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AUTHORITIES at Harare’s St John’s College, one of the country’s most prestigious private schools for boys, are on a collision course with a couple whose son was summarily expelled early this month over what the parents see as a misdemeanour, the lending of a cellphone to a classmate and his girlfriend to take inappropriate pictures.
The expulsion of the 14-year-old without a disciplinary hearing, was communicated to the learner’s parents on August 1. It is understood the photographs were taken with the borrowed phone on a weekend at an off campus pizzeria after an inter-schools function.
The photographs allegedly showed the learner’s friend and a girl from another elite school in Harare in close contact at the pizza store. They were reportedly taken by the girl’s schoolmate who forwarded them to their peers.
Authorities at the girls’ school became aware of the photographs and took up the matter with St John’s authorities who decided to summarily expel the boy. The affected learner was not appearing in the contentious photographs.
According to a letter written by Mr Gavin Nyawata, a school administrator and teacher, the parents were given less than a day’s ultimatum to withdraw their child without the option of an appeal.
The learner’s parents immediately tried to engage the school headmaster and Mr Nyawata over the possibility of exercising clemency or at least having a disciplinary hearing, but the school authorities were not forthcoming, insisting the boy had to be withdrawn without a review of the alleged misdemeanour.
This did not sit well with the parents who felt the decision was harsh as they had not been afforded an opportunity to present their side of the story before a disciplinary committee. Further to the expulsion, the parents were also given a few hours to reimburse some bursary funds from which the learner had benefited.
The parents again tried to engage the school as they felt it was a first offence, and in their opinion, a minor breach of school regulations which provided scope for forgiveness.
They also averred that their son had played a peripheral role in the issue as he neither took nor circulated the photographs in question.
A lawyer representing the school, Ms Gugulethu Ndlovu of Gill, Godlontons and Gerrans then wrote to the parents advising that they would be handling all communication on behalf of the school.
This prompted the parents to also engage a lawyer, Mr Dereck Sigauke of Sigauke, and Musengi Legal Practitioners, who requested the school to present evidence of the alleged misconduct on the part of the affected learner.
The school, however, declined to present the evidence, with its lawyers reportedly writing to say the matter was sub judice.
Repeated efforts to get a comment from St John’s College, including phone calls and a physical visit to the school, proved fruitless.
By yesterday, the school had not responded to questions sent via e-mail on August 5.
The high school was founded in 1986, as an expansion of an older and small primary school, and admits boys from the age of 12 to 18.
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