Stromlo High School
| Stromlo High School | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
Badimara St Waramanga, Canberra  | |
| Information | |
| Type | Public High School |
| Grades | 7-10 |
| Enrolment | >600 (7-10) |
| Colour(s) | Black, White and Yellow |
| Mascot | Stromaz |
| Website | http://www.stromlohs.act.edu.au/ |
Stromlo High School is a public high school located in Waramanga, Australian Capital Territory. Stromlo came into being after the merger of Weston creek high school & Holder high school in 1990. in Its postcode is 2611. Stromlo. Both students and teachers abide by the school's four core values; learning, endeavour, respect, pride. Every morning students attend their TEAM classes before heading to their first lessons. TEAM is the Stromlo High equivalent of home room and stands for Together Everyone Achieves More. The school provides subjects in the areas of Mathematics, English, Arts (Includes Drama, Dance, Music and Visual Arts), Physical Education, Technology and IT (Includes Home Economics, Metalwork, Woodwork, Textiles and Information Technology, Food), Humanities (Includes History and Geography), Languages (From a choice of four; Japanese, Indonesian, Korean, Arabic, Irish and French) and Science.
Buildings
Stromlo's main building is three stories high. From above the main building looks similar to a square with the centre cut out. The middle of the main building is the inner courtyard and is mostly used by year 7 students at recess and lunch.The previous gym at Stromlo High has been converted into a hall for use by Drama students, and is still used for school assemblies. PE students are taught in the new Gym which was completed in December 2009. The school also has a Science Block, including a lecture theatre, and a tech block which is used for Visual Art, Home Economics, Woodwork and Metalwork classes. The four main buildings are all linked by covered walkways.
Facilities
The school has a canteen, which is run by student volunteers and the school's P&C, and a cafe which is run by students, as part of their hospitality course. The latter only opens on Thursday at Lunch, but is available to be booked for classes on particular lessons, any day of the week. The main structure includes one boy's toilet block, and one girl's toilet block, located on either side of the canteen. It also has changing rooms, as the students are required to change for P.E. (The changing rooms are located beside the entrance in the gym).The hall has a soundbooth, curtain and lights for Assemblies and performances.
The school has plenty of computer facilities with both Apple and Windows computers, spread across all buildings, except the Gym. It has a Library, with its own computer facility and a wide selection of books. The school also provides workshops for some of the Technology classes, such as Metalwork and Woodwork.
The majority of class rooms are fitted with Smart Boards (Interactive Whiteboards).
Stromaz, the School Mascot
Stromlo High School's mascot, a zebra named Stromaz, was a gift from the graduating Year 10 class of 2008. The animal was chosen to match the school colors, black and white. The students and teachers sometimes dress up in a zebra costume and rally support if a school event, for example an athletics or swimming carnival, or mini timetable evening is on. Since the creation of their mascot, the school has looked at adopting a zebra at the Canberra National Zoo & Aquarium, and naming it 'Stromaz' after their mascot.
Fundraising/Community Involvement
The school has regular fundraisers for most charity events, these include, but are not limited to, a color code free day for Jeans for Genes day, the ability to buy daffodils to send to other people for Daffodil Day and a pet photo competition and cupcake sale for RSPCA week.
The school puts special effort into particular assemblies such as the ANZAC Day, Remembrance Day and Naidoc assemblies, and the Book Week assembly, which includes a costume competition.
During October 2010 the school hosted a fete to commemorate its 20th anniversary, with each TEAM running its own individual stall.
School Houses
The school houses are named after nearby mountains and are represented by the students and teachers at school events such as the swimming carnival, athletics carnival, cross country, year challenges and various other competitions. The school houses and colours are as follows:
Oakey: Red, with a Redback Spider as the mascot.
Cooleman: Green, with a Crocodile as the mascot.
Reef: Blue, with a Shark as the mascot.
Taylor: Yellow, with a Tiger as the mascot.
Mofarah: Pink, with a Unicorn as the mascot.
Awards and achievements
In 2005, the school won Best film- Secondary Schools, out of all competitors in Australia as a part of the CSIRO's Science Film Festival Scenima. It was won by James Hunter with his Short Film, The Hitch Hiker's Guide to Physics. [1]
Appointment of Chancellor Poulos
In 2014, rumors excited the school and community with news that former Chancellor Hal Robson-Kanu was set to retire. Many believed long time Stromlo High School employee, Eugene Stuart would be appointed as Chancellor. However on Monday the 5th of March, 2014 Dr. Michael "Kindler Surprise" Kindler announced Trent Poulos as Chancellor of Stromlo High School. Poulos still currently holds the position, however rumor's suggest Poulos will not renew his $24.67 contract and will retire at the conclusion of 2017.
Controversy
In 2007, Stromlo High School was the subject of criticism after its decision to allow a 16-year-old student permission to take cigarette breaks, after her doctor advised she is clinically addicted to nicotine but this was never proven.[2]
References
- ↑ Archived August 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,22698356-661,00.html
Coordinates: 35°21′18″S 149°03′19″E / 35.3550°S 149.0552°E