DF Akademie
| DF Akademie | |
|---|---|
 Hoërskool D.F. Malan prior to being renamed to DF Akademie | |
| Location | |
 | |
Frans Conradie Drive, Boston , | |
| Coordinates | 33°53′37″S 18°37′35″E / 33.8936°S 18.6265°E |
| Information | |
| School type | Public Semi-Private |
| Motto | Vir jou Suid-Afrika (For you South Africa) |
| Religious affiliation | Christianity |
| Established | 1954 |
| School district | District 4 |
| Principal | Hannes Oosthuizen |
| Principal | (Deputy Principal) Stiaan Dippenaar |
| Staff | 100 full-time |
| Grades | 8–12 |
| Gender | Boys & Girls |
| Age | 14 to 18 |
| Schedule | 07:45-14:10 |
| Campus | Urban Campus |
| Campus type | Suburban |
| Colours | Yellow Blue White |
| Slogan | Akademie is ons besigheid ("Education is our business") |
| Nickname | DF |
| Rivals | |
| Accreditation | Western Cape Education Department |
| Newspaper | Die Herout |
| Feeder schools |
|
| Alumni | Werner Greeff H.Kennedy P. Greeff Eduard Greyling Loki Rothman Marais Erasmus Frikkie Kancho Margot Rothman Juvan Coetzee Johnny de Ridder |
| Honours | Part of 100 schools included in The Cambridge University Student Guide to Excellence: 2012 and 2013[1] |
| Website | DF Akademie official website |
DF Akademie is a public Afrikaans medium co-educational high school situated in the suburb of Boston, Bellville in the Western Cape province of South Africa - near Cape Town. In 2012 and 2013, the school was included in The Cambridge University Student Guide to Excellence, a selection of 100 top schools worldwide.[1] In recent years, it has been one of the academically top-performing schools in the Western Cape.
History
The school was established in 1951. D Brink was the first principal up to 1969. He was followed by E Smit (1970–1977), H Franzen (1978–1986), C de Jager (1986–1988), B Volschenk (1989–1996), R Truter (1996–2007), Joe Dorfling (2007-2016), Sias Conradie (2017-2025) and currently Hannes Oosthuizen.
The school was initially named Hoërskool D.F. Malan after the Prime Minister of South Africa from 1948 to 1954. Objections to the school's name commemorating Malan, known as one of the "architects of apartheid", led the school's governing body to initiate a process to change the name, and a vote in 2021 supported a change to "DF Akademie". The name change was challenged in court, but in June 2025 the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed the challenge, and the new name became official in 2026.[2][3]
Music scene
DF Akademie is also notable for producing several famous musicians on the local South African music scene, such as Pierre Greeff and Hunter Kennedy. Consequently, many local bands including aKing, Foto na Dans, Jax Panik, Lukraaketaar, Die Heuwels Fantasties and Frik13 are associated with the school. This, along with the fact that other similar musicians attended neighbour school Bellville, has led to the Bellville area, in which these schools are situated, earning the nickname "Bellville Rock City".[4] Musician Loki Rothman, who attended the school, reached the final of SA's Got Talent in 2009 while still a senior in the school, and the founding members of Cape Town alt-pop duo EMERGER, Emma de Goede and Gerrit "Gerry" Matthee, also attended the school.[5] Their debut single "Break & Fall" was a winner of the international Avid and Abbey Road Studios Song Contest and they were featured as Apple Music's New Artist Spotlight in July 2018.[6]
Alumni
Other notable alumni include former Springbok rugby player Werner Greeff, international cricket umpire Marais Erasmus, ballet dancer Eduard Greyling and a former dean of Engineering at the University of Stellenbosch, Prof Arnold Schoonwinkel. Actors Leigh Wakeford, Albert Maritz and 7de Laan duo Chris Vorster and Corné Crous all attended the school.
Sister School
DF Akademie has a sister-school in Kortrijk, Belgium and some of the students from these schools usually visit each other yearly.[7]
Athletics
DF Akademie annually participates in the DTBS athletics competition (known as MTBS prior to DF Akademie's name change), along with three other schools from the Bellville area: Tygerberg High School, Bellville High School and Stellenberg High School. DTBS is especially well known for the performance of these schools' non-competing pupils on the pavilion, as they perform songs, cheers and choreographed visual displays to encourage their athletes during the day, for which a trophy is also awarded. DF Akademie has thus far been the second most successful school in the singing trophy, winning it two times fewer than Stellenberg. It is in the athletics, however, where the school achieved unprecedented success, winning the trophy all but three times in the first 19 years of the competition.
Other events
The school also participates in a yearly Interschools event (week-long derby) with its local rival Bellville High School, in which the schools contest on most platforms - including Rugby, Field hockey, Netball, Cross country, Chess, Debate, Mountain biking and, from 2013 onwards, EA Sports FIFA. The first team rugby, hockey and netball matches are the main events. In recent years Bellville has strongly dominated the rugby while DF Akademie dominated both Boys' and Girls' hockey.[citation needed]
References
- ^ a b "Cambridge Circle of Excellence". DF Akademie. Archived from the original on 26 August 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
- ^ Cruywagen, Vincent (5 Jun 2025). "School's decision to change name from "disgraced" DF Malan to DF Akademie "undeniably rational" – SCA". Daily Maverick.
- ^ Petersen, Mauricia (14 January 2026). "Nuwe jaar, nuwe naam – Hoërskool DF Malan nou amptelik DF Akademie" (in Afrikaans).
- ^ "Bellville, Rock City". Channel 24. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
- ^ Klerk, Deur Nielen De (2018-07-25). "Dynamic duo emerge on the music scene". Netwerk24. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
- ^ "Chance encounter yields fame". News24. 2018-07-26. Retrieved 2020-05-14.
- ^ "DF Akademie". DF Akademie. Retrieved 14 January 2026.
