Kedron State High School

Kedron State High School is a Queensland public secondary school which is located in the inner-northern suburb of Kedron in Brisbane, Australia. The school was opened in 1956, to meet the needs of the rapidly expanding North Brisbane population whose children were members of the post-World War II baby boomer generation.

Kedron State High School
Address
34 Park Road Kedron, Queensland , 4030 Australia
Coordinates	27°24′53″S 153°02′21″E
Information
Type	Secondary nondenominational public school
Motto	Latin: Niti est Nitere (To strive is to shine)
Established	1 January 1956
Principal	Blair Hanna
Enrolment	~1750
Campus	Urban (Kedron), 33 acres (13 ha)
Colour(s)	Black and yellow (gold)
Website	kedronshs.eq.edu.au

Kedron is a co-educational and non-denominational school, renowned in Brisbane for offering a Special Education Unit for hearing-impaired students^[1] and also for its accredited International Students Program.^[2] In 2007, the school joined the Healthy State system and removed a large proportion of junk food including all soft drinks. In an effort to increase student voice in the school the "Kedron Connect" program was announced by acting deputy principal for middle school in February 2023.

History

Kedron State High School is situated on 134,000 m² (1,440,000 sq ft) of land bordering Kedron Brook and Kedron Park. Originally inhabited by the Aboriginal Enoggera tribe, the site was also owned by Queensland's first Resident Judge, Alfred Lutwyche. From the 1880s onward it was used as a racecourse which was later partially owned by businessman John Wren in 1912.

Kedron was established in 1956; the school derives its name from the Kidron Valley mentioned in the Bible and located in Palestine. Over the years, enrolment has ranged from 274 students in 1956 to 1700 in 1976. Since its inception, almost 20,000 students have attended Kedron. A language census conducted in 2003 revealed 38 languages were spoken within the school community.

On the last week of the third term of the year, Kedron celebrates a week called "Kedron Week" where every day, for one week, assemblies and activities are held to celebrate the many different cultures represented in the school. The school has highly multi-cultural students from foreign countries greet the school on assembles in their own national language. Music, dancing, races, games and stories are usually put to show.

In 2006, Kedron celebrated their 50th anniversary and in 2016, their 60th.

International student program

Kedron makes use of their substantial language and (EAL/D) program to provide homestays to international students as well as offering full enrolments as part of Education Queensland International (EQI). In partner with their sister school located in Japan, Kedron accommodates over 50 students a year from a range of different countries including Japan, Samoa & Germany and offers facilities such as an international student hub.

Asbestos

During the 2005 school year it was found that a series of seven broken roof tiles containing asbestos where found on school premises. It was later revealed by Queensland education minister Rob Welford that Kedron was one of twenty Queensland schools know at the time to have asbestos in school buildings.

An audit conducted by the Queensland Government on asbestos presence in public schools found that an additional 95 schools including Kedron contained Asbestolux on school grounds.

Student achievements

Kedron is a traditional school which focusses primarily on scholastic excellence. Its students have achieved High Distinctions, Distinctions and Credits in Australasian Schools Competitions run by the University of New South Wales in English, Computer Science & Literacy, Science and Writing, and various other competitions. There have also been pupils selected to attend the National Youth Science Forum in Canberra and national winners in the National History Challenge.

In 1975, a Kedron band travelled to Longreach to play at the opening of the Stockman's Hall of Fame. They were followed 30 years later by a new generation of Kedron musicians to play at an anniversary celebration of the Hall's opening.

As of 2007, a Kedron student has become the third in three years to win the Pierre de Coubertin Award for sporting excellence, an initiative of the Australian Olympic Committee.

Kedron's Queensland Core Skills Test (QCS) preparation program has proven highly effective with 8 students in 2009 achieving an Overall Position (OP) of 1, the highest possible rank in the state.

The school participated in the 2022 Year 12 Queensland Debating Union where they beat Brisbane Girls Grammar School in the grand final.

Sporting houses

Kedron State High School has four sporting houses each representing a distinct colour in which students are assigned to and represent during in-school sporting events.

1. Wickham (Green)
2. Lutwyche (Blue)
3. Bowen (Black)
4. Griffith (Red)

Notable alumni

• Kenneth Wiltshire – professor at the University of Queensland
• Rowena Wallace – actress
• Jason Barry-Smith – opera singer
• David Nilsson – baseball player, previous owner of Baseball Australia and manager of the Brisbane Bandits (2014–2015)
• Bonny Barry – Labor Member for Aspley in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland
• Aliir Aliir – Sydney Swans Footballer
• Ally Anderson – Women's Brisbane Lions Footballer

Past principals

Kedron State High School, Park Road (2021)

Period	Name
Unknown-2007	Jim Williams
2007–2014	Myron McCormack
2014–2021	Joseba Larrazabal
(Acting 2021–2022) 2023–present	Blair Hanna

Deputy principals

There are five deputy principals at Kedron State High School:

• L. Miller (Junior School)
• Z. Wilson (Acting) (Middle School)
• T. Buckley (Senior School)
• S. Kiss (Student Enhancement and Support)
• K. Smith (Organisational Capabilities)

Footnotes

1. ^ Education Queensland International schools (2003).
   Official EQI website
2. ^ Australian Deafness Directory (2005).
   Listing in Directory
3. ^ Kedron State High School – About Kedron (2004).
   School Vision and Purpose