↓ SECTION 02 — SCHOOL
A RICH HISTORY RENEWED Manifold House re-opened in Term 2 following a major refurbishment. One of the three original senior boarding houses at Corio, Manifold House is unique in being named after a family – the pioneering Manifold family of Victoria’s Western District. With a history dating back more than 100 years, the refurbishment of Manifold has been transformational, combining modern design with the House’s existing heritage features. The refurbished House has single study/bed rooms for all Year 11 and 12 students. In addition, Year 10 students are housed in six dorms of four students, which are spread throughout the House to build stronger, inter-year-level relationships. “With all the new things that the House has adopted, we are glad for the rich history that the House has retained,” 2015 House Captain, Andrew Zhang (Yr12 M), said. “The magnitude of change that the House has undergone is obvious, but physically you notice all the things that have remained the same, such as the stairs in front of the Dart Room. I would like to believe that the House has also kept many of the old Manifold traits, such as the House chant, the House charity (The Manifold Project) that supports Room to Read and, most importantly, the House spirit of mateship, support and service.” The refurbishment of Manifold House follows the refurbishment of The Hermitage, Francis Brown and Cuthbertson as part of the ongoing renewal of the School’s boarding facilities, which is designed to satisfy the different requirements of privacy, study, play and pastoral care in the 21st century. Principal, Stephen Meek, said the refurbishment programme reaffirmed the School’s commitment to boarding, to the House system and to providing boarding in a boarding school environment, as opposed to boarding in a day school with some boarders.
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“We have expanded the number of boarding places through the construction of Elisabeth Murdoch House (which was opened in 2010) and are now modernising our other boarding facilities,” Stephen said. “We have virtually 900 boarders at the School and the mixture in the Senior School is 48% girls and 52% boys. I think as a co-ed school to have all those students boarding, providing that sense of community, is a wonderful thing.” 120 peopled stayed on after the re-opening for a reunion dinner in the Dining Hall. A number of past staff were present, including Boz Parsons (M’36), Hartley Mitchell, David Endean, Pam Stevenson and Glen Bechly. Also present was Alison Dart (Li’77), daughter of former Head of House, Charles Dart, after whom the Dart Room is named. Generations of past Manifold students were also in attendance, including Jacquetta Sloan (Chirnside, M’75), one of the few girls who had been a student in Manifold House during the early years of co-education. Visit the Alumni page of the School website to discover more about the history of Manifold House.
LIGHT BLUE - GEELONG GRAMMAR SCHOOL