Dilworth School
Encyclopedia
Dilworth School is an independent (private) full boarding school
for boys in Auckland
, New Zealand
. All the boys attending are on full scholarships covering all education and boarding costs, as the school is owned and operated by a charitable trust.
He and his wife Isabella had no children of their own and left their wealth to establish a school with a goal of educating sons of people from the top two-thirds of the North Island who had suffered some family misfortune and were unable to afford the education they wanted their children to have.
The school opened in 1906 with eight boys and for the first 21 years offered primary education only. Secondary boys at that time boarded at the school but attended Auckland Grammar School during the day. The original school buildings were Dilworth’s old farm homestead and outbuildings. Classrooms and other buildings were added later.
A secondary department was built in 1931. A major expansion started in 1956, the 50th anniversary, with the foundation stone being laid for St Patrick’s Chapel. The total roll when that phase of the expansion was completed some five years later, was 300.
The next major jump in numbers was in 1993 when the present Junior Campus was built to accommodate 192 boys. This brought the total roll of both campuses to 510 covering Year 5 to Year 13.
Dilworth has four houses representing places and counties in Ireland - Tyrone, Dungannon, Donegal and Armagh.
Dilworth is organised on two separate campuses. The Senior campus is situated on Great South Road between Market Road and Erin Street with Mt St John Avenue to the south and Diocesan School for Girls to the west.
The Junior campus is on the eastern side of the motorway between Market Road, the motorway and Omahu Road in Remuera.
A new campus is due to open on the school 'Founders' Day' in 2012 after the Trust Board purchased the liquidated hotel and spa, Hotel du Vin. The campus — on 15ha grounds in Mangatawhiri, south of Auckland — is large enough to accommodate another 100 students with room to grow if needed.
The original endowment of 100,000 pounds left in 1894 by James Dilworth in his will has been invested wisely since then and now has grown to a diversified portfolio of investments. The Board still invests predominantly in property, and in particular, in the locality around the School but does hold a number of other investments including shares and bonds, both in New Zealand and overseas. The trust now holds approximately $400 million in assets and cash.
The beneficiaries of this trust are the boys who attend the School. The Board are precluded from assisting any other cause, however worthy it may be, and so this leads to a very focused Board and staff.
A duty of the Board is the granting and withdrawal of scholarships. Whilst staff provide significant input to the process, the final selection remains with the Trustees.
Boarding school
A boarding school is a school where some or all pupils study and live during the school year with their fellow students and possibly teachers and/or administrators. The word 'boarding' is used in the sense of "bed and board," i.e., lodging and meals...
for boys in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. All the boys attending are on full scholarships covering all education and boarding costs, as the school is owned and operated by a charitable trust.
History
Dilworth School was founded under the terms of the will of an Auckland farmer and businessman, Irish born James Dilworth who died in 1894.He and his wife Isabella had no children of their own and left their wealth to establish a school with a goal of educating sons of people from the top two-thirds of the North Island who had suffered some family misfortune and were unable to afford the education they wanted their children to have.
The school opened in 1906 with eight boys and for the first 21 years offered primary education only. Secondary boys at that time boarded at the school but attended Auckland Grammar School during the day. The original school buildings were Dilworth’s old farm homestead and outbuildings. Classrooms and other buildings were added later.
A secondary department was built in 1931. A major expansion started in 1956, the 50th anniversary, with the foundation stone being laid for St Patrick’s Chapel. The total roll when that phase of the expansion was completed some five years later, was 300.
The next major jump in numbers was in 1993 when the present Junior Campus was built to accommodate 192 boys. This brought the total roll of both campuses to 510 covering Year 5 to Year 13.
Dilworth has four houses representing places and counties in Ireland - Tyrone, Dungannon, Donegal and Armagh.
Campus
The Junior campus is on the eastern side of the motorway between Market Road, the motorway and Omahu Road in Remuera.
A new campus is due to open on the school 'Founders' Day' in 2012 after the Trust Board purchased the liquidated hotel and spa, Hotel du Vin. The campus — on 15ha grounds in Mangatawhiri, south of Auckland — is large enough to accommodate another 100 students with room to grow if needed.
Trust Board
The Dilworth Trust Board is one of New Zealand's largest charities and provides the funding to support the Dilworth School.The original endowment of 100,000 pounds left in 1894 by James Dilworth in his will has been invested wisely since then and now has grown to a diversified portfolio of investments. The Board still invests predominantly in property, and in particular, in the locality around the School but does hold a number of other investments including shares and bonds, both in New Zealand and overseas. The trust now holds approximately $400 million in assets and cash.
The beneficiaries of this trust are the boys who attend the School. The Board are precluded from assisting any other cause, however worthy it may be, and so this leads to a very focused Board and staff.
A duty of the Board is the granting and withdrawal of scholarships. Whilst staff provide significant input to the process, the final selection remains with the Trustees.
Curriculum
The school curriculum is to provide an academic education by offering subjects that satisfy the seven learning areas of the New Zealand Framework.Notable alumni
- Dr Michael BassettMichael BassettMichael Edward Rainton Bassett, QSO is a former Labour Party member of the New Zealand House of Representatives and cabinet minister in the reformist fourth Labour government...
- historian and former Cabinet Minister - Sir David BeattieDavid Beattie-External links:*...
- former Governor General of New Zealand - Mike Moore ONZ - former Prime Minister of New Zealand and former Director-General of the World Trade Organization