Books and other material which were ordered from Cape Town arrived surprisingly quickly – by the end of the year. The original pole and dagga hut continued to serve as a school room until 1898 when the first wing of a proper brick Convent building was completed, at the corner of Selous Avenue and Fourth Street. On the ground floor were classrooms and upstairs there were dormitories for the sisters and boarders. This building was replaced by the present Convent in 1970.The first headmistress was Sr Yolanda till 1901, and was succeeded by Sr Canisia.

By that time, the enrolment comprised 33 boarders and 40 day scholars. An additional building was erected in 1901 and dedicated to Mother Patrick who died in July 1900 at the age of 36. Notable achievements were also made in that year, as The Rhodesia Herald of 23 December 1901, remarked on the “artistic excellence of an Art display” held by the school. Later, it talked about a “high-class educational institution where the little ones find a happy home”. The first school concert was put on at the end of 1892. There was a shortage of chairs and these were borrowed from Salisbury’s only hostel!

This reached England and in due course the Dominican Convent received a gift of 6 beautiful chairs from Queen Alexandra. The Chapel was built and opened in 1908, and the first permanent school building was erected in 1930. The 3rd headmistress was Sr Amanda for 5 years, and then Mother Bertranda headed the school for 26 years till 1949. During this time, enrolment increased from about 160 to 800 pupils, including boys. In1940, boys transferred at the end of their Standard 4 to St. George’s Prep school, and the younger boys were transferred to St. Albert’s in Avondale.

St Albert’s later closed at the end of 1969. In 1958, Veritas House was built, followed by the school hall in 1963.

Due to the large number of students in the school, in 1952, a headmistress was appointed for the Junior department, and in 1959 a Middle school was created comprising pupils from Grade 6 to Form 2, with its own headmistress. Sr Gundula, who was head of the Middle School since 1980, took over from Sr Pancratius in 1987 when the school was rearranged, back into two sections, namely the Primary and High School.

Over the years, the school anniversary has been celebrated in elaborate ways. In honour of the school’s 120th Anniversary, Old Girl Lizane Purse wrote and published Veritas, a book which vividly depicts the development of the Dominican Convent from its very first days in 1892, right up to 2012. This book is available in the school library today. It is ex-pupils like her and many others who continue to hold the Convent flag high in many corners of the world and without whom the story of the Dominican Convent would be incomplete.