A Peter Waite legacy, Urrbrae Agricultural High School south of Adelaide strong on tech, environmental courses

Urrbrae Agricultural High School's first female students were in 1972, with genders equal at first-year level by 2002.
Image courtesy Urrbrae Agricultural High School .

Urrbrae Agricultural High School was founded in 1913 as part of bequest by South Australian pastoralist Peter Waite. It was in the Adelaide southern suburb of Netherby, next to Adelaide University’s Waite Agricultural Research Institute, the CSIRO (commonwealth scientific and industrial research organisation) and other agricultural and horticultural institutes started by Waite, the university and the South Australian government.

Founded as a school to teach agriculture to boys, Urrbrae high school in 1972 enrolled its first two female students and, by 2002, had a first year-level equal in both genders.

It started as South Australia’s only comprehensive special interest agricultural secondary school with courses are strongly focused on agriculture, horticulture, viticulture, aquaculture and environmental subjects. Kangaroo Inn Area School, Lucindale Area School and Renmark High School also gained special interest programmes in primary industries and rural operations.

Urrbrae also had a strong science and technology background, with extensive technology workshops, and many related courses (for example, environmental and automotive technology). It also offered education programmes for adults and had a TAFE (technical and further education) campus. Urrbrae Agricultural High School was not zoned and had students from all over the state.

The campus included a 35-hectare farm (total size including farm, wetland, school and TAFE was 45 hectares). The farm’s enterprises included sheep, horses, an orchard, bees, alpacas, marsupial area (including native Australian animals, such as wallabies, nocturnal species, lizards and snakes), goats, vineyard, olive trees, an extensive wetland and pigs.

The years 10, 11 and 12 students were involved in wine making, and with parents' permission, could sample their own wine. Students also were able to make other produce, like butter and yoghurt, through agriculture studies. These included practical lessons during the week, where students had hands-on parts in all the school’s enterprises. Activities included grooming and caring for the animals, and making butter, olive oil, and dried fruit from the school orchard and vineyard. In Year 8, students did a home project where they cared for an animal or a plant, and recorded their experiences.

Students also made vegetable gardens (silverbeet, carrots, cabbages, beetroot, broccoli, olive trees, cauliflower etc.) and could take home or sell the produce they grew.