, motto_translation = Without the Lord, All is in Vain
, established = 1893
[
, type = ]Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, single sex
In biology, gonochorism is a sexual system where there are only two sexes and each individual organism is either male or female. The term gonochorism is usually applied in animal species, the vast majority of which are gonochoric.
Gonochorism c ...
, day & boarding, Christian school.
, years = ELC–12
, gender = Girls
, denomination = Anglican[
, slogan = Integrity, Compassion, Courage, Self Discipline
, headmistress = Dr Toni Meath
, founder = Emily Hensley & Alice Taylor
, chairman = Mr Mark Burgess
, chaplain = Rev. Kirsty Ross
, city = ]South Yarra
South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the Cities of City of Melbourne, Melbourne and City of Sto ...
, state = Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
, country = Australia
, coordinates =
, enrolment = ~1050 (P–12)[Melbourne Girls Grammar School- School Structure](_blank)
(accessed:26-06-2007)
, colours = Navy blue, grey and white
, affiliation = Girls Sport Victoria
Girls' Sport Victoria (GSV) was established in 2001, and is one of the largest independent school sporting associations in Victoria, Australia, with 24 member schools from around Melbourne.
GSV provides approximately 16,500 girls, from years se ...
, homepage
www.mggs.vic.edu.au
Melbourne Girls Grammar (also known as MGGS, and earlier as MCEGGS[Falk, B. (2012]
Australian Dictionary of Biography: Dorothy Jean Ross.
M.U.P. Retrieved 7 August 2018), is an independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s
* Independ ...
, Anglican, day and boarding school for girls, located in South Yarra
South Yarra is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne central business district, Central Business District, located within the Cities of City of Melbourne, Melbourne and City of Sto ...
, an inner city suburb of Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
, Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
, Australia.
Founded in 1893 by Emily Hensley and Alice Taylor, the school
A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes comp ...
has a non-selective enrolment policy and caters for 1,010 students from Early Learning to Year 12, including 90 boarders.[Melbourne Girls Grammar School Annual Report 2006](_blank)
(accessed:26-06-2007) It was originally known as Merton Hall and then as Melbourne Church of England Girls Grammar School.
Melbourne Girls Grammar is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA), the Junior School Heads Association of Australia
The Independent Primary School Heads of Australia (IPSHA) formerly Junior School Heads Association of Australia (JSHAA), is an incorporated body representing the heads of independent primary schools in Australia.
Officially established in Sept ...
(JSHAA), the Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia (AGSA), the Association of Independent Schools of Victoria (AISV), the Australian Boarding Schools Association (ABSA), and is a founding member of Girls Sport Victoria
Girls' Sport Victoria (GSV) was established in 2001, and is one of the largest independent school sporting associations in Victoria, Australia, with 24 member schools from around Melbourne.
GSV provides approximately 16,500 girls, from years se ...
(GSV).
History
Melbourne Girls Grammar was founded in 1893, as a private school
Private or privates may refer to:
Music
* " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation''
* Private (band), a Denmark-based band
* "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...
known as Merton Hall in Domain Road, South Yarra, by Emily Hensley and Alice Taylor. In 1900, the School moved to its current location in Anderson Street, and in 1903 it became the first girls' school to be owned by the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne
The Anglican Diocese of Melbourne is the metropolitan diocese of the Province of Victoria in the Anglican Church of Australia. The diocese was founded from the Diocese of Australia by letters patent of 25 June 1847[Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...]
, England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, where Newnham College
Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge.
The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millice ...
began.[Melbourne Girls Grammar School- Our Heritage](_blank)
(accessed:26-06-2007)
The tenth headmistress
A head master, head instructor, bureaucrat, headmistress, head, chancellor, principal or school director (sometimes another title is used) is the staff member of a school with the greatest responsibility for the management of the school. In som ...
of Melbourne Girls Grammar, Christine Briggs, announced her retirement in 2007. Catherine Misson was appointed to the position of Principal in 2008 serving until 2019, when Dr Toni Meath, previously principal at Mac.Robertson Girls' High School, was appointed as the twelfth Principal of the Melbourne Girls Grammar.[Melbourne Girls Grammar School: Announcement of new Principal](_blank)
(accessed:10-08-2007)
Headmistresses and Principals
* Emily Hensley 1893–1898 and Alice Taylor 1893–1895
* Mary Morris 1898–1907 and Edith Morris 1898–1912[Jubilee History 1953 MCEGGS]
* Agnes Tunnicliffe 1914–1915
* Kathleen Gilman Jones
Kathleen Annie Gilman Jones (30 September 1880 – 16 September 1942) was a British educationist. She was the headmistress of Melbourne Church of England Girls' Grammar School from 1916 to 1939.
Life
Jones was born in the Staffordshire village of ...
1916–1938[Mitchell, L.M.M. (1983) Australian Dictionary of Biography (Volume 9): Kathleen Annie Gilman Jones.]
M.U.P. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
* Dorothy Ross 1939–1955[
* Edith Mountain 1958–1974][Falk, B. (2000) Australian Dictionary of Biography (Volume 15): Lloyd, Gwendolen Kent (Gwenda) (1899–1965).]
M.U.P. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
*Nina Crone
Nina Crone (1934 – 2007) was an Australian gardening writer, broadcaster, teacher and school principal.
Biography
Crone was the daughter of James and Grace (née Hall) Crone. She attended Presbyterian Ladies' College in East Melbourne and gr ...
1975–1994
* Christine Briggs 1995–2007
* Catherine Misson 2008–2018
* Toni Meath 2019–present
Campuses
The Junior Years (Prep - Year 4) learning environment is located at the Morris Hall campus on Caroline Street, while the Early Learning Centre (3- and 4-Year Old Program), the Middle Years (5-8) and Senior Years (Years 9-12) are all located at the Merton Hall campus, in Anderson Street, South Yarra.
The Merton Hall campus provides a chapel, gymnasium, library, dining hall, specialist Sport, Art, Drama and Science Centres, assembly hall, multipurpose sports fields and a rowing facility located nearby on the banks of the Yarra River. The Boarding House (which caters for approximately 90 students) is also located on the Merton Hall campus.
Wildfell, which was built in 2011 for the Middle Years Program, includes an eLearning studio and learning studios.
Morris Hall, the Junior Years campus, incorporates learning studios, specialist art, music and science centres, an oval and sustainable gardens.
Buildings and facilities
The School opened its Science Futures Centre in 2005, with a ceremony attended by Sir Gustav Nossal
Sir Gustav Victor Joseph Nossal (born 4 June 1931) is an Austrian-born Australian research biologist. He is famous for his contributions to the fields of antibody formation and immunological tolerance.
Early life and education
Nossal's family ...
. The Science Futures Centre comprises eight laboratories, three preparation rooms, three laboratory technicians' offices and withdrawal areas. This was renamed the Christine Briggs Building in 2007 following the retirement of former Principal, Christine Briggs.
The most recent additions to the campus include the Artemis Centre (2017) and the St Hilda’s garden (2021).
The Artemis Centre revolutionised the way that in which the School conceives and delivers its health, fitness and wellbeing programs. Dedicated features of the Centre enable the development of fitness and flexibility in Grammarians from as young as three years of age, while the pool, dance and yoga rooms, and the gym recognise the changing needs of young people by promoting wellbeing and a regimen that encourages lifelong exercise and fitness for all ages.
Learning spaces, designed for independent study and small group collaboration, complete the environment and highlight the characteristics of a contemporary, agile and interconnected society we see in tertiary learning and in leading organisations. This building has most recently been complemented with gardens, at the opposing end of the campus, designed for relaxation, reflection and renewal. They offer a quiet sanctuary for Middle Years students to enjoy, but also serve as a reminder of sustainable practices and an appreciation of nature and the environment.
As the School continues to extend its programs and addresses the challenges of educating girls for the future, it will continue to review, innovate, design and update its buildings and facilities. In 2021, in line with the School’s strategic vision, a Strategic Planning Framework was commissioned for the Anderson and Caroline Street sites from leading world renowned architectural firm ARM.
Academics
Melbourne Girls Grammar offers Victorian Certificate of Education
The Victorian Certificate of Education (often abbreviated VCE) is one credential available to secondary school students who successfully complete year 11 and 12 in the Australian state of Victoria. The VCE is the predominant choice for students ...
(VCE) for its students at Years 11 to 12, with some students beginning their VCE studies in Year 10.
House system
The house system involves many students in a variety of student competitions from sport to art, music, drama, debating and public speaking. The houses run across Morris and Merton Halls and are: T
* Blackwood
* Clarke: red, named after Archbishop Lowther Clarke, who was a major influence in the early development of girls’ education within the Church of England framework
* Hensley: pink, commemorates one of the two first headmistresses of the school - Emily Hensley
* Mungo: green, named after ‘St Mungo’, the house in Domain Road where the school first opened in 1893
* Taylor: blue, commemorates the other of the first two headmistresses of the School - Alice Taylor.
^ In 2021, led by the Student Executive Council (SEC) a referendum was conducted. The result was the decision to adopt a new name for this House in 2022.
Sport
Melbourne Girls Grammar is a member of Girls Sport Victoria
Girls' Sport Victoria (GSV) was established in 2001, and is one of the largest independent school sporting associations in Victoria, Australia, with 24 member schools from around Melbourne.
GSV provides approximately 16,500 girls, from years se ...
(GSV).
Notable alumnae
;Education
* Margaret Loch Kiddle (1933) – Historian
* Sally Walker AM (1972) – Vice Chancellor of Deakin University
Deakin University is a public university in Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1974, the university was named after Alfred Deakin, the second Prime Minister of Australia.
Its main campuses are in Melbourne's Burwood suburb, Geelong Waurn Ponds, ...
;Community and philanthropy
* Gladys Buntine OBE (Spurling 1918) – Girl Guides Commissioner
* Vera Deakin White OBE (1909) – Red Cross worker
;Entertainment, media, and the arts
* Beryl Bryant
Beryl Annear Bryant (1893 – 31 May 1973) was an Australian stage actress and theatrical producer born in America who was active in the 1930s and 1940s. She was responsible for first bringing the plays of Patrick White to the stage. Her career ...
(1909)– Theatre owner and actress
* Caroline Craig
Caroline Craig (born 30 April 1975 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia) is an Australian actress, based in New York City. Caroline completed a BA at Melbourne University before graduating from NIDA ( National Institute of Dramatic Art) in 1 ...
(1992) – Actress
* Caroline Wilson (1977) – AFL journalist and television presenter
* Fay Zwicky
Fay Zwicky (4 July 1933 – 2 July 2017) was an Australian poet, short story writer, critic and academic primarily known for her autobiographical poem ''Kaddish'', which deals with her identity as a Jewish writer.
Life
Born Julia Fay Rosefield ...
(1950) – Poet
* Helen Gifford
Helen Margaret Gifford OAM (born 5 September 1935) is an Australian composer. On Australia Day (26 January) 1996 she was appointed to the Medal of the Order of Australia, "in recognition of service to music as a composer". At the APRA Music A ...
OAM (1952) – Composer
* Jill Garner (1977) – Victorian Government Architect
* Kate Alexa
Kate Alexa Gudinski[Cameron Adams "Kate Alexa speaks to us"< ...](_blank)
(2005) – Singer
* Stephanie McIntosh (2003) – Singer and actress
;Medicine and science
* Lucy Meredith Bryce CBE (1914) – Haematologist
* Mary Ellinor Lucy Archer MBE (1912) – Librarian and scientist
* Margaret Blackwood
Dame Margaret Blackwood (26 April 1909 – 1 June 1986) was an Australian botanist and geneticist. She attended the University of Melbourne and lectured there for the majority of her career, becoming deputy chancellor after her academic retirem ...
(1927) MBE, DBE – Botanist
* Nancy Millis MBE, AC (1939) – Microbiologist
* June Howqua MBBS, MD – Cardiologist
;Olympians and Paralympians
* Amber Parkinson (1993) – Beijing 2008 – Fencing
* Angela Darby (2004)– Beijing 2008 – Modern Pentathlon – Rhodes Scholar 2012
* Danni Roche OAM (1987) - Atlanta 1996 – Hockey
* Isis Holt
Isis Holt (born 3 July 2001) is an Australian Paralympic athlete competing in T35 sprint events. She is affected by the condition cerebral palsy. Holt won gold medals in the 100 m and 200 m at the 2015 and 2017 World Para Athletics Championship ...
(2019) – 2016 Paralympics and 2020 Paralympics – Athletics
* Jacqui Marshall (1974) – Los Angeles 1984 – Rowing
* Joscelin Yeo Wei Ling
Joscelin Yeo Wei Ling (; born 2 May 1979) is a former Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) from Nov 2006 to Apr 2011 and a former competitive swimmer from Singapore. Yeo won 40 gold medals at the Southeast Asian Games. She also represented S ...
(1997) – Barcelona 1992
The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...
, Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...
and Athens 2004 – Swimming
* Kitty Chiller AM (1981) – Sydney 2000
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...
– Modern Pentathlon and later Olympic Chef de Mission in 2016 – first female Australian to hold the role
* Sarah D'Arcy (1993) – Sydney 2000 – Swimming
* Sarah Hammond (1993)– Sydney 2000
The 2000 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXVII Olympiad and also known as Sydney 2000 (Dharug: ''Gadigal 2000''), the Millennium Olympic Games or the Games of the New Millennium, was an international multi-sport event held from 1 ...
– Handball
* Sarah Sauvey (2001)– Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics – Ski Cross
Sports
* Abbie McKay (2018) – AFLW – Carlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club, nicknamed the Blues, is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's top professional competition.
Founded in 1864 in Carlton, an inner suburb of Me ...
* Bonnie Toogood
Bonnie Toogood (born 8 December 1997) is an Australian rules footballer playing for the Essendon Football Club in the AFL Women's competition (AFLW). Toogood was drafted by the Western Bulldogs with their second selection and eleventh overall i ...
(2015) – AFLW – Western Bulldogs
The Western Bulldogs are a professional Australian rules football team that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's premier competition.
Founded in 1877 as the Footscray Football Club, and based in West Footscray in the o ...
* Eliza McNamara (2020) – AFLW – Melbourne Football Club
* Olivia Vesely (2017) – AFLW – St Kilda
* Phoebe McWilliams (2003) – AFLW – Geelong Football Club – Greater Western Sydney
Associated schools
Melbourne Girls Grammar School is the sister school of Melbourne Grammar School
(Pray and Work)
, established = 1849 (on present site since 1858 - the celebrated date of foundation)
, type = Independent, co-educational primary, single-sex boys secondary, day and boarding
, denomination ...
, with which it has a strong association, as the two stream productions, formals, workshops and concerts together. The student bases also enjoy a strong association throughout the secondary years as many MGGS girls attend Grimwade House (Melbourne Grammar School's co-educational primary campus).
See also
*Anglican Church of Australia
The Anglican Church of Australia, formerly known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the Anglican Communion. It is the second largest church in Australia after the ...
References
Further reading
* McCarthy, R. and Theobald, M.R. 1993. ''Melbourne Girls Grammar School Centenary Essays 1893–1993''. Hyland House, Melbourne. .
External links
MGGS website
Girls Sport Victoria
{{Authority control
Girls' schools in Victoria (Australia)
Boarding schools in Victoria (Australia)
Educational institutions established in 1893
Anglican schools in Melbourne
Junior School Heads Association of Australia Member Schools
1893 establishments in Australia
Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia
Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA)