Renmark High School (GA1022)

Renmark High School is a secondary school in Renmark, near the River Murray and the South Australia-Victoria border, approximately 260km north-east of Adelaide.

In 1918, the Minister of Education (Hon. W. Harvey) visited Renmark at the request of local parliamentarians R.A. O'Connor and W. Angus to advise on the establishment of a high school and technical school at Renmark. This followed the Renmark School Committee frequently requesting either a high school in the area or a teacher able to conduct secondary classes at the primary school (1). A high school was not established at this time, but a Higher Primary class was formed 1922 (2).

Following the establishment of the Higher Primary class, a High School Committee was established with representatives from Renmark and Paringa to look at establishing a high school in Renmark. Mr. S.J. [Sidney John] Dridan was elected as chairman. At the time, Renmark Higher Primary School needed the higher primary class to have an average attendance of 40 children for the Education Department to consider establishing a separate high school (3).

In 1923, S.J. Dridan persuaded the Renmark hotel committee to grant ten scholarships, worth 10 pounds each, to the best students who sat their qualifying examinations at Renmark to continue with higher education in the Higher Primary class. (4). The ten qualifying scholarships were designed to encourage children to attend the Higher Primary class for twelve months, thus increasing the average attendance to at least forty - the minimum number required for a separate high school to be established (5). By 1924, the school committee was urging parents who had children eligible for secondary education to not send them out of the district and, instead, send them to the Higher Primary School to increase student numbers (6).

Renmark High School took possession of a rented hall at the Renmark Showgrounds and opened to students on 3 February 1925. The hall was altered for use as a school, including the installation of windows and a new verandah (7). The first head teacher was Mr. L.P. Johncock, assisted by Miss Dorothy Porter (8).

The school was officially opened on 11 February 1925, by which time there were fifty-three students enrolled. At the opening ceremony, Mr. J.S. Turnbull, speaking on behalf of the Renmark Town District Council, said 'that he was pleased to see such a number of good looking children attending the high school. The girls especially attracted his attention' (9).

When it opened, the school offered two courses of study: a general course and a commercial course. The general course was designed for students entering professional careers or clerical work, whereas the commercial course covered short-hand, typing and book-keeping for accountancy or other commercial office work. Forty-eight of the first fifty-three students were studying the commercial course (10).

In April 1925, the Superintendent of Secondary Education approved the formation of a school council. It consisted of 12 members: six nominated by parents of children attending the school, three nominated by the House of Assembly members for the district, one from the Renmark Irrigation Trust, one from the Renmark Town Council and one from the Paringa District Council (11).

In December 1926, 680 pounds were set aside by the government to construct a teacher's residence and additions and 7,500 pounds for a high school building (12).
A tender for constructing the high school was accepted in April 1928. It was to be built on Ral Ral Avenue on 15 acres of land provided by the Renmark Town District Council. The design included a central portion containing a laboratory and two wings - one wing occupied by a classroom that could be divided into two, and the other wing containing a domestic arts centre (13).

The Minister of Education, the Hon. M. McIntosh, laid the foundation stone on 6 July 1928, after he had officially opened the Renmark North School (14). Students began studying at the school on 4 March 1929 (15). The school was officially opened by the Minister of Education in May 1929. It was one of four high schools in South Australia that offered an agricultural course (16).

The school moved to Thurk Street, Renmark, near Renmark Primary School in 1980. The new school building was officially opened on 3 April 1980 (17).

As at 2019, the school had an enrolment of 502 students from Year 8 to Year 12 (18).

Sources:
(1) 'Renmark High School', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 10 May 1918, p. 5
(2) 'Renmark State School', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 31 August 1923, p. 11
(3) 'High School for Renmark', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 24 November 1922, p. 6
(4) 'Renmark State School'
(5) 'Renmark Higher Primary School', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 2 November 1923, p. 11
(6) 'High School Matters: Renmark Committee's Aspirations', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 4 January 1924, p. 22
(7) 'The Renmark High School', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 30 January 1925, p. 2
(8) 'Renmark High School', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 9 January 1925, p. 1
(9) 'Renmark High School: Successful Opening Gathering', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 13 February 1925, p. 4
(10) Ibid.
(11) 'Renmark High School Council', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 24 April 1925, p. 6
(12) 'Money for Education', News, 1 December 1926, p. 4
(13) 'Renmark High School: Tender for Building Accepted', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 13 April 1928
(14) 'Before the Public', News, 21 June 1928, p. 1
(15) 'Renmark High School', Murray Pioneer and Australian River Record, 8 March 1929, p. 10
(16) 'Renmark High School: Opened by Minister Today', News, 31 May 1929, p. 4
(17) 'School Reunion', Victor Harbour Times, 4 July 1979, p. 4
(18) Renmark High School Annual Report 2019, , accessed 23 November 2020