Online Reporter
Lovemore Kadzura
Post Reporter
ST KILLIAN’S High School, a Roman Catholic-run institution in Makoni District, is celebrating after being awarded the prestigious Secretary for Education’s Merit Award for 2025 in recognition for outstanding academic results and significant investment in infrastructure development.
The school has been steadily rebuilding its reputation as a centre of academic excellence over the past few years, and its efforts have now been noticed and duly rewarded by authorities.
It has consistently posted impressive Ordinary and Advanced Level results while undertaking major infrastructure upgrades to improve learner welfare.
The school will receive the coveted award next Thursday, and management has lined up a series of activities to mark the occasion.
Headmaster, Mr Aluis Zivanai, said the school was deeply humbled by the recognition from the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education and remains committed to maintaining high standards.
“We have been awarded the Secretary’s Merit Award for 2025. It has been a long journey of hard work for us to be able to produce good results which are a clear sign of perseverance and consistent. We feel greatly honoured that our efforts have been recognised. Our pass-rate for 2025 O-Level was 90,4 percent and A-Level was 100 percent. The previous year (2024), O-Level was 77,05 percent and A-Level was 89,47 percent. It was a remarkable improvement for the school.
“We are also into income generating project such as a bakery where we produce our own bread for consumption and sale to the local community. For the past three years, we have been relying on our in-house bakery. We keep broilers and layers to ensure steady supply to the kitchen.
“We are building our cattle herd, and currently we have 18 despite shortage of grazing land and we do supplementary feeding. We also have pigs and goats. We have a flourishing garden where learners produce a variety of vegetables for their projects and also supply the kitchen. All our learners partake in various sporting disciplines, and we are excelling well up to provincial level.
“In terms of infrastructure, we managed to construct a multi-purpose sports court. We have modernised our A-Level building and constructed a school hall. We have put a new grinding mill for the school. Last year, we bought a new bus and this year we purchased an omnibus. The enrollment is increasing and we have 485 boarders and 115 day scholars with 30 teachers,” said Mr Zivanai.
Father Taurai Nyambiti, priest in-charge of St Killian’s Mission, said the award was a product of a well-coordinated, multi-stakeholder approach to running the school.
He attributed the success to the cordial relationship between the church, School Development Committee (SDC), teachers, learners and the local community, adding that the challenge now is to maintain or surpass the achievement.
“It is a double blessing for St Killian’s Mission which comprises of high school, primary school and the parish as last week we celebrated the Centenary for the Mission. The high school has been awarded the Merit Award and adjudged the best performing school in the province in terms of academics and infrastructure development. We celebrate the unity that exist between the church and the Ministry of Primary and Secondary School Education. For the past two years, we have witnessed quite tremendous transformation and development in terms of academic and infrastructure. We thank the ministry for recognising such hard work, focus, determination and vision being demonstrated by the church.
We are grateful to the church led by Bishop Paul Horan who is the Responsible Authority. The parents and local community have been marvelous to work with as our chief stakeholders. We cannot do anything without the cooperation, commitment and support of the parents and local community leadership. Everyone is happy seeing the transformation of the institution, the lost glory coming back. We are proud of our learners for their good behaviour, resilience and hard work. They are the engines that are propelling everything in order for us to be recognised. The teachers have done a commendable job in managing the learners. They do their work competently with energy and zeal of wanting to produce the best results,” said Father Nyambiti.
