Frank Rumboll has been appointed as the new Headmaster of The Ridge School for boys, a
prestigious institution known for its rigorous academic programs and strong emphasis on
character development.
Mr. Rumboll comes from a family of educators and has always been passionate about
English teaching and school leadership. He believes that these fields have the potential to
make a real difference in the lives of children and the future of our country.
With over 30 years of experience in education, Mr. Rumboll has taught and been involved in
school leadership in a variety of contexts, including as a founder teacher of Crawford
College, the Head of English at St. Stithians Boys College, the Director of Academics at
Kingsmead College, the Principal of Cedar House, and most recently the Executive Head of
Curro Rivonia.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts from Rhodes University and has completed postgraduate
qualifications at the University of the Witwatersrand, including an Honours degree in English
and African Literature and an MA in English Education, both of which were awarded cum
laude. He has also been a national Examiner and Internal Moderator for the Independent
Examinations Board for over 25 years.
In addition to his experience in education, Mr. Rumboll has also completed the Wits
Business School Leadership Development Program and has been awarded two ISASA
overseas school visitorships, which allowed him to visit schools in the US, Canada, the UK,
and the Netherlands. He was also awarded a Klingenstein Fellowship to study independent
school leadership at Columbia University in New York, and was invited to present at the
Multiliteracies Conference in Malaysia and the Progressive Educators Network Conference
in Brooklyn, New York.
Mr. Rumboll is inspired by great teachers, people who are low on ego and high on delivery,
and schools that put children best interests at the heart of everything they do. He is also
an avid reader and literature, particularly the works of Ian McEwan, inspires him deeply.
In his new role at The Ridge School, Mr. Rumboll is looking forward to sharing the story of
the school journey and leading deepened thinking about its future value and relevance. He
plans to focus on getting to know the students and designing growth opportunities for
them, such as the new RidgeUp academic program for grades 6 and 7 boys who will choose
whether to be involved in an academically stretched programme fed by literature, history
and contemporary issues.
Mr. Rumboll is also committed to staying up-to-date with the latest technologies and
trends, which are changing the way people live and work, and presenting challenges to
young people. He believes that schools have a responsibility to engage with these changes
and guide their students through them.
Overall, Mr. Rumboll is excited to be joining The Ridge School and is looking forward to
working with the faculty, staff, and parents to provide the students with a world-class
education and to help them reach their full potential.
“The future of The Ridge will be big, bright and impactful,” says Mr Rumboll. “Our vision for
ourselves is to be a thought leader of world class education that has its primary aim in the
thriving of young boys, a safe space of joyful becoming, an educational home for boys that
draws on the best of the traditional model of boys’ School education while being open and
receptive to the many powerful developments in 21st-century thinking about the purpose of
Schools.”