# Goondiwindi State High School

Goondiwindi State High School is a public co-educational secondary school, located in Goondiwindi, Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. The school is administered by the Queensland Department of Education.

## Name

"Gundawindi", the name of the town the school was located in, and thereby the school itself, was derived from the "Gundawindi pastoral run" (c.1838), which in turn was thought to be derived from an expression used by the local Indigenous Australian community referring to 'wild duck' or a 'resting place for birds'.

## History

Community advocacy for a dedicated secondary school in Goondiwindi commenced in 1960. The then Queensland Education Minister, Jack Pizzey, at the "State Rural School 1960" speech night, promised “a brand new high school for Goondiwindi when secondary enrolments reached 100, provided 10 students were prepared to continue into senior schooling level”. In the following year this target was achieved, with the school achieving 107 enrolments with 10 students pledging to continue to the senior years. The school was one of the numerous civic improvements to occur in Goondiwindi between the 1920s and 1960s, opening on 28 January 1964, with an enrolment of 178 students by February the very same year.
On 19-20 September 2014, the school celebrated its 50th Anniversary.
The school's Trade Skills Centre was opened in 2016. It provides education in engineering and agriculture, reflecting the economy of the local area.

## Administration

As of 2024, the school has a teaching staff of 41 and a non-teaching staff of 24. The current principal is Brett Hallett who has been in this position since 2009. The prior principals have been:
Past Principals :
| Tenure | Tenure | Principal | Ref |
| Initial | Final | Principal | Ref |
| 1964 | 1965 | W. Goosens | |
| 1966 | 1968 | Alf Garrone | |
| 1969 | 1970 | A. Matthews | |
| 1971 | 1971 | A. Whitmee | |
| 1972 | 1975 | Barry Thomson | |
| 1976 | 1977 | Dennis Fredrickson | |
| 1978 | 1979 | Kel Barnes | |
| 1980 | 1985 | David Cassidy | |
| 1986 | 1987 | Ian Isaacs | |
| 1988 | 1989 | Leoll Barron | |
| 1990 | 1992 | Paul Tarbuck | |
| 1992 | 1994 | Gary Chew | |
| 1994 | 2000 | Graham Jenkins | |
| 2001 | 2002 | Catherine O’Sullivan | |
| 2003 | 2008 | Alan Smith | |
| 2009 | 2009 | Dean Russell $^†$ | |
| 2009 | 2020 | Brett Hallett | |
† - Acting pricipal, for only semester one.

## Students

In its initial year (February 1964) the school had an enrolment of 178 students. As of 2024, the school has an enrolment of 500 students. The school serves students from Year 7 to Year 12.
Student enrolment trends :
| Year | Years | Years | Years | Years | Years | Years | Boys | Girls | Total | Ref |
| Year | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Boys | Girls | Total | Ref |
| 2009 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 238 | 245 | 483 | |
| 2010 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 234 | 236 | 470 | |
| 2011 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 238 | 229 | 467 | |
| 2013 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 221 | 233 | 454 | |
| 2014 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 232 | 245 | 477 | |
| 2015 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 246 | 285 | 531 | |
| 2016 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 253 | 273 | 526 | |
| 2017 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 248 | 250 | 498 | |
| 2018 | 81 | 80 | 88 | 80 | 54 | 77 | 237 | 223 | 460 | |
| 2019 | 91 | 82 | 85 | 78 | 80 | 49 | 241 | 224 | 465 | |
| 2020 | 79 | 95 | 90 | 76 | 76 | 72 | 265 | 223 | 488 | |
| 2021 | 77 | 91 | 97 | 90 | 68 | 65 | 268 | 220 | 488 | |
| 2022 | 84 | 84 | 90 | 99 | 81 | 60 | 260 | 238 | 498 | |
| 2023 | 92 | 86 | 78 | 97 | 85 | 67 | 264 | 241 | 505 | |
| 2024 | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | 258 | 242 | 500 | |
| 2025 | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | |