Orara High School
| Orara High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 | |
| , | |
| Coordinates | 30°16′56″S 153°6′45″E / 30.28222°S 153.11250°E |
| Information | |
| Type | Public, Co-educational, Secondary, Day school |
| Established | 1970 |
| Principal | Mr Sonntag |
| Years offered | 7-12 |
| Enrolment | ~780 |
| Campus | Suburban |
| Colour(s) | Green & White |
| Website | http://www.orara-h.schools.nsw.edu.au/ |
Orara High School, is a secondary school located in Coffs Harbour, New South Wales, Australia. On 12 November 1969, approval was given for a new high school to be built on Joyce street. In August 1970, positions at the new school were advertised. In 1972, Orara High opened at its present Joyce Street site. Current student enrolment is more than 780.[1]
Notable incidents
1991 Shooting
On 19 June 1991, a rifleman entered the grounds of Orara High School and fired several shots. Three persons were injured, including 2 members of staff and 1 student. The gunman was apprehended by a number of students who managed to tackle him to the ground, successfully ending the ordeal. The incident marked the first recorded instance of a shooting within an Australian high school.[2][3][4][5]
In the months leading up to the ten year anniversary of the incident on 19 June 2001, students at Orara High School reported being again terrorised by a vandal who left graffiti around the school grounds which threatened to stage a repeat of the shooting incident. Despite the successful arrest of a woman aged 22 in relation to the vandalism, the school was criticised for not evacuating students.
Controversy
On 29 November 2013, the then Deputy Principal of Orara High School, Andrew Minisini, was charged with two counts of recruiting a child to engage in criminal activity, one count of malicious damage and one count of supplying a minor with alcohol. Minisini is alleged to have supplied and consumed alcohol with three female students who he had befriended, aged 16 and 17, before committing acts of vandalism against the home of the then school principal, Frank Stanton in Valla Beach. It is understood that Minisini was embroiled in a personal matter with Mr. Stanton at this time and is alleged to have recruited the girls to commit the malicious acts on his behalf.[6] Minisini denied all accusations,[7] appearing before the Coffs Harbour District Court in April 2014.[8]
Notable alumni
- Deborah Knight - Network 10 newsreader.
- Melinda Pavey - Member of the NSW Legislative Council
- Ben Newton - Australian Wheelchair Rugby Paralympian
See also
- List of Government schools in New South Wales
- School Shootings in Oceania
- Aerial Photograph of Orara High School
References
- ^ "Official Orara High School Webpage". Orara High School.
- ^ "Student Shoots Three Outside His School". Associated Press Archives. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ Lees, Meg (1998). Sporting Shooters Association shoots itself in the foot. Australian Democrats.
- ^ Cornwall, Deborah (21 June 1991). "Shooting not their fault students told". Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ Cornwall, Deborah (20 June 1991). "There was blood on his shirt. I just couldn't believe it". Sydney Morning Herald.
- ^ Olding, Rachel (6 December 2013). "Teacher accused of getting girls drunk so they would vandalise home of enemy". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ Grewal, Jessica (21 January 2014). "Teacher denies supplying girls with alcohol". Coffs Coast Advocate. Retrieved 20 April 2014.
- ^ Grewal, Jessica (4 March 2014). "Case against bad teacher could be heard next month". Coffs Coast Advocate. Retrieved 20 April 2014.