School History: Our Headmasters Through the Ages

First in the role

When The British Schools had first opened in 1908, it was divided into two: the Girls’ School and the Boys’ School. At the moment of its founding, a headmaster and a headmistress were named.

Miss. Florence M. Carr Jackson was the first headmistress appointed for the Girls’ School. Miss Jackson studied in Oxford and had a Final Honours degree in Mathematics and Physics. She worked in this position from 1908 to 1911, being of great help during the critical first years of the institution.

For the Boy’s School, Mr. Horace W. Jones was assigned the important role of first Headmaster in 1908. After studying in Oxford, he had a Master of Arts degree. Jones is one of our most remembered Headmasters as one of the Boys’ School Houses is named in his honor.

Miss. Florence M. Carr and Mr. Horace W. Jones, the first heads of The British Schools, sitting in their respective offices

The beginnings of the School

Reverend Canon C.K. Blount (No Image of Mr. Cuff available)

During the beginnings of The British Schools, other outstanding headteachers directed our beloved school.

Until 1920, three Headmasters had been in charge of the Boys’ School. Apart from Mr. Jones, these included Mr. Arthur S. Cuff and Reverend Canon C.K. Blount. Nowadays, we all recognize them as the Boys’ School Houses, who received their names from these inspiring leaders.

The Girls’ School also had distinguished Headmistresses who played a key role in the early developments of the institution. Some of them were Miss F. Prost, Miss Frances M. Hanna, and Miss Linda R. Clarke. Before the two schools merged, Mrs. Erica A. Astley occupied this important position.

Other remarkable heads

P.S. Schor sitting in his study

Over the years, many incredible people have worked as the head of The British Schools, helping with its development and prosperity.

One of them was P.S. Schor, whose work is considered to have the most lasting influence in School history. In 1926, when he was 21 years old, he was hired as an English, Science, and Latin teacher. Just three years later, he was named Headmaster of the Boys’ School, which had around 80 pupils. Then in 1937, Mr. Schor directed the joint School and held the position until 1960, with a brief break from 1941 to 1946 when he joined the war effort. Fun fact: You may have noticed that the auditorium has been named in his honour!

Another outstanding example was P.B Stoyle, who joined the staff as Assistant Headmaster before becoming Headmaster of the Senior School the following year. He occupied this role until 1976 and in those eleven years, he made tremendous progress. Although it is difficult to say what was his greatest contribution, perhaps it was the introduction of the International Baccalaureate (IB). During his time as headteacher, the School Certificate stream was renamed International and new external examinations were available. Additionally, he supported musical and theatrical activities.

Bibliography

The British Schools (n.d.) The British Schools Timeline [Phtograph]. The British Schools. http://web.british.edu.uy/extras/Centennial/Timeline/home.htm