| Scotch Oakburn College | |
| Motto: | Latin: Ad Superiora Viam Inveniam (I will find a way to higher things.) |
| Established: | 1886 (MLC) 1901 (Scotch) 1979 (Amalgamation) |
| Denomination: | in association with the Uniting Church[1] |
| Slogan: | Creating the future |
| Principal: | Ross Patterson |
| Chairperson: | David Finnigan |
| Coordinates: | -41.4493°N 147.1688°W |
| Enrolment: | ~1,100 (ELC–12)[2] |
| Colours: | Maroon, blue and gold |
| Homepage: | www.soc.tas.edu.au |
Scotch Oakburn College is an independent, open-entry, Early Learning to Year 12, coeducational, day and boarding school in Launceston, Tasmania, in association with the Uniting Church in Australia.
Although founded in 1886, the present school was established in 1979 with the amalgamation of the historically boys' Scotch College and girls' Oakburn College (formerly the Methodist Ladies' College, based in East Launceston). The school currently caters for approximately 1,100 students from Early Learning (3 years old) to Year 12 (18 years old), including more than 70 boarders from Years 6 to 12.
Scotch Oakburn is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA),[3] the Junior School Heads Association of Australia (JSHAA),[4] the Australian Boarding Schools' Association,[5] and the Sports Association of Tasmanian Independent Schools.
The College is a full member of the Round Square association, an international association spreading across five continents and over 100 schools around the world. Scotch Oakburn College is the first member of Round Square in Tasmania.[6] In 2015, former Scotch Oakburn principal Andrew Barr resigned as principal of Geelong college after being caught watching pornography in his office by a student.[7]
Scotch Oakburn College was created in 1979, through the amalgamation of the Scotch College and Oakburn College (formerly the Methodist Ladies' College).
The Methodist Ladies' College, Launceston (M.L.C) was established on Elphin Road, just east of the city centre, in 1886. The aim of the college was to allow girls the same access to educational facilities as boys. The largest building on campus had been named "Oakburn" upon its construction 25 years earlier. After its first year, it had 88 students. The first Headmaster was G. Thornton-Lewis.[8]
In 1969, M.L.C was renamed "Oakburn College" as the school council felt that 'Ladies' was outdated. The school became co–educational in 1973.
The Scotch College was established as a non-denominational boys' school, on York Street in the Launceston CBD in 1901. The school went through a number of owners in its first 50 years of existence, eventually being taken over by the Presbyterian Church of Australia in October 1950. In 1917, it moved from its York Street residence to the "Ravenscraig" property on Penquite Road, Newstead, around 10 km east of the city.
By 1972 the College was struggling to survive and it was subsequently decided to introduce co–education.
After the formation of the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977, representatives from both colleges joined to discuss an amalgamation. The successful amalgamation process was chaired by local physician John Morris, AO, MBE, who was then Chairman of the Oakburn College Council. 1979 was the inaugural year of Scotch Oakburn College with the Oakburn College Council Chairman becoming the Chairman of the amalgamated college's Council, and the Principal of Scotch College becoming the inaugural Principal of the amalgamated College.
The former Oakburn College campus, on Elphin Road, in 1979 became home to the Matriculation classes (years 11 and 12) and the junior school (years K–5) and boarding house. The same year, the Scotch College campus on Penquite Road became the middle school (years 6 to 10). In 1980, the current set-up was adopted with years 11 and 12 joining the middle school classes at the Penquite Campus, leaving the Elphin Campus with Early Learning to Year 5 and the boarding house.
It now operates in association with the Uniting Church in Australia but is not governed or managed by the Church.[9]
| Years | Methodist Ladies' College, later Oakburn College | |
|---|---|---|
| 1886–1889 | George Thornton Lewis, BA (London) | |
| 1890–1902 | Francis J. Nance, MA | |
| 1903–1941 | Mary E.G. Fox, MBE, MA | |
| 1941–1954 | Gwendoline Madder, MA, DipEd, Acting Head 1926–1928, 1936 | |
| 1954–1962 | C.O. Leigh Cook, MA | |
| 1963–1971 | C. Leigh Speedy, MSc, BD, DipEd, MACE | |
| 1972–1976 | Angas S. Holmes, BA, BD, MRE, DipEd, MACE | |
| 1977–1978 | Alan E. Green, BSc, BD, DipEd, MACE | |
| Years | Scotch College | |
| 1900–1901 | S. Leslie Brown, MA | |
| 1902–1914 | Andrew Raeburn, MA | |
| 1914–1924 | C. Mitchell Tovell, MSc | |
| 1925–1950 | W.W.V. Briggs, MBE, MA, DipEd, Vice Principal 1951–1956 | |
| 1950–1966 | Robert H. Dean, BA, BEd, MACE | |
| 1966–1971 | John T. Sykes, BA (Hons), BEd, MACE, JP | |
| 1972–1977 | Jock P. Herbert, BA DipEd, FRGS, MACE | |
| 1978–1979 | Bruce N. Carter, BA, EdM, EdD, MACE | |
| Years | Scotch Oakburn College | |
| 1979–1985 | Bruce N. Carter, AM, BA, EdM, EdD, MACE | |
| 1979–1981 | Alan E. Green, Associate Principal of Scotch Oakburn College | |
| 1986–1993 | David J. Hone, BA (Hons), CertEd, MEd, MACE | |
| 1994–2001 | Graeme E. McDonald, BA, DipEd, MEdAdmin, MACE, MACEA | |
| 2002–2012 | Andrew Barr, BEc (Hons), DipEd, MEd, MACEL, MACE | |
| 2013–2023 | Andy Muller, BAppSc, DipEd, GradDipEdAdmin, MEd | |
| 2024 - present | Ross Patterson, BSc (Biological Science), GradDipEd, MACE, MACEL |
The younger of the two campuses, the Elphin Campus is the site of the more historic buildings in the school. The campus features a number of beautiful old oak trees which are located at the front of the campus in a garden area. The Elphin Campus is home to the Junior School / primary school (Early Learning to Year 5) and boarding house. The first building on the land was "Oakburn", constructed by Eliza Thomson in 1861, a year after she was granted the land. This is the most historic building on any of the campuses. In time, "Oakburn" would become the boarding house. The college was later renamed for this building. An extension to this building, the Mary Fox Jubilee Wing, was constructed in 1935 to celebrate the College's jubilee anniversary. Today it is better known to students as the Mary Fox Hall or just the Mary Fox and it houses school assemblies, chapel services and many other events such as school plays, dances and trivia nights.
The stately "Lemana" and "The Stables" are located on the western end of the campus. "The Stables", as the name suggests, was formerly the stable area for horses. Lemana is a grand old house which keeps its historic exterior. The Mary Fox Performing Arts Centre is a dual-purpose space and is the centre of many school community events.
The Early Learning centre is home to pre-school, kindergarten, and after-hours care facilities. The centre was built on the site of the original Methodist Ladies' College/Oakburn College Principal's residence.
The Elphin campus also is home to four tennis courts, a large oval, two multi-purpose courts, a gymnasium and a 25 m swimming pool.
The Penquite Campus is situated on both sides of Penquite Road in Newstead, linked by an underpass. The main side of the campus or Eastern side features a large, rectangular, grassy field in the centre, with buildings located around the outside of it. The major buildings of the school are named after and in honour of significant people and places in the school's heritage. Over the years these buildings have been upgraded and redeveloped and more buildings have been built. Directly inside the main entrance to the College lies a large, old oak tree which lies beside the school Chapel.
The Penquite Campus has seen a lot of building development since amalgamation:
In 2005, Scotch Oakburn came to an arrangement with the owner of 'Rostrevor', near Fingal, to lease and use a part the property for outdoor education and environmental study purposes. This facility is known as the Valley Campus. The Valley Campus is home to the College Education Outdoors and Sustainability program.
Scotch Oakburn College operates under four Houses: Fox (red), Dean (blue), Briggs (green) and Nance (yellow). Throughout the year, students at the middle and senior school (Penquite Campus) compete in a number of competitions to gain points to win the House Shield at the end of the year; these competitions include swimming, cross-country, athletics, debating and singing.
At the junior school (Elphin campus) – the only competitions are swimming, cross-country and athletics.
Scotch Oakburn College is a member of the Sports Association of Tasmanian Independent Schools (SATIS).
Scotch Oakburn College has won the following SATIS premierships.[10]
Combined:
Boys:
Girls:
Alumni of the Scotch Oakburn College (and its predecessors) are known as Old Collegians, and may elect to join the schools alumni association, the Scotch Oakburn Old Collegians Association (SOOCA).[11] Some notable Old Collegians include: