John Septimus Roe Anglican Community School (commonly abbreviated as ****JSRACS or JSR) is an independent Anglican co-educational primary and secondary day school, located in Perth, Western Australia. The school is named after notable West Australian and first Surveyor-General of Western Australia, John Septimus Roe. It is the largest school of the Anglican Schools Commission.

History

The first campus, originally named Thomas Scott Anglican Community School, was established in Beechboro in 1990 when it took over the old Northside Christian School at the request of the State Government. The second campus, located in Mirrabooka, was opened in 1992 and exists as a combined primary and secondary school campus. While in the beginning the two schools shared the same administration and school council, there existed a separate cultural identity. There was a rivalry between the primary schools' students, particularly in sporting events and the move to the upper school campus. As such in 1996, Thomas Scott Anglican Community School was renamed John Septimus Roe Anglican Community School to mark the new concept of "two campuses, one school". Principal Matthew Hughes placed great emphasis on the modernisation of the school's facilities throughout his term. For example, 2005 saw the completion of the updated Ken Evans Science Building, while saw 2007 the opening of the newly created Catherine O'Neill library, named in honour of the Foundation Principal of the school. Following this in 2008, the modernised ICT Centre completed its renovation, having formerly served as an administration building. This was followed by the new Middle School Learning Community in 2009 and a raft of new classrooms including the new 'Senior Learning Centre' for Year 11 and 12 students which was completed in 2014. In early 2012 the internal road system was finished, which was followed by the completion of the Chapel of St Paul's renovation, adding new facilities, a vestry and organ. In 2015, the Mathematics and Year 10 facility, 'D Block,' completed its redevelopment, and the central cafeteria was reopened after renovations. In February 2021, the school council announced plans detailing the merging of both campuses, with Beechboro set to cease operations at the conclusion of the 2022 school year. The partial redevelopment of the Mirrabooka Campus' facilities will accompany this, which will be seen in the form of a new early learning space, a secondary school block and heavily expanded, modernised primary school facilities. The original Beechboro campus was closed as planned after the 2022 school year, with its students, staff and resources all being amalgamated into the Mirrabooka campus. The previous Year 9 Learning Community was repurposed for Year 5 and Year 6 classes for the beginning of 2023. The new Michelle Bolt Early Learning Centre was opened for Semester 2, 2023, catering for Pre-Kindy and Kindy students. The previous building for those year levels was repurposed for Pre-Primary classes. The beginning of the 2024 school year saw the completion of the double-storey Bromilow Learning Centre, the replacement for D-Block. Now referred to as B-Block, it is the new home for Year 9 and Year 10 students as well as mathematics and languages classes. The adjoining amphitheatre, a new entrance to the Performing Arts Centre and the revamped Chapel court were also completed as part of the project. The names of both the Bromilow Learning Centre and the Michelle Bolt Early Learning Centre pay tribute to the names of facilities that once stood at the Beechboro Campus, the Michael Bromilow Centre (gymnasium) and the Michelle Bolt Library.

Campus

The school is now located at the one site in Mirrabooka, but for most of the school's history was a dual-campus school. The original campus at Beechboro catered for primary school students while the newer, larger campus in Mirrabooka ranges from kindergarten to Year 12. Each location had a school chapel: at Beechboro this was St Bede's Chapel, and at Mirrabooka, St Paul's. Both sites include canteens, libraries, oval spaces and gymnasiums.

Mirrabooka Campus

The Mirrabooka campus was the primary campus during the school's dual-campus era and is now the sole campus. Buildings include:

Beechboro Campus

The Beechboro campus formerly catered to students from pre-kindergarten to year 6. The campus was home to the Michael Bromilow Centre, which had a full-size basketball court, offices, change rooms, storage, and a kitchen. Permits for the construction of the Centre were first filed in 2007, with construction beginning soon after. The original Beechboro campus was closed at the conclusion of the 2022 school year, and the site was vacated in Term 1, 2023, with all students and staff relocating to Mirrabooka. The land was rezoned for residential use in early 2023, and all facilities were demolished in the later half of that year. Due to some public outcry, a few of the trees which were part of the campus were retained. This included a patch of Marri trees which were located behind the former gymnasium.

Curriculum

The primary school curriculum follows that imposed by the State Government, focusing on numeracy and literacy. Students in Years 7-10 must study Mathematics, English, Science, Humanities and Social Sciences, Health Education, Physical Education and Religious Education. During Years 7 and 8, students must study Trailblazer and either Indonesian or Chinese: Mandarin for one period a-week. A student also chooses four different electives which they study twice-a-week for one semester. These elective subjects are: In Year 9, students pick any two elective subjects that they study, twice-a-week for the whole year, alongside an into adult-hood program called The Rite Journey. These electives are the same as those above with the addition of Outdoor Education, Chinese: Mandarin, Indonesian and the school's Basketball Program. Study in the senior secondary years is reflective of the guidelines set down by the School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA). Year 10 students can pick 3 elective subjects to study out of: Accounting and Business, Applied Information Technology, Basketball, Children and Family Studies, Chinese, Computer Science, Dance, Drama, Engineering, Food and Technology, Indonesian, Materials Design and Technology: Metal, Materials Design and Technology: Wood, Media Studies, Outdoor Education, Physical Education Studies, Science Project and Visual Art. In Year 11 and 12, students study six courses, with four 55-minute periods of each course each week. JSR offers multiple different pathways including: All of the available courses are listed in the table below. All year groups undertake compulsory religious education up to and including Year 12 of their schooling at JSRACS. Year 11 and 12 students can choose to study Religion and Life as an ATAR course or a General course, allowing them to have a study period whilst their year group has their 1 period a-week of Anglican Religious Studies Endorsed Program.

Co-curricular activities

There are multiple clubs that run throughout the year that encompass academics, sports and technology. Some of these include the 100 Club (Primary) and 300 Club (Secondary), Swimming Club for Years 4-12 in Terms 1 and 4, revision sessions and homework help in multiple subjects, Media Club, Drone Club, ESports Club, Dungeons and Dragons Club, Biology Club, 3D Design Club, Dance Club, Chess Club, Multicultural Club and AV Club. The school also takes part in multiple academic competitions including the Tournament of Minds for Year 7-10 students, the Australasian Problem Solving Mathematical Olympiads (APSMO) for Year 5-8 students and the Australian Mathematics Competition for select Year 3-12 students. The school has an extensive Basketball Program for secondary school students. The program runs during the school day, and acts as a class for students in the program. Many students, from JSR and other schools, trial for selection into the program. Years 7, 8, 9 and 10 are eligible to participate in ACC sport in terms 1 and 2, where students face students from other ACC schools in the NWAS division. These schools include: Aranmore Catholic College, Carmel School, Emmanuel Christian Community School, Kingsway Christian College, Mercy College and St. George's Anglican Grammar School. The schools compete in multiple sports including: Summer: Girls and Boys Basketball (7/8, 9/10), Mixed Volleyball (7/8, 9/10), Mixed Ultimate Frisbee (7/8, 9/10) and Cricket (7/8, 9/10) Winter: Girls and Mixed Netball (7/8, 9/10), Girls and Boys Soccer (7/8, 9/10), Girls and Boys Badminton (7/8, 9/10) and Mixed Touch Rugby (7/8, 9/10) Furthermore, students who excel in inter-house swimming, cross-country and athletics carnivals are selected into the JSRACS team for that sport and represent the school in ACC Inter-school Carnivals. As of the 2024 school year, JSRACS are in D Division for Swimming and B Division for Athletics. The JSR Cadets program has been running for over 25 years, and it currently offers 3 different programs. The River Rangers Cadets for Years 5 and 6 aims to empower children to protect local waterways. The Bush Ranger Cadets run for Years 7-12 and it allows students to work safely in and around nature. Finally, the Emergency Services Cadets run for Year 7-12 with students participating in drills and learning the use of fire fighting equipment. Since 2008, music ensembles have begun touring, with the Senior Concert Band to New Zealand in 2008, the Secondary Choir to Germany and Austria in 2009, the Wind Band and Septissimo Strings to Singapore in 2010 and the Chapel Choir to the United Kingdom in 2011. 2012 saw the Jazz Band visit Mount Gambier, South Australia to compete in the Generations in Jazz Festival. A combined JSRACS and other ASC schools orchestra planned to go to Eastern Europe in 2013, visiting Russia, Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. In 2000, the school entered the Rock Eisteddfod Challenge for the first time, winning first place in the Perth Grand Final the following year. Many students are involved in all aspects of the preparation, dancing and backstage tasks involved in the performance. The school only participated every second year until 2007. Drama and Dance are the other major co-curricular activities. The Drama and Dance department puts on a number of shows over the year including: 2000 – Lockie Leonard: Human Torpedo 2000 – Away 2001 – Wolfstock 2002 – Two Weeks with the Queen 2002 – Hating Alison Ashley 2003 – Looking for Alibrandi 2003 – Boss of the Pool 2004 – Così 2004 – The Hunchback of Nostradamus 2005 – Gumshoe 2005 – Picnic at Hanging Rock 2006 – The Man of Steel 2007 – Oliver! 2008 – The Servant of Two Masters 2008 – The Sound of Music 2009 – Pride and Prejudice 2009 – How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying 2010 – Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street 2011 – A Midsummer Night's Dream 2011 – The Pajama Game 2012 – The Mikado 2012 – Stories from Suburban Road 2013 – The Comedy of Errors 2013 – Bugsy Malone 2014 – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat 2015 – Guys and Dolls 2016 – Grease 2017 – The Wedding Singer 2018 – Grimm's Tales 2019 – Legally Blonde 2020 – A Midsummer Night's Dream 2021 – We Will Rock You 2022 – Bye Bye Birdie 2023 – Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 2024 – Fame 2025 – The Addams Family The productions involve over 100 students in acting, orchestra or backstage crew. Senior School musicals run for four full houses, whilst the Primary School musical and Middle School play run for three nights. Choreography Night also runs over three nights, with the one night featuring a teacher's dance and the final night featuring an awards presentation.

Statue and portraits

In 2009, as part of the annual Founders' Day celebrations to commemorate the school's 20th year, the school's then-principal Matthew Hughes JP commissioned the creation of a statue of John Septimus Roe in his youth. The sculpture was later changed to be of Roe during the early years of his work as the Surveyor General. In 2010, the school commissioned a portrait of principal Matthew Hughes, which will set the precedent for all future principals to have a portrait painted of them to be hung in the school's library.

Notable alumni

Sport