Sacred Heart College, Auckland: Difference between revisions

Sacred Heart College (Auckland)
Address
250 West Tamaki Road, Glen Innes, Auckland, New Zealand
Coordinates	36.8686°S 174.8720°E / -36.8686; 174.8720
Information
Type	Integrated boys-only intermediate-secondary (year 7-13)
Motto	Confortare Esto Vir "Take Courage And Act Manfully"
Established	1903
Ministry of Education Institution no.	59
Principal	Jim Dale
School roll	1015
Socio-economic decile	8
Website	www.sacredheart.school.nz

Sacred Heart College is a secondary school in Auckland, New Zealand. It is a Catholic, Marist College set on 60 acres (24 ha) of land overlooking the Tamaki Estuary in Glen Innes.

History

The college was opened in 1903 in Ponsonby, by the Marist Brothers. It is the oldest existing Catholic boys's secondary school in Auckland although it has changed its location, moving to its current Glen Innes site in 1955. The Marist Brothers continue to be a presence in the school community, with both teaching and maintenance of school grounds undertaken in part by the Brothers. The Headmaster role at the college was served solely by Marist Brothers up until 1993, when Brendan Schollum took the role; the college's first lay principal in its history. In 2003, the college held its centenary celebrations, which included the opening of a new administration building, technology block and Year 7 & 8 Department, and in 2005 it celebrated 50 years of being at the Glen Innes site. At the end of 2006, Jim Dale became the third lay Headmaster at Sacred Heart College, taking over from Phillip Mahoney.

Education

Sacred Heart currently offers NCEA as its national qualification standard. In the 2007 academic year, the school's Board of Trustees and Management Team began an Academic Review. This will look at the schools current assessment process and performance, and whether the school should look at alternative courses of education, such as Cambridge International Examinations (CIE) and the International Baccalaureate (IB).

Sport

Sacred Heart offers a wide range of sporting options to its pupils, though it is traditionally a school with a very strong rugby culture. Sacred Heart won four titles in the 2006 season, with its 3A, 3B, 5A and 5B teams victorious. The Under-15 Open team won the North Island Catholic Boys Under 15 Tournament, held at Francis Douglas Memorial College in that year also. The Sacred Heart 1st XV remains one of the only teams never to have been relegated from the 1A grade.

Other Sports include: Football, Cricket, Water Polo, Tennis, Cycling, Basketball, Hockey, Badminton, Rowing, Swimming and Athletics.

For 2007, a new Sports Institute has been opened for boys in years 7-10. Currently, the only sports on offer for this academy are Cricket, Football, Rugby union and Water Polo, though this is likely to expand to include other sports in subsequent years.

Houses

Photo of the school's year 7 and 8 and technology blocks.

The houses of Sacred Heart College are named after either famous people in the Catholic and Marist community in New Zealand, or important figures in the school's history. The six houses are:

• Basil - Yellow

Basil House is named after Brother Basil, who taught at the College for over 50 years.

• Coolahan - Green

(Current House Champions)

Coolahan House is named after the landowner who donated the land for the original site of the College in Ponsonby, now the site of St. Paul's College.

• Lenihan - Red

Lenihan House is named after the Bishop of Auckland in 1903, who saw the need for a Catholic Boy's school in the area and was a driving force in Sacred Heart's foundation.

• Marcellin - Teal

Marcellin house is named after Marcellin Champagnat, founder of the Marist order.

• Pompallier - Blue

Pompallier house is named after Jean Baptiste Pompallier (1802-1871), the first Catholic vicar apostolic and bishop to visit and be located in New Zealand (arrived 1838); first Catholic Bishop of Auckland (1848-1868).

• Stephen - Purple

Stephen House is named after Brother Stephen, a well known former teacher and Marist Brother at the college.

There is also a seventh 'House', Leonard House, which is home to the Senior Boarding students in the College Hostel.

Boarding Hostel

The Boarding Hostel is home to roughly 160 - 170 boarders from all over New Zealand and from overseas. Since 2006, the Dean of Boarding has been Mr. Michael O'Donnell who looks after Years 9-11. Year 12 and 13 boarders stay in Leonard House (mentioned before).

Old Boys

A number of renowned academics, musicians and sportsmen have come from the college. Some of these well-known men include:

• Pat Brittenden, Broadcaster
• Mike Chunn, Musician
• Dan Davin, Author, Rhodes Scholar
• Cardinal Reginald John Delargey (1914-1979): Auxiliary Bishop of Auckland (1957-1970); Eighth Catholic Bishop Of Auckland (1970-1974); Fifth Archbishop of Wellington (1974-1979).
• Denis Devcich, Head of the Mother of God Brothers.
• Dave Dobbyn, Musician
• Bishop Patrick James Dunn (b. 1949), Eleventh Catholic Bishop of Auckland (1994-present)
• Percy Erceg, Former All Black and New Zealand Maori selector.
• Tim Finn, Musician
• Neil Finn, Musician
• Sean Fitzpatrick, Rugby Player and former captain of the All Blacks
• Toa Fraser, Writer
• Michael King, Author/Historian
• Paul MacDonald, Olympic Kayaker and Surf lifesaver
• Bishop John Mackey (b. 1918), Ninth Catholic Bishop of Auckland (1974-1983)
• Isitolo Maka, Rugby Player former All Black
• Finau Maka, Rugby Player Tongan player
• Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, Former Prime Minister of Fiji and President of Fiji
• Ian Morris, Musician
• Sonny Parker, Rugby Player
• Rod Petricevic, Bridgecorp founder and executive director.
• Xavier Rush, Rugby Player and Former All Black
• Anand Satyanand, Governor-General of New Zealand
• Logan Swann, Rugby League Player
• Pat Walsh, All Black

References/Sources

• A.G Butchers, Young New Zealand, Coulls Somerville Wilkie Ltd, Dunedin, 1929.
• Zealandia, 1939-1989.
• E.R. Simmons, In Cruce Salus, A History of the Diocese of Auckland 1848 - 1980, Catholic Publication Centre, Auckland 1982.
• Thomas J. Ryder, Following all Your Ways, Lord - Recollections of Fr Thomas J. Ryder (transcribed and compiled by Margaret Paton) (Privately published, no date - perhaps early 1990s).
• Tony Waters, Confortare, A History of Sacred Heart College, Auckland 1903 - 2003: a Marist Brothers secondary school, Sacred Heart College, Auckland, 2003.
• Nicholas Reid, The Life and Work of Reginald John Delargey Cardinal, Catholic Diocese of Auckland/Pindar, Auckland, 2008.

See also

• List of schools in New Zealand

External links

• Sacred Heart College Website