Boboto College

History

The Governor General of the Belgian Congo appealed to the Jesuits to instruct and educate the increasing number of young Europeans in Léopoldville. On 4 October 1937 the college opened its doors under the name St. Albert College, to honor St. Albert of Louvain, patron saint of the current Belgian monarch Albert I. It was located on premises lent by the Sisters of the Sacred Heart. Two Jesuit priests and a scholastic along with a layman handled the first three classes as well as school and extracurricular activities. They temporarily lived one kilometer from the college, on the Lippens Avenue. The school calendar, class schedule, and the number of course hours followed the Belgian directives. The curriculum was deliberately styled after that of the Jesuit St John Berchmans College, Brussels.

In 1940, the college had to accommodate all European children without religious distinction, since they had become stranded in Africa by the Second World War. The college modified its name to Albert I College, after the King. The official opening of the college was on 3 October 1940, in the presence of civil and ecclesiastical authorities. In 1941 the Jesuit Curia in Rome authorized and financed the erection of homes for the Jesuits Fathers (Boboto, Province offices, Saint Ignatius House, and others), the high school dormitory building, and Cultural Center. The college looked then as it does to this day.

In 1945 the Marist Brothers, who were living in Ignatius House, ended their assistance with the primary division of the school. There were then 123 elementary and 93 secondary students. At independence there were 515 elementary students, 227 in Greco-Latin, 151 in Modern Science, 77 in Latin 6th, 49 in Latin 5th, and 20 in Rhetoric. These statistics would increase year by year to an average of 2,400 students – 1,750 primary and 650 secondary – by 1975.

World War II had favored the rapid construction of the college because the European ethnic community could no longer send their children to study in Europe. The college has weathered World War (under Rector Mols) and turbulence (disturbances and riots) in the year of independence (under Rector Cardol). At the introduction of the ideology of African authenticity in the country, Albert I College became (under Rector Croonenberghs) Boboto College. The year 1954 opened a new phase in the history of the College with its enrollment of the first six Congolese.

In 1986, for ease of administration, Fr. Jean-Claude Michel, Provincial Delegate for Education, obtained leave from the Ministry of Education for the primary school to be split in two with three tracks, strengthening its offering.

Divisions

The college currently has three elementary tracks and the secondary school. Each elementary track has a Titular Director, a Deputy Director, a succession Professor (supernumerary), five teachers for five classes and two workers. The average annual headcount of students is 560 per track. The length of study at primary school is six years. The age group of elementary students is from 6 to 14 years. The six years lead to a certificate from the Ministry of Education that provides access to secondary education. A distinctive certificate from the Society of Jesus is added to their diploma.

The secondary general education is six years of studies leading to the State Diploma giving students access to higher and university education in all countries. A Diploma of the Association of the Society of Jesus is awarded to the best students, giving access to higher and university Jesuit institutions. The secondary is two cycles: lower long cycle (1-2 year) and long-graduate (3-6 years). The lower long cycle is a common core. From the third year, students are directed to two specific sections: literary and scientific (math-physics and bio-chemistry). There are 67 administrative staff workers and teachers. The effective annual average is 700 students.

Notable former pupils