A Secondary School is Born By the 1970s Brisbane was the only state capital in Australia that did not have an Adventist secondary school. This lamentable situation was, however, about to change. A decision was made in 1972 to commence a high school in 1973. Drawing on an analogy from nature, like the acorn, we will start little and then steadily grow into a sizable oak. So, a single demountable classroom was acquired and located on the topside adjacent to the lower school block. For the immediate future the secondary students would utilise the amenities of the primary school. At this point the history of the Mt Gravatt school therefore divided into two branches. Who would nurture this little acorn in its beginning years? The South Queensland Conference looked just south of the border where a young but energetic principal was leading the Murwillumbah Adventist High School. Mr Desmond Cooke, in only his fourth year of teaching, had been appointed principal of Murwillumbah which was then a junior high school. He had only been in the role for three years when tasked with founding Brisbane Adventist High School. Cooke had every reason to remain where he was, after all Murwillumbah is a favoured part of Australia, but to his credit he accepted the challenge of building a high school from scratch.
The High School campus.
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