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Revision as of 10:55, 19 September 2006
- This article is about a Wesley College located in Perth, Western Australia.
- For information regarding other schools named Wesley College, see Wesley College.
Wesley College is one of Western Australia's most prestigious boys' schools. Founded in 1923 on the foreshore of the magnificent Swan River in South Perth, it is a Uniting Church School that teaches from Kindergarten to Year 12. Wesley's facilities are of a high standard and comparable to those of other elite Australian schools.
The School has a somewhat unusual three-tiered school structure, being
- The Junior School (referred to as Manning House), a co-educational junior school for boys and girls from Kindergarten to Year 4.
- The Middle School, for boys from Years 5 to 8.
- The Senior School, for boys from Years 9 to 12.
Wesley has some of the highest per-year fees of any private school in Western Australia, which as of 2006 were approximately $13,000 for a year 12.
From an original enrolment of 39, the school currently has around 1250 students from a wide range of city, country and international backgronds. The Wesley Community includes 900 current families, 180 staff and more than 8000 members of the Old Wesley Collegians Association.
Wesley's motto is "Audendo Atque Agendo" and means "By Daring and By Doing". The school has launched a promotional campaign with the catchphrase - "Educating for Life" replacing the previous "The Wesley Experience - It's Worth Having".
In the led-up to the much hyped and publicised $13 million refurbishment of the Joseph Green Centre, Wesley has launched it's "Building for a Better Future" campaign that aims to raise $4 million to contribute towards the building of the state-of-the-art centre. With construction starting late 2006, and an estimated opening in the fourth quarter of 2007, this building project will be the largest of its kind in any private school in Western Australia.
History of Wesley College
The foundation stone for the Wesley Boys’ College was laid by the Premier of Western Australia, Sir James Mitchell, on November 11, 1922. This stone is still visible at the south-west corner of the original building, now known as the JF Ward Wing in honour of the school’s first headmaster.
The College began operation in February the following year, with an initial enrolment of 39 boys, and grew steadily in both size and reputation. This evolution can be traced through the campus architecture which was first extended in 1925 with the construction of a general classroom block, now the site of the RE Kefford Wing. A second storey was added to the original builidng in 1926, along with various verandahs and a weatherboard library, which have since been demolished.
In 1930, Mr JF Ward was succeeded as Headmaster by JL Rossiter. Under Dr Rossiter’s guidance, Wesley consolidated its academic reputation and continued its expansion program. A number of new buildings were constructed in the 1930s, including the Headmaster’s Residence (now JS Maloney House), a dining hall (now the staff common room), extra classrooms and a gymnasium (now the Hamer Wing). The College also joined the Public Schools’ Association in 1952.
Dr Rossiter's eldest son, Roger J Rossiter, was a formidable role model for other College students. He won Wesley’s first University Exhibition, in 1931, and was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship in 1935. The College’s first university graduate was JH Wheatley.
Dr Rossiter was succeeded as headmaster, in 1953, by Mr Norman Roy Collins. During Mr Collins' 11 years' tenure, construction of the Lych Gate, Memorial Chapel (1960-61), the boat shed, the science block (1956, 1959), additional classrooms (1955, 1963) and the swimming pool (1963) were completed.
A new Headmaster, Mr Clive Hamer, was appointed in 1965 and served Wesley with distinction until 1983. During this period, Wesley took a lead role in the introduction of the Achievement Certificate in Western Australia (1969-71), celebrated some great academic successes, and built the boarding houses of Cygnet and Tranby (1968-70), the HR Trenaman Library (1971), classrooms and balconies around the Jenkins Quadrangle (1972), the Collins Oval (1970) and the Joseph Green Centre (1973-78).
In 1977, Wesley came under the auspices of the Uniting Church which resulted from a joining of the Methodist, Presbyterian and Congregational Churches. The first female students were enrolled in 1978 with the opening of a new Junior School, on land acquired north of Swan Street.
Mr Roderic Kefford served as the fifth Headmaster from 1984 to 1996 and continued the extensive curriculum changes associated with a broadening of upper secondary programs beyond university entry and the establishment of Wesley’s own lower secondary structure. The RE Blanckensee Physical Education Centre was opened in 1987 and the original gymnasium was renovated to become the Hamer Wing classrooms. An overhaul of the house system, in 1990, saw Cygnet and Tranby become distinct houses and the new houses of Grove and Jenkins being added to the existing houses of Dickson (1968) and Hardey, Mofflin and Walton (1924). The Preparatory School was also extended towards Mill Point Road in 1994.
An ambitious site development plan was initiated by Mr John Bednall who was Headmaster from October 1996 to July 2002. To date, this has resulted in the refurbishment of the Kefford Wing, the Ward Wing and the Science block, the opening of the Junior School (Manning House) (1999), and of the Middle School (2000). In August 2003, Mr David Gee was appointed Wesley’s seventh Headmaster.
Campus
Building Program
Wesley's Master Plan for 2005 - 2015 aims to ensure that the Wesley campus remains at the forefront of Western Australian schools. The main projects include:
- Refurbishment of the Joseph Green Centre
- Extension of the Old Boys' Memorial Chapel
- A Business & Enterprise Centre
The last building project the school embarked on was the state-of-the-art Design Technology & Visual Arts Centre which will house the new Business & Enterprise Centre in its undercroft level.
The Joseph Green Centre refurbishment will revitalise the school centre as the main performing arts venue. It will house a new student cafe, auditorium, high-quality gallery & lobby and flexible music & drama areas. There are also plans to include a function centre on its top floor that will capture the stunning views of the Swan River and the central business district. Construction is expected to commence in the second half of 2006. Plans show the building to be a modern, glass-exterior building with the same general shape as the current Joseph Green Centre. The plans have come under some criticism from staff and students, who claim the building's style does not complement the traditional style of the school.
History
Early History
Wesley College is over 80 years old and thus has a considerable range in the design and appearance of its buildings, from the elegant, original building the J.F. Ward Wing, to the less aesthetically pleasing preperatory school (now Wyvern Centre) built in the 1970's, and modern state of the art facilities such as the new Design and Technology Centre (2004) and the R.E. Blanckensee Physical Education Centre (1987).
When the school first opened in 1923, it consisted of just one single storey building (now the J.F. Ward Wing) in a sea of black sand. The building was comprised of a residential wing for the Headmaster J.F. Ward and his family, a dormitory for 20 boarders, two classrooms as well as accommodation for several staff members. The second story was added in 1927 for additional dormitories and was renovated again in 1978. The building now houses administration, the Headmaster's office, finance, various other offices such as the maths and English faculties as well as four computer labs.
The second building was a large one story classroom block build next to the original building around what is now the Jenkins Quadrangle. It has been extensively renovated since then including adding a second story, however it remains the main classroon block with 19 classrooms for maths, English and LOTE as well as some other subjects. It also contains offices for the six heads of the day houses and several other positions. In 1998 it was named the R.E. Kefford Wing after Wesley's fifth headmaster, Dr Roderic Kefford.
In 1936 the Headmaster's residence was built on the northern side of the school, near the J.F. Ward Wing and was home to 5 successive Headmasters of the school. It was renovated in 2002 and is now home to the Old Wesley Collegians' Association, the school archive and a museum. At around the same time, what is now the staff common room was built as a combined dining room and assembly hall, adjacent to the R.E. Kefford Wing and directly across the quadrangle from the J.F. Ward Wing.
In 1940 a small gymnasium was completed to the east of the R.E. Kefford Wing and remained in use until the new physical education centre was completed in 1987. It was then converted to classrooms and renamed the Hamer Bulding after the fourth Headmaster, Clive Hamer and is now used by the SOSE faculty. After World War Two in which fifty-five Old Boys lost their lives fighting, a small memorial, the Lych Gate was erected south-west of the J.F. Ward Wing. In 2005 it was relocated to a more prominent position over a path entering the college metres away from where it originally stood.
Post World War Two
The college has two on-campus ovals as well as one off-campus. The first was established in 1924 at the southern end of the school and was named Ward Oval in 1950 after Wesley's first Headmaster. It is now used for soccer and hockey in winter and cricket in summer. Another oval was developed at the eastern-most end of the school in the years following World War Two. It was also named in 1950 after Dr J.L. Rossiter, Wesley's second Headmaster. It is used for Australian Rules Football in winter and cricket in summer.
Wesley's ovals have been renowned for having the best playing surfaces (particularly for cricket) of any oval in Perth outside of the WACA, Western Australia's international cricketing ground. Tennis courts were also established just north of Rossiter Oval for the schools highly successful tennis program in the 1950s. Wesley also has off-campus ovals and sporting facilities at Collins Oval in Como, next to Wesley's sister school Penrhos College. Collins Oval is used for rugby, soccer and hockey in winter and cricket in summer and was commissioned in 1971. Football is also played at the adjacent Grayden Oval. In 1956 a boat shed was built for Wesley's rowing crews along the swan river on the south perth foreshore, directly across from the city CBD.
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A large purpose built science block was built in 1959 for Wesley's growing population. This too was renovated in 1998 and now houses the schools only transportation lift. In response to the loss of the Fifty-Five in World War Two, a fundraising campaign was undertaken in attempt to build a chapel in remembrance of their selfless sacrifice. In 1961 the Old Boys Memorial Chapel was officially opened by Reverend Ralph Sutton, President of the Methodist Conference at the time. It has since become a landmark of Wesley with its prominent spire and because it is located on the busy Coode Street which runs along the western edge of the school.
In 1963 through funding from the Wesley Parents and Friends Society a 50m outdoor pool was built near the Hamer Wing and the Science Block and has since been integrated within Wesley's Physical Education Centre.
Recent Era
In 1968-1970 two purpose built boarding houses were completed north of Swan Street. This was the first time that boarders had had their own facilities within the college. In 2005 they underwent remodelling and a new "link building" was erected where the quadrangle used to be between the Tranby and Cygnet houses. At around the same time, the H.R. Trenaman Library was built on top of the dining hall (now the staff common room). Renovations to this ageing and outdated structure are scheduled in the next few years.
Possibly Wesley's most significant building, the Joseph Green Centre was built to commemorate Wesley's golden jubilee in 1973. It currently contains the large two-tiered school hall, the school canteen, music rooms and the boarders dining facilities. Up until 2005 it also contained Design and Technology classes before the new centre was completed. In the late stages of 2006 through to 2007 substantial renovation is expected to commence.
A preparatory school was built on land north of Swan Street and opened in 1978. These buildings are now used as the Wyvern Centre for Extended Learning and for media and music rooms.
Prior to 1987, Wesley did not have a major sporting facility which could house the growing number of boys and sports played at the college. This changed in 1987 when the R.E. Blanckensee Physical Education Centre was opened on the site of the former Allingham Pavilion. The building, possibly the most iconic and recognisable of Wesley's structures remains one of the best in Western Australia and even the entire nation. The three levelled building comprises of a large gymnasium, a weights room, two classrooms, a mezzanine, seven changeroom facilities and multiple offices and occupies a pivotal position as well as being a link between the two ovals and the pool. The centre is also home to the Wesley Sports Club, open to the public and which uses Wesley's facilities.
1990 - Present
In the late 1990's two new facilities were built for Wesley's younger students. In 1999 the Junior School (referred to as Manning House) was opened north of Swan Street and extended the school right up to Mill Point Road. The Junior School is co-educational and for kindergarten through to Year 4. In 2000 Wesley's innovative and state-of-the-art Middle School was built near the original J.F. Ward Wing. The Middle School houses Years 5 through to 8 and contains 14 classrooms centred around a large undercover atrium.
In 2004 a new Design and Technology Centre was built near the science block on what was previously a staff carpark. The new building, which includes many innovative teaching designs integrated within it, is regarded as one of if not the best in the country and was a much needed upgrade from the aging facilities previously accommodated within the adjacent Joseph Green Centre. However, criticism has arisen from the fact that it received air-conditioning before the academic classrooms of the school.
Underlying Themes
From the beginning of the school in the 1920's the school buildings have retained the tradition of red brick structures and iconic triangular shaped exterior features which have been included in almost all buildings and structures (most notably the R.E. Kefford Wing and the Physical Education Centre). Thus, Wesley's buildings are almost always immediately identifiable as belonging to the College and are important in the school's development as a unique and elite school with underlying traditional values and attributes.
OBE Debate
On the Front Page of The West Australian Newspaper (Thursday 18 May 2006), Wesley College made headlines with its desire to delay the implementation of the controversial Outcomes Based Education (OBE) after Headmaster David Gee wrote to the State Education Minister, Hon. Ljiljanna Ravlich.
In his letter, Mr Gee wrote, "I can no longer remain silent about my ongoing and now heightened concern about the implementation time lines for . . . next year".
Mr Gee said that while he supported OBE, he did not believe the outcomes approach could be linked successfully to a system that demanded a one-to-four ranking for Year 12 students.
"A rushed and flawed implementation process, I believe, is doomed to failure and will set the Western Australian education system back a decade," he said.
"How can we expect to do a good job of implementing the biggest change in post-compulsory system in 20 years when, six months out, the teachers are NOT ready?"
". . . with another year of planning, I believe we would be in a much stronger position to properly implement the changes."
The full letter can be read on the News Section of the Wesley College website.
Wesley College has been joined by two other Uniting Church Schools, Scotch College and St Stephens School in the battle to delay the OBE implementation.
Uniform
Wesley's current uniform was introduced in 1999. The school broke with its own tradition as well as that of other major private schools when it decided to move away from the customary grey uniform commonplace among other colleges. The new summer uniform with green shorts and black, yellow and green pinstriped shirts was far more recognisable than previously and generally well accepted among the College community, although opposition was quite vocal. The summer uniform has recently come under citicism for looking untidy and being worn poorly, and thus the winter uniform (trousers, tie, blazer) has become compulsory for winter months.
In 2005 the school began to consider the relatively expensive procedure of replacing the entire sports uniform (including all sport specific apparel) at the same time. A lucrative contract was agreed upon with a large eastern states firm and will be phased in by the beginning of 2007. Unlike previously where the uniforms had been sought out separately for each sport and often resulted in different shades of colours (particularly green) as well as differing themes, the new uniforms will have common colours and themes for each sport and ultimately ensure that Wesley is easily recognisable at all sporting events.
There are plans to either replace or improve the school's current summer uniform as some criticism has been raised over it's lack of style and material quality. If it is to be replaced or reviewed, the new summer uniform will improve the standard of quality of the materials and make the uniform more formal again - like previous generations of the school uniform. Staff have complained that the uniform loses the tradition of the school.
Sporting
Wesley and the PSA
Wesley has been a member of Western Australia's elite boys school association, the Public Schools Association (PSA) since 1952, within which it competes in interschool sports. Recent successes include the winning of the interschool swimming for three consecutive years, rowing's Head of River in 2001 and more recently 2006 and cricket's Darlot Cup in 2003 and 2006.
Swimming
In 2006 Wesley won its third successive PSA interschool swimming carnival after winning in 2004, 2005 and coming runner up in 2003. Prior to this, previous headmaster Mr John Bednall was quoted as saying that Wesley would "never win the Inters Swimming if nothing changed".
Klem Cup
The Klem Cup is awarded to the winning house each year, it is named after the first boy ever enrolled (CH Klem). The houses compete in a number of activities in order to gain points, these include:
- Swimming
- Athletics
- Cross-Country (Running)
- Basketball
- Badminton
- Soccer
- Australian Rules Football
- Debating
- Tug of War
- Eisteddfod
- Ergo Rowing
Discontinued sports include:
- Shooting
- Cricket
- Rugby
- Boxing / Wrestling
- Hockey
- Tennis
- Archery
The houses that compete are:
- Hardey (Black) 1924
- Mofflin (Yellow) 1924
- Walton (Green) 1924
- Dickson (Red) 1968
- Grove (Yellow and Green) 1990
- Jenkins (Black and White) 1990
- Cygnet (Black and Yellow) Boarding - 1990
- Tranby (Black and Green) Boarding - 1990
Sporting Alumni
Several alumni of the school have become professional sportsmen. The R.E. Blanckensee Physical Education Centre contains a Hall of Fame showcasing over 160 of Wesley's finest sporting old boys. These include:
- Ben Cousins, Australian Football League, West Coast Eagles, Norwich Rising Star 1996, Brownlow Medal 2005; All-Australian 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006
- Michael Gardiner, AFL, West Coast Eagles; All-Australian 2003
- Andrew McDougall, AFL, West Coast Eagles;
- Jarrad Schofield, AFL, West Coast Eagles, Fremantle Football Club, Port Adelaide Premiership 2004;
- Mark Coughlan, AFL, Richmond Tigers, Jack Dyer Medal 2003;
- Phil Read, AFL, West Coast Eagles, Melbourne Demons;
- Scott Stevens, AFL, Adelaide Crows;
- Lance Franklin, AFL, Hawthorn Hawks, Pick #5 2004 AFL Draft;
- Chris Rogers, Cricket, Western Warriors;
- Shaun Marsh, Cricket, Western Warriors;
- Scott Meuleman, Cricket, Western Warriors;
- Ben Hollioake, Cricket, England Cricket Team;
- James Harvey, Basketball, West Sydney Razorbacks;
- Glenn Loftus, Rowing, Silver Medal Athens 2004;
- Adam Wallace-Harrison, Rugby Union, Super 14, ACT Brumbies;
- Arthur Marshall, Tennis, Davis Cup, Order of Australia 2006
- Nick Ward, Perth Glory, Young Socceroos
The John Bednall Scandal
During 2002, then headmaster Mr John Bednall resigned amid allegations of having viewed internet child pornography, causing enormous embarrassment for the college.[1] Mr Bednall was charged in 2003 with one count of having accessed objectionable material under the Censorship act. The case was later dismissed, and Mr Bednall sued Wesley, claiming "it had irreparably damaged his national and international reputation as an educator of boys".