Oakhill College
 |
| Oakhill College | |
|---|---|
| File:Oakhillcollege.jpg | |
| Location | |
 | |
| , | |
| Information | |
| Type | Independent co-educational secondary |
| Motto | Deo Duce 'God our Leader' |
| Established | 1937 |
| Chairman | Mr John Puleo |
| Principal | Br Ken Ormerod fsc |
| Grades | 7–12 |
| Enrolment | 1600 |
| Campus | 42 acres |
| Colour(s) | Maroon & Gold |
| Affiliations | Roman Catholic, De La Salle Brothers, ISA |
| School song | Hymn in honour of St. John the Baptist |
| Website | oakhill.nsw.edu.au |
Oakhill College is a Catholic co-educational school in Castle Hill, New South Wales run by the De La Salle Brothers in the tradition of St. John Baptist De La Salle. Founded in 1937, it is a member of the Independent Schools Association (ISA).
History
The De La Salle Brothers purchased the Oakhill property in 1932. In 1937 a small school for boys (10 day and 20 boarding students) commenced which served the then rural area of "The Hills". The College grew slowly until in 1953, its enrolment reached 100.
In 1974 the decision was taken to phase out the boarding school and, in 1976 Oakhill College became a co-educational senior school. The phasing out of primary classes commenced in 1980, and by 1983, Oakhill College was enrolling only secondary students.
Today the total enrolment of the College is about 1600.
In the year 2006, the 100th year of the Brothers in Australia was celebrated with a mass at St Mary's Cathedral.
The property was initially used as a training college for brothers; the school came later. The training college for brothers evolved into a training college for Catholic lay teachers, which was then merged into the Australian Catholic University in the 1980s, which then became the Castle Hill campus of the ACU. Finally, in the 1990s, the ACU decided to consolidate their campuses in Sydney, and abandoned their Castle Hill facility, which then reverted to the De La Salle brothers. Since then, the original training college has been extensively renovated, named the De La Salle Building and forms part of the school.
Centenary Sports Centre
The Centenary Sports Centre is the newest addition to the college campus. It was built during the course of 2006, costing approximately a bazillion dollars. The Centre was opened in late November. It has a state of the art 25 metre lap pool, PD/H/PE classrooms, and a gym. The main part of the centre is a double basketball court. it is used for school assemblies.
Drama department
Oakhill College has one of the most diverse and talented drama departments among secondary NSW schools. Various HSC performances have been nominated for the renowned 'On Stage' performances at Sydney's Seymour Centre. The College conducts a major musical every two years, and a junior musical every alternate year. Past productions have included:
- Jesus Christ Superstar
- les Miserables
- Little Shop of Horrors
- The Dream
- The Importance Of Being Earnest
- Dad's Army
- The Mouse That Roared
Pastoral care
Pastoral care at Oakhill involves classroom based programs in years 7 and 8 and a House System from years 9-12. The Houses include:
- Benildus House - (Gold). Named after Saint Brother Benildus Romancon (1805 - 1862). Feast Day 13th of August .
- La Salle House - (Red). Named after St. John Baptist de La Salle (1651 - 1719), the founder of the De La Salle Brothers. Feast Day 15th of May.
- Miguel House - (Purple). Named after St Brother Miguel Febres Cordero (1854 - 1910). Feast Day 9th of February.
- Mutien House - (Green). Named after St Brother Mutien-Marie Wiaux (1841 - 1917). Feast Day 30th of January.
- Solomon House - (Light Blue). Named after Blessed Brother Solomon LeClercq (1745 - 1792), Martyr, France. Feast Day 2nd of September.
- Turon House - (Dark Blue). Named after Eight Brothers and one Passionist priest martyred 8 October 1934, in the Brother's School, Turon, Spain. Feast Day 9th of October.
Government funding
On February 9 2008, The Sydney Morning Herald revealed that a Greens analysis of government figures showed that, over four years, Oakhill received $13.2 million more in federal government funding than it is entitled to under the Socioeconomic status (SES) formula.[1]
Notable alumni
- Beau Brady - Australian soap opera star
- Ben Williams - Winner of Big Brother Australia season 1
- Anthony Summers - Professional golfer
- Katherine Bates - Australian Olympic cyclist
- Tim Rogers - Vocalist/guitarist and primary songwriter of Australian alternative rock band You Am I
- Catherine Cox - Australian netball team
- Ben Quilty - Australian painter
- Andrew Ogilvy - Vanderbilt Commodores Center
See also
References
- ^ Anna, Patty (2008-02-09). "How private schools owe taxpayer $2b". The Sydney Morning Herald. Sydney, Australia: Fairfax Media. p. 1.
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help)
Jed is Gay