, motto_translation = Always towards better things , established = 1901 , type = Independent,

day A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two so ...

and

boarding Boarding may refer to: *Boarding, used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals as in a: ** Boarding house **Boarding school *Boarding (horses) (also known as a livery yard, livery stable, or boarding stable), is a stable where ho ...

, denomination =

Uniting Church The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Union ...

, slogan = Ravenswood widens her world , principal = Anne Johnstone , founder = Mabel Fidler , chair = Gail Kelly , streetaddress = 10 Henry Street , city =

Gordon Gordon may refer to: People * Gordon (given name), a masculine given name, including list of persons and fictional characters * Gordon (surname), the surname * Gordon (slave), escaped to a Union Army camp during the U.S. Civil War * Clan Gordon, ...

, state =

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, postcode = 2072 , country = Australia , coordinates = , enrolment = ~1100 (Prep – Year 12) , num_employ = ~209 , gender=

Girls A girl is a young female human, usually a child or an adolescent. When a girl becomes an adult, she is accurately described as a ''woman''. However, the term ''girl'' is also used for other meanings, including ''young woman'',Dictionary ...

, colours = Navy blue, gold and red , website = Ravenswood School for Girls (often referred to as Ravenswood or Ravo) is an independent,

and boarding school for Prep - Year 12 girls, situated in

, an

Upper North Shore The North Shore is a region within Northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, generally referring to suburbs located on the northern side of Sydney Harbour up to Wahroonga, and suburbs between Middle Harbour and the Lane Cove ...

suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1901 by Mabel Fidler (1871–1960), Ravenswood currently caters for approximately 1100 students from

Prep PowerPC Reference Platform (PReP) was a standard system architecture for PowerPC-based computer systems (as well as a reference implementation) developed at the same time as the PowerPC processor architecture. Published by IBM in 1994, it allo ...

to Year 12, including 20 boarders from Years 10 to 12. The school has been an IB World School since June 2004, and is authorised to offer the

IB Diploma Programme The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into ...

. Ravenswood is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA), the

Independent Primary School Heads 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 Septem ...

(IPSHA), the Australian Boarding Schools' Association, the Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia, and is a member of the

Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools The Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools (AHIGS), is an association for independent girls' schools, based in North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1916 as The Association of Head Mistresses of New South Wales, the ...

(AHIGS).

History

Ravenswood was established with eight students on 28 January 1901 by the first Headmistress, Mabel Fidler, as a

non-sectarian Nonsectarian institutions are secular institutions or other organizations not affiliated with or restricted to a particular religious group. Academic sphere Examples of US universities that identify themselves as being nonsectarian include Adelp ...

private day school for girls, with preparatory classes for boys. The first classes took place in a schoolroom erected on the block adjacent to Fidler's home, "Ravenswood", in Henry Street, Gordon. The school remains on this site. Fidler retired from Ravenswood in 1925, a year after the school was purchased by the Methodist Ladies' College, Burwood, thus becoming a school of the

Methodist Church Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

. Subsequently, the school name was changed to Ravenswood Methodist Ladies' College. At this time, Ravenswood was the largest non-residential, private secondary school in Sydney, with an enrolment of 180, and was highly regarded for the quality of its teaching and its achievements in sport. Ravenswood became a day and boarding school in 1935, with the enrolment of the first two boarders. The 1960s saw the introduction of the school anthem, ''Kindle the Flame'' and a fourth school House, all houses being named by the students after Royal Houses of Britain: Stuart, Tudor,

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

and

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. In 1977, as the Methodist,

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...

and

Congregational church Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

es came together to form the Uniting Church, the school name changed to the current Ravenswood School for Girls. The royal blue and gold uniform was also introduced at this time. In 2015, the Head Girl of the school used her end-of-term speech to accuse the school of peddling an "unrealistic image of perfection", and providing some students with more opportunities than others because "schools are being run more and more like businesses, where everything becomes financially motivated, where more value is placed on those who provide good publicity or financial benefits." She also alleged that the school had attempted to censor her speech by requiring prior copies. Her parents later sued the

, which runs the school, because of disciplinary action taken against their younger daughter.

Campus

Ravenswood is located on its original site, a single campus in suburban Gordon. The school has progressively expanded since 1901, with the acquisition of new properties and the upgrading of facilities. The school grounds feature quadrangles and

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...

s, a multi-purpose complex with heated swimming pool, gymnasium, a "Strength and Conditioning centre" and an Athletics Field. The Ravenswood Centenary Centre includes a Performing Arts theatre, music centre and exhibition areas. Junior School students are catered for within the Junior School centre with a Resource Centre,

playground A playground, playpark, or play area is a place designed to provide an environment for children that facilitates play, typically outdoors. While a playground is usually designed for children, some are designed for other age groups, or people ...

and play equipment area, adventure playground and Assembly Hall.

Curriculum

In Years 11 and 12, students may choose to take either the Higher School Certificate (HSC) course or the

International Baccalaureate Diploma The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) is a two-year educational programme primarily aimed at 16-to-19-year-olds in 140 countries around the world. The programme provides an internationally accepted qualification for entry into ...

Course (IB).

Co-curriculum

Debating

Ravenswood has a tradition of

debating Debate is a process that involves formal discourse on a particular topic, often including a Discussion moderator, moderator and audience. In a debate, arguments are put forward for often opposing viewpoints. Debates have historically occurred ...

, and students are offered opportunities to participate at competitive or social levels. Ravenswood competes in three inter-school debating competitions: the Independent Schools Debating Association (ISDA), the Archdale Debating Competition and the Independent Primary School Heads of Australia (IPSHA). Girls may also participate in House debating.

Sport

Primary School students may partake in competitive sport through the Ravenswood's membership of the Independent Primary Schools Association of Australia (IPSHA). These competitions are usually held on Saturday mornings and include sports such as: Softball, Tennis, Netball, Cricket, Hockey, and Soccer. Secondary School students compete against 28 other similar type schools in the

Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association The Independent Girls' Schools Sporting Association (formerly known as IGSSA now trading as IGSA Sport), was established in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, in 1922 with five founding members, all of them Independent school, independent girls' ...

(IGSSA) competition. These competitions occur on Saturday mornings or in the form of carnivals and include sports such as: Softball, Swimming, Diving, Cricket, Tennis, Hockey, Soccer and Gymnastics. Students who perform well at IPSHA or IGSSA level may be invited to compete in NSW Combined Independent Schools' (CIS) competitions.

Community

It has been nominated for an "Employer of Choice for Women" classification by the

Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency The Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) is an Australian government agency. It is a statutory authority located within the portfolio of the Australian Commonwealth Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indi ...

(EOWA).

Ravenswood Australian Women’s Art Prize

The Ravenswood Australian Women’s Art Prize is an initiative led by Ravenswood School for Girls, which aims to address the paucity of art prizes available for female artists in Australia. It has been run since 2017. It is an acquisitive prize, offering the following prizes: * Professional Artist Prize - $35,000 * Emerging Artist Prize - $5,000 * Indigenous Emerging Artist Prize - $5,000 * People’s Choice Award - $2,000 (non-acquisitive)

Winners

;Professional artist prize *2018: Angela Tiatia *2019:

Joanna Braithwaite Joanna Braithwaite (born 1962) is a New Zealand painter. Braithwaite has been interested in exploring exchanges between people and animals since studying at the School of Fine Arts, in Canterbury in the mid-1980s. She has said her work has always ...

*2022:

Lara Merrett Lara Merrett (born 1971) is an Australian visual artist who lives and works in Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, ...

Principals

Notable alumnae

;Media, entertainment and the arts *

Julia Baird Julia Baird (née Dykins; born 5 March 1947) is a British retired teacher and author. She is the younger half-sister of English musician John Lennon, and is the eldest daughter of his mother Julia Lennon and John 'Bobby' Albert Dykins. She also ...

– journalist, author and host of '' The Drum'' *

Gretel Killeen Gretel Killeen (born 3 February 1963) is an Australian comedian, television presenter, media personality and author. She is known for being the host of '' Big Brother Australia'' from its inception in 2001 until the 2007 season (including ''Ce ...

– author and host of ''

Big Brother Big Brother may refer to: * Big Brother (''Nineteen Eighty-Four''), a character from George Orwell's novel ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' ** Authoritarian personality, any omnipresent figure representing oppressive control ** Big Brother Awards, a sat ...

'' *

Tammin Sursok Tammin Sursok (born 19 August 1983) is a South African-born Australian actress and singer. She is known for her roles on television as Dani Sutherland on ''Home and Away'', Colleen Carlton on ''The Young and the Restless'', and Jenna Marshall ...

– Dani from ''

Home and Away ''Home and Away'' (often abbreviated as ''H&A'') is an Australian television soap opera. It was created by Alan Bateman and commenced broadcast on the Seven Network on 17 January 1988. Bateman came up with the concept of the show during a trip ...

'' and Jenna from ''

Pretty Little Liars ''Pretty Little Liars'' is an American mystery teen drama television series based on the novel series of the same name written by Sara Shepard. Developed by I. Marlene King, the series was broadcast on Freeform between June 8, 2010, and June ...

'' ;Medicine and science *

Grace Cuthbert-Browne Grace Cuthbert-Browne (January 2, 1900 – December 17, 1988) was an Australian medical doctor instrumental in improving the health of mothers and babies, and the consequent reduction in maternal and infant deaths in Australia. She was Dire ...

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

, doctor and Director of Maternal and Baby Welfare in the New South Wales Department of Public Health from 1937 to 1964 ;Politics, public service and the law *

Juanita Nielsen Juanita Joan Nielsen (; 22 April 1937 – disappeared 4 July 1975) was an Australian homicide victim, who was a newspaper owner, publisher and journalist, a model, businesswoman, urban conservationist, and heiress. She was notable for her advo ...

– publisher, anti-development campaigner, heiress to the

Mark Foy's Mark Foy's Limited or Mark Foy's was a department store in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, founded by Francis Foy and his brother Mark Foy. The department store was named after their father, Mark Foy (senior) and traded between 1885 and 1 ...

retail fortune. Disappeared in mysterious circumstances (believed

kidnap In criminal law, kidnapping is the unlawful confinement of a person against their will, often including transportation/asportation. The asportation and abduction element is typically but not necessarily conducted by means of force or fear: the p ...

ped and

murdered Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...

) from Kings Cross, in 1975. Subject of films, ''Heatwave'' (1982) and ''The Killing of Angel Street'' (1981) *

Catherine West Catherine Elizabeth West (born 14 September 1966) is a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. She was first elected as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hornsey and Wood Green in May 2015. Early life and education West was born on 14 ...

– Labour Party politician * Jillian Broadbent – economist, company director, director of Sydney Dance Company ;Sport *

Tiffany Thomas Kane Tiffany Thomas Kane, (born 9 August 2001) is a retired Australian Paralympic swimmer. She represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics, winning a gold and three bronze medals, and at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, winning a further two bronze ...

, world record holding Paralympian

References

External links

Ravenswood School for Girls website
{{Authority control Girls' schools in New South Wales Boarding schools in New South Wales Educational institutions established in 1901 Uniting Church schools in Australia Association of Heads of Independent Girls' Schools Junior School Heads Association of Australia Member Schools Private secondary schools in Sydney Private primary schools in Sydney International Baccalaureate schools in Australia Buildings and structures awarded the Sir John Sulman Medal Gordon, New South Wales Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia 1901 establishments in Australia