Tupou College is a Methodist boys' secondary boarding school in Toloa on the island of Tongatapu

Tongatapu

Tongatapu is the main island of the Kingdom of Tonga and the location of its capital Nukualofa. It is located in Tonga's southern island group, to which it gives its name, and is the country's most populous island, with approximately 71,260 residents , 70.5% of the national population...

, Tonga

Tonga

Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...

.It is located on the Eastern District of Tongatapu near the village of Malapo. The school is owned by the Free Weslyan Church of Tonga. Established in 1866 by James Egan Moulton

James Egan Moulton

James Egan Moulton was an English born Australian Methodist minister and headmaster and school president.-Early life:...

, it claims to be the oldest secondary school in the Pacific Islands. Enrolment is some 1,000 pupils. Tupou College was first established at Nuku'alofa at the location on which Queen Salote College stands today. From there it moved to Nafualu, Sia'atoutai on the site where Sia'atoutai Theological College now stands. In 1948, the school last moved to Toloa in the Eastern District of Tongatapu where it still stands today.

Missionary A. Harold Wood

A. Harold Wood

Rev. Dr A. Harold Wood OBE was a 20th-century Australian churchman, educator, writer, hymnologist and advocate of church union.Born Alfred Harold Wood in Geelong on 4 May 1896, the son of Salvation Army officers, Wood was educated in Sydney...

 was Principal from 1924 to 1937, during which time the school expanded from 30 students to almost 400. The first Tongan principal of the school was Rev. Sione Siupeli Taiamoni Taliai who was principal from 1970-1979.

The College has a 750 acres (3 km²) campus, on which crops of vegetables and fruit are grown. This includes an area of forest noted in Tonga as the Toloa Rainforest Reserve containing a variety of plant species endemic to Tonga as well as those no longer found in other parts of the kingdom. The forest is far smaller in size today then when they first moved there because of the construction of the airport, University of the Nations at Lafalafa and clearance for extra farmland. Tree planting projects have been carried out in the previous years within the forest to ensure the survival and continuous growth of the unique species found at Toloa.

Notable alumni

• Taufa'ahau Tupou IV
  Taufa'ahau Tupou IV
  Tāufaāhau Tupou IV, King of Tonga, GCMG, GCVO, KBE, KStJ son of Queen Sālote Tupou III and her consort Prince Viliami Tungī Mailefihi, was the king of Tonga from the death of his mother in 1965 until his own death in 2006...
  
   , Late King of Tonga reigning from 1967–2006
• Viliami Tangi
  Viliami Tangi
  Dr Viliami Ta’u Tangi, styled Lord Tangi of Vaonukonuka is a Tongan politician and former Cabinet Minister. He has previously served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health....
  
   , Former Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister
• Willie Ofahengaue , professional Australian rugby union
  Rugby union
  Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
  
   player
• Saimone Taumoepeau
  Saimone Taumoepeau
  Saimone Taumoepeau is a professional rugby union player in France.-Career:Born in Tonga, Taumoepeau emigrated to New Zealand at the age of 20. Taumoepeau was a shock selection in the 2004 end-of-year All Blacks squad after having only made his debut that season in provincial rugby's Air New...
  
   , professional New Zealand rugby union
  Rugby union
  Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
  
   player

Education

The school trains students in Christian discipleship through programs of worship, study, work and recreation. They stay within the campus from Saturdays to Fridays. All students are required to stay within the campus; the only exception being those possessing medical problems and difficulties.

The normal routine involves school from 8:45am till 3:00pm, work in the school gardens till 5:00pm with further extra hours of study from 7:00pm till 9:00pm. The boys sleep from 9:30pm to 6:30. The school focuses on the discipline of students to prepare them for life as men in the modern Tongan society. The school treats all students equally though the Tongan culture states that nobles and royals must be treated with special respect.

School grades are from forms 1-7 (Year 7-13) including two technical classes where students learn engineering, motor repair, carpentry, metalwork,electrical engineering and art & design.

Students are also required to make some from a variety of Tongan Handicrafts including: polished coconut shells( for kava drinking ) and kafa (waist ropes to hold ta'ovala). It is from this that students learn the art,traditional skills, and culture of Tonga also benefiting the school as it is sold in the college's annual bazaar.

Curriculum

As most schools in Tonga do, Tupou College follows the curriculum of the Tongan Ministry of Education which is based on the New Zealand Curriculum. Technical classes also offer courses where students can continue in New Zealand giving them a better opportunity for a better career in the future.

Magazine

Tupou College has a magazine published annually to record events and participation in the school. It is known as the "Ko e Havea Magazine".

Principals

Before 1970, all of Tupou College's principals were Australian and were assigned to work in Tonga as missionaries. It was only in 1970 that Tupou College received its first Tongan principal, Rev. Siupeli T. Taliai, who served as principal for nine years; from 1970-1979.

Principal	Years
Rev.Dr.James Egan Moulton James Egan Moulton James Egan Moulton was an English born Australian Methodist minister and headmaster and school president.-Early life:...	1866-1888
Rev.James Egan Moulton Jr	1895-1905
Rev. Charles P. Walkden Brown	1906-1908
Rev.Rodger C.G. Page	1909-1915
Rev.Dr.E.E.V.Collocott	1916-1923
Rev.Dr.Alfred Harold Wood	1924-1937
Rev.Cecil F. Grimble	1939-1943
Rev.Eban.E.V. Newman	1944-1947
Rev. Ronald A.W. Woodgate	1948-1951
Rev. Howard W. Secomb	1951-1963
Rev. John Sutton	1964-1967
Rev. Siupeli T. Taliai	1970-1979
Rev. Dr. Tevita Tongamohenoa Puloka	1980-1984
Rev. David Mills	1985-1989
Rev. Sione Hikaione Fonua	1990-1994
Rev.Dr.'Asinate Samate	1995
Rev.Siosaia Pele	1996-1997
Rev.Dr.Tevita Hala Palefau	1998-2001
Rev.Dr.'Asinate Samate	2002-2003
Rev. Tu'ipulotu Malakai Pomana	2003-2004
Rev.Dr.Fisi'ihoi Mone	2005-

House System

The campus has 12 dormitories for the boys to stay in. These dormitories are each named after major contributors to the Free Wesleyan Church noted for the work they've done in the upbringing of Christianity in Tonga. They are:

1. John Thomas
   John Thomas
   -Education:* John Martin Thomas , Twelfth president of Rutgers University* John R. Thomas , American intellectual property professor- Military history :* John Thomas , American general in the American Revolutionary War...
   
    (noted for the establishment of the Wesleyan church in Tonga)
2. Harold Wood
   Harold Wood
   Harold Wood is a place in the London Borough of Havering, east London, England.It is a suburban development situated east-northeeast of Charing Cross...
   
    (after Rev.A.Harold Wood- former principal of the school)
3. Tevita Tonga
4. Rodger Page (after Rev.Rodger Page)
5. Kau Ta'e'iloa
6. 'Aho'eitu (after Siaosi Manumataongo ʻAlaivahamamaʻo ʻAhoʻeitu Konstantin Tukuʻaho- an ex-student)
7. Sau Faupula
8. John Wesley
   John Wesley
   John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
   
   (the founder of the Methodist Church on which the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga is based)
9. Ronald Woodgate (after Rev.Ronald Woodgate- former principal)
10. 'Alofaina
11. Meleke Fonua - used by the school athletes and senior rugby team
12. Sione Havea - used by students preparing for government examinations.

Museum

Tukuaho Memorial Museum/ Ko e Misiume Fakamanatu O Tukuaho is a small museum in the campus which houses many important Tongan artifacts given to the museum by the Tongan royal family as well as artifacts showing the history of the college. Admission is free and visitors may contact the school to visit as the museum is only open by appointment.