Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
and Vice Chairman of the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... - Sir Robert Clarkson TredgoldRobert Clarkson TredgoldSir Robert Clarkson Tredgold was a British barrister and judge who held a number of political posts in Rhodesia....
, Chief Justice of the Federation of Rhodesia and NyasalandFederation of Rhodesia and NyasalandThe Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, also known as the Central African Federation , was a semi-independent state in southern Africa that existed from 1953 to the end of 1963, comprising the former self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia and the British protectorates of Northern Rhodesia,... - Lyall WatsonLyall WatsonLyall Watson was a South African botanist, zoologist, biologist, anthropologist, ethologist, and author of many new age books, among the most popular of which is the best seller Supernature. Lyall Watson tried to make sense of natural and supernatural phenomena in biological terms...
, author of Supernature - Ernest Wentzel, civil rights lawyer
- ZapiroZapiroJonathan Shapiro, born 1958 in Cape Town, is a South African cartoonist, famous as Zapiro, whose work appears in numerous South African publications and has been exhibited internationally on many occasions...
, cartoonist
Surfing
Chris Bertish, winner of 2010 MavericksMavericks (location)
Maverick's or Mavericks is a surfing location in Northern California, U.S.A.. It is located approximately 2 miles from shore in Pillar Point Harbor just north of Half Moon Bay at the village of Princeton-By-The-Sea. After a strong winter storm in the northern Pacific Ocean, waves can routinely...
competition in California, USA
Cricket
Gary KirstenGary Kirsten
Gary Kirsten is a former South African cricketer, and the World Cup winning coach of the Indian cricket team. He played 101 Test matches and 185 One-day internationals for South Africa between 1993 and 2004, mainly as an opening batsman...
, HD Ackerman, John Commins
John Commins
John Brian Commins is a former South African cricketer who played in three Tests from 1994 to 1995.-References:...
, John Nel
John Nel
John Desmond Nel is a former South African cricketer who played in six Tests from 1949 to 1957. He has three sons Paul, Andrew and John who live in South Africa and one daughter who now lives in New Zealand. All of his sons went to Rondebosch Junior and High school...
, Jonathan Trott
Jonathan Trott
Ian Jonathan Leonard Trott is a South African-born England Test cricketer. Domestically, he plays for Warwickshire and he has also played in South Africa and New Zealand...
, Kenny Jackson
Kenny Jackson (cricketer)
Kenneth Conrad Jackson is a former first class cricketer. Jackson was born in Zambia but played the majority of his cricket in South Africa with Boland, having previously played for Western Province with whom he spent his first three seasons...
, Paul Kirsten
Paul Kirsten
Paul Kirsten is a former South African first class cricketer. He is the brother of Gary Kirsten and half brother of Peter Kirsten.-External links:*...
, Bryan Baguley, Ryan Maron, Louis-Marc Germishuys, Ralph Coetzee, Andrew Puttick
Andrew Puttick
Andrew George Puttick is a South African cricketer.A left-handed opening batsman, Puttick represented South Africa at the 1999 Under-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka. After making his first class debut in 2000-01, he immediately made an impact with a century in his 3rd game, against Easterns at Newlands...
Rugby
SpringboksSouth Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
: Gerald Thompson, Frank Mellish, Jackie Tindall, Willie Rousseau, Bennie Osler
Bennie Osler
Benjamin Louwrens Osler was a rugby union footballer who played internationally for South Africa. Osler played mainly at fly-half for both South Africa, and his provincial team of Western Province....
, Stanley Osler, Jock van Niekerk, Mervyn Ellis, Jack Gage, Alvi van der Merwe, John Apsey, Dendy Lawton, James Starke, Mike Lawless, Ian McCallum
Ian McCallum
Ian McCallum is a Scottish guitarist. Born in Kenton, Newcastle Upon Tyne, England he now lives in Los Angeles. He started writing and touring in the early 1980s. He plays guitar for Stiff Little Fingers, and is also a recording artist in his own right.He is a fan of Lindisfarne, and in fact...
, Roy McCallum, Chris Pope
Chris Pope
John Christopher "Chris" Pope is a producer, social media expert, technical trainer, and podcaster. He lives in Georgia with his wife Melanie, daughters Avery, Ema, and Lily....
, Derek van den Berg, Joel Stransky
Joel Stransky
Joel Theodore Stransky is a former South African rugby union rugby player, most notable for scoring all of South Africa's points, including the famous dramatic winning drop goal, against New Zealand in the 1995 Rugby World Cup final. He played as a fly-half.-Early life:Stransky was born in...
(at Rondebosch till his under 16 year), Gcobani Bobo
Gcobani Bobo
Gcobani Bobo is a South African rugby player. His preferred position is Centre although he has played Wing on numerous occasions, with some success due to his pace....
and Hanyani Shimange.
- EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
: Frank Mellish - FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
: Eric Melvill - IrelandIrelandIreland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
: Dion O'CuinneagainDion O'CuinneagainDion O'Cuinneagain is a former rugby union player who represented both South Africa and Ireland. Since retiring as a rugby player, O'Cuinneagain has worked as a doctor and as a rugby coach.-Early years:...
(captain), who also captained the South African SevensRugby sevensRugby sevens, also known as seven-a-side or VIIs, is a variant of rugby union in which teams are made up of seven players, instead of the usual 15, with shorter matches. Rugby sevens is administered by the International Rugby Board , the body responsible for rugby union worldwide...
side - USA SevensUSA SevensThe USA Sevens is an annual rugby sevens tournament held in the United States. A part of the IRB Sevens World Series, it currently takes place on Saturday and Sunday during the second weekend of February...
: Dallen Stanford