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Christchurch Girls' High School
Māori: *Te Kura o Hine Waiora*
Christchurch Girls' High School; Māori: Te Kura o Hine Waiora
	Christchurch Girls' High School
Address
	10 Matai Street; Riccarton; Christchurch 8011; New Zealand
Coordinates	43°31′30″S 172°36′39″E / 43.5249°S 172.6109°E
Information
Type	State Secondary (Year 9–13) with boarding facilities.
Motto	Sapientia et Veritas "Wisdom and Truth"
Established	1877; 148 years ago
Ministry of Education Institution no.	328
Chairperson	Lesley Vehekite
Principal	Helen Armstrong (from 2023)
Gender	Female
School roll	1,278 (November 2024)
Socio-economic decile	9Q
Website	www.cghs.school.nz

Christchurch Girls' High School (Māori: Te Kura o Hine Waiora) in Christchurch, New Zealand, was established in 1877 and is the second oldest girls-only secondary school in the country, after Otago Girls' High School.^[3]

History

Christchurch Girls' High School was established in 1877, four years before Christchurch Boys' High School. The first headmistress was Mrs. Georgiana Ingle (a daughter of Richard Deodatus Poulett-Harris and half-sister of Lily Poulett-Harris). The second principal Helen Connon (later Helen Macmillan Brown) is better known as she was the first woman in any British university to gain an Honours degree.

The school's original building on Cranmer Square, which was renamed the Cranmer Centre, features prominently in the 1994 film Heavenly Creatures based on the 1954 Parker–Hulme murder case involving two students.

The school featured in national and international news in 1972 when two students led a "walkout"^[4]^[5] from school assembly to protest against the inclusion of religion in school morning assemblies. At the time, schools in New Zealand were supposed to be secular but this was largely ignored and students were usually told to bring a note from their parents if they wanted to opt out of the religious component of school assemblies.

In June 2020, students complained that posters they had put up promoting the Black Lives Matter movement were removed without adequate explanation. Students reported that some staff had said the posters could damage the walls, but that other posters were allowed to remain, while the staff member who took the posters down reportedly said it was because "all lives matter". The incident followed similar complaints at two other New Zealand schools, where students had alleged racist motivations for removing posters. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, commenting on the issues across the three schools, said that the matters were for schools to deal with, but she did not discourage the students' actions, while Massey University sociologist Paul Spoonley said it was censorship and appeared to be "institutional racism – racism that has come from the school itself".^[6]

Present day

Christchurch Girls' High School, known to many as Girls' High or CGHS, provides boarding facilities for 95 students from years 9 to 13 at Acland House, located 20–30 minutes walk away from school.

The school stands by the Avon River, on a site it has occupied since 1986. Previously, the area was occupied by a mill that was first built in 1861 by William Derisley Wood, which became known as the Riccarton Mill.^[7]

The February 2011 Christchurch earthquake had a large impact on the school: it caused extensive damage to the current site;^[8] the old Cranmer Centre site was damaged so badly that it was later demolished – and the school's principal at the time, Prue Taylor, lost her husband Brian in the CTV Building collapse.^[9]

The current principal is Helen Armstrong, who was appointed the role in November 2023 and formally began acting in February 2024.^{[citation needed]}

Notable alumnae

Ursula Bethell (1874–1945), poet and social worker^[10]
Alice Candy (1888–1977), academic and second woman lecturer at Canterbury College^[11]
Gay Davidson (1939–2004), journalist
Eileen Fairbairn (1893–1981), teacher and geographer^[12]
Ivy Fife (1905–1976), painter
Marama Fox, politician and co-leader of the Māori Party^[13]
Ruth France (1913–1968), novelist and poet
Helen Gibson (1868–1938), founder of Rangi Ruru Girls' School^[14]
Mary Gibson (1864–1929), Principal of CGHS for thirty years^[14]
Edith Searle Grossmann (1863–1931), writer and teacher^[15]
Deirdre Hart, geographer and professor at University of Canterbury^[16]
Stella Henderson (1871–1926), first woman Parliamentary reporter for a major New Zealand newspaper^[17]
Elizabeth Herriott (1882–1936), academic and first woman lecturer at Canterbury College^[18]
Margaret Lorimer (1866–1954), mountaineer and Principal of Nelson College for Girls for twenty years^[19]
Elsie Low (1875–1909), temperance campaigner^[20]
Jorja Miller, gold medal winner in the 2024 Paris Olympics
Pauline Parker (born 1938), convicted murderer^[21]
Edna Pengelly (1874–1959), teacher, civilian and military nurse^[22]
Anne Perry (1938–2023; born as Juliet Hulme), English author and convicted murderer^[21]
Christabel Robinson (1898–1988), teacher and community worker.^[23]
Myrtle Simpson (1905–1981), teacher^[24]
Gwen Somerset (1894–1988), adult educator and writer
Lucy Spoors (born 1990), Olympic rower
Phoebe Spoors (born 1993), Olympic rower
Joyce Watson (1918–2015), chemist^[25]
Fay Weldon (1931–2023), English author^[26]

Notable staff

Catherine Alexander (1863–1928), first known woman to publish a paper in the Royal Society Te Apārangi's Transactions^[27]
Kate Edger (1857–1935), first woman university graduate in New Zealand^[28]
Emily Foster (1842–1897)^[20]
Christina Henderson (1861–1953)^[29]
Leila Hurle (1901–1989)^[30]
Stephanie Young (1890–1983)^[31]
Elsie Low (1875–1909)^[32]
Dawn Lamb (born 1940), schoolteacher^[33]

References

^ "New Zealand Schools Directory". New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 1 January 2025.
^ "Decile Change 2014 to 2015 for State & State Integrated Schools". Ministry of Education. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
^ Lovell-Smith, Melanie (8 December 2001). "Cranmer Centre (Former Christchurch Girls High)". New Zealand Historic Places Trust Pouhere Taonga. Archived from the original on 15 June 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
^ Sally Varnham. "'Getting Rid of Troublemakers': The Right to Education and School Safety – Individual Student vs School Community" (PDF). Austlii.edu.au. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
^ [1]^{[dead link‍]}
^ "Third school's students complain over Black Lives Matter poster removal". RNZ. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.
^ "The Riccarton Mill before the business was transferred to Addington". Christchurch City Libraries. Retrieved 20 May 2011.
^ Structural Inspection Report – 24 June 2011^{[permanent dead link‍]}
^ Williams, David; Young, Rachel (10 February 2012). "CTV building's flaws went unnoticed". The Press. Retrieved 26 October 2013.
^ Whiteford, Peter (June 2008). "Ursula Bethell, 1874–1945". Kōtare: New Zealand Notes & Queries. 7 (3): 90. doi:10.26686/knznq.v7i3.707. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
^ Gardner, W. J. "Alice Muriel Flora Candy". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Fairbairn, Eileen". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 10 November 2015.
^ "I wanted to know what they were saying". E-Tangata – A Māori and Pasifika Sunday magazine. 11 April 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ ^a ^b Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Gibson, Helena Fannie and Gibson, Mary Victoria". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Grossmann, Edith Searle". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
^ "Thirteen new professors promoted at UC". University of Canterbury. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Henderson, Stella May". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
^ Thomson, A.D. "Some Pioneer Women Graduates in Botany from Canterbury University College" (PDF). Centre for Studies on New Zealand Science History. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 February 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2016.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Lorimer, Margaret". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
^ ^a ^b Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Foster, Emily Sophia". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ ^a ^b "Pauline Parker". Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 20 December 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
^ Rodgers, Jan (1996). "Pengelly, Edna". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Robinson, Christabel Elizabeth". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Simpson, Myrtle May". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ "Valued NZ researcher". The Press. 9 October 2004.
^ Steward, Ian (9 November 2009). "'Hum of lesbianism' at girls' school". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ "Obituary". The Press. Vol. LXIV, no. 19264. 20 March 1928. p. 2. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
^ "Kate Edger | NZHistory, New Zealand history online". www.nzhistory.net.nz. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Henderson, Christina Kirk". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 10 June 2016.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Hurle, Leila Agnes Sophie". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Young, Stephanie Grace". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Dohrmann, Elsie". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
^ "Lamb, Dawn Ruth (Dame), 1940–". natlib.govt.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2023.

External links

School website
Education Review Office (ERO) reports
Heavenly Creatures Website at Geocities.com

[NZ_school_roll_data-1] "New Zealand Schools Directory". New Zealand Ministry of Education. Retrieved 1 January 2025.

[2] "Decile Change 2014 to 2015 for State & State Integrated Schools". Ministry of Education. Retrieved 12 February 2015.

[Lovell-Smith2001-3] Lovell-Smith, Melanie (8 December 2001). "Cranmer Centre (Former Christchurch Girls High)". New Zealand Historic Places Trust Pouhere Taonga. Archived from the original on 15 June 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2011.

[4] Sally Varnham. "'Getting Rid of Troublemakers': The Right to Education and School Safety – Individual Student vs School Community" (PDF). Austlii.edu.au. Retrieved 4 February 2016.

[5] [1]^{[dead link‍]}

[6] "Third school's students complain over Black Lives Matter poster removal". RNZ. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 10 June 2020.

[7] "The Riccarton Mill before the business was transferred to Addington". Christchurch City Libraries. Retrieved 20 May 2011.

[8] Structural Inspection Report – 24 June 2011^{[permanent dead link‍]}

[9] Williams, David; Young, Rachel (10 February 2012). "CTV building's flaws went unnoticed". The Press. Retrieved 26 October 2013.

[10] Whiteford, Peter (June 2008). "Ursula Bethell, 1874–1945". Kōtare: New Zealand Notes & Queries. 7 (3): 90. doi:10.26686/knznq.v7i3.707. Retrieved 14 December 2020.

[11] Gardner, W. J. "Alice Muriel Flora Candy". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.

[12] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Fairbairn, Eileen". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 10 November 2015.

[13] "I wanted to know what they were saying". E-Tangata – A Māori and Pasifika Sunday magazine. 11 April 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[autogenerated1-14] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Gibson, Helena Fannie and Gibson, Mary Victoria". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 13 November 2015.

[15] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Grossmann, Edith Searle". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 6 February 2016.

[16] "Thirteen new professors promoted at UC". University of Canterbury. 2 December 2021. Retrieved 27 May 2023.

[17] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Henderson, Stella May". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 9 June 2016.

[18] Thomson, A.D. "Some Pioneer Women Graduates in Botany from Canterbury University College" (PDF). Centre for Studies on New Zealand Science History. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 February 2016. Retrieved 8 February 2016.

[19] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Lorimer, Margaret". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 12 February 2016.

[Taonga-20] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Foster, Emily Sophia". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[NZ_History-21] "Pauline Parker". Ministry for Culture and Heritage. 20 December 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2013.

[22] Rodgers, Jan (1996). "Pengelly, Edna". Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 28 October 2023.

[23] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Robinson, Christabel Elizabeth". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[24] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Simpson, Myrtle May". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[25] "Valued NZ researcher". The Press. 9 October 2004.

[26] Steward, Ian (9 November 2009). "'Hum of lesbianism' at girls' school". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[27] "Obituary". The Press. Vol. LXIV, no. 19264. 20 March 1928. p. 2. Retrieved 21 December 2019.

[28] "Kate Edger | NZHistory, New Zealand history online". www.nzhistory.net.nz. Retrieved 12 February 2016.

[29] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Henderson, Christina Kirk". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 10 June 2016.

[30] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Hurle, Leila Agnes Sophie". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[31] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Young, Stephanie Grace". www.teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 15 May 2016.

[32] Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "Dohrmann, Elsie". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 20 January 2021.

[33] "Lamb, Dawn Ruth (Dame), 1940–". natlib.govt.nz. Retrieved 22 September 2023.

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PROFILPELAJAR.COM

Christchurch Girls' High School

History

Present day

Notable alumnae

Notable staff

References

External links

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