Macleans College facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Macleans College
Address
2 Macleans Road Eastern Beach Auckland 2012 New Zealand
Coordinates	36°53′00″S 174°54′55″E / 36.8833°S 174.9152°E / -36.8833; 174.9152
Information
Type	State co-educational
Motto	Virtue Mine Honour
Established	1980
Ministry of Education Institution no.	41
Principal	Steven Hargreaves (2017)
Grades	Secondary
Enrolment	2,851 (February 2024)
Socio-economic decile	9Q
Website	www.macleans.school.nz

Macleans College is a school for both boys and girls, located in Eastern Beach, Auckland, New Zealand. It is a state secondary school, meaning it is funded by the government. The school is named after the Scottish MacLean family, who used to farm the land where the school now stands.

The school's emblem shows a castle from the MacLean family crest. It also has six waves, which represent the school's location near the sea. Macleans College has been recognized as a top school in Auckland. In 2010, Metro magazine called it the number one high school in Auckland for students taking Cambridge International Examinations. By 2014, it was ranked second in New Zealand for these exams.

The front of the main office at Macleans College

School History

Macleans College opened its doors in 1980. The first group of students included 199 young people. Sir David Beattie, who was the Governor-General at the time, officially opened the school.

The first principal was Colin Prentice. He later became the head of World Vision in New Zealand. Allan McDonald, who was his deputy, took over as principal in 1989. In 2000, Byron J. Bentley became principal and stayed for 18 years. He was the longest-serving principal. Since 2018, Steven Hargreaves has been the principal.

In 2015, the school's main hall was named the 'Colin Prentice Auditorium'. This was done to honor the first principal after he passed away. In 2018, the school started its own student newspaper called "The Collegian."

House System

When students join Macleans College, they are placed into one of eight 'whanau houses'. 'Whanau' is a Māori word meaning family. These houses are named after important New Zealanders. Each house tries to show the good qualities and achievements of the person it is named after.

Students are usually placed randomly into a house. However, if a student has a sibling or parent who went to Macleans College, they can choose to join the same house. Each house has about 300 students. They are divided into smaller groups called form classes for each year level.

Macleans College was the first state school in New Zealand built specifically with this house system in mind.

The first four houses were Kupe, Hillary, Te Kanawa, and Rutherford. Hillary House had to be rebuilt in 1992 after a fire. Mansfield House was opened quickly in 1984 because more students were joining the school. The newest house, Upham, opened in 2003. Today, the school has over 2,500 students.

The school has been rebuilding many of its buildings. This is because of issues with the original construction. Many house buildings, along with staff and student areas, have been completed. During this time, some classes were held in temporary buildings called 'X Block'. In 2021, Mansfield House opened its new building. The area where 'X Block' used to be is now a tennis court. As of 2024, the technology and science buildings are also finished.

The school has also added an artificial turf for sports like football and rugby. This turf is next to the tennis courts. New changing rooms and other facilities have been built around these sports areas.

School Setting and Buildings

Macleans College is located in Macleans Park. This is a large park area in the Howick/Pakuranga district. Because the school is on a hill, it has wide views of the nearby Eastern Beach. In 2021, the land where Macleans College is located was bought by Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki.

Each Whanau House has its own building. Most are one-story buildings. Batten House has two stories because it is built on a slope. There is a rule in the Bucklands Beach-Eastern Beach area that buildings should not be taller than one story. This helps keep the beautiful views.

Each house building usually has about five classrooms and a science lab. Some also have a computer lab. They often have extra temporary classrooms too. Each Whanau House building also has a large central area. This space is used for house meetings, eating lunch, and other school activities.

The school also has special buildings for different subjects. These include Science, Technology, Computing, Graphics, Art, Music, and Engineering. There are also two large gymnasiums named after Barbara Kendall. A smaller hall, the Colin Prentice Auditorium, is used for performances.

Student Life

Student Numbers and Backgrounds

In May 2014, Macleans College had 2,271 students. This number did not include 304 international students. Slightly more than half of the students (53%) were boys, and 47% were girls.

Most students at the school were of Asian background (54%). This included 31% Chinese students and 11% Indian students. About 40% of students were European, with 27% being New Zealand European (Pākehā). Māori students made up three percent of the school, and Pacific Islander students made up one percent.

Macleans College is considered a school that serves a community with a good economic background. This is measured by a system called a "decile." Macleans College has a decile of 9Q. This means it is in an area with low to moderately low economic challenges compared to other schools in New Zealand.

Students from Other Countries

Many international students come to Macleans College. Most of these students are from China. However, students from many other countries also attend, such as Germany, Hungary, Brazil, Japan, and Nepal.

Student Achievements

Macleans College students do very well in their exams. In 2013, almost all students (97.6%) who left the school had achieved at least NCEA Level 1 or IGCSE. A high number (95.5%) had achieved at least NCEA Level 2 or AS. Also, 86.2% of students met the standard to enter university. These results are much higher than the national averages for all students in New Zealand.

Famous Former Students

Many students from Macleans College have gone on to achieve great things. Here are a few:

• Andrew de Boorder – a cricketer for Auckland
• Derek de Boorder – also a cricketer for Auckland
• Scott Campbell – played baseball for the Arizona Diamondbacks
• Colin Craig – a businessman and founder of a political party
• Jarek Goebel – played rugby for the Auckland Blues
• Kirsten Hellier – an Olympic javelin thrower
• Barbara Kendall – a famous windsurfer who won medals at the Olympics. The school gym is named after her.
• Sean Lovemore – played football for Wellington Phoenix
• Aaron McIntosh – an Olympic windsurfer
• Corey Main – an Olympic swimmer
• Kyle Mills – played cricket for the New Zealand team
• Cameron Norrie – a tennis player who reached a world ranking of No. 10
• Rhona Robertson – an Olympic badminton player
• Kamahl Santamaria – a journalist
• Ryan Sissons – an Olympic triathlete
• Natalie Taylor – an Olympic women's basketball player
• Brooke Walker – played cricket for the New Zealand team
• Mark Weldon – an Olympic swimmer and former CEO of the New Zealand Exchange
• Ingrid Leary – a Labour Member of Parliament for Dunedin South