College of West Africa

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The College of West Africa is a Methodist high school in Monrovia, Liberia. The building was opened in 1839 (as the "Monrovia Seminary"), making it one of the oldest European-style schools in Africa. It has produced many of Liberia's leaders and include among its alumni Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the first woman elected as president in an African State, and Liberian Vice President Joseph Boakai. The College of West Africa's main building is named in memory of Melville B. Cox, a Methodist missionary who was a founder of the College. A historic stain class window in the College's auditorium admonishes students: "Though a thousand fall, let not Africa be given up".

The "College of West Africa" or "CWA" as it is commonly known was the school of choice for the Americo-Liberian elite. It was not uncommon for generations of families to attend CWA or that half of the student body in any given year would be related to each other or connected through that vast and intricate Liberian social network.