St. Augustine's Senior Seminary
The history of the seminary can be traced to the year 1956, when the father of His Eminence
Maurice Michael Cardinal Otunga donated land at Mabanga, in South Bukusu Location, for the
building of a Regional Theological Seminary.
The first institution set up at Mabanga was an Agricultural School, under the supervision of the
Brothers of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. Briefly the buildings housed Forms V and VI students
for St. Peter’s Minor Seminary-Diocese of Kakamega. In 1974 Tindinyo College took up the
function of being the high school of St. Peter’s Minor Seminary of Kakamega and the buildings at
Mabanga were briefly converted to be the novitiate of the Sisters of Mary of Kakamega Diocese.
This new arrangement only lasted for six months.
In the same year St. Augustine's Senior Seminary was established and opened its doors for the
first time on 1st August 1974 to 37 seminarians from the then 11 dioceses of Kenya. These
seminarians began their studies with a staff of three resident and two visiting Professors. The
first rector was His Grace Archbishop Zacchaeus Okoth of the Catholic Archdiocese of Kisumu
followed by His Eminence John Cardinal Njue, Archbishop emeritus of the Catholic Archdiocese of
Nairobi. Since then the Seminary has grown and now accommodates close to 250 seminarians drawn
from most of the 26 Kenyan Dioceses. The number of staff members has gradually grown to the
current 10 resident professors. To date the seminary has produced several Bishops and many
priests.
