Cullinane College is an integrated, Co-Educational Secondary school in

Whanganui Whanganui, also spelt Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whanganui is ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

for students in Year 9 to Year 13. Cullinane College was founded in 2003, through the combining of Sacred Heart College (founded in 1880 and operated by the

Sisters of St Joseph of Nazareth The Sisters of Saint Joseph of Nazareth, also called simply the Sisters of St Joseph or Josephites ("Black Josephites"), are a religious congregation who have their main centre in Whanganui, New Zealand. The congregation was a member of the ...

) and St Augustines College (founded in 1944 and operated by the priests and brothers of the Society of Mary). The college is named after: Sister Vincent Cullinane RSJ and Sister Cuthbert Cullinane RSJ (both important teachers at Sacred Heart College); Father John Cullinane SM (an important teacher at St Augustine's College); and Bishop Peter James Cullinane, first Bishop of

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; , colloquially known as Palmerston or Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatū Plains, the city is near the north bank of the Manaw ...

(1980–2012). The Bishop of Palmerston North is the proprietor of the college.

Enrolment

As a state-integrated school, the proprietors of Cullinane College charge compulsory attendance dues to cover capital costs. For the 2025 school year, the attendance dues payable are $544 per year for students in years 7 and 8, and $1,088 per year for secondary students in years 9 and above. As of , Cullinane College 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 2 and 3 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).

Sports exchange

The college has an annual junior (Year 9, 10 and occasionally Year 11) sports exchange with

Awatapu College Awatapu College is a state co-educational secondary school in Awapuni, Palmerston North, New Zealand. It was opened in 1976, and as of August 2024 it had 885 students. About the School Geography Awatapu College is located in West End, a sub ...

, generally competing in

netball Netball is a ball sport played on a rectangular court by two teams of seven players. The primary objective is to shoot a ball through the defender's goal ring while preventing the opposing team from shooting through their own. It is one of a ...

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

and

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

. The exchange has been running as long as Cullinane's existence.

Principals

* Justin Harper ( – July 2022) * Lida Penn-Reina (Acting) (July 2022) * Tony McBride (2023 – present)

Notable alumni

Brett Cameron Brett Dennis Cameron (born 4 October 1996) is a New Zealand rugby union player. A first five-eighth, Cameron plays for at a provincial level and the in the Super Rugby competition. He made his debut for the New Zealand national side, the Al ...

(born 1996) professional

player;

All Black The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks, is the representative men's national team in the sport of rugby union for the nation of New Zealand, which is considered the country's national sport. Famed for th ...

Ray O'Leary Matthew "Ray" O'Leary is a New Zealand comedian, TV personality and actor, known for his deadpan humour and large grey suit. Early life and education O'Leary grew up in Whanganui, New Zealand, where he attended Cullinane College. He has a bach ...

(born 1993) comedian and actor

References

Educational institutions established in 2003 Schools in Whanganui Catholic secondary schools in New Zealand 2003 establishments in New Zealand Secondary schools in Manawatū-Whanganui {{NewZealand-school-stub