Tupou College is a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

boys' secondary boarding school in Toloa on the island of

Tongatapu Tongatapu is the main island of Tonga and the site of its capital, Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with 74,611 residents (2016), 70.5% of the nation ...

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

. It is located on the Eastern District of Tongatapu near the village of Malapo. The school is owned by the Free Weslyan Church of Tonga. Established in 1866 by

James Egan Moulton James Egan Moulton (4 January 1841 – 9 May 1909) was an English-born Australian Methodist minister and headmaster and school president. Early life Moulton was born in North Shields, Northumberland. Many members of his family were Methodist ...

, it claims to be the oldest secondary school in the Pacific Islands. Enrolment is some 1,000 pupils. Tupou College was first established at Nuku'alofa at the location on which Queen Salote College stands today. From there it moved to Nafualu, Sia'atoutai on the site where Sia’atoutai Theological College now stands. In 1948, the school last moved to Toloa in the Eastern District of Tongatapu where it still stands today. Tupou College's brother school is Newington College, located in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. Rev Moulton was the founding headmaster of both Newington College and Tupou College. Missionary

A. Harold Wood Alfred Harold Wood OBE (4 May 1896 – 27 August 1989) was a 20th-century Australian Christian minister, educator, writer, hymnologist and advocate of church union. Early life A. Harold Wood was born in Geelong, Victoria, the son of Alfred Wo ...

was Principal from 1924 to 1937, during which time the school expanded from 30 students to almost 400. The first Tongan principal of the school was Rev. Sione Siupeli Taiamoni Taliai who was principal from 1970–1979. The College has a campus, on which crops of vegetables and fruit are grown. This includes an area of forest noted in Tonga as the Toloa Rainforest Reserve containing a variety of plant species endemic to Tonga as well as those no longer found in other parts of the kingdom. The forest is far smaller in size today then when they first moved there because of the construction of the airport, University of the Nations at Lafalafa and clearance for extra farmland. Tree planting projects have been carried out in the previous years within the forest to ensure the survival and continuous growth of the unique species found at Toloa.

Notable alumni

Taufa'ahau Tupou IV George Tupou I (4 December 1797 – 18 February 1893), originally known as Tāufaʻāhau I, was the first king of modern Tonga. He adopted the name Siaosi (originally Jiaoji), the Tongan equivalent of ''George'', after King George III of the U ...

(1918-2006), the late King of Tonga, reigning from 1967–2006 * Viliami Tangi, former Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister *

Willie Ofahengaue Viliami Ofahengaue (born 3 May 1968 in Kolofoou, Tonga), widely known as Willie O, is a former rugby union player who earned 41 caps for the Australian Wallabies from 1990 to 1998, and played in the World Cups of 1991 and 1995 as well as the ...

(b. 1968), professional Australian

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player *

Saimone Taumoepeau Saimone Taumoepeau (born 21 December 1979 in Ha'apai, Tonga) is a professional rugby union player in France. He is the younger brother of Tevita Taumoepeau. Career Born in Tonga, Taumoepeau emigrated to New Zealand in 1997. Taumoepeau was a s ...

(b. 1979), professional New Zealand

player * Sione Lātūkefu (1927 - 1995), historian

Education

The school trains students in Christian discipleship through programs of worship, study, work and recreation. They stay within the campus from Saturdays to Fridays. All students are required to stay within the campus; the only exception being those possessing medical problems and difficulties. School grades are from forms 1-7 (Year 7-13) including two technical classes where students learn

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, motor repair,

carpentry Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenters tr ...

, metalwork,

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

and art & design. Students are also required to make some from a variety of Tongan Handicrafts including: polished coconut shells (for kava drinking) and ''kafa'' (waist ropes to hold ta'ovala). It is from this that students learn the art, traditional skills, and culture of Tonga also benefiting the school as it is sold in the college's annual bazaar.

Curriculum

As most schools in Tonga do, Tupou College follows the curriculum of the Tongan Ministry of Education which is based on the New Zealand Curriculum. Technical classes also offer courses where students can continue studies in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

Magazine

Tupou College has a magazine published annually to record events and participation in the school. It is known as the ''Ko e Havea Magazine''.

Principals

Before 1970, all of Tupou College's principals were Australian and were assigned to work in Tonga as missionaries. It was only in 1970 that Tupou College received its first Tongan principal, Rev. Siupeli T. Taliai, who served as principal for nine years; from 1970–1979.

House system

The school has 12 houses. They are: #John Thomas (first successful missionary in Tonga) #Harold Wood (after Rev.

- former principal of the school) #Tevita Tonga (after Tevita Tonga Mohenoa - first dux and head tutor of the school) #'Aho'eitu (after Siaosi Manumataongo 'Alaivahamama'o 'Aho'eitu Konstantin Tuku'aho - an ex-student) #Siupeli Taliai (first Tongan Principal) #Kau Ta'e'iloa (to all unknown contributors to the School) #Howard Secomb (former principal of Tupou College) #Sau Faupula (former head tutor) #John Wesley (after

John Wesley John Wesley (; 2 March 1791) was an English people, English cleric, Christian theology, theologian, and Evangelism, evangelist who was a leader of a Christian revival, revival movement within the Church of England known as Methodism. The soci ...

- founder of the Methodist Church) #Wood Gate (after Ronald Woodgate - former principal of school-1948) #Rodger Page (after

Rodger Page Rodger is a surname, and is a variant of Roger as a first name. First name * Rodger Arneil, Scottish rugby union player * Rodger Bain, British former record producer * Rodger Bumpass, American voice actor and actor *Rodger Corser, Australian actor ...

- former principal and former president of the FWCT) #Sione Havea (longest head tutor)

Museum

Tukuaho Memorial Museum (''Ko e Misiume Fakamanatu O Tukuaho'') is a small museum in the campus which houses many important Tongan artifacts given to the museum by the Tongan royal family and by many others that exhibit the school's history as well as Tongan culture. Admission is free and visitors may contact the school to visit as the museum is only open by appointment.

References

External links

"Tupou College" at Tonga on the 'NET
*tctscienceacademy.weebly.com {{Authority control Educational institutions established in 1866 Methodism in Tonga Methodist schools Schools in Tonga 1866 establishments in Tonga Tongatapu