Rose Park Primary School

Rose Park Primary School
Rose Park Primary School from Alexandra Avenue in 2008
Location
Map
Alexandra Ave

Rose Park, South Australia

Australia
Coordinates34°55′54″S 138°37′44″E / 34.9316°S 138.6289°E / -34.9316; 138.6289
Information
TypePublic
MottoLatin: Vincit Qui Se Vincit
He conquers who conquers himself
Established1893
PrincipalDi Burrell[1]
EnrolmentApproximately 580[2]
CampusSuburban
Colour(s)    Blue and gold
Websitewww.roseparkps.sa.edu.au

Rose Park Primary School is a coeducational R–6 school (5- to 12-year-olds) located in the Adelaide inner suburb of Rose Park. The school is located at 54 Alexandra Avenue and occupies the land between Alexandra and Grant Avenues. It is one of South Australia's earliest established Primary Schools[citation needed] and currently has an enrolment of approximately 580 students[2] who come from different cultural backgrounds.[citation needed]

History

The school is named after the Right Hon. Sir John Rose, who was the chairman of the South Australia Company at the time it subdivided the district. The land was purchased for £800 in 1892, and the original building was planned to accommodate 500 children. The original school building comprised seven classrooms with verandahs and two shelter sheds at the back.[3][failed verification][failed verification]

The school was opened on 30 January 1893 with C A Wittber Headmaster, 4 assistants and 294 pupils. By the end of the year, 591 children had enrolled. The eastern wing was built in 1899, to provide a total of 9 classrooms. The verandahs at the back were removed and a large classroom was added on each of the eastern and western corners.[3] The Grant Avenue building was completed in 1923, and extensive alterations were carried out during 1977 to make it suitable for contemporary teaching methods.[4]

The old St. Theodore's Church was purchased in 1924 for £925 and was opened as a woodwork centre in 1925. The building has served a number of roles such as a drama area, creative dance area and even as a lunch-time recreational area supervised by a roster of parents.[citation needed]

After the opening of Linden Park Primary School, student numbers gradually declined, levelling off at around 400. Developments in the buildings since the 1950s have related to curriculum changes, rather than to pressures of numbers. Thus, the Grant Avenue building was remodelled as an Open Unit, in 1977 and subsequently re-divided in 1981. A strong library/resource centre developed, with particular space requirements. Activity rooms were set aside from ordinary classrooms for multi-purpose usage, assemblies, music, dance and drama and wet-weather activities.[3][failed verification]

Since 1970 the school grounds have been expanded by the purchase of two properties adjoining the school on the east, three properties on Grant Avenue and the take-away shop on the corner of Alexandra Avenue and Victoria Terrace, previously known as Gurney Road. The closure of Victoria Terrace to through traffic in 1976 and the development of the park helped to reduce crowding.[citation needed][dubious – discuss] The 1989 re-routing of the service lane enabled the final linking up of the original school with the church building and the shop block. Adjoining houses east of the school on Grant Avenue were demolished and the two sites developed to form the "block" currently used for after-school sport.[3][failed verification]

1993 was the Centenary Year of the school and celebrations were held throughout the year.[4][dead link‍]

Headmaster / principal

Name Years Notes
C.A. Wittber 1893–1906
R. Llewellyn 1907–1910
E.W. Gallagher 1911
F.L. Gratton 1912 Locum for Gallagher
A.T. Drake 1913–1915
C.E. Hamence 1916–1918
F.N. Leak 1919
T.S. Bosch 1920
F.N. Leak 1921–1930
R.J. Morgan 1931–1936
C.R. Butterworth 1937
W.S. Hutley 1938–1941
W.R. G. Sharp 1942–1950
A.C. Cattle 1951–1953
A.R. Francis 1954–1956
E.C.W. Priest 1957–1960
E. Daenke 1961–1963
R.D. Brown 1964
G.J. Walker 1965–1967
M.A. Byass 1968–1970
W.R. Tresize 1971–1977
D.K. Tassell 1978–1983
T. Boreham 1984–1990
G.J. Percy 1991 Acting 3 months
J.R. Turner 1991 – Jan 2000
? 2000
K. Spencer 2001 – Aug 2002
D. Folber Oct 2002 – April 2004 Acting
T. McLeod April 2004 – Sept 2006
K. Cotter October 2006 – July 2007 Acting
J. Chinnery July 2007 – October 2007 Acting
Brett Darcy 2008 – June 2016
Rebecca Patterson June–December 2016 Acting
Di Burrell 2017 [1]
Rebecca Weber (née Patterson) 2019

Present day

Rose Park Primary School has an enrolment of approximately 580 students in 24 classes from Reception to Year 7. About 15% are School Card Holders, who are exempt from some school and associated fees. Classes are arranged in composite year groupings.[5]

Due to enrolment restrictions,[citation needed] the school's catchment area is zoned. The zoned area includes part of the City of Burnside bounded by Fullarton Road, Greenhill Road, Portrush Road and Kensington Road, and part of the City of Norwood, Payneham & St Peters bounded by George Street, William Road, Angas Street and Dequetteville Terrace. This area falls in District 4 – East. The school is also referred to as 0169.[6]

Old Scholars Association

An Old Scholars' Association meets periodically and holds a reunion each year in October. Old Scholars maintain an archival collection; the archives provide a history of the school since its inception.[citation needed]

Notable students

Name Years attended Notes
Frank Fenner 1920–1926 Professor of Microbiology at the John Curtin School of Medical Research between 1949 and 1967. Awarded the Copley Medal in 1995. Awarded the Prime Minister's Award for Science in 2002.[7]
John Dowie 1921–1924 Australian painter, sculptor and writer. Member of the Order of Australia in 1981.[8]
Renfrey Potts 1930–1936 Rhodes Scholar. Developed the Potts model. Professor, Chair and lecturer of applied mathematics at the University of Adelaide 1959–1990. Officer of the Order of Australia 1991. ANZIAM Medal 1995.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b "Home". roseparkps.sa.edu.au.
  2. ^ a b Department of Education & Children Services (2007). Rose Park Primary School. Retrieved online 3 November 2007.
  3. ^ a b c d Davies, Kerrie et al. (1993). Rose Park Primary School 1893 – 1993. Lutheran Publishing House, Adelaide SA. ISBN 0-646-11698-3. OCLC: 38327855
  4. ^ a b Rose Park Primary School Archived 30 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine (2006). History. Retrieved online 2 November 2007.
  5. ^ Council of Parents and Teachers Association (2004). Composites - Stages not Ages. Retrieved online 19 March 2008. Archived 8 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ Department of Education & Children Services (2007). Primary School Zoning. Retrieved online 3 November 2007.
  7. ^ Fenner, Frank. (2006). Nature, Nurture and Chance: The Lives of Frank and Charles Fenner. Australian National University E Press. ISBN 1-920942-62-9 OCLC: 123391419
  8. ^ Lock-Weir, Tracey (2001). John Dowie: a life in the round. Wakefield Press, South Australia. ISBN 1-86254-544-8 OCLC 4812930
    John Stuart Dowie (1981). Australian Government. Award: Member of the Order of Australia. Retrieved 1 June 2008.
  9. ^ Taylor, Peter (2005). Renfrey Burnard Potts. Archived 17 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine Australian Mathematics Trust. Retrieved online 2008-03-18