Figtree High School

Figtree High School is a comprehensive public high school located on Gibsons Road in Figtree, a suburb of Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.

History

Figtree High School was established in 1969, with 242 First Form students enrolling as the first students to attend. The first principal of the school was Ken Brokenshire, with Robert Everitt, the Deputy Principal and nine assistant teachers. Because construction of the school was not finished at the time, students and teachers borrowed furniture from Dapto High School and attended classes in seven portable buildings in the grounds of Dapto High School. Construction finally finished in July 1969, being announced "Australia's most modern high school" by the local newspaper, and students re-located back to their new building in Gibsons Road. Of the original 242 students enrolled in 1969, 87 elected to enter the Senior School and completed their Higher School Certificate in 1974.

The school was built in close proximity to the famous, historic Figtree that the suburb was named after, and this tree was adopted as the school emblem. But in 1987, after a significant storm, the tree was terminally damaged and was removed as a safety precaution. Students referred to the school as 'Figstump High' for this time. After much discussion, a new fig tree was planted on the site of the original tree in 1997.^[2]

Enrolment

Currently there are approximately 1100 students in the school.

Staff

The current principal of Figtree High School is Carol Marshman, with the current two Deputy Principals being David Deitz and Elicia Donovan. There are 52 classroom teachers and a total of approximately 100 staff members including behaviour teachers, physical disability teachers and school assistants.

Notable Achievements

Enterprise Education

In 1999, the school was a part of Australian Business Week, where students would form 'companies' and run a four million dollar business for a simulated two-year period.

Since then, Figtree High School has taken part each year, but in 2008 won first position. This took the team of students (ranging from Years 10 to 12) to the next stage, the Global Enterprise Challenge, where they won second place to New Zealand. The challenge involved designing and implementing a system to aid water conservation around the world. Figtree's design, the 'Hydro Shift Program', was a household water usage monitor, that allowed users to set goals to reduce their consumption and water bills. Twelve other countries including Germany, Norway, Wales and the United States of America also took part. This position was the highest to be received by any Australian team in the global stage of the competition.

Sport

Figtree High School has also been noted for its achievements in sport, sending many representative teams and individuals for state competitions within New South Wales. Students have represented Australia in sports such as athletics, rugby league, swimming, water polo, basketball, tennis and snow sports.

Extra-Curricular

Figtree High School has also organised a number of overseas study tours for those students undertaking ancient history. This has involved trips with staff and keen family members to relevant locations within Italy and Greece.

The school has also been involved in a number of exchange programs. A number of students within the school undertaking language courses have won ten week scholarships to Germany, and other students have travelled to South Korea.

Music, Dance and Drama

Figtree High School has put on a number of musical productions including the 2008 production of "The Course of True Love", written by a teacher at the school and the 2010 production of "Grease: The Musical".

Notable alumni

• Wendy Anderson - now Wendy Laidlaw - 1984 Olympian - 1983 World Championships - basketball
• Jan Barham MLC - Greens Member NSW Legislative Council (Year 12 1976)
• Stephen Black - former professional NBL basketball player (Year 12 1996)
• Brian Hetherington - former professional rugby league player, state representative
• Garry Jack - former professional rugby league player, national representative (Year 12 1978)
• Phil Jaques - former Australian cricketer (Year 12 1996)
• Ashley Paske - former actor in Neighbours now voiceover professional (Year 10 1986)
• Steve Roach - former professional rugby league player, national representative
• Jason Ryles - professional rugby league player, national representative (Year 12 1996)
• Carolyn Watson - Conductor and Music Educator (Year 12 1991)

References

External links

• Figtree High School website
• NSW Department of Education and Training: Figtree High School