Mount Roskill Grammar School is a

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

in the suburb of

Mount Roskill Mount Roskill () is a suburban area in the city of Auckland, New Zealand. It is named for the volcanic peak Mount Roskill. Etymology The name Mount Roskill was first recorded as Mt Rascal in 1841, on a map created by a Wesleyan missionary, ...

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

; it officially opened in 1953, The school has been noted for its relative academic success given its low

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 ...

History

The school opened in 1953, on a plot of land the Auckland Education Board purchased from the

Auckland Rugby Union The Auckland Rugby Union is a New Zealand provincial rugby union. The union was established in 1883 and was originally responsible for the administration of the sport in most of the former Auckland Province, although its boundaries have since s ...

. It was one of the first new secondary schools in central Auckland in eight years, and was opened when

was a semi-rural but rapidly developing suburb. The school began with a roll of 363, but by 1964 the school had expanded to over 1,300 students, making it the largest in the country. When the school was first established, the grounds were rocky and uneven. In 1956, school students helped dig the school pool by hand. In 1957 the school was granted its own board of governors and adopted the emblem of the Phoenix with the motto 'Sursum' meaning 'To the Heights'. The Phoenix was chosen for its symbolism of the pursuit of excellence and periodic renewal and revitalization. The Maclean Centre for

disabled Disability is the experience of any condition that makes it more difficult for a person to do certain activities or have equitable access within a given society. Disabilities may be cognitive, developmental, intellectual, mental, physica ...

students was opened in 1977, named in honour of Mr B H Maclean, Principal from 1966 to 1981. The Centre moved into a new building in 2003 and the staff and students are fully involved in all areas of school life. In 1989, Colin Prentice, former head boy of Mount Roskil Grammar, became the school's principal. In 2018, Mount Roskill adopted a gender-neutral uniform for its students.

Enrolment

The school is one of the most diverse in New Zealand. The school roll has an ethnic composition of 26%

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

, 16%

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

, 13%

Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...

, 11% Tongan, 8%

Samoan Samoan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Samoan Islands, an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean ** Something of, from, or related to Samoa, a country encompassing the western part of the Samoan Islands ** Something of, from, ...

, 6%

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, 3%

South East Asian Southeast Asia is the geographical southeastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of China, east of the Indian subcontinent, and northwest of the Australian mainland, which is part of Oceania. Southeast Asia is ...

, 3%

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

n, 2%

Cook Island Māori Cook or The Cook may refer to: Food preparation * Cooking, the preparation of food * Cook (domestic worker), a household staff member who prepares food * Cook (profession), an individual who prepares food for consumption in the food industry * Ch ...

, and 12% other.

Premises

The school has had several structural improvements, such as the construction of new buildings such as the Science Block, the Maclean Centre, T-Block, renovation of H-Block (including the Year 13 Common Room - a room with lockers, kitchen appliances, and recreation features dedicated to final year students), and the new gymnasium and classrooms. At the end of 2009, a new Pastoral Care Centre was built and opened in 2010. Rebuilding of the school's C-Block finished late 2010. In 2016, a new Olympic-grade hockey turf was completed.

Academics

Mount Roskill Grammar School was described by the

New Zealand Herald ''The New Zealand Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Auckland, New Zealand, owned by New Zealand Media and Entertainment, and considered a newspaper of record for New Zealand. It has the largest newspaper circulation in New Zealand ...

in 2007 as the ''"best public school in New Zealand"''. In 2009 Metro Magazine has also ranked MRGS as the top school in Auckland. The school has 10 computer labs catering for students from Year 9-13. The school is also one of the schools participating in the Phase 2 of the Beacon Practice from GIF Technology Education initiative. In 2013, 90.7 percent of students leaving Mount Roskill Grammar held at least NCEA Level 1, 82.5 percent held at least NCEA Level 2, and 58.3 percent held at least University Entrance. This is compared to 85.2%, 74.2%, and 49.0% respectively for all students nationally.

Principals

Extracurricular activities

Mount Roskill Grammar School offers sports, music and other extracurricular activities. There are culture groups relating to

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese, Kapa haka,

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

Samoa Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa and known until 1997 as Western Samoa, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania, in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu), two smaller, inhabited ...

Tokelau Tokelau (; ; known previously as the Union Islands, and, until 1976, known officially as the Tokelau Islands) is a dependent territory of New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean. It consists of three tropical coral atolls: Atafu, Nukunonu, an ...

an,

Niue Niue is a self-governing island country in free association with New Zealand. It is situated in the South Pacific Ocean and is part of Polynesia, and predominantly inhabited by Polynesians. One of the world's largest coral islands, Niue is c ...

an and

Cook Islands The Cook Islands is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It consists of 15 islands whose total land area is approximately . The Cook Islands' Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) covers of ocean. Avarua is its ...

culture. The Indian Dance group won the 2007 Annual Bollywood Highschool Dance Competition. The Boys Chorus (Mr G's Boys Chorus) was actively involved in

Barbershop Music Barbershop vocal harmony is a style of a cappella close harmony, or unaccompanied vocal music, characterized by consonance and dissonance, consonant four-part chord (music), chords for every melody note in a primarily homorhythmic texture. Eac ...

, winning a record of 5 consecutive Auckland Regional titles in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006 as well as the New Zealand National Young Singers in Harmony Championships in 2002, 2005 and 2006. The school at that time was the only school in New Zealand to have won 3 National Championships, and 2 consecutively.

Houses

As of 2017, Mount Roskill Grammar School has 5 houses that have been named after famous New Zealanders - Rutherford (Red),

Ngata Ngata is a Māori surname, most commonly found among members of the Ngāti Porou iwi. The name is also occasionally found in Tonga, where it was the name of a 17th-century leader, the first Tu'i Kanokupolu. Notable people with the surname include ...

(Orange),

Sheppard Sheppard can refer to: Places * Sheppard, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community, United States * Sheppard Avenue in Toronto, Canada named for Joseph Shepard (1765-1837). Hence: ** Sheppard subway line ** Sheppard West (TTC), formerly Downsvie ...

(Yellow),

Hillary Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

(Green) And

Cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), an alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * "Cooper", a song by Roxette from ...

(Blue). Junior students are placed into house groups through their core classes, senior students remain in the houses they were in during year 10.

Awards

Goodman Fielder Goodman Fielder is an Australian manufacturer, marketer and distributor of bread, smallgoods, dairy products, margarine, oil, dressings and various food ingredients. Its main operations are in New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, ...

School of the Year Award, for ''Outstanding Performance in Education'' in 1998. *Goodman Fielder Secondary School of the Year Award, in 2002, and finalist in the Secondary School section in 1999 and 2001. *In 2017 the school was twice the winner of the High School League Premier Division Championships.

Notable alumni

* Gretchen Albrecht, artist *

Alannah Currie Alannah Joy Currie (born 20 September 1957) is a New Zealand artist based in London. She is a musician and activist, best known as a former member of the pop band Thompson Twins. Career Born in New Zealand and trained as a journalist, Currie ...

Thompson Twins Thompson Twins were an English Pop music, pop band, formed in 1977 in Sheffield. Initially a New wave music, new wave group, they switched to a more mainstream pop sound and achieved considerable popularity during the early and mid-1980s, scori ...

member *

Abby Erceg Abby May Erceg (born 20 November 1989) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Liga MX Femenil club Toluca. She formerly played for the New Zealand national team, where she became the first player (male or femal ...

, former New Zealand Football Ferns captain, captain of the

North Carolina Courage The North Carolina Courage are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in Cary, North Carolina, that competes in the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). It was founded on January 9, 2017, after Stephen Malik acqui ...

in the

NWSL The National Women's Soccer League (NWSL) is a women's professional Association football, soccer league and the highest level of the United States soccer league system#Women's leagues, United States soccer league system (alongside the USL Supe ...

Owen Glenn Sir Owen George Glenn (born 19 February 1940) is a New Zealand expatriate businessman and philanthropist, who supports humanitarian causes worldwide through his family charity. Early life Born in Calcutta, British India, on 19 February 1940, G ...

, Businessman *

Graeme Hart Graeme Richard Hart (born 1955) is a New Zealand billionaire businessman and is among the country's richest persons. As of June 2024, his net worth was estimated at NZD$12.1 billion. He was the first New Zealander to be worth NZD$10 billion. M ...

, New Zealand's Richest Man * John Hart, former

All Blacks 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 ...

coach *

Latha Hegde Latha Hegde is an Indian-born New Zealand actress who works mainly in Kannada also works in Telugu films. Career Hegde did her first film ''Tuntari'' in 2016, opposite Nara Rohith. She then did her first film in Tamil (which remains unreleas ...

, Bollywood Actress *

Harry McNaughton Harry McNaughton (born 6 April 1894, date of death unknown) was a Scottish footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association footba ...

Shortland Street ''Shortland Street'' is a New Zealand Prime time, prime-time soap opera centring on the fictitious Shortland Street Hospital. The show was first broadcast on TVNZ 2 on 25 May 1992 and is New Zealand's longest-running drama and soap opera, be ...

Actor *

Tarun Nethula Tarun Sai Nethula (born 8 May 1983) is an Indian-born cricketer who has played for the New Zealand national cricket team. He started his cricket training at St. Johns Cricket Academy in Hyderabad, Telangana and moved to New Zealand at the age of ...

New Zealand national cricket team The New Zealand national cricket team represents New Zealand in men's international cricket. Nicknamed the Black Caps (), they played their first Test cricket, Test in 1930 against England cricket team, England in Christchurch, becoming the f ...

(Blackcaps) member * Clinton Randell,

New Zealand Idol ''New Zealand Idol'', also known as ''NZ Idol'', was the New Zealand version of the ''Idol'' series which originated in the United Kingdom as '' Pop Idol''. New Zealand first saw the ''Idol'' format when TV2 aired '' American Idol 2'', which gar ...

Reality Show Contestant * Julian Sewell, comedian and digital satirist *

Nalini Singh Nalini Singh (born September 1, 1945) is an Indian journalist. She has been the anchor for several current affairs programs on Doordarshan, and is most known for her program, 'Aankhon Dekhi', on investigative journalism. She had made another ...

, New York Times bestselling author *

Brett Steven Brett Andrew Steven (born 27 April 1969) is a former New Zealand tennis player. Biography Steven began his tennis career at the age of 10 as a ball boy and by the age of 16 he participated at his first tournament. He attended Mount Roskill ...

, Tennis Player * Evarn Tuimavave,

New Zealand Warriors The Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL) premiership and is the League's only team from outside Australia. They were formed in 1995 as the Aucklan ...

player

Controversies

In 1995 the school adopted a peer-mediated programme called "Cool Schools" and with support from Peace Foundation had trained 200 of 2100 students to be mediators in Years 11 through 12. This programme is now the largest student mediation programme in New Zealand. In March 2010, Mt Roskill Grammar School appeared on the TV3 Consumer Rights programme "Target" regarding the introduction of their new uniform and the three-year phase-in time, a costly introduction to parents of existing students. It was met with opposition by the student body but Greg Watson, the principal, pleaded ignorance to the issue and has stated that he had received positive support regarding it. Watson has not informed the school if a change will be made to the way the new school uniform will be introduced. On 16 March 2011,

Campbell Live ''Campbell Live'' is a half-hour-long New Zealand current affairs programme that was broadcast from 2005–2015 on at 7 pm (following 3 News) on TV3 and was hosted by John Campbell. ''Campbell Live'' conducted interviews of various notable p ...

, a

TV3 Channel 3 or TV 3 may refer to: Television *Canal 3 (Burkina Faso), a commercial television channel in Burkina Faso * Canal 3 Niger, a commercial television channel in Niger * Canal 3 (Guatemala), a commercial television channel in Guatemala * Can ...

current affairs programme aired an interview on bullying at Mount Roskill Grammar where a member of the study body had been bullied to a point that she spent "12 lessons in the Dean's office or the administration area across a 7-day period".Watson, G. (2011)
Statement to Campbell Live
Mount Roskill Grammar Newsletter. The school since resolved the matter. In 2010s the school scrubbed its girls' rugby team due to fighting, but brought it under control by 2015.