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In 1993, a group of Batswana parents approached Edna Swaniker to establish an English-medium school for middle-income families who desired high-quality education for their children but could not afford the fees at the English-medium schools, Kopano and Morula Primary schools.
Mrs. Swaniker, a Ghanaian citizen, had by then taught 14 years in the Gambia (West Africa) and Botswana. She had a BA in English, Linguistics and Sociology from the University of Ghana (West Africa) and later trained and worked as a social worker for 10 years in Ghana. She had developed a reputation in Selebi-Phikwe through her teaching and because her four children had performed exceptionally well on their ‘O’ Level examinations. Due to this reputation, parents believed that a school established by Mrs. Swaniker would be of high quality.
After several parents’ requests, she eventually agreed to establish a ‘study group’ with five children. The study group was housed in the local Lutheran Church. Students (in various grades) were taught by one full-time teacher and by Mrs. Swaniker’s oldest daughter, Constance Swaniker. Mrs. Swaniker continued her full-time job as a teacher at Selebi-Phikwe Secondary School for the next three years until Mount Pleasant became more established and could afford to have her on board as the full-time managing director.
Mrs. Swaniker described her vision for Mount Pleasant School as follows:
My motto was ‘Quality but Affordable Education’; other schools saw English-medium education as an elite education only for those who could afford it. I saw it as a social service, so I decided to charge less and make it affordable to those who wanted their children to have a better life.
After its founding, Mount Pleasant grew rapidly. By the end of the first year, the school had grown to 25 children. In the second year, under her youngest son, Fred’s management, the school grew to 53 children. This growth took place with the school still being housed in the church and without advertising. Word-of-mouth from parents, the large pent-up demand for the type of education Mount Pleasant was offering, and Mrs. Swaniker’s reputation in the town all provided fuel for this growth. By 1995, the school had accumulated enough funds to build an initial set of classrooms and a block of restrooms on a new site of its own.
Over the subsequent eight years, Mrs. Swaniker constructed an administration block, a library, a computer room, another 13 classrooms, a multipurpose hall, a caretaker’s residence, and four units of teacher housing. An Olympic-size swimming pool was completed in September 2003. By the end of 2003, ten years after it was founded, the school had grown to 200 children.
Mount Pleasant School is guided by the following vision, mission and values
We nurture not just academics but also social, emotional, and creative development—empowering each child to shine in all areas of life.
Our school is more than a place of learning—it's a vibrant community where students, parents, and educators grow together through trust, collaboration, and shared values.
With over three decades of excellence in education, we bring trusted expertise, proven methods, and a deep commitment to nurturing young learners.
