During WWII, the buildings were required by the air force, and the college was forced to temporarily move to North Walkerville for the period 1942–1946.[5] Pastor Leidig's eldest son Paul taught there from 1950 until 1956.[4] In 1949, land at Novar Gardens was acquired from the Morphett family property 'Cummins', and the school was eventually established there in 1957.[5]
Cummins House was sold to the state government in 1977, and Immanuel College leased that property for five years from 1982 to 1987.[6][7]
To celebrate the 50th anniversary of its Novar Gardens campus, Immanuel College upgraded the school gymnasium. The sports centre includes a heated 25-metre 10-lane indoor swimming pool, a heated 15-metre by 6-metre hydrotherapy and learners pool, 3 indoor courts and a dance studio. A primary school oval was converted into the indoor basketball courts, and an existing auditorium and a new dance classroom were integrated into the new centre. Completed in 2008, the centre operates as an educational facility during the day,[8] and as a community sports centre after hours.
IGSSA premierships
Immanuel College has won the following IGSSA premierships.[9]
The Margaret Ames Centre, named after an old scholar and ex-teacher, was opened in 2015 as the senior school for students in Years 10, 11 and 12. It includes classrooms, study areas, a cafe called "Wings Cafe" (based on the Immanuel logo of a dove), and a university style theatre called "The Otto Theatre". It has library access and has 4 floors. It is a modern looking building unattached from the old style of the middle school. The Margaret Ames Centre cost $14.9m AUD at the time of construction.[10]
The Discovery Centre
The Discovery Centre, named after the Year 10 course 'Discovery' was opened in May 2023 as a building primarily for the use of Year 10 students. The building is two stories and contains ten classrooms, two staff office spaces, two sound proof study spaces, upstairs study cubicles, a downstairs collaborative study space, two downstairs presentation areas, a green screen room, and a podcasting room. It is connected to the Margaret Ames Centre through an upstairs bridge, which also links it to the Library, Middle School, Art Centre and Music Practice Rooms. Year 10 lockers surround the Discovery Centre on the southern and western sides. The building continues the modern style of the Margaret Ames Centre. The building cost approximately $13.5 million. The Discovery Centre was specifically designed to house the new 'Discovery Year' of Year 10 at Immanuel. The Discovery Program began in 2023 with a host of different elective subjects that offer more creative and expression-based experiences, such as 'The Joy of Painting', 'Podcasting', 'The Edit: Filmmaking'. As well as newer, innovative subjects such as 'On The Money', 'Beyond the Sidelines: The Art of Coaching', and 'Agribusiness'. The new Discovery course is focused on self-expression and self improvement.[11]
Boarding
Immanuel has a long history of boarding, commencing with its inception as an exclusively boarding school at Point Pass in 1895. In the 21st century, Immanuel has boarding facilities for both males and females. In 2019 the college has beds for 170 students, accommodation is in a main double storey building, self-contained units and eight fully equipped houses. The houses are named after the word for "Peace" in various languages – Heiwa, Pengon, Tangokorro, Frieden, Shalom, Koinonia, Sama and Rahu. [2]
House System
Immanuel's current house system has been in place since 1975. There are a total of ten houses which all compete for the Paterson Shield (named after former principle R.G. Paterson). Houses earn points throughout the year by participating in the Swimming Carnival, Athletics Carnival, Team Sports Day, Battle of the Bands, Debating, the House Chess Competition and student grades. New Students are randomly assigned a house and all following family members will be assigned to that house.
^Egan, Ted (23 December 2019). "Hermannsburg Mission: questions of survival". Alice Springs News. Speech by former Administrator Ted Egan AO at the launch of Volume II of The Tale of Frieda Kaysser by John Strehlow. Retrieved 12 November 2022.
^"Steven Marshall MP". Steven Marshall | Premier of South Australia. 3 May 2018. Archived from the original on 16 September 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2019.