Verdon College
Encyclopedia
Verdon College is a co-educational Roman Catholic high school
in Invercargill
, New Zealand
, teaching students from year 7 to 13 (ages 11–18). The college is named after Bishop Michael Verdon
(1838–1918) who was the second Catholic Bishop of Dunedin
(1896–1918).
secondary school was created after an amalgamation in 1981 of Saint Catherine's College (single-sex high school for girls operated by the Dominican Sisters
) and Marist College (single-sex high school for boys operated by the Marist Brothers
). It was built on former farmland at the eastern boundary of Invercargill and named after Bishop Verdon. Since the schools growth parts of the school are located on what used to be Cargill High and Te Wharekura O Arowhenua.
Invercargill school - Te Wharekura O Arowhenua at the same time the school also purchased a gymnasium.
The College offers a broad range of educational opportunities for student achievement in the areas of sport and culture as well as a diverse academic curriculum. The College's National Certificate of Educational Achievement
results are above average in level 1 and 2.
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, teaching students from year 7 to 13 (ages 11–18). The college is named after Bishop Michael Verdon
Michael Verdon
Michael Verdon was the 2nd Catholic Bishop of Dunedin .-Early life:Verdon was born in Liverpool, England on 19 December 1838 His father came from County Louth, Ireland and his mother came from County Kildare. He was a nephew of Cardinal Cullen, Archbishop of Dublin, and a first cousin of Cardinal...
(1838–1918) who was the second Catholic Bishop of Dunedin
Roman Catholic Diocese of Dunedin
The Latin Rite Catholic Diocese of Dunedin is a suffragan diocese of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington. It was formed on 26 November 1869 from a portion of the territory in the Diocese of Wellington, before it was elevated to an archdiocese....
(1896–1918).
History
Verdon College is a co-educational CatholicCatholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
secondary school was created after an amalgamation in 1981 of Saint Catherine's College (single-sex high school for girls operated by the Dominican Sisters
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
) and Marist College (single-sex high school for boys operated by the Marist Brothers
Marist Brothers
The Marist Brothers, or Little Brothers of Mary, are a Catholic religious order of brothers and affiliated lay people. The order was founded in France, at La Valla-en-Gier near Lyon in 1817 by Saint Marcellin Champagnat, a young French priest of the Society of Mary...
). It was built on former farmland at the eastern boundary of Invercargill and named after Bishop Verdon. Since the schools growth parts of the school are located on what used to be Cargill High and Te Wharekura O Arowhenua.
Bishop Verdon Block
The school opened up a new multi-million dollar block in 2008 called the Bishop Verdon Block, mainly for the year seven and eight students. It also contains two computer suites, a library, a science laboratory and a study atrium. It was built on the site of the former Cargill High and part of a Māori languageMaori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
Invercargill school - Te Wharekura O Arowhenua at the same time the school also purchased a gymnasium.
Roll
When the Education Review Office last assessed the school in 2007 they had a roll of 618 students with 51% male and 49% female. The school's ethnic composition contained NZ European/Pākehā 77%, Māori 16%, Pacific Islanders 3%, Other European 2% and Other 2%.The College offers a broad range of educational opportunities for student achievement in the areas of sport and culture as well as a diverse academic curriculum. The College's National Certificate of Educational Achievement
National Certificate of Educational Achievement
The National Certificate of Educational Achievement is, since 2004, the official secondary school qualification in New Zealand.It has three levels, corresponding to the levels within the National Qualifications Framework, and these are generally studied in each of the three final years of...
results are above average in level 1 and 2.
Cultural activities
- Bishop's Shield - Interschool debating, scripture reading, public speaking and drama. They compete against the other Catholic schools in the Dunedin Diocese: St. Kevin'sSt. Kevin's College, OamaruSt Kevin's College in Oamaru, New Zealand was founded in 1927. It is a Catholic school run by the Christian Brothers and Dominican Sisters for boaders and day students...
, KavanaghKavanagh CollegeKavanagh College is a Catholic Secondary school in Dunedin, New Zealand. The school in its present form dates from 1989 but its origins as a secondary school go back to 1871....
and St. Peters. - House drama - Interhouse drama competitions are held in three categories: year 7 and 8, 9 and 10, and senior.
- Interhouse haka competitions - Each house performs the school haka for house points.
- Music festival - Students compete in various categories including: senior and junior vocalist, senior and junior instrumental and interhouse choir.
- Production - Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor DreamcoatJoseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical with lyrics by Tim Rice. The story is based on the "coat of many colors" story of Joseph from the Hebrew Bible's Book of Genesis. This was the first Lloyd Webber and Rice musical to be performed publicly...
was performed in 2011.
Sport
- House Athletics Day - Interhouse athletics competition where houses compete for overall points.
- Highlanders First XV Competition - Verdon are one of four SouthlandSouthland RegionSouthland is New Zealand's southernmost region and is also a district within that region. It consists mainly of the southwestern portion of the South Island and Stewart Island / Rakiura...
schools that compete in the Highlanders First XV competition (the other three are Southland BoysSouthland Boys' High SchoolSouthland Boys' High School is an all-boys school in Invercargill, New Zealand, and has been the only one in the city since Marist Brothers was merged with St Catherines to form Verdon College in 1982.-History:...
, Gore HighGore High SchoolGore High School is one of two secondary schools in Gore, New Zealand. It is located on Coutts Road in the west of Gore.-Famous ex-pupils:*Aaron Barclay - 2010 Youth Olympics Gold Medalist*Jimmy Cowan - All Black*Justin Marshall - former All Black...
and Central Southland College). Since the formation of the competition the College have recorded consecutive upset victories over Waitaki BoysWaitaki Boys' High SchoolWaitaki Boys' High School is a secondary school for boys located in the northern part of the town of Oamaru, Otago, New Zealand, with day and boarding facilities, and was founded in 1883. It currently has a school roll of just over 530....
and in the first year of the competition beat St. KevinsSt. Kevin's College, OamaruSt Kevin's College in Oamaru, New Zealand was founded in 1927. It is a Catholic school run by the Christian Brothers and Dominican Sisters for boaders and day students...
for the first time since the school was formed. - New Zealand Secondary Schools Netball - The Verdon Senior A Netball team are regular participants at the New Zealand Secondary Schools Netball competition and have won the nationwide tournament twice.
- Patronal Day Sports - Interhouse sport competitions where students compete in various sports for house points.
- Sports Interchanges - Verdon hold two senior sport interchanges with St. KevinsSt. Kevin's College, OamaruSt Kevin's College in Oamaru, New Zealand was founded in 1927. It is a Catholic school run by the Christian Brothers and Dominican Sisters for boaders and day students...
and KavanaghKavanagh CollegeKavanagh College is a Catholic Secondary school in Dunedin, New Zealand. The school in its present form dates from 1989 but its origins as a secondary school go back to 1871....
. They also hold a junior interchange with St. Peters.
Notable staff
- Robyn BroughtonRobyn BroughtonRobyn Broughton MNZM is a New Zealand netball coach. Broughton coached the Southern Sting from 1998–2007 during the National Bank Cup, winning seven titles in ten years. She was also an assistant coach for the New Zealand national netball team from 2000–02, and is currently a national selector...
- Current Verdon Senior A Netball coach and Physical education teacher, former Southern StingSouthern StingThe Southern Sting were a netball team based in Invercargill, New Zealand that competed in The National Bank Cup competition, formerly known as the Coca Cola Cup....
coach. As well as Southern SteelSouthern SteelThe Southern Steel are a New Zealand netball team based in Invercargill that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The franchise was formed as an amalgamation of two teams from the National Bank Cup, the Dunedin-based Otago Rebels and the Invercargill-based Southern Sting...
and FastNet Ferns coach. - Joe TuineauJoe TuineauJoe Tuineau is a rugby union footballer and a former American football player. He plays as a lock for Southland in the ITM Cup and for the Highlanders in the Super Rugby competition. Although he was born in Fiji and raised in New Zealand, he represents Tonga internationally...
- Current Highlanders and Stags player. Sports coordinator at Verdon in 2009.
Notable students
- Dion BatesDion BatesDion Bates is a New Zealand rugby union player who plays as a flanker for the Southland Stags in the Air New Zealand Cup.- External links :*...
- Current Southland Stags rugby union player. - Wendy Frew - Current Southern SteelSouthern SteelThe Southern Steel are a New Zealand netball team based in Invercargill that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The franchise was formed as an amalgamation of two teams from the National Bank Cup, the Dunedin-based Otago Rebels and the Invercargill-based Southern Sting...
and Silver Ferns netball player. - Jessica Hamill - New ZealandNew ZealandNew Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
Paralympics competitor and Commonwealth GamesCommonwealth GamesThe Commonwealth Games is an international, multi-sport event involving athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 and takes place every four years....
shot putShot putThe shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" a heavy metal ball—the shot—as far as possible. It is common to use the term "shot put" to refer to both the shot itself and to the putting action....
silver medalist. - Te Huinga Reo Selby-RickitTe Huinga Reo Selby-RickitTe Huinga Reo Selby-Rickit is a New Zealand netball player in the ANZ Championship, playing for the Southern Steel. In 2010, she was named along with Hayley Saunders from the Steel to play in the World FastNet Series. The FastNet Ferns were coached by Robyn Broughton, who is also in charge of the...
- Current Southern SteelSouthern SteelThe Southern Steel are a New Zealand netball team based in Invercargill that compete in the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship. The franchise was formed as an amalgamation of two teams from the National Bank Cup, the Dunedin-based Otago Rebels and the Invercargill-based Southern Sting...
and FastNet Ferns netball player. - Tom Scully - Professional cyclist.
- Iona Sipa - Former Southland Stags and New Zealand Secondary Schools rugby union player.
- Douglas Sekone-Fraser - 2009 New Zealand Weightlifting Champion, Silver and Bronze in 2011 for the New Zealand Weightlifting Championships and 16th in the Junior World Championships.
Sources
- Pat Gallager, The Marist Brothers in New Zealand Fiji & Samoa 1876-1976, New Zealand Marist Brothers' Trust Board, Tuakau, 1976.