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Chapter Five Another Successful Planting
CHAPTER FIVE
ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL PLANTING
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28th January 1987. The first day of Trinity Lutheran College Ashmore was celebrated with a service in the hall of Trinity Lutheran Primary School conducted by Pastor Roly Nuske, and the Headmaster and teachers were installed by Pastor Tom Reuther, the National Director for Lutheran Schools. There were 63 students in two classes, 42 girls and 21 boys.
The new school was a guest on the campus of Trinity Lutheran Primary School until its new buildings were ready for occupation. Office space was provided for Headmaster Peter Nitschke, and one end of the hall was set up as two classrooms, equipped with pin-board screens and mobile whiteboards. The primary school easels provided the only Art facility. Home Economics classes and Science classes with a practical element were conducted in the canteen. Sports facilities and play spaces were shared with the primary students. The availability of the swimming pool was a luxury not to be achieved for some years on the college site. Timetables were adjusted to ease the pressure on play spaces and toilet facilities. There was a constant need for creative solutions to difficulties and for tolerance and understanding by all parties. It was difficult to create among the college students a sense of their separate and special identity. Yet for the 26 students who had come from Trinity Primary it was familiar territory, and both students and teachers adapted well to the trying circumstances.
In addition to the appointed teachers, Pastors Sam Simpfendorfer and Roly Nuske provided chaplaincy services and the teaching of Christian Knowledge, assisted by Vicar Michael Steicke. Mrs Margaret Nitschke worked as the part-time teachers’ aide.
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Mrs Margaret Nitschke, teachers’ aide A temporary classroom space with teacher Bronwyn Dolling
An Education Department school inspector visited the school early in March, and on 31st March Trinity Lutheran College was granted approved status by the Department.
The pioneer students were a diverse group. Apart from those who came from Trinity Lutheran Primary School, many were not known to each other. A major task for the first year was to weld them into a cohesive group with an understanding of the principles and values of the new school, without the guidance of older students. Within the first month, at the end of February, a week-long camp was held at Camp Bornhoffen. In spite of constant rain, it achieved its aims of building a school identity, helping students to know each other, and become a cohesive student body.
The school motto was Maturitas in Christo – To maturity in Christ. The theme of growth and development in every aspect of the students’ lives became a common theme in reports, speeches, and exhortations from both the Headmaster and the Chairman of College Council. It was pleasing that in spite of the early difficulties, there was clear evidence of that growth as the year progressed. Firm discipline, cooperative behaviour, hard work and Christian living were instilled, regardless of which site the college was operating on. Opportunities arose very quickly for students to represent and identify publicly with their new school through sport. The Hinterland District Sports Association was formed, which provided Wednesday afternoon interschool sporting competition among six Christian schools. Bronwyn Dolling coached a netball team in a Saturday community competition.
As the year progressed there was competition among Lutheran schools in swimming, athletics, crosscountry. At the first of these, swimming, in early March, the Under 13 boys’ team, from a school just five weeks old, won its division, and the college came third in the only division it could compete in. It was a promise of a strength in swimming and water sports which was to emerge strongly as the college grew. Trinity also sent competitors to inter-Lutheran competitions in chess and public speaking. A debating team competed in three rounds against three other schools.
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Rugby A wide range of sports became quickly available
Rugby Debating team
1987 Netball team
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House competition became a strong element in school life
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Within the college there were also activities which could involve every student. Three houses were formed for competition across a range of activity. Students and teachers shared the task of choosing house names and colours, a task which was completed late in May. The selected house names were the names in the local aboriginal language of some of the wildlife which was so prolific on the Ashmore Road site. Each house flag depicted the animal whose name became the house name: Karowmin (kangaroo) red; Booribi (koala) blue; Yowgara (goanna) gold.
The house system became a feature of the life and student activity which flourished in the years ahead. The goal was maximum student involvement, and student loyalty to their houses was marked. The houses also provided a structure for the pastoral care of students, with care groups established within the houses. The end of year announcement of the house results was keenly anticipated. Competition was organised in three areas, and house shields were donated by college supporters for achievement in different activities: academic (Hoff Trophy), sporting (Mackenzie Trophy) and cultural (Kleinschmidt Trophy). School families donated house trophies for swimming (Beveridge Trophy) and athletics (Kent Trophy). The Caldwell Cup was awarded to the house with the highest aggregate results across all categories. In 1990 house working bees were introduced with students working beside their parents at the Saturday events.
While the school was still operating on the primary school campus, there was energetic activity on the Ashmore Road site. Saturday working bees were a feature of the first years of the college. Peter Nitschke revealed a talent for motivating and organising the already enthusiastic parent body and their achievements gradually transformed the site.
Dr David Caldwell presents the Caldwell Cup Mr Robert Hoff presents the Hoff Trophy
Mrs Moira Kleinschmidt presents the Kleinschmidt Trophy Mr Robin Mackenzie presents the Mackenzie Trophy
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Working bees can be fun Not just men’s work They can also be exhausting
The timber and brick amphitheatre built by early volunteers is now integrated into the modern landscaping
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Among the first tasks was the removal of the last of the material which had been dumped on the site over many years. Former TLPS parents brought with them the enthusiasm, camaraderie and loyalty which had characterised years of Primary School working bees. Sausage sizzle lunches were both a reward and a motivator.
The working bees began in March, so that basic landscaping had begun even before the first building was complete. The commitment of parents who had enrolled their children in a school without buildings or facilities generated confidence and hope and deserves to be remembered with gratitude and commended. Not only did they give their time and physical labour but also many generous gifts in kind to supplement the basic facilities the new school could afford. One father who had a contract to construct seating for EXPO 88 in Brisbane used the same method and materials to provide the tiered seating in the front car park.
Much of the landscaping material was donated. A mini amphitheatre was constructed to provide an outdoor meeting venue, and timber on the site was shaped with chain saws to provide temporary outdoor seating. Trees, shrubs, and other plantings were often provided by the workers free of charge. The distinctive row of poinciana trees between the main entrance road and the oval are a lasting testimony to the fathers and family members who prepared the site and planted them and many others. By 1989 several working bees attracted more than 100 willing workers. Continuing for several years, the working bees not only made
significant improvements to the developing grounds but also formed bonds of friendship and camaraderie, cemented loyalty to the college, and generated pride in its development.
The basic earthworks for the oval were completed in April, but the surface was not yet suitable for use. Emu parades were a common event to remove rubble in preparation for seeding. They continued into 1988. Parents and College Council members were among the groups who walked the oval in lines picking up sticks and stones. On Thursday afternoons students would do an emu parade before PE lessons or team games, carrying buckets or large plastic pots to carry away stones and clods. The progress to the beautifully grassed surface of today began with very low-tech methods.
A red-letter day came during the mid-year holidays. The school moved into the new buildings on the Ashmore Road campus with assistance from Trinity Lutheran Primary School, and classes there began on 22nd July, the beginning of Term 3. It was a strange and exciting time. Teachers relished the privacy of their own classrooms and additional teaching spaces, and students enjoyed having their own campus, even though they missed the mature playgrounds and established gardens, and access to a swimming pool and specialist sports facilities.
Regular emu parades cleared sticks and stone The top oval, a grassed playing space, was created high on the ridge
Earthworks for the main oval The first buildings almost ready for occupation
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In the absence of those other facilities, the students had to find alternative ways of entertaining themselves. So began the era of cubby houses. The bush was full of suitable materials, and many a father’s shed was raided for tools, nails, and screws. Ranging from very simple to elaborate two-storeyed structures, the cubby houses provided a valuable outlet for youthful ingenuity and creativity. The headmaster added the task of building inspector to his long list of duties.
As the years passed, many of these activities and events became unnecessary or inappropriate, or faded away. The kangaroos, wallabies, koalas, goannas, and white cockatoos which shared the campus with the original students and staff were finally driven away by loss of habitat. More organised and safer activities than cubby house building became available. A well-equipped canteen and a flourishing Hospitality program make Taco Wednesday obsolete. The expanded oval has a beautiful grass cover tended by professional staff. But these and other similar features of the early years live on as pioneering memories.
The contract for Stage 1B was let in March to Small and Coates, so that for a time two contractors were on site together. Stage 1B, which added three more classrooms ready for 1988, was constructed without a Commonwealth government capital grant.
Early in October two important events took place on consecutive weekends. On Friday 6th October the Stage 1 buildings were dedicated by Pastor Roly Nuske. A number of memorial dedications were associated with this ceremony. The three classrooms were named as memorials to Mr Doug Jennings MLA, an early advocate and keen supporter of the college who had recently died, to Georgina Hall, and to Dr Bronwyn Kleinig. An altar and lectern for the temporary worship area were donated and dedicated as a memorial to Mrs Anne Kleinschmidt.
Sunday 11th November was the day of the official opening and dedication of Trinity Lutheran College, although it had been in operation for eight months. A congregation of 600 people witnessed the opening by Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen MLA, Premier of Queensland (and a close relative of the Chairman of the College Council Dr David Caldwell), and the dedication by Pastor Paul Renner, President of the LCAQD. The preacher was Pastor Tom Reuther, National Director for Lutheran Schools.
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Cubby houses Pastor Roly Nuske dedicated Stage 1
The Headmaster and the Premier, Hon. J Bjelke-Petersen MLA A student reads the scripture
Pastors Tom Reuther and Paul Renner with student acolytes Mr Ian Louttit
In 1988 the rapid pace of development was maintained. With the enrolment more than doubling to 128, new teachers were: Mr Ian Louttit, a future Deputy Head, Mr Russell Gehling, the first specialist PE teacher, Mrs Mary Helbig and Mrs Sue Curran, creating a teaching staff of seven full-time and two part-time teachers. Planning for the Stage 2 buildings for 1989 proceeded and construction commenced at a cost of $950,000, of which $500,000 came from a Schools Commission capital grant. The project comprised three buildings: five general classrooms, permanent specialist buildings for Science and Home Economics and student amenities, including a canteen, which was to be operated by volunteer mothers three days a week. Multi-purpose courts which had been completed and surfaced in late 1987 were lined and ready for use. A bus shelter in the carpark had been funded by the Parents and Friends Association. After hours security was becoming an issue. A caravan had been placed on the grounds to provide accommodation for a live-in caretaker. Working bees focused on fencing the whole of the campus. Each step, small or large, marked progress toward a distant goal.
But in 1988 there was no canteen in which to make and sell lunches. Undeterred, a group of mothers implemented a plan. Beginning in March, every Wednesday was Taco Day. They made tacos and salad rolls at home and brought them to the college to provide one day of student and staff canteen lunches.
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Almost all the confirmation candidates were Trinity students Pastor Paul Smith, chaplain
Mr Robin Mackenzie, bursar Mr Louttit teaches a class in an uncompleted building
The tacos especially acquired such a reputation that no teachers ever brought their own lunches to school on Wednesday.
The range of student activities and achievements continued to expand. The first School Captains were appointed, Vanessa Trezise and Stuart Kath. A Student Representative Council was established. The Duke of Edinburgh scheme was introduced. Two netball teams and two basketball teams reached the finals in the HDSA sports competition, and the 14A girls’ basketball team won the first sports premiership for Trinity Lutheran College. Continuing the tradition of the primary school, the college presented the musical Oh Jonah in October, directed by Mrs Mary Helbig. The association with Trinity Lutheran Church, Southport was close and strong, and its Christian ministry and that of the college were powerful. At the confirmation service in June 1988, 21 of the 23 confirmees were students of Trinity Lutheran College, many of them from families new to the Lutheran church.
The demands of chaplaincy were too great for two parish pastors who were already fully engaged with other responsibilities. The LCA had a policy that a secondary school was eligible to call a pastor as chaplain when its enrolment reached 300. Trinity did not anticipate reaching this figure until 1990, but the urgency of the issue persuaded the College Council to apply for a chaplain for 1989. The request was
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granted and, in March, a search for a chaplain began. After three calls were sent and declined, in October the College Council requested the assignment of a graduate to the position. It was December before it was announced that newly graduated Pastor Paul Smith had been assigned to Trinity Lutheran College.
Two significant staffing decisions were made for 1989. As the administrative functions became more demanding, Mr Ian Louttit was appointed as Deputy Headmaster and Mr Robin Mackenzie as Bursar. He was an accountant with long experience and acknowledged skills in school finances, having served for many years as Treasurer of the College Council and on numerous church committees at the District and national level. The financial expertise he had brought to the College Council was now applied more directly to the day-to-day financial management of the college.
When the 1989 school year commenced, the college faced a familiar problem. Once again, the building program had been delayed by weather, and the increased enrolment of 234 students were crowded into the existing building for the first weeks. Some classes were held in the undercroft and in the shade of the trees, in the staff common room, in the carpark, and eventually in partly finished new rooms. It was Term 2 before the last of the new buildings, the Science laboratories, and classrooms, could be occupied. The new buildings were officially opened at a service on 23rd April by the Premier, the Hon Mike Ahern MLA. While these buildings were still under construction, the planning for Stage 3 had begun. This project was to provide three classrooms for Year 11 in 1990 and specialist facilities for Art and Graphics. The undercroft of the Science Block was to be enclosed to create four classrooms. Operable walls would allow the space to be used for whole school assemblies as well as drama, choir, and band rehearsals. The space enabled Theatre to be added to the curriculum, and Culturefest could now be held on campus. Preliminary plans were approved by College Council at the end of 1988.
The pace of development was relentless. Already there were growing demands for improved facilities for Physical Education and sport, including improvement and maintenance of the oval. A tractor was purchased to assist the grounds staff. The construction of extensions to the changing rooms at a cost of $56,000 began in March, and they came into use during Term 3.
The Premier, Hon Mike Ahern MLA The Stage 2 plaque
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Pastor Simpfendorfer leads the choir and teacher procession
The choir sings The academic procession
There were concerns about the adequacy of the internal roads and the carpark. Other major extensions and improvements were completed in September, costing approximately $65,000. Landscaping of the challenging sloping site was ongoing. Air conditioning was installed in the administration offices. Plans for a residence for the new chaplain were submitted to the Gold Coast City Council in December 1988 and were subject to lengthy ongoing negotiation because the Council was reluctant to allow access from the northern boundary of the property.
Working drawings for the Stage 3 building program were completed, with a plan to commence construction in May 1990. The estimated cost was $720,000. A contract for $627,230 was signed in March
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1990 after the tender price of $729,230 was reduced by renegotiating the specifications and the scope of works. Accordingly, the Commonwealth Schools Commissions offer of a capital grant of $290,000 was reduced by $22,000. The building was opened by the Hon Wayne Goss MLA, Premier of Queensland, on 28th April 1991. The dedication was performed by Pastor P Renner, President of the LCAQD.
Hard on the heels of this project was Stage 4. The library had been operating temporarily in a space under the Home Economics block. The brief for Stage 4, which included a new library, the administration building, and staff offices, was presented to the architect in October 1989. The capital grant application was ready to lodge by April 1990. In spite of all this planning, a transportable building was needed and was set up for use in 1990.
Work had been done on the possibility of forming a Foundation to enhance the financial stability of the growing college. A constitution was prepared and in October 1989 the Trinity Lutheran College Foundation Ltd was incorporated and registered. Careful financial control and planning were certainly essential during this period of frenetic development, not least
Pastor Glen Schultz and the outdoor congregation Pastor Paul Renner, the Premier Hon. Wayne Goss MLA, Dr David
The congregation
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because of the external economic environment. At the beginning of 1990 the college was paying bank interest of 15.9% on its bills and capital loans, and further rises to 18% were to come. The Foundation was able to lend to the college at a substantially lower rate.
It was in 1989 that the P&C Association organised the first college fete, Trinity A,fair, the precursor of many such successful events. Another long-lasting tradition began with the first Culturefest, which included four plays and performances by the College Chorale and an instrumental ensemble. For many years it was a vehicle for the college students to present to a wider public a range of drama, music, and art, usually including a full-length play. As the drama and music programs developed, Culturefest grew to three nights of performances. The tradition of excellence in live drama which has persisted to the present day was developing, and there were many memorable performances. The 1990 school year began with an enrolment of 333 students and thirty teachers, with the expanded curriculum offerings required for the 65 Year 11 students. Ian Louttit added careers guidance to his administrative responsibilities as Deputy. Among the new teachers who joined the teaching staff were Mr Derek Bartels, who was to guide the college to innovation and excellence in computing and information technology, and Mr Wayne Butlin, who remains at the college today as a curriculum leader and its longest serving teacher. In 1991 Derek Bartels organised the first Battle of the Bands, establishing a strong and lasting tradition.
There was a concern within the LCA about the extent to which the schools of the church were incurring huge debts and financial risks, while the growth in the number and size of schools and colleges reduced the proportion of Lutheran students and made it difficult to recruit Lutheran staff, especially teachers. In its
The early Battle of the Bands
Pastor Tim Jaensch and Senator Coulston Senator Mal Coulston Headmaster Peter Eckermann
1990 statistical returns Trinity Lutheran College was able to report that 46% of its students were from Lutheran families, and that 45% of its teachers were Lutheran. The figures reflected the close connection to the local congregations as well as the clear intention of the Headmaster and College Council to create an identifiably Lutheran school.
Another study on the potential risks from the power lines had been commissioned in 1989. The report was inconclusive – no convincing evidence either for or against, but it was an ongoing issue. When plans were drawn up in 1990 for a second smaller oval on the eastern extremity of the campus, SEQEB, the electricity authority, required the level of the playing surface to be lowered by one metre because the power lines passed over part of the new oval. The new oval was financed by the P&C Association by means of a bank loan of $175,000 guaranteed by the college. Together with four new multi-purpose courts, it came into use in 1991.
1991 was a special year for Trinity Lutheran College. With a full complement of classes in Years 8 to 12 catering for 424 students, the college was advancing towards maturity. Of the 67 Year 12 students, some would complete the full twelve years of their schooling at the two Trinity schools. The first Year 12 College Captains, Stuart Kath, and Kristen Rietschel, were supported by seven prefects, with five more added later. All Senior students were accorded a special status.
The constant building program continued with the acceptance in April of the tender of $850,000 for Stage 4, including air conditioning and roadworks. The major portion of the project was the administration building. The Commonwealth Schools Commission offered a capital grant of $90,000. The building was ready for occupation early in Term 4 and was officially opened by Senator Mal Coulston and dedicated on 12th June 1992 by Pastor T Jaensch, Vice-President of the LCAQD. This was the last of the four stages envisaged in the original planning and no other major construction was in view, although a number of smaller projects would continue. These included a workshop for the grounds and maintenance staff and expanded bus stop seating funded by the Student Representative Council.
THE FIGURES REFLECTED THE CLOSE CONNECTION TO THE LOCAL CONGREGATIONS AS WELL AS THE CLEAR INTENTION TO CREATE AN IDENTIFIABLY LUTHERAN SCHOOL.
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The building Official guests and the choir
Improvements to the main entrance on Ashmore Road were being discussed. Improvements to the college entry from and exit to Ashmore Road would be a constant subject of planning, debate, and construction for many years.
Increased numbers required more support. Discussion had begun late in 1990 on the need for a second chaplain. There was a concern that both the chaplain Paul Smith and the Living Word Pastor Glen Schultz were under stress from work overload. There was a desire to build stronger relationships between the college and the congregation and discussions were held with the Parish Council about the option of appointing a lay school-relator to the parish ministry team. However, the teaching of Christian Studies by a pastor was regarded as a higher priority, and at the beginning of 1991 the College Council applied for the right to call another pastor. Approval was received in September and the calling process began.
During 1991 Ms Bronwyn Dolling was appointed as the second Deputy Head, with responsibility for curriculum and student welfare. The curriculum offerings were expanded by the addition of Dance, with plans to offer Music and Legal Studies in the Senior years from 1992. Trinity joined several other Gold Coast schools in a scheme to enrol full fee-paying overseas students (FFPOS), limited to three in 1992.
Student life, activity and achievement were thriving, both in the classrooms and beyond them. In HDSA winter sports alone, Trinity won five premierships. In many respects the college was consolidating itself as a complete and successful secondary school. But at another level serious issues were arising. Early in the year there was a concern about the loss of some students, with a consequent need for more aggressive marketing. Open conflict with some parents emerged in April over the issue of the end-of-year celebrations for the first graduating class. After discussions between an external mediation group and the college administration team, the conditions for a formal valedictory dinner were agreed upon.
The discontent among some parents did not settle, however, and relationships continued to deteriorate. After several meetings attempting mediation, the situation came to a climax at a meeting of the College Council on 1st October. Dr David Caldwell resigned as chairman of College Council and was replaced by Mr David Bird. The Council then decided to request the immediate resignation of the Headmaster, Peter Nitschke.
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Ms Bronwyn Dolling Mr David Bird
The College Council acknowledged that he had given to the college more than five years of hard work, the complete dedication of his time and abilities, educational leadership, and strong Christian commitment, and had brought the college through its pioneering phase to a position of strength and confidence. But the Council believed that the ongoing conflicts and concerns within the parent community about the Headmaster’s “style and management of leadership” were undermining these achievements.
This decision was devastating for the headmaster and his family, but the pain and trauma arising from it also affected the College Council members and every other part of the school community. Sides were taken, some parents offering the headmaster strong support. Members of the executive of the P&C Association resigned in protest. The students and those who were not party to the conflicts were bewildered. Some staff were divided in their loyalties. The whole community experienced shock, confusion, and uncertainty. There was some anger and resentment. It was a sad conclusion to five years of strong leadership and positive school growth. The college had lost not only its founding Headmaster in traumatic circumstances, but also the founding chairman of the College Council. The drive and energy of both had been crucial to the college’s foundation and progress. Mrs Wynsomme Biskaps, the Headmaster’s secretary, who had given sterling service for more than five years, also resigned.
Concordia College in Toowoomba offered the services of its Deputy Headmaster, Mr Peter Eckermann, for the remainder of the school year and, by the end of November, the College Council had offered him the role of Acting Headmaster for the whole of 1992. The last two months of the school year continued routinely. The first graduation dinner proceeded, only two days after the Headmaster’s resignation, the graduating Year 12 class donating a permanent trophy for Dux of the College. Chaplain Pastor Paul Smith accepted a call to a parish in South Australia, another sad farewell. Two calls to the chaplaincy were issued and declined. The year finished with notes of sadness, tension, and incompleteness. It was not the end which the college expected and hoped for after its first five busy, successful, and exciting pioneering years.
