Celebrating 110 years of the Coptic Girls College - Features - Al-Ahram Weekly

Al-Ahram Weekly

18-02-2025

At the stroke of 11am last Saturday, the Coptic Girls College in Abassiya in Cairo opened its doors to welcome His Holiness Pope Tawadros II, pope of Alexandria and the see of St Mark.
He was greeted by a group of students dressed in Pharaonic attire to celebrate with the students, teachers, staff, and members of the Coptic Association for Charitable, Educational, and Social Activities, which has played a significant role in the college and marking 110 years since its founding.
The pope unveiled a commemorative plaque marking his visit and toured the college buildings, the association, and the attached institute, and visited the church associated with the school. After the students presented various activities in honour of his visit, he said that 'I am very happy today, and my happiness has many reasons, the most important of which is the presence of all the girls studying in this prestigious college, which we celebrate a decade after its 100th year. This is a rare occurrence for any school in Egypt.'
'Egypt has an advantage that is not found anywhere else in the world because Egypt has experienced seven civilisations — Pharaonic, Coptic, Islamic, African, Arab, Mediterranean, and Graeco-Roman — making us, as Egyptians, very rich in culture. We should be happy as children, young women, and professors and take pride in belonging to this sacred and blessed land.'
'We must also make the word 'success' our target, as it is the most precious word. If we want to be successful in our academic, professional, and personal lives, success can be achieved through four sources,' the pope said.
'The first is organisation; a student must be organised in everything, in his or her time, in eating, studying, play, and work. The second source is hard work and activity. The third is to have faith and confidence in God that one's efforts will not go to waste. The fourth source is to have love for doing things — love for school, love for education, love for the teachers, love for our siblings, friends, and classmates at school.'
At the end of his speech, the pope said, 'I thank you very much, and I extend special thanks to every teacher because the teacher is the one who shapes the person. The teacher is the one who builds the nation.'
During the reception at the college, the pope watched a documentary film about the history of the association and the college, the journey behind its establishment, and the prominent figures among its graduates. He expressed his greetings and appreciation to all the workers in the association, the college, and the associated Institute, praising the role they play in raising the new generations and serving the community.
Maggie Morris, chairperson of the association, presented the pope with a commemorative gift, and after his speech, the pope also presented a commemorative gift to the association and the college. This was a plaque inscribed with the words 'Blessed be Egypt my people' in three languages: Coptic, Arabic, and English.
Various public figures, board members of the association, school directors, and a group of journalists attended the celebration.
At the end of the ceremony, the association presented the attendees with a commemorative 228-page book about the college prepared by writer and researcher Rami Atta, a professor and head of the Journalism Department at the International Higher Institute for Media, Shorouk Academy, and the writer and researcher Rami Gamal, a member of the Coptic Press Committee and Librarian of St Mark's Library for Research in Heliopolis.
The book documents the college's rich history and contains many photographs and newspaper clippings recordings its work in educating Egyptian young women in a way that makes a difference for the mothers of the future and creates distinguished new generations.
HISTORY: The foundation stone of the Coptic Girls College was laid in 1914 to prepare Egyptian and Arab girls who would be knowledgeable about the history of their country, proud of their traditions, and raised on religious principles.
The idea of establishing the college is credited to Marcus Hanna Pasha, minister of public works in the government of then prime minister Saad Zaghloul, who was supported by various leading Copts in 1910 and collected the necessary funds for the project.
Marcus Pasha Simaika (1864-1944), a politician and founder of the Coptic Museum in Cairo, served as treasurer, while Naguib Pasha Boutros Ghali was the head of the college committee. Several other notable Copts volunteered to assist with money or influence.
Lists of donations or other forms of aid were published in newspapers such as Misr, Al-Watan, and Al-Muqattam, with everyone extending a helping hand. Young workers working on the railway in Luxor pledged to donate 10 per cent of their salary to the project, despite the small amounts they received. Donations were not only received from within Egypt but also came from Sudan. Other charitable associations also participated. Women's groups extended a helping hand with donations to the School.
Pope Kyrillos V, the 112th patriarch, agreed to be the honorary president of the Coptic Girls College. He wrote to Naguib Ghali Pasha informing him of his satisfaction with the project and issued a circular on 27 December 1910 directed to archbishops and bishops in the regions and community members everywhere, urging them to be a supporter of the committee in implementing the project.
'Considering that this project is of great importance for the benefit of the nation, we are very pleased with this noble work, and our conscience is at ease in placing it under our patronage. We hope for your enthusiasm and for the good efforts of the blessed sons of the Christian community in your diocese to participate in this charitable work.'
The college was established on an area of 10,500 square metres owned by the Public Properties Authority and purchased at a modest price. The government donated land equivalent to two feddans in Abassiya east of the Italian Hospital. Monsieur René Voss, then chief engineer of the Egyptian Railways, designed the buildings pro bono, with these including two wings: the first for classrooms and annexes accommodating 300 students, and the second for dormitories.
Due to initially insufficient funding, the work was limited to constructing the first wing at a cost of LE7,300.
The college was officially opened on 6 November 1931 in the presence of Patriarch Anba Youannis, who donated money to the college along with other dignitaries and prominent Copts. At the time of its opening, the college had 55 female students in kindergarten, primary, and secondary stages.
Simaika Pasha requested king Farouk to place the college under the patronage of Princess Fawzia to educate girls in religious and moral principles and to raise them in a climate that would instill good manners and help them to obtain primary and secondary certificates. The college would also provide higher education for those who wished to pursue it, as well as teach foreign languages. French and English were made the languages of instruction on an equal basis, and each student had the freedom to choose the language they wished to learn.
The first headmistress of the college was Miss G K Leslie, an English woman who had been the director of several secondary schools in England and Palestine before coming to Cairo. In appointing teachers for the college, whether Egyptians or foreigners, she insisted that they held higher degrees.
The English teacher held an MA degree, for example, and all the Egyptian teachers were graduates of the literary and scientific sections of the then Secondary School for Teachers. The kindergarten teacher held a certificate from the additional section of the Bulaq School for Teachers. Tuition fees were LE25 for the kindergarten stage to the college.
The college organised many lectures that contributed to enriching the city's cultural life. One of the most famous was held in March 1933, when a lecture on the hymns of the Coptic Church was attended by nearly 2,000 people. English musician Newland Smith spoke about the hymns of the Coptic Church and their connection to the hymns of the ancient Egyptians.
A spacious tent was set up containing a large organ to play the hymns and 12 volumes of music. The tent was paid for by Raghib Moftah, an Egyptian musicologist and scholar of the Coptic musical heritage, the organiser of the event, and it was held two years after the college's inauguration. Meals for the poor were organised by the Society of Friends of the Holy Scripture at the College, which sometimes had more than 1,000 members.
One tradition that continued at the college was gathering people around tables of food during the holy month of Ramadan in the grand hall. The first secondary event took place on 28 May 1932 for notables of the Coptic community in Cairo and relatives of the college students.
People visiting the college today may be struck by the sight of the students in uniforms standing in orderly rows and carrying weapons. No sound can be heard except military orders, to which they respond swiftly and forcefully. A girl who has been accustomed to the spirit of soldiering from a young age is strong not only in her home and work but also in her country. On national occasions, the college students are keen to participate in symbolic groups in military parades.
One of the most famous figures who visited the Coptic Girls College in May 1935 was Patriarch Anba Younnis, accompanied by His Grace Anba Timotheus, the Metropolitan of the Diocese of Daqahliya, and politicians Mustafa Al-Nahhas Pasha and Makram Ebeid, who were received with a storm of applause.
The Coptic Girls College in Abassiya has graduated many young women who have contributed significantly to society and excelled in their fields, presenting honourable models for Eastern communities.
These girls studied there until high school, after which they joined universities and graduated. Some of them have become well-known and prominent figures in Egyptian society, among them Farkhunda Hassan, Leila Takla, the actress Nabila Ebeid, the famous TV anchor and actress Nagwa Ibrahim, and the journalist and writer Fatma Naout.
19 Sarayat Street, the address of the Coptic Girls College in Abassiya, has become a place with a history of pride and honour.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 20 February, 2025 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly
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