Columba College is an integrated

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...

school in Roslyn,

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

, New Zealand. The roll is made up of pupils of all ages. The majority of pupils are in the girls' secondary, day and boarding school, but there is also a primary school for boys and girls in years 1–6.

History

Columba College was established in 1915 by the

Presbyterian Church Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Christianity, Reformed Protestantism, Protestant tradition named for its form of ecclesiastical polity, church government by representative assemblies of Presbyterian polity#Elder, elders, known as ...

of New Zealand as a

private 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 recorded ...

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and

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

for girls with co-educational primary classes. The Rev'd Alexander Whyte was a key figure in the foundation of Columba College, through his vision for a Presbyterian girls' school. Columba College was created from two earlier Dunedin girls' schools, Girton College and Braemar House. Girton College had been founded in 1886 by the first woman graduate of the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

, Caroline Freeman, who sold it to Frances Ross in 1891. Ross then purchased Braemar House and combined it with Girton College. Frances Ross was appointed by the Presbytery of Dunedin as the first Head Mistress of the newly created Columba College in 1914. The schools moved to the current site at Bishopscourt, purchased from the first

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

bishop for

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

and Southland, Bishop Nevill. The large house there had been designed by

William Mason William, Willie, or Willy Mason may refer to: Arts and entertainment *William Mason (poet) (1724–1797), English poet, editor and gardener *William Mason (architect) (1810–1897), New Zealand architect *William Mason (composer) (1829–1908), Ame ...

and built in 1872. Whereas most church schools took a conservative view of girls' education, Columba built on the traditions of Girton College. High educational standards were set, while due attention was given to music, physical training, domestic science and, of course, religious instruction. The differing abilities and aspirations of the pupils were acknowledged and fostered. Ross expected a great deal from her girls and was not disappointed. Columba girls took prizes, scholarships and degrees at university and made their mark in a range of occupations. Grace Mackintosh was a Scottish-born teacher who became the principal in 1930. She appeared to be religious. She had difficulty in coping with the climate and the job. She suffered with arthritis and making routine decisions. She left after three years when she was appointed at the head of

Presbyterian Ladies' College, Pymble Pymble Ladies' College is an independent, non-selective, day and boarding school for girls, located in Pymble, a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. History and description Pymble Ladies' College was founded ...

. Columba College was integrated as a composite school under the terms of the Private Schools' Integration Act effective 31 January 1994.

Boarding facilities

Attached to the school are boarding facilities, catering for approximately 110 students, both domestic and international from years 7 to 13. Students live in one of two on-campus buildings, Katharine Buchan House or Bishopscourt.

Enrolment

As a

state-integrated school In New Zealand, a state-integrated school is a former private school which has integrated into the state education system under the Private Schools Conditional Integration Act 1975, becoming a state school while retaining its special character. ...

, Columba College charges compulsory attendance dues plus requests voluntary donations. For the 2025 school year, the attendance dues payable is $2,034 per year while the requested donation is $2,160 per year. As of , the school has a 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 deciles 9 and 10 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).

Notable alumnae

Frances Hodgkins Frances Mary Hodgkins (28 April 1869 – 13 May 1947) was a New Zealand painter chiefly of landscape, and for a short period was a designer of textiles. Born in Dunedin, she was educated Dunedin School of Art, then became an art teacher, ...

– artist, at Braemar House *

Cilla McQueen Priscilla Muriel McQueen (born 22 January 1949) is a New Zealand poet and three-time winner of the Mary and Peter Biggs Award for Poetry, New Zealand Book Award for Poetry. Early years and education McQueen was born on 22 January 1949 in Birm ...

– poet *

Greta Stevenson Greta Barbara Stevenson (10 June 1911 – 18 December 1990) was a New Zealand botanist and mycologist. She described many new species of Agaricales (gilled mushrooms). Background and education Stevenson was born in Auckland, New Zealand, the ol ...

– botanist

Notable staff

Irene McInnes Alice Mary Irene McInnes (29 April 1893 - 30 August 1969; née Black) was one of the founders of the New Zealand Basket Ball Association (NZBBA) in 1924, along with Betty Armstrong and Myrtle Muir. Biography In her early life, Black was known as R ...

- New Zealand netball administrator *

References

External links

Columba College
{{Authority control Presbyterian schools in New Zealand Boarding schools in New Zealand Educational institutions established in 1915 Girls' schools in New Zealand Secondary schools in Dunedin 1915 establishments in New Zealand Alliance of Girls' Schools Australasia