Scotch Oakburn College


Scotch Oakburn College is a coeducational, open entry, day and boarding school in Launceston, Tasmania, providing for students from Early Learning through to Year 12.
Although founded in 1886, the present school was established in 1979 with the amalgamation of the historically boys' Scotch College and girls' Oakburn College. The school currently caters for approximately 1,100 students from Early Learning to Year 12, including more than 70 boarders from Years 6 to 12.
Scotch Oakburn is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia, the Junior School Heads Association of Australia, the Australian Boarding Schools' Association, 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 only member of Round Square in Tasmania.

History

Formation

Scotch Oakburn College was created in 1979, through the amalgamation of the Scotch College and Oakburn College.

Methodist Ladies' College

The Methodist Ladies' College, Launceston 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.
In 1969, M.L.C was renamed "Oakburn College" as the school council felt that 'Ladies' was outdated.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.

Scotch College

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.

Church union and amalgamation

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 and the junior school and boarding house. The same year, the Scotch College campus on Penquite Road became the middle school. 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.

Principals


YearsMethodist Ladies' College, later Oakburn College
1886 - 1889George Thornton Lewis, BA
1890 - 1902Francis J. Nance, MA
1903 - 1941Mary E.G. Fox, MBE, MA
1941 - 1954Gwendoline Madder, MA, DipEd, Acting Head 1926 - 1928, 1936
1954 - 1962C.O. Leigh Cook, MA
1963 - 1971C. Leigh Speedy, MSc, BD, DipEd, MACE
1972 - 1976Angas S. Holmes, BA, BD, MRE, DipEd, MACE
1977 - 1978Alan E. Green, BSc, BD, DipEd, MACE
YearsScotch College
1900 - 1901S. Leslie Brown, MA
1902 - 1914Andrew Raeburn, MA
1914 - 1924C. Mitchell Tovell, MSc
1925 - 1950W.W.V. Briggs, MBE, MA, DipEd, Vice Principal 1951 - 1956
1950 - 1966Robert H. Dean, BA, BEd, MACE
1966 - 1971John T. Sykes, BA, BEd, MACE, JP
1972 - 1977Jock P. Herbert, BA DipEd, FRGS, MACE
1978 - 1979Bruce N. Carter, BA, EdM, EdD, MACE
YearsScotch Oakburn College
1979 - 1985Bruce N. Carter, AM, BA, EdM, EdD, MACE
1979 - 1981Alan E. Green, Associate Principal of Scotch Oakburn College
1986 - 1993David J. Hone, BA, CertEd, MEd, MACE
1994 - 2001Graeme E. McDonald, BA, DipEd, MEdAdmin, MACE, MACEA
2002 - 2012Andrew Barr, BEc, DipEd, MEd, MACEL, MACE
2013 - presentAndy Muller, BAppSc, DipEd, GradDipEdAdmin, MEd

Campuses

Elphin

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 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 25m swimming pool.

Penquite

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 honor 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.

House system

At the Scotch Oakburn Junior School there are three Houses which students are allocated to in Year 2, they are: Thistle, Willow and Oak. Throughout the year all students compete in a swimming carnival, cross country carnival and athletics carnival gaining points for their house.
The Scotch Oakburn Middle School and Senior School operates under four Houses: Fox, Dean, Briggs and Nance. Throughout the year students 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.

Notable alumni

Alumni of the Scotch Oakburn College are known as Old Collegians, and may elect to join the schools alumni association, the Scotch Oakburn Old Collegians Association. Some notable Old Collegians include:
;Academic
;Business
;Entertainment, media and the arts
;Government, politics and the law
;Military
;Sport