Opoku Ware School
Encyclopedia
'Opoku Ware School', established in 1952, is an all boys Catholic boarding school in Kumasi
, Ghana
. The school was named after Asante King Opoku Ware I
. The alumni are known collectively as Akatakyie, an Asante word meaning "conquering heroes".
The patron saint of the school is Saint Thomas Aquinas. The motto of the school is "Deus Lux Scientiae", meaning "God is the Light of Knowledge". The school offers Science, Arts, Business and Agriculture courses.
in order to attend secondary schools. This meant that members of the Catholic Church who wished to have their children educated in accordance with Catholic traditions had to send them to St. Augustine's College or Holy Child College
, both in Cape Coast
.
At a meeting held on January 31, 1951, a decision was taken to build a Roman Catholic Mission secondary school. The government was to provide all the funds for the building of the school. The school was meant for 360 students with a possible expansion to the Sixth Form. It was to be developed according to a ten-year development plan, and the final cost was estimated at £
250,000. An expatriate construction firm, Fry, Drew and Company, was awarded the contract to build classrooms, dormitories, laboratories, and administration block and staff bungalows.
The first Headmaster was Rev. Fr. Peter Philip Burgess, and the first dormitory was St. Paul. The flat attached to the dormitory served as both the Headmaster's residence and as an office.
A Sixth Form Department was started in 1958, to provide courses in both the arts and sciences. A Cadet Corps was formed in 1960.
Approximately 1750 students attend the school, aged between 11 and 18 years. The students are housed in nine dormitories named after saints. There are over74 classrooms, three science laboratories, two libraries, a science resource center, computer department, language laboratory, and a French teaching center. There are 36 staff bungalows, a block of eight flats and quarters for junior administrative staff, cooks, and pantry boys, a staff canteen, a chapel, a dining hall, and a sick bay.
A student admitted in the subsequent year and registered first is give the number BK 1.
Between 1973 and 1990, about 90% of the students entering Harvard, MIT, Yale and Stanford Universities from Ghana were from OWASS. There were numerous others who went to University of Chicago, UC Berkeley, Columbia, and London, Imperial, Cambridge, Oxford and Aberdeen in Britain. The tradition of training most of the early Akatakyie medical doctors in Germany and Ireland ( via Catholic Church Scholarships)is legendary. Agreat number of faculty members at the Medical School in Kumasi are Akatakyie.
OWASS has won more trophies than any of its counterparts in the region; the school at one point won the hockey trophy for 11 consecutive years. OWASS has won more trophies than any school in the region when it comes to inter-collegiate events (Superzonals) held annually.The school has 9 out the 13 Superzonals. The school has produced several national athletes and Olympians including Ohene Karikari, Sandy Osei Agyemang, and Christian Nsiah.
The school has produced military officers, among whom are the late Air Vice Marshall Yaw Boakye (S59) (Air Force Chief of Staff during the Acheampong and Akuffo regimes), Naval Captain George Asubonteng (Q ), Naval Commander P. Graneek Griffiths (R8), Major (rtd) Mensah Poku (N 14), Major (rtd) Boakye Djan (Q 4), Captain (rtd) E. Yaw Bandoh(B 71), Col Kwame Oppong Otchere, the late Lieutenant Colonel Richard Amponsem-Boateng (AF 1), Commanding Officer 4BN, and Major (rtd) Atta K O Adusei( AG 35 / AO 331) .
Until the 1980s, OWASS was the only authorized test center for the administration of TOEFL
and SAT
exams in Ghana.
LIST OF HEADMASTERS OF "THE SCHOOL"
Kumasi
Kumasi is a city in southern central Ghana's Ashanti region. It is located near Lake Bosomtwe, in the Rain Forest Region about northwest of Accra. Kumasi is approximately north of the Equator and north of the Gulf of Guinea...
, Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
. The school was named after Asante King Opoku Ware I
Opoku Ware I
Katakyie Opoku Ware I was an Oyoko king or Asantehene - the ruler of the Ashanti - in the now-disbanded Ashanti Confederacy which occupied parts of what is now Ghana...
. The alumni are known collectively as Akatakyie, an Asante word meaning "conquering heroes".
The patron saint of the school is Saint Thomas Aquinas. The motto of the school is "Deus Lux Scientiae", meaning "God is the Light of Knowledge". The school offers Science, Arts, Business and Agriculture courses.
History
Until the school was built, there was no government secondary school in the Ashanti Region, and youths had to travel south across the Pra RiverPra River (Ghana)
The Pra River is a river in Ghana, the easternmost and the largest of the three principal rivers that drain the area south of the Volta divide. Rising in the Kwahu Plateau near Mpraeso and flowing southward for 240 km through rich cocoa and farming areas and valuable forests in the Akan...
in order to attend secondary schools. This meant that members of the Catholic Church who wished to have their children educated in accordance with Catholic traditions had to send them to St. Augustine's College or Holy Child College
Holy Child College Obalende
Holy Child College is a missionary school for girls in Lagos, Nigeria, other states in Nigeria and elsewhere. To the rear of HHC is its brother school St. Gregory's College at 42 Odo Street, Obalende, Lagos. It consists of the junior and senior colleges. The current Administrator is Rev. Sister...
, both in Cape Coast
Cape Coast
Cape Coast, or Cabo Corso, is the capital of the Central Region of Ghana and is also the capital city of the Fante people, or Mfantsefo. It is situated 165 km west of Accra on the Gulf of Guinea. It has a population of 82,291 . From the 16th century the city has changed hands between the...
.
At a meeting held on January 31, 1951, a decision was taken to build a Roman Catholic Mission secondary school. The government was to provide all the funds for the building of the school. The school was meant for 360 students with a possible expansion to the Sixth Form. It was to be developed according to a ten-year development plan, and the final cost was estimated at £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
250,000. An expatriate construction firm, Fry, Drew and Company, was awarded the contract to build classrooms, dormitories, laboratories, and administration block and staff bungalows.
Opening
The first batch 60 students arrived at the school, originally called Yaa Asantewaa College, in 1952. The name was changed to Opoku Ware School on February 22, 1952.The first Headmaster was Rev. Fr. Peter Philip Burgess, and the first dormitory was St. Paul. The flat attached to the dormitory served as both the Headmaster's residence and as an office.
Expansion
By 1955, the school had six dormitories, ten classrooms, three science laboratories, an administration block, dinning hall, kitchen, library, and 17 staff bungalows. There were 450 students attending the school.A Sixth Form Department was started in 1958, to provide courses in both the arts and sciences. A Cadet Corps was formed in 1960.
Description
There are 115 staff members, including the headmaster and two assistants. The Accounts section of the administration is handled by a senior bursar, assisted by five bursars and other junior accounts clerks.Approximately 1750 students attend the school, aged between 11 and 18 years. The students are housed in nine dormitories named after saints. There are over74 classrooms, three science laboratories, two libraries, a science resource center, computer department, language laboratory, and a French teaching center. There are 36 staff bungalows, a block of eight flats and quarters for junior administrative staff, cooks, and pantry boys, a staff canteen, a chapel, a dining hall, and a sick bay.
Identifying System
Every student, upon entering the school, is given an identifying code composed of letters (determined by the student's year of entrance to the school) and a number. On campus, most students are known by their numbers rather than their real names.Eg,a student admitted in 2005 and registered as the 431st student is given the number BJ 431.A student admitted in the subsequent year and registered first is give the number BK 1.
Achievements
The school has won the Science quiz twice and have been runners-up four times. It has also been runners-up in the 1995 Brilliant Science and Mathematics Quiz Competition, and champions in 1997. It placed second nationally the first and about the only time SSSCE results league were published.Between 1973 and 1990, about 90% of the students entering Harvard, MIT, Yale and Stanford Universities from Ghana were from OWASS. There were numerous others who went to University of Chicago, UC Berkeley, Columbia, and London, Imperial, Cambridge, Oxford and Aberdeen in Britain. The tradition of training most of the early Akatakyie medical doctors in Germany and Ireland ( via Catholic Church Scholarships)is legendary. Agreat number of faculty members at the Medical School in Kumasi are Akatakyie.
OWASS has won more trophies than any of its counterparts in the region; the school at one point won the hockey trophy for 11 consecutive years. OWASS has won more trophies than any school in the region when it comes to inter-collegiate events (Superzonals) held annually.The school has 9 out the 13 Superzonals. The school has produced several national athletes and Olympians including Ohene Karikari, Sandy Osei Agyemang, and Christian Nsiah.
The school has produced military officers, among whom are the late Air Vice Marshall Yaw Boakye (S59) (Air Force Chief of Staff during the Acheampong and Akuffo regimes), Naval Captain George Asubonteng (Q ), Naval Commander P. Graneek Griffiths (R8), Major (rtd) Mensah Poku (N 14), Major (rtd) Boakye Djan (Q 4), Captain (rtd) E. Yaw Bandoh(B 71), Col Kwame Oppong Otchere, the late Lieutenant Colonel Richard Amponsem-Boateng (AF 1), Commanding Officer 4BN, and Major (rtd) Atta K O Adusei( AG 35 / AO 331) .
Until the 1980s, OWASS was the only authorized test center for the administration of TOEFL
TOEFL
The Test of English as a Foreign Language, or TOEFL , evaluates the ability of an individual to use and understand English in an academic setting....
and SAT
SAT
The SAT Reasoning Test is a standardized test for college admissions in the United States. The SAT is owned, published, and developed by the College Board, a nonprofit organization in the United States. It was formerly developed, published, and scored by the Educational Testing Service which still...
exams in Ghana.
LIST OF HEADMASTERS OF "THE SCHOOL"
External links
- School website
- Alumni association
- Web interactive resource for alumni
- Akatakyie Meet Owareans - A web platform for past and current students to interact