Toowoomba Anglican School

Toowoomba Anglican School
Location
Map
Toowoomba, Queensland

Australia
Coordinates27°33′28″S 151°58′37″E / 27.55778°S 151.97694°E / -27.55778; 151.97694
Information
Former names
  • The Toowoomba Grammar Preparatory School
  • The Church of England Preparatory School
  • The Church of England Boys School
  • The Toowoomba Preparatory School
  • Toowoomba Anglican College and Preparatory School
TypeIndependent co-educational primary and secondary day and boarding school
MottoLatin: Sola Nobilitas Virtus
Religious affiliation(s)Anglican Diocese of Brisbane
DenominationAnglican
Established1911; 114 years ago (1911)
Head of SchoolSimon Lees
Enrolment650[citation needed]
Campus size5-hectare (12-acre)
Campus typeRegional
Colour(s)Gold, navy and maroon
     
AffiliationJunior School Heads Association of Australia
Websitetaschool.qld.edu.au

The Toowoomba Anglican School (formerly Toowoomba Anglican College and Preparatory School) is an independent Anglican co-educational primary and secondary day and boarding school located in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.[1] The school is a member of the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane and is affiliated with the Junior School Heads Association of Australia.[citation needed]

The school has a small village atmosphere at its 5-hectare (12-acre) campus on the edge of the Dividing Range, and has developed a variety of facilities on its East Toowoomba location. These include three sporting ovals, an outdoor 25 metres (82 ft) swimming pool, a multipurpose court, and the St Aidans School Chapel. It also has a large multi-purpose venue with bleacher seating called the Millennium Centre, where assemblies and other sporting events are held such as volleyball, basketball and netball.[citation needed]

History

The school was founded in 1911 as The Toowoomba Grammar Preparatory School. Original enrolment comprised 17 boys. The school was founded and grew with a boarding focus to service the geographically isolated areas of Southern and Western Queensland. The focus on boarding has remained through the school's history.[citation needed]

In 1927 the campus was expanded with the purchase of the adjacent Stoneleigh House, which was used for boarding students. In 1942–43 the School grounds were commandeered by the Army as a result of World War II, and the school was evacuated to Southport on the Gold Coast. In 1972 the enrolment was expanded to become co-educational. In 1986 Stoneleigh House was demolished to make room for sporting facilities. The turret (known as the Bell Tower) was salvaged through the efforts of the Past Students Association, and to this day is sited between the sporting ovals that replaced Stoneleigh.[citation needed]

In 2001 the school's board was subject of a civil case, S v Corporation of the Synod of the Diocese of Brisbane [2001] QSC 473,[2] involving sexual offending by a housemaster in the 1990s.[3] The events later formed the basis of the 2017 film Don't Tell.[citation needed]

Heads of school

The following is a lead of heads of the school:[citation needed]

Ordinal Officeholder Title School name Term start Term end Time in office Notes
1 Ernest Albert Gill The Toowoomba Grammar Preparatory School
The Church of England Preparatory School		 1911 1926 14–15 years
2 Rev. Ernest Aldington Hunt The Church of England Boys School 1927 1928 0–1 years
3 Norman Scott "Boss" Connal OBE Headmaster 1929 1958 28–29 years [4]
4 Edgar "Blue" White 1959 1973 13–14 years
5 Robert "Bob" Smith The Church of England Preparatory School 1973 1979 5–6 years
6 Robert Brewster The Toowoomba Preparatory School 1979 1992 12–13 years
7 Tim Waley 1993 1995 1–2 years
8 Bruce Howden OAM 1995 2009 13–14 years [5]
9 Sandra Hawken 2010 2013 2–3 years [6]
10 Simon Lees Head of School Toowoomba Anglican College and Preparatory School
Toowoomba Anglican School		 2014 2025 10–11 years

Houses

The school has a day house system for internal competition, and a different house system for boarding.[citation needed]

There are three-day houses: Gill (maroon), Connal (gold) and Fairfax (navy).[citation needed]

Sports

Sports offered at the school include AFL, athletics, basketball, cricket, cross country, soccer, rugby union, rugby league, hockey, netball, softball, swimming, tennis, touch football, and volleyball.[citation needed]

Sporting facilities at the school include three junior-sized ovals, four tennis, and netball courts, an outdoor pool, and a gymnasium (which also acts as the School's assembly hall).[citation needed]

Music

TAS has an extensive music program. The program includes a music exposure system where all students undertake activities using musical instruments such as the violin. The result is extensive participation in small music ensembles through all age groups. TAS enters the annual Toowoomba Eisteddfod amongst other regional competitions, and typically enjoys significant success. The Chapel Choir is noted for its consistently high-performance standard.[citation needed]

The school also encourages participation in musical productions. The bi-annual Preparatory Years musical is a large production with the participation of all students from Years 3 to 6 in all aspects from staging, music and management. The College Musical and College Plays take place in alternate years with its the musical Guys and Dolls performed at the Empire Theatre, the school's first musical performed at the venue, in August 2022.[7] The biannual College Plays are two performances for which students may participate in one of the two performances depending on their year level: In 2023, Urbs Urbis for the Years 7-9, and Buckets for the Years 10-12, performed at the Armitage Center, Empire Theatre.[8]

Notable alumni

All previous students are able to join the Past Students Association. Notable alumni include:

  • Air Vice Marshal Don Bennett CB, CBE, DSO, (1919–20)
  • Charles Copeman AM, Rhodes Scholar 1953; mining industrialist (1941–42)
  • Sally Kehoe, an Olympic rower (1992–98)[9]
  • Aeneas John Lindsay McDonnell (1904–1964), an international art critic; recoverer of stolen artwork in post-World War II Nazi Germany (1911–16)[10]
  • Pippa Savage, a national rower (1988–93)
  • Jon Stephenson, a geologist, Antarctic explorer, and academic (1943)[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "The Toowoomba Preparatory School". Archived from the original on 24 August 2006.
  2. ^ "S v Corporation of the Synod of the Diocese of Brisbane [2001] QSC 473". State of Queesland (Supreme Court of Queensland). Retrieved 22 March 2020.
  3. ^ Gunders, Peter (17 May 2017). "Don't Tell: 'Australia's Spotlight' shines on a dark chapter of institutional cover up of child sexual abuse". ABC Online. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  4. ^ "Mr Norman Scott CONNAL". Australian Honours Search Facility. Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet). Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021. Date Granted: 13th of June, 1959; Headmaster of the Boy's[sic] School, Toowoomba
  5. ^ "Mr Bruce James HOWDEN". Australian Honours Search Facility. Commonwealth of Australia (Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet). Archived from the original on 29 November 2021. Retrieved 29 November 2021. Date Granted: 26th of January, 2003; For service to education, particularly as an administrator.
  6. ^ The Toowoomba Preparatory School Centenary 1911–2011. 2011. ISBN 978-0-646-54782-4
  7. ^ "Toowoomba Anglican School presents Guys and Dolls". Archived from the original on 21 October 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  8. ^ "Urbs Urbis and Buckets". Archived from the original on 17 May 2023. Retrieved 18 May 2023.
  9. ^ "Toowoomba Prep Past Students Association | Prep Times April 2010". Archived from the original on 29 May 2014. Retrieved 17 September 2012.
  10. ^ "Aeneas J. L. McDonnell ( 1904-1964 )". Monuments Men Foundation for the preservation of art. Archived from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  11. ^ "Toowoomba Prep Past Students Association | Prep Times July 2011". Archived from the original on 6 July 2012. Retrieved 17 September 2012.