SMK St. Francis Convent (M), Kota Kinabalu

Infobox Secondary school
name = SMK St. Francis Convent (M)

motto = Amare Et' Servire
established = 1922
type = National Secondary School
principal = Pang Shat Muai
grades = Form 1 - Form 5
students = Around 850
city = Kota Kinabalu
state = Sabah
country = Malaysia
website = [http://www.sabah.edu.my/smstfcs/ SMK St. Francis Convent (M) Web Site]

St. Francis Secondary School, Kota Kinabalu ("Malay: SMK St. Francis Convent (M), Kota Kinabalu") is an all girls secondary school and one of the oldest schools in Kota Kinabalu. The students in this school consist of different kinds of races regardless of religion despite being a mission school. The school building is located in Jalan Kebajikan which is now known as Jalan Harrington.

History

1922: A convent was built by Franciscan Missionaries of St. Joseph (FMSJ) in Jesselton now known as Kota Kinabalu on a piece of land in Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman which is later named Jalan Selatan. Sister Rose Charnley and Sister Gerarda Bonengaar who was from Inabong and Limbahau was placed in Jesselton to build up St. Francis Convent School. With help from Rev. Father Valentine Weber and Mr. Tay Bee Chuan, St. Francis Convent was the first successfully built all girls school in Sabah. This school was divided into two portions, one to teach pupils English and another is to teach pupils Chinese.

1938: School's ground was enlarged due to the increase of students.

1942 - 1945: Due to the blaze of World War Two, all school's activity was halted. On January 1943, all nuns and priests were sent to Kuching, Sarawak until Japan surrendered in August1945. The war destroyed St. Francis Convent and all its records.

1946 - 1952: The school was rebuilt and all activities resumed as before. Preschool classes even began with 15 pupils. At 1951, St. Francis was equipped with a boarding school to accommodate the increase in students. Uniforms were later introduced and changed a few times and finally replaced with uniforms used until 1972.

1955: A block was separated in Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman on the same land, beside a building. This block was later used as primary school from 1965 to 1993.

1959: A new building was built in Jalan Kebajikan which was later known as Jalan Harrington which is now the school's site. The school's construction idea was from Mother St. John. All donations that were needed for the project were sincerely donated by parents, students, ex-students, friends and the Ministry of Education. This new building was designed by Mr. Morley, an architect from Boory & Edwards. While the contractor for this building was from the Metropolitan Construction Company.

1961 - 1969: In 1961, a new building was officiated by the director of Education Department, Mr. G.D. Muir. Prefect systems were introduced in school later in 1962. St. Francis Convent preschool was moved to a new site in Jalan Kebajikan opposite of St. Francis Convent Secondary School. When Sabah joined the West in forming Malaysia, this school was placed under the Ministry of Education under the Education Law in 1961.

1969 - 1978: After being administrated by the nuns from the west (White Franciscan Sisters) for more than 50 years, finally St. Francis Convent was handed over to local nuns (Franciscan Sisters). Sister Mary Cecilia was elected as the headmistress for the secondary school in January 1971. The administration board was formed in 1972. In 1977, bridge classes were first held.

1979 - 1993: Due to the increase in students, classes during the afternoon were suggested and started in 1979. The school's Parents And Teachers Association Board (PTA) was formed in 1971, which consisted of parents and teachers. St. Francis Convent Primary School was successfully moved to Bukit Padang, Kota Kinabalu and the school's board planned to move the secondary school to the same site. The Primary School was moved because of a termite infestation. It was the contributions and cooperation of the school, PTA (Parents And Teachers Association Board), the body of administration and financial help from the government that has ensured the survival of St. Francis Primary School.

1999 - 2002: The constructing building of the new school's board was formed and the constructing building was launched at the year 2002.

chool Anthem

ENGLISH VERSION
St. Francis our school most dear,
May it proper and advance
Towards ever greater heights
And it’s fame spread all around.

Let us keep its honour bright,
Untaited it may shine,
Together we will always help,
To lend a helping hand,
Our motto will uphold.

Ever faithful ever true we’ll be to you,
Our Convent school,
In this lovely land below the wind,
We may be near we may be far,
But in our hearts there always be
The true spirit of a Franciscan.

MALAY VERSION
Kami warga St Francis,
Menjunjung taat setia,
Jujur dan berdisiplin
di sekolah yang tercinta.
Mari kita menuju teraju kejayaan,
Bersama kita mengharumkan,
Nama sekolah menengah,
Konven St. Francis.

Temanya berdedikasi, mencintai,
Dan berbakti untuk,
Negara dan juga negeri,
Temanya berdedikasi, mencintai
Dan berbakti untuk berjaya
Konven St. Francis.