Waitaki Boys' High School is a secondary school for boys located in the northern part of the town of

Oamaru Oamaru (; ) is the largest town in North Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand, it is the main town in the Waitaki District. It is south of Timaru and north of Dunedin on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast; State Highway 1 (New Zealand), Sta ...

, Otago, New Zealand, with day and boarding facilities, and was founded in 1883. , it has a school roll of approximately 400 students. The school has a house system with four houses, Don, Forrester, Lee and Sutherland. It organises some cultural activities together with its nearby sister school, Waitaki Girls' High School. The school is notable for its British colonial architecture, encompassing such historic buildings such as the Hall of Memories, an assembly hall, built to honour its former pupils who died in various wars. Most of the blocks of classrooms at Waitaki Boys High School are named after famous past students, also known as Waitakians or Old Boys. The main, and oldest block of the school is named after Denis Blundell.

History

The idea of establishing a boys' high school in Oamaru originated with

Samuel Shrimski Samuel Edward Shrimski (1828 – 25 June 1902) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament and then a Member of the Legislative Council from Otago, New Zealand. Early life He was born in Poznań, Prussia, where he received his initial education. H ...

, who was one of the two members of parliament representing the Waitaki electorate.

Enrolment

As of , the school has roll of students, of which (%) identify as Māori. As of , the school has an

Equity Index In finance, a stock index, or stock market index, is an index that measures the performance of a stock market, or of a subset of a stock market. It helps investors compare current stock price levels with past prices to calculate market perform ...

of , placing it amongst schools whose students have socioeconomic barriers to achievement (roughly equivalent to decile 4 under the former

socio-economic decile In the education in New Zealand, New Zealand education system, decile was a key measure of socioeconomic status used to target funding and support schools. In academic contexts the full term "socioeconomic decile" or "socioeconomic decile band" wa ...

system).

Rectors

The following is a complete list of the rectors of Waitaki Boys' High School:

Notable alumni

Peter Arnett Peter Gregg Arnett (born 13 November 1934) is a New Zealand-born American journalist. He is known for his coverage of the Vietnam War and the Gulf War. He was awarded the 1966 Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting for his work in Vietnam f ...

– journalist *

Fraser Barron Fraser Barron Distinguished Service Order, DSO & Medal bar, Bar, Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom), DFC, Distinguished Flying Medal, DFM (9 January 1921 – 20 May 1944), was an officer of the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) w ...

– bomber pilot during World War II * James Bertram – professor, journalist * Denis Blundell – lawyer, governor-general * Charles Brasch – poet * Douglas Carter – former National MP for the Raglan electorate * Ian Cathcart – basketball player *

Gonville ffrench-Beytagh The Very Revd Gonville Aubie ffrench-Beytagh (26 January 1913 – 10 May 1991) was an Anglican priest who served as the Dean of Johannesburg. He was also an anti-apartheid activist and was held in solitary confinement before going on trial for ...

(1912–1991) – Dean of

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

and an anti-

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

activist. * Sir

Malcolm Grant Sir Malcolm John Grant, , (born 29 November 1947) is a barrister, academic lawyer, and former law professor. Born and educated in New Zealand, he was the ninth President and Provost of University College London – the head as well as principa ...

– chairman of

NHS England NHS England, formally the NHS Commissioning Board for England, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department of Health and Social Care. It oversees the budget, planning, delivery and day-to-day operation of the commissioning si ...

and Chancellor,

University of York The University of York (abbreviated as or ''York'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public Collegiate university, collegiate research university in York, England. Established in 1963, the university has expanded to more than thir ...

(former Provost and President of University College London (2003–2013) * Ron Guthrey – Mayor of Christchurch (1968–1971) * Dean Hall – video game designer, mountaineer * A. M. Hamilton – engineer * Brian Henderson – newsreader in Australia * Lindsay Merritt Inglis (1894–1966), a senior officer in the

New Zealand Military Forces The New Zealand Army (, ) is the principal Army, land warfare force of New Zealand, a component of the New Zealand Defence Force alongside the Royal New Zealand Navy and the Royal New Zealand Air Force. Formed in 1845, as the New Zealand Mil ...

Donald Gilbert Kennedy Donald Gilbert Kennedy (March 1898 – 1976) was a teacher, then an administrator in the British colonial service in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Colony and the British Solomon Islands Protectorate. For his services as a Coastwatcher during th ...

, DSO,

Navy Cross The Navy Cross is the United States Naval Service's second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is equivalent to the Army ...

(U.S.) (1898–1976) – teacher, colonial administrator and

Coastwatcher The Coastwatchers, also known as the Coast Watch Organisation, Combined Field Intelligence Service or Section C, Allied Intelligence Bureau, were Allied military intelligence operatives stationed on remote Pacific islands during World War II ...

during the

Solomon Islands campaign The Solomon Islands campaign was a major military campaign, campaign of the Pacific War during World War II. The campaign began with the Empire of Japan, Japanese seizure of several areas in the British Solomon Islands and Bougainville Island, B ...

(World War II). *

Dylan Kennett Dylan Kennett (born 8 December 1994) is a New Zealand professional racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Continental team . Of Māori descent, Kennett affiliates to the Ngāi Tahu iwi. Kennett rode at the 2015 UCI Track Cycling World Cham ...

(1994–) – Olympian and World Champion Track Cyclist *

Douglas Lilburn Douglas Gordon Lilburn (2 November 19156 June 2001) was a New Zealand composer. Early life Lilburn was born in Whanganui and spent his early years on the family sheep farm in the upper Turakina River valley at Drysdale. He attended Waitaki ...

– Professor, composer *

Robert Macintosh Sir Robert Reynolds Macintosh (17 October 1897 – 28 August 1989) was a New Zealand-born British anaesthetist. He was the first professor of anaesthetics outside the United States. Early life Macintosh was born 17 October 1897 in Timaru, New Zea ...

(1897–1989), first Nuffield Professor of Anaesthetics, Oxford * Terry McCombs – politician, headmaster *

Greg McGee Gregory William McGee is a New Zealand writer and playwright, who also writes crime fiction under the pseudonym Alix Bosco. Biography McGee was born in 1950 in the South Island town of Oamaru. In his early 20s McGee played rugby as a Junior All ...

– rugby union player and playwright * Ian McLean – politician, economist *

Arnold Nordmeyer Sir Arnold Henry Nordmeyer (born Heinrich Arnold Nordmeyer, 7 February 1901 – 2 February 1989) was a New Zealand politician and Presbyterian minister. As a member of Parliament (MP) he played a crucial role in the Labour Party, serving fr ...

(1901–1989) – politician, Labour Party Minister of Finance 1957–1960 * David Sewell – cricketer *

Foss Shanahan Foss Shanahan (10 June 1910 – 13 September 1964) was a New Zealand diplomat and public servant. Biography Shanahan was born on 10 June 1910 at Alexandra. He was educated at the Christian Brothers' Boys' School in Dunedin and Waitaki Boys' H ...

– diplomat * Angus Tait – electronics innovator and businessman *

Des Wilson Des Wilson (born 5 March 1941) is a New Zealand-born British campaigner, political activist, businessman, sports administrator, author and poker player. He was one of the founders of the British homelessness charity Shelter and was for a while ...

– campaigner in Britain

Footnotes

External links

School Website

Ministry of Education website page

New Zealand Qualifications Authority website page
{{Authority control Boarding schools in New Zealand Boys' schools in New Zealand Educational institutions established in 1883 Secondary schools in Otago Buildings and structures in Oamaru 1883 establishments in New Zealand