Untitled Document

OMFA (Old Makeni Franciscans Association) UK & Ireland Branch Historical Background

St. Francis Secondary School, Makeni was founded on the 3rd February, 1958 by the Xaverian Missionaries of the Catholic Diocese of Makeni, Sierra Leone. The school was established to provide grammar school education for teenage boys in Makeni and the nearby towns. The school started at the present Pastoral Centre at Teko Road, Makeni.

The Motto of the school is “IN VERITATE SALUS” which is Latin for “IN TRUTH THERE IS SALVATION”. The first Principal of the school was Rev. Fr. Rocco Serra with a student roll of 45 and 2 teachers. Rev. Rocco Serra (Principal) taught History and French, Rev Collini taught Latin and Music and Mr. R. A. Kanu (The only Sierra Leonean) taught Mathematics, English, Science and Literature.

IN 1959, a team of Dutch Brothers arrived to take over the administration of the school at the present site. The Principal then was Rev. Bro. Oventius. The Dutch Brothers stayed until 1968 when they were withdrawn by their Religious Superiors. During the period of the Dutch Brothers, the school was widely known as the “School of Languages” as subjects such as Latin, French, German and Italian in addition to English were taught.

The school filled in its first set of 10 candidates for the SC/GCE in 1963. The school came out with 50% passes. In order to cater for the numerous students who lived out of Makeni, a Boarding Home was established.

In 1968/69, the administration of the school was handed over to Mr. R. A. Kanu the first Sierra Leonean teacher of the school. During his tenure of office, Agriculture was introduced into the curriculum. In 1972 a Sixth Form was established for Arts and Science students together with well equipped laboratories. In sports, the school emerged in 1968 as the National Volleyball Champions. In 1975/76 the Boarding Home was closed down due to the escalating cost of running it.

In 1980, the school’s administration was handed over to Mr. J. B. Koroma an ex-student of the school who served as Vice Principal in Mr. R. A. Kanu’s administration. This era of the school’s history will be remembered for the provision of a fence round the school compound and the generous donation to the school of a Mitsubishi Bus by parents.

At the request of late Bishop Augustus F. Azzolini, the Christian Brothers were invited to take over the administration of the school. In 1988 Rev. Bro. P. T. Coffey took over as Principal of the school. He abandoned the pre-fabricated buildings and converted the former Boarding Home into classrooms. He also introduced among several other things the speech day and prize-giving ceremony, the textbooks rental scheme and the scholarship-work programme for needy students.

In 1993, the Christian Brothers after serving diligently were withdrawn by their Religious Superiors. The administration was handed over to Mr. Milton A. Koroma an ex-student who served under Rev. Brother P. T. Coffey as a member of the coordinating committee. Mr Koroma’s administration ushered in with the introduction of the new 6-3-3-4 system of education which has not only brought changes in the curriculum but has also upgraded the school to a Senior Secondary School. The administration introduced the soap making project as part of the Skills Development Tasks of students at the Junior Secondary School level.

Source: St. Francis Magazine

School Song | Sierra Leone National Anthem | Maringa Krismes