| Taipei First Girls High School | |
| Established: | 1904 |
| Type: | Public |
| Location: | No. 165, Sec. 1, Chongqing S. Rd., Zhongzheng, Taipei, Taiwan 10045, R.O.C. |
| Campus: | Urban |
| Colors: | Green |
| Website: | (zh) (en) |
Taipei First Girls High School (TFG; ; colloquially or), is a Taiwanese all-girls senior high school, located in Zhongzheng District, Taipei City. Accepting only the top scorers in the national Comprehensive Assessment Program for Junior High School Students, it is one of the most prestigious high schools in the country. TFG counts among its alumnae esteemed researchers, industry leaders, doctors, writers, and politicians. Its male counterpart is the Taipei Municipal Jianguo High School.[1]
The school was founded in 1904, as Taihoku Prefectural Taihoku First Girls' High School during Japanese rule. After the handover of Taiwan from Japan in 1945, the name was changed to Taiwan Provincial Taipei First Girls' High School on December 12. In 1967, it was renamed to Taipei Municipal First Girls' Senior High School due to Taipei City becoming a municipality. With its history stretching back over one hundred years, the school has had over 60,000 students. Currently, the school operates 78 classes and has about 3,000 students.[2] In 2002, it was renamed to Taipei Municipal First Girls High School due to the bilingual project of school renaming in Taipei City.
The school's campus measures roughly 26,000 sq. metres, with a total of six main buildings - the oldest being Guang-Fu Building, a three-story structure built by the Japanese government in 1933 (notable as well for being bombed in 1945). Other buildings include Ming-De Building (completed 1954), Zhong-Zheng Building (completed 1977), the Library (Demolished and rebuilt as "Shue Chu Building"), the Activity Center (completed 1971), and Zhi-Shan Building (completed in 1993).
The school is famous for the traditions it maintains, including the uniform of a green shirt and black skirt/black trousers, carried over from air-raid days. The school has adopted various different policies regarding the traditional uniform over the decades, including incorporating pants, slacks and different jackets, yet it still keeps true to the tradition of the green shirt, which is recognized widely all across Taiwan. The green was initially used to distinguish the school from the Presidential Office (which was located directly across the street) during air raids. Every year on December 12, alumni all over the world participate in the International Taipei First Girls' High School Uniform Day (Chinese: 全球北一制服日) and wear the green uniforms they once wore as students.
TFG has an acclaimed marching band, the Taipei First Girls' Marching Band (Chinese: 北一樂隊). This band consists of eighty members, primarily sophomores. The MB has repeatedly won first prize in the national wind music competition for senior and vocational high schools. It also has two counterparts: the Honor Guard (Chinese: 儀隊) and the Color Guard (Chinese: 旗隊). The students go through a rigorous training schedule and are known for their perseverance and resilience. These three organizations offer perform at national events, such as the annual National Day Parade and the 2009 Deaflympics. The TFG MBHGCG organizations have also ventured overseas, including performing in Singapore (1981), South Africa (1986), Beijing (1992), Nanjing (1992), Shanghai (1992), California's Rose Parade (1996), Edinburgh (1999), Glasgow (1999), Austria (2012), and France (2013).
Students at TFG are involved in a multitude of activities on campus. There are more than 50 student organizations and clubs within TFG including, but not limited to:
In addition to regular clubs, there are also committees that gather at specific times of the year to organize certain projects. One example is the Taipei First Girls' Graduation Committee, which is in charge of all graduation affairs for the seniors. Work starts in spring and the committees oftentimes consist of over 200 members. Instead of a traditional graduation ceremony, TFG prides itself on producing theater-like ceremonies where each graduating class has a specific story. In 2012, the theme was Alice in Wonderland; 2013 The Little Prince; 2014 Circus.
Over the past few decades the school has endeavored to modernize its facilities. In 1971 a sports and assembly hall was constructed. In 1993 a new building was completed: Zhi-Chan. This five-storey building has a large observatory located on the roof with several telescopes therein. Within the brand new Shue Chu Library building are IT facilities together with abundant reading materials, audio-visual headsets and Internet access. Free Wifi access is available throughout the school to facilitate mobile learning.
The school also encompasses an auditorium, conference rooms, a heated indoor swimming pool, and a subterranean parking lot.