SMU St. Aloysius Bandung

SMU St. Aloysius Bandung, used to be affectionately called "TOP" or, in more recent years, "Aloy" is one of the premiere private high schools in Bandung, Indonesia. It is part of the St. Aloysius school system, founded by Dutch priests as early as the 1860s in the city of Surabaya.

"TOP", is also its motto. Originally the abbreviation for "Tot Onze Plezier" (or "To Our Pleasure" in English) to reflect the freethinking spirit of its founders, it was adapted to "Taruna Ogha Pravritti", a Sanskrit phrase meaning "The Youth Shall Persist". Despite its Catholic affiliation, it is open to students of all faiths.

History

The publication of Max Havelaar, written by a Dutch-Indonesian who saw firsthand the suffering of the Dutch colonial subjects in the plantations, started widespread interest in Europe to help improve the conditions of the colonies abroad including educational contributions. Recognizing the absence of a Catholic school system in Indonesia, four priests were dispatched to Indonesia: Bruder Engelbertus Cranen, Bruder Felix, Bruder Anthonius and Bruder Stanislaus.

Upon arrival in Surabaya, they established their first school in 1862 by the name of "St. Yusuf". In 1905, the expanded group on priests established "St. Hilarius" in Jakarta. Shortly after, they also established schools in Semarang, Madiun, and several other cities in Java. Finally in 1930 they established a monastery in Bandung on Jalan Sultan Agung, the present location of the school. In 1948 the priests established the St. Yusuf Primary School, and St. Aloysius Secondary Schools.

Initially an all-boys school, the school is currently run by a non-profit Catholic charity instead of by the monastery, and is co-educational.

Recent years

During the leadership of the previous head of the charity Fr. van Ipperen, St. Aloysius saw a period of rapid expansion both in terms of admissions and facilities. It has campuses on Jalan Sultan Agung No.4 near the Dago area of Bandung, in the Sukajadi area north of the city center, and in Batununggal a newly established suburb of Bandung. It also owns a retreat/recreational center in Gambung, some distance away from the city, to support its non-academic, life experiences programs. It boasts athletic facilities such as soccer fields, swimming pools, basketball and volleyball courts, baseball fields; in addition to laboratory facilities for computer engineering, electrical engineering, biological and physical sciences. It also has some extracurricular club like TOP Drum & Bugle Corps (marching band club), TCC or TOP Computer Club, Taekwondo Club, Wushu club, The Scout, KPM or Korps Palang Merah(Red-Cross Corps), Baseball and Softball team, Basketball team, Gita Bahana (choir)(not anymore), and Paskibra/ Pasukan Pengibar Bendera (flag-ceremony team).