Tawa College

Infobox NZ school
name = Tawa College
motto = Do Justly
type = Coeducational secondary (Year 9-13)
established = 1961
address = Duncan St,
Tawa,
Wellington,
New Zealand
principal = Murray Lucas
roll = 1322
decile = 9 [ [http://www.minedu.govt.nz/web/downloadable/dl7698_v1/decile-changes-2007-2008-web-state-s-integ.xls Decile change 2007 to 2008 for state & state integrated schools] ]
MOE = 257
homepage = [http://www.tawacol.school.nz www.tawacol.school.nz]

Tawa College is a coeducational school (year 9 - year 13) situated in Tawa, New Zealand, and its principal is Murray Lucas. The Tawa College magazine is called "Tawahi" (pronounced tawa - he). There are currently around 80 teaching staff and 20 support staff. Tawa College was officially opened in July 1961 and has always maintained a close involvement with the life of the local community, particularly through music and sport.

Principals

Tawa College has had five principals since its establishment in 1961:
*1961-1966 Alan Mackie
*1966-1981 Eric Flaws
*1981-1989 Brian Walker
*1989-2002 Bruce Murray
*2002-present Murray Lucas

Uniform

The traditional colours of Tawa College are Blue, red and Yellow. As seen in the school uniform, sports strips and crest. The uniform skirt for the girls is actually a kilt made of Duncan tartan. The college has special permission from the Scottish clan, to whom the tartan belongs, to use the tartan in its uniform.

Tawa Recreation Centre

The Tawa Recreation Centre is a joint venture between Tawa College and the Wellington City Council. The facility contains two gymnasiums, two sets of male and female changing rooms, a large foyer area, P.E equipment sheds, a Wellington City Council Office and reception area, P.E department offices, and a classroom.

Extracurricular Activities

Tawa College provides a wide range of extracurricular actives, especially musical ones.Notable groups include:
*The Dawn chorus- A 200 strong all comers choir, nationally known for their high standard of performance.
*Acafellas- An auditioned male barbershop chorus. Have been given the pleasure of competing at a national level every year since their first entrance into the National Barbershop Competition.
*Maiden Tawa- An auditioned girls chorus, with about 70 members. There were national barbershop champions for 6 consecutive years, up until the 2008 National Barbershop competition, in which they were awarded fourth overall. Despite this, they, and the male barbershop choir, are not disheartened, as their main reason for entering is to have fun and enjoy the experience of competing.
*Amplify- Tawa colleges very own, student run, church, this attracts about 90 people every week.
*Astronomy Club- Meets every Thursday and every second Wednesday. The school has its own telescope.
*Jazz Band- This noteable band, currently led by Ze'ev Dikvert, has a number of members who enjoy their weekly practices, including Andrew Holmes-Galloway, Ashok Fernandez and Chris Wratt.Tawa College also has many successful sporting groups, debating groups, and other extracurricular activities.

Success

The school is well known for its achievements in the arts, notably singing, including several national and international barbershop quartet and chorus champions, such as the Musical Island Boys (2004).They also have a a big reputation due to their very successful wrestling team, TCW. They are two times National champions.

Notable Alumni

Notable alumni include:
*Murray Mexted, All Blacks rugby union commentator
*Lee Tamahori, film director
*Taito Phillip Field, independent MP
*Jerry Collins, All Blacks
*Kerry Prendergast, Mayor of Wellington
*Mark Gillespie (cricketer), Black Cap

Notes

External links

* [http://www.tawacol.school.nz Tawa College Website]