Toowoomba State High School

Toowoomba State High School (TSHS) is a co-educational State High School located in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia.^[1] Established in 1919,^[2] the school consists of two campuses, the Mount Lofty campus, and the Wilsonton campus.^[3]

Campuses

Toowoomba State High School consists of two campuses, Mount Lofty and Wilsonton. As of 2017, the two campuses will be split. This was decided by the Queensland Education Minister, Kate Jones saying that as of Term 1, 2017 the two campuses will become two 'Band 10' schools.

A new $5 million hall was also announced for the Wilsonton Campus.

In August, 2016, a public survey was run in order to determine Wilsonton Campus' new name, uniform and sports logo for 2017. After the survey was run, it was decided that Wilsonton Campus would be renamed 'Wilsonton State High School'. The sports polo shirt would be black, purple and green with a white trim and the sports logo would be a Pegasus.^[4]

Mount Lofty

Images of Mount Lofty Campus, 2006

Mount Lofty campus is located in the suburb of Mt Lofty which is in the north-east corner of Toowoomba. The school relocated there from Margaret Street over a period of two years in 1961 and 1962.^[5] The campus caters for approximately 900 students (2015)^[6] in years seven to twelve, making it the larger of the two campuses.

Wilsonton

The Wilsonton campus is located in the suburb of Wilsonton Heights which is in the north-west corner of Toowoomba. It was opened in 1998 as the fourth secondary campus for Toowoomba's youth.^[7] The campus caters for approximately 840 students (2015)^[8] in years seven to twelve, making it the smaller of the two campuses.

On 9 August 2016, Education Minister Kate Jones announced that the Toowoomba State High School Wilsonton campus will be separated from the TSHS Mt Lofty campus. The new Wilsonton high school will open on the first school day in 2017. The new name for the campus was decided through a community consultation process which has been mentioned previously in this article.^[9]

Vivo

In 2012 T.S.H.S became the first school in Australia to use Vivo to recognise the work and progress of students. Vivo is an online reward scheme for responsible behaviour where teachers give students Vivo points. And then at the end of the semester or school year, the students can redeem their Vivo points to spend on the online Vivo store for rewards and vouchers to school events.^[10]

The Arts

T.S.H.S is well known around the Darling Downs for their excellence in The Arts. The school has bands, choirs and dance troupes. One of the very well known choirs at the school is the "Lofty Glee Choir". The choirs and bands perform at many school and public events.^[11][12][13]

Sports

The school is also keen on excellence in the sporting arena. Each year the school has their Swimming Carnival, Athletics Carnival and Cross Country.^[14][15][16]

Alumni

• John Alexander "Jack" French, V.C. [Local Hero]^[17]
• Glynis Nunn (née Saunders^[18]) [Heptathlete]^[19]
• Greg Ritchie [Australian Cricketer]^[20]
• Self-made entrepreneur partners Steve Marshall and Nicholas Derouet graduated from Toowoomba State High School Mount Lofty Campus in 2011.^[21]
• Thomas Meadowcroft (Freelance Composer and Musician)^[22][23]
• Gary Spence (Qld State President of the Liberal National Party ; Managing Director of Brown Consulting)^[24][25][26]
• Peter Campbell (Qantas pilot ; Royal Australian Air Force flight officer stationed at 34 Squadron, the VIP unit in Canberra ; mechanical engineer)^[27]

See also

• List of schools in Queensland

References

External links

• Toowoomba State High School Website

Coordinates: 27°32′31.44″S 151°57′55.3″E / 27.5420667°S 151.965361°E / -27.5420667; 151.965361