Scotch Oakburn College

Formation

Scotch Oakburn College was created in 1979, through the amalgamation of the Scotch College and Oakburn College (formerly the Methodist Ladies' College). It currently operates as a college of the Uniting Church in Australia, formed in 1977 by the union of many congregations of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and Congregational Union of Australia with the Methodist Church of Australasia.

Methodist Ladies' College

The Methodist Ladies' College, Launceston (M.L.C) was established on Elphin Road, just east of the city centre, in 1886. The aim of the college was to allow girls the same access to educational facilities as boys. The largest building on campus had been named "Oakburn" upon its construction 25 years earlier. After its first year, it had 88 students. The first Headmaster was Mr G. Thornton-Lewis.

In 1969, M.L.C was renamed "Oakburn College" as the school council felt that 'Ladies' was outdated. The school became co–educational in 1973.

Scotch College

The Scotch College was established as a non-denominational boys' school, on York Street in the Launceston CBD in 1901. The school went through a number of owners in its first 50 years of existence, eventually being taken over by the Presbyterian Church of Australia in October 1950. In 1917, it moved from its York Street residence to the "Ravenscraig" property on Penquite Road, Newstead, around 10 km east of the city.

By 1972 the College was struggling to survive and it was subsequently decided to introduce co–education.

Church union and amalgamation

After the formation of the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977, representatives from both colleges joined to discuss an amalgamation. The successful amalgamation process was chaired by local physician Dr John Morris, AO, MBE, who was then Chairman of the Oakburn College Council. 1979 was the inaugural year of Scotch Oakburn College with the Oakburn College Council Chairman becoming the Chairman of the amalgamated college's Council, and the Principal of Scotch College becoming the inaugural Principal of the amalgamated College.

The former Oakburn College campus, on Elphin Road, in 1979 became home to the Matriculation classes (years 11 and 12) and the junior school (years K–5) and boarding house. The same year, the Scotch College campus on Penquite Road became the middle school (years 6 to 10). In 1980, the current set-up was adopted with years 11 and 12 joining the middle school classes at the Penquite Campus, leaving the Elphin Campus with Early Learning to Year 5 and the boarding house.

Elphin

The younger of the two campuses, the Elphin Campus is the site of the more historic buildings in the school. The campus features a number of beautiful old oak trees which are located at the front of the campus in a garden area. The Elphin Campus is home to the primary school and boarding house. The first building on the land was "Oakburn", constructed by Eliza Thomson in 1861, a year after she was granted the land. This is the most historic building on any of the campuses. In time, "Oakburn" would become the boarding house. The college was later renamed for this building. An extension to this building, the Mary Fox Jubilee Wing, was constructed in 1935 to celebrate the College's jubilee anniversary. Today it is better known to students as the Mary Fox Hall or just the Mary Fox and it houses school assemblies, chapel services and many other events such as school plays, dances and trivia nights.

The stately "Lemana" and "The Stables" are located on the western end of the campus. They include classroom areas for Years 2 to 5. "The Stables", as the name suggests, was formerly the stable area for horses. The primary classroom area is located on the eastern end of the campus, near the Mary Fox Chapel and Hall. This dual-purpose space is the centre of many school community events. Lemana is a grand old house which today houses modern classrooms on the inside but keeps its historic exterior. Lemana recently celebrated its 100th birthday.

The boarding house is home to over 70 students from years 6-12. Students share dormitories in years 7-10 and in years 11 and 12 get their own rooms, subject to availability. The boarding house also has common room areas with televisions and computer facilities for students. During the summer months boarders have access to the swimming pool during their time off. Each school day morning boarders are bussed to the Penquite campus and in turn busses take them back after classes finish.

An Early Learning complex houses pre-school, kindergarten, and after-hours care facilities. This complex was built on the site of the original Methodist Ladies' College/Oakburn College Principal's residence.

The Elphin campus also is home to four tennis courts, a large oval, two multi-purpose courts, a well-equipped gymnasium and a 25m swimming pool. The students from the Penquite campus are ferried by school bus to the Elphin campus for swimming lessons during their physical education classes.

Penquite

The Penquite Campus is situated on both sides of Penquite Road in Newstead. The main side of the campus or Eastern side features a large, rectangular, grassy field in the centre, with buildings located around the outside of it. The major buildings of the school are named after and in honor of significant people and places in the school's heritage. Over the years these buildings have been upgraded and redeveloped and more buildings have been built to keep up with the schools needs. The campus has a very modern feel today but at the same time its heritage is clearly visible. Directly inside the main entrance to the College lies a large, old oak tree which lies beside the school Chapel, together they give the campus a feeling of its history.

The Penquite Campus has seen a lot of building development since amalgamation:

Valley

In 2005, Scotch Oakburn came to an arrangement with the owner of 'Rostrevor', near Fingal, to lease and use a part the property for outdoor education and environmental study purposes. This facility is known as the Valley Campus.

House system

At the Scotch Oakburn Junior School there are three Houses which students are allocated to in Year 2, they are: Thistle (blue), Willow (maroon) and Oak (yellow). Throughout the year all students compete in a swimming carnival, cross country carnival and athletics carnival gaining points for their house.

The Scotch Oakburn Middle School and Senior School operates under four Houses: Fox (red), Dean (blue), Briggs (green) and Nance (yellow). Throughout the year students compete in a number of competitions to gain points to win the House Shield at the end of the year; these competitions include swimming, cross-country, athletics, debating and singing.

Notable alumni

Alumni of the Scotch Oakburn College (and its predecessors) are known as Old Collegians, and may elect to join the schools alumni association, the Scotch Oakburn Old Collegians Association (SOOCA). Some notable Old Collegians include: