Fort Street High School | |
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Address | |
Paramatta Road Petersham, NSW, 2049 Australia |
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Coordinates | 33°53′24″S 151°9′10″E / 33.89000°S 151.15278°ECoordinates: 33°53′24″S 151°9′10″E / 33.89000°S 151.15278°E |
Information | |
Type | Public, Selective, Day |
Motto |
Latin: Faber est suae quisque fortunae (Every man is the maker of his own fortune) |
Established | 1849 |
School code | 8504 |
Principal | Roslyn Moxham |
Deputy Principals | Joel Morrison Karen Di Stefano |
Staff | 62 (teaching) 13 (non-teaching) |
Years | 7–12 |
Gender | Co-educational |
Enrolment | 941 (2015) |
Campus | Petersham |
Campus type | Urban |
Colour(s) | Maroon & White |
Alumni | Fortians |
Website | Fort Street web site |
For the primary school of similar name see Fort Street Public School
Fort Street High School is a co-educational, academically selective, public high school currently located at Petersham, an inner western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Established in 1849, it is the oldest government high school in Australia, and today, it remains a public school operated by the New South Wales Department of Education and Communities (DEC). As a prominent selective school, it draws students from across metropolitan Sydney.
To avoid confusion due to the school's history of separation, amalgamation, and eventually, its relocation; the present school is designated Fort Street High School, Petersham for official government purposes.
The school's motto is Faber est suae quisque fortunae (Latin for "To each craftsman is his own fortune," commonly paraphrased as "Every man is the maker of his own fortune"), a phrase attributed to the ancient Roman Appius Claudius Caecus.
Fort Street High School has a sister school, Suginami Sogo High School, in Tokyo, Japan.
In 2010 The Age reported that Fort Street High School ranked equal fourth among Australian schools based on the number of alumni who had received a top Order of Australia honour.
The history of public education in Australia began when the Governor of New South Wales Charles FitzRoy established a Board of National Education on 8 January 1848 to implement a national system of education throughout the colony. The board decided to create two model schools, one for boys and one for girls. The site of Fort Street Model School was chosen as the old Military Hospital at Fort Phillip, on Sydney's Observatory Hill. This school was not only intended to educate boys and girls, but also to serve as a model for other schools in the colony. The school's name is derived from the name of a street which ran into the grounds of the hospital and became part of the playground during its reconstruction. The street name is perpetuated in the small street in Petersham that leads to the present school.