Auckland Grammar School

Auckland Grammar School
Motto	Per Angusta Ad Augusta Through difficulties to greatness.[1]
Type	State Single Sex Boys secondary (Year 9-13) with boarding facilities
Year established	1868
Address	87 Mountain Road, Epsom, Auckland, New Zealand
Coordinates
Headmaster	John Morris
School roll	2483
Socio-economic decile (10 is highest)	10
Ministry of Education Institution no.	54
Website	www.ags.school.nz

Auckland Grammar School is a boys-only state secondary school in Auckland, New Zealand. It teaches from years 9 to 13. The school also has a limited number of boarders, who live in a building adjacent to the school called Tibbs' House. It is one of the largest schools in New Zealand, with approximately 2,483 boys in 2008.

History

The school was established in 1850 by the then Governor-General of New Zealand, Sir George Grey. The school was officially recognised as an educational establishment in 1868 through the Auckland Grammar School Appropriation Act ^[2]

Auckland Grammar School contains two Category I historic places, which are the school's main block and a war memorial.^[3][4][5] An obelisk located in front of the school commemorates former students of the school who fought in various wars. The school's main block, built in 1916 in the "Spanish Mission" style, is used for daily assemblies, exhibitions, and contains various classrooms

The school owns a facility called the VentureLodge located in the township of Ohakune, in the central North Island, which is used by students for camps. ^[6].

The school's motto is "Per Angusta ad Augusta" which translates to "Through difficulties to greatness." The school has also translated the motto as "Through rough ravines to hallowed heights."^[7] The origin of the motto is uncertain, but it was a common maxim at the time of the school's founding.^[8]

The school song was introduced in March, 1955. The words were composed in 1954 by L. W. A. Crawley, senior Classics lecturer at Auckland University College (now the University of Auckland). The song consists of two verses in Latin and includes the school motto as a refrain. It is sung to the melody of the German hymn "Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott" ("A Mighty Fortress Is Our God").^[9]

A documentary on the school titled Grammar Boys was aired in July 2005 on TV3 ^[10]

Enrolment

Historically, the demand for places in the school has outstripped capacity, and entry was selective. The school was zoned at least since the 1960s. Now entry is determined by a state school enrolment scheme. The school argues that zoning increases house prices in the zone, reducing access to the school for students from lower socioeconomic groups.^[2]

Auckland Grammar's voluntary donation for each student was NZD$700 in 2005, NZD$740 in 2006, and NZD$810 for 2008 — approximately five times higher than the average.^[11] The highest voluntary donations are requested by state integrated schools, reaching up to NZD$4,472,^[12]For example, Grammar's neighbour St Peter's College (an integrated school) charges a maximum fee of $2,124.^[13] But Auckland Grammar's request is the highest of any state (as opposed to state integrated) school.^[11]

The school also accepts overseas students if they hold a legal student visa, which requires an annual fee of around NZD$20,000. The school had about 75 international students, including Korean, Japanese, Taiwanese and German students in 2007^[update].

NCEA controversy

The current headmaster, John Morris, is a vocal critic of the NCEA. In response to what it perceived by the school to be a poorly designed system being forced on them, the school introduced Cambridge International Examinations in 2002, offering the IGCSE, AS Level and A2 examinations to its more talented students. Other students sit NCEA exams. Students placed in an IGCSE/AS/A2 class are allowed to switch to NCEA, but this is usually discouraged by the school. However in the ensuing years the majority of students were encouraged to take part in CIE qualifications as the school opines they are more internationally recognised than NCEA, even though NCEA can be recognised at most universities around the world. The ongoing introduction of the controversial New Zealand Scholarship has been viewed sceptically by the school, and it encourages only the top students to attempt it. Despite this, the school had the highest number of scholarships of any school in New Zealand in 2006.^[14]

Architecture

In addition to its original or "main" building Auckland Grammar School has in recent years added several new structures. These include a new gymnasium which contains several full size basketball courts. Most recently a sports pavilion was completed on its upper field to house events and sports teams.

Sister schools

• Taisei Junior and Senior High School
• Epsom Girls' Grammar

Notable alumni

The school shortly after opening, late 1910s.

• Ben Atiga (1983– ), All Black ^[15]
• Hon Sir Thomas Bavin (1874–1941), 24th Premier of New South Wales ^[16]
• Hamish Carter (1971– ), 2004 Summer Olympic gold medalist (triathlon) ^[17]
• Jeff Crowe (1958– ), cricketer and ICC referee ^[18]
• Martin Crowe (1962– ), cricketer ^[18]
• Russell Crowe (1964– ), Academy Award-winning actor ^[19]
• Hon Sir Roger Douglas (1937– ), former Finance Minister ^[20]
• Sir Raymond Firth (1901–2002), social anthropologist ^[21]
• Sir James Fletcher (1914–2007), prominent industrialist and philanthropist ^[22]
• Grant Fox (1962– ), former All Black ^[23]
• Charles Goldie (1870–1947), artist ^[24]
• Rt Hon Sir Doug Graham (1942– ), former Justice and Treaty Negotiations Minister ^[25]
• Air Marshal Sir Kenneth Hayr (1935–2001), former UK Deputy Chief of the Defense Staff ^[26]
• Graham Henry (1946– ), All Black coach ^[27]
• Sir Edmund Hillary (1919–2008), explorer and mountain climber. First man to climb Everest, 1953. ^[28]
• Doug Howlett (1978– ), international rugby union player ^[29]
• Rth Hon Jonathan Hunt (1938– ), former Cabinet Minister, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, High Commissioner to the United Kingdom
• Prof Vaughan Jones (1952– ), Fields Medal winner
• Sir Hugh Kawharu (1927–2006), Māori scholar ^[30]
• Rth Hon Sir Kenneth Keith (1937– ), judge on the International Court of Justice ^[31]
• Sir George Laking (1912–2008), diplomat and Chief Ombudsman ^[32]
• Sir Graham Liggins (1939– ), medicinal researcher, founder of the Liggins Institute ^[33]
• Hon Sir Leslie Munro (1901–1974), former President of the General Assembly of the United Nations ^[34]
• Andrew Niccol (1964– ), Academy Award-nominated director, screenwriter & producer. ^[35]
• Sir Wilson Whineray (1935– ), former All Black captain and prominent businessman ^[36]

Notes

References

• Trembath, K. A. (1969). Ad Augusta. Auckland: The Auckland Grammar School Old Boys' Association. OCLC 447653. 

External links

• Official school website
• Regularly updated school intranet
• Biography of past Headmaster J.W. Tibbs