Lycée Jules Verne celebrated the official opening of the school doors in the Sandton community in 1992.
The idea of a French school in Johannesburg dates back to the 1970s when the ‘Petit cours de Français de Johannesburg’ was created by the company Socea Bonna for children of employees.
At that time, children aged six to 16 were required to be educated at a South African school, so the classes only took place from 3pm to 6pm for children who wished to keep up their knowledge of the French language.
In 1976, it was recognised as a school and was able to offer full-time classes. The school did not originally have its own campus but operated first from the Deutsche Internationale Schule Johannesburg and then at Jan Celliers Primary School.
The International French School finally found a permanent home on plot 609 in Morningside. The school is named after the famous French novelist Jules Verne who is perhaps most famously known for his book Around the World in 80 Days.
In 2006, the school, which upholds values of cooperation, cultural diversity and academic excellence, adopted a bilingual French and English programme to attract a more diverse learner population.
The school now welcomes over 1 200 learners in Johannesburg and Pretoria, from nursery school (Grade 0000) to Terminale (Grade 12), representing over 70 different nationalities.
The evolution of an institution of this magnitude and size would not be possible without the support of the local community and the Sandton municipality. On behalf of all the parents, learners, teachers and staff, the Lycée Jules Verne, would like to wish the municipality a golden 50 years’ celebration.
