A view of St Mary’s Boys Secondary School- Nyeri. Photo/Handout
By Newsflash Reporter
The alumni of St Mary’s Boys’ Secondary School -Nyeri, have raised alarm over the institution’s declining academic fortunes, calling for an urgent review and overhaul of its management following what they term as dismal performance in the 2025 Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examinations.
Once a dominant force in national school rankings, St Mary’s Boys has in recent years struggled to post competitive results, a trend that has unsettled former students who credit the school for shaping their careers and character.
In the latest KCSE results, the school recorded a mean score of 6.27, equivalent to a plain C. Out of 102 candidates, 41 attained a mean grade of C+ and above, the minimum qualification required for admission to Kenyan universities.
The performance pales in comparison with traditional rivals such as Nyeri High School, Kagumo High School, and Bishop Gatimu Ngandu Girls High School, all of which posted strong results and reaffirmed their standing among the country’s top performers.
Declining performance
The disappointing outcome sparked heated debate within the St Mary’s Alumni WhatsApp Group, on Friday, January 9, where former students openly questioned how a school that once ranked as high as position 12 nationally could sink to what they described as “underwhelming”.
One of the alumni, Peter Nelson Gitonga, popularly known as Mentor Rambez, called for a thorough audit of the school’s academic and administrative performance. He argued that while a mean grade of C may appear respectable to outsiders, to those who identify as “Saints,” it represents a painful fall from grace.
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Gitonga traced the school’s decline to the period following the death of the late Brother Dominic Jordan (FSC) in 2012. Under Brother Dominic’s leadership, St Mary’s operated as a cohesive ecosystem anchored on Lasallian values of discipline, labour, and compassion. The high school, polytechnic, and Child Rescue Program coexisted harmoniously, attracting donor support and producing graduates known for both academic excellence and strong character.
According to Gitonga, the vacuum left after Brother Dominic’s passing was filled by a management style that favoured fear over inspiration and financial gain over service. He said that the Child Rescue Program, once central to the school’s mission of compassion, was reduced to a revenue stream, while factionalism and purges of dissenting staff eroded unity and morale.
Admissions and systemic concerns
Further calls came from other alumni who questioned the school’s admission policies and physical state. Life coach and Alumni Association chairperson Samuel Kanja acknowledged that former students had made sustained efforts to address some of the challenges, often behind the scenes, but noted that alumni influence can only go so far within entrenched systems.
“Our concern is genuine and our actions are consistent,” Kanja said, adding that systemic problems now require radical solutions to save young men from being “crushed.”
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Mwihaki Hinga echoed these sentiments, arguing that academic decline is inevitable when admissions are driven by financial ability rather than merit. “If a student who scored 200 out of 500 in KCPE can gain admission simply because they can afford higher fees, while one with 350 is locked out, no miracles should be expected,” he said, comparing St Mary’s unfavourably with Kagumo High School, which reportedly admits students with no less than 65 points.
Architect Wanyeki Maina, a member of the record-breaking 2007 class, expressed disappointment after visiting the school in December. He cited the chaotic state of the main gate, the presence of makeshift trading centres along the school fence, and deteriorating infrastructure as signs of poor leadership.
Maina also criticised what he termed a “ridiculous and embarrassing” fee structure where parents allegedly pay for additional students to gain admission, describing it as soft corruption.
Calls to restore Lasallian stewardship
Kujiek Ruot Kuajien, an international student, suggested organising a high-profile protest involving the Nyeri community to expose what he termed mismanagement by church authorities. While his remarks were controversial, they underscored the depth of frustration among former students.
Collectively, however, alumni converged on a central demand: the need to return St Mary’s Boys’ Secondary School to the stewardship of the De La Salle Brothers.
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They argued that the Catholic Archdiocese of Nyeri, which currently manages the institution, treats it like an ordinary parish school, thereby stripping it of the unique Lasallian character that once set it apart.
The alumni warned that without urgent intervention, St Mary’s risks fading into academic oblivion They called for a comprehensive review of management, admissions policies, and institutional identity to arrest the decline and restore the school’s legacy.
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