Commencement
The Education Department decided that Mount Austin High School should commence in January 1964 and much planning was required. September 1963 saw the beginning of Mount Austin High School Parents and Citizens Association. So eager were parents to see the new school commence that ninety-five people attended the first meeting where a committee was formed and the school uniform was decided upon. The headmaster elect, Mr C. S. Oliver, was introduced by the then inspector of schools, Mr L. Bennett. The P&C would continue to be a guiding force, particularly over the next twelve years as it helped to build Mount Austin High School from the ground up with funding and support.
The school occupied temporary premises at the Wagga Wagga Showground for its first year of classes. The David Jones, Edmondsons and Wallace Supplies pavilions were converted into six classrooms plus offices where 188 students were enrolled as the first pupils of the new school. This accommodation was used for 1964 except for three weeks during the Wagga Wagga Show when the school was relocated to the Wagga Wagga Teacher's College. As the number of students was relatively small, so was the staff. The staff of nine teachers was led by Mr Oliver. Specialisation was almost unknown. Teachers had many jobs. For Science, Crafts, Home Science and Music, students had to travel by bus to Wagga Wagga High School and use their facilities. As students also had the use of Wagga Wagga High School's large tuckshop, these visits were not the drudgery that was anticipated.
February 1965 saw the completion of the first two stages of Mount Austin High School at a cost of three hundred thousand pounds. One of the new buildings was occupied by students with the remainder to be ready in a few weeks. Twelve classes now made up the school with 240 students in Form One and 190 in Form Two. The third stage was completed in June of that year. However it soon become apparent that further buildings would be required. Stage four was authorised and building commenced in September 1965. The latest stage was completely ready for use from January 1967. Construction and development of the school continued, sometimes slowly, over the years. In 1974 the bitumen tennis courts were completed and construction on the car park began.
The final two blocks were added to the school in 1969-70, one of which contained the Library. The need for an assembly hall was also a major project and finally, in February 1975 the foundations were poured and the hall completed in early 1976. The official opening by The Hon. Neil Pickard took place on 3rd May 1976.
The 80's were an age of rapid change with the introduction of Computer Studies in 1982 and collaboration with the Department of Technical and Further Education (TAFE), which saw the introduction of senior students combining technical college courses with their high school subjects. These are now known as VET courses. Over the next decade over $100,000 was spent on networking the whole school for the future with computers.
