Whakatane High School (or Whakatāne High School) is a secondary school located in the town of Whakatāne, New Zealand. As of 2022, the school has a roll of 1067 students and aims to offer every student an equal opportunity to succeed with strong values around responsibility, respect and achievement. Whakatane High School has a 100-year history as a co-educational public high school, opening in 1920 as Whakatane District High School, becoming a full high school in 1950.[2] The school held its centennial on 2–3 April 2021, postponed from 2020.[3]

Whakatane High School
Location
Map
Goulstone Road


New Zealand
Coordinates37°57′44″S 176°59′07″E / 37.9621°S 176.9854°E / -37.9621; 176.9854
Information
Funding typeState
MottoKia Whakatane Au I Ahau
Opened1920 (As Whakatane District High School)
Ministry of Education Institution no.144
PrincipalMartyn Knapton
Years offered9–13
GenderCo-educational
Number of students1067
Hours in school day6.5 hours (including form time)
HousesKauri, Rimu, Totara, Matai
Colour(s)  Black
  Gold
SloganChallenging Students to Achieve
Socio-economic decile4K[1]
Websitewww.whakatanehigh.school.nz

History edit

Whakatane High School is over a century old, opening in 1920 as Whakatane District High School, becoming a full high school in 1950. In 1973, as the population of Whakatane neared 10000, Trident High School was opened[4]

Facilities and buildings edit

The school consists of a field, gymnasium (a separate gymnastics building operated by the local Gymnastics Club lies next to it), school & student office, Careers Centre, the Barclay Hall, a library (named in November 2011 after New Zealand author Margaret Mahy, who went to Whakatane High School for a period of time), and numerous buildings split into blocks including: N block (Mainly used for Math, and Computer sciences), T Block (Mainly used for Technology), B Block (Mainly for English, Social Studies and related subjects), A block (Multiple subjects including Languages and Health), C Block (Mainly for art and related subjects) and L Block (Mainly for science and related subjects).

Students edit

As of the 1st of February 2022, the total school roll was 1067 students. 45.64% of the students are European / Pākehā, 48.08% are Māori, 1.12% are Pacific, 3.09% identify as Asian, 0.94 are classified as MELAA, and 1.12% are registered as Other.[5] There were no international students as of the first of February, 2022.

Houses edit

Students at Whakatane High School are split into one of four houses. Each house is named after a tree that is native to New Zealand. Students compete in school-related sporting and cultural events to win points for their house. At the end of the year, one house is named champion for that year. The houses are represented by a colour and are listed below:

Notable alumni edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Decile Change 2014 to 2015 for State & State Integrated Schools". Ministry of Education. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
  2. ^ "Welcome". Whakatane High School. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  3. ^ "Centennial 2021". Whakatane High School. Retrieved 20 November 2020.
  4. ^ Williams, Shirley; Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Whakatāne High School". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  5. ^ Counts, Education. "Ministry of Education - Education Counts". www.educationcounts.govt.nz. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  6. ^ Gustafson, Barry (1986). The First 50 Years : A History of the New Zealand National Party. Auckland: Reed Methuen. p. 341. ISBN 0-474-00177-6.

External links edit