Bold new look planned for Murray Bridge High School
The school will update its logo, motto, colours, uniforms and potentially even its name in 2021.

Murray Bridge High School will get a new logo, motto, colours and uniforms in 2021, principal Ruth Mussger has announced.
Even the schoolâs name will be up for grabs in the rebrand, which comes 86 years after the current motto was adopted and 19 years after the logoâs last update.
And you can help decide what comes next.
A survey launched on Monday asks community members for their ideas.
With year 7s about to transition into the high school and a $20 million redevelopment underway, Ms Mussger said the time was right to think about what MBHS stood for.
âOur ultimate goal is to create a new look and feel that reflects the schoolâs rich history and cultural background, while also incorporating a more aspirational message about our future as an entrepreneurial, skills-focused, job-ready, progressive, inclusive and specialist high school,â she said.
âMurray Bridge High School has changed a lot since its inception in 1913.
âNow, more than ever, weâre focused on equipping our students with the knowledge and skills to achieve their life and career goals in a rapidly changing world.â
A new name for the school would even be considered if the community were in favour, she said â after all, âthe students who go to our school arenât just from Murray Bridgeâ.
The only thing certain about the schoolâs new identity was that it would include a motto in English and Ngarrindjeri.
âHaving our current motto expressed both in English and Ngarrindjeri reflects the strong partnership our school has with our Aboriginal community,â Ms Mussger said.
âWe will work closely with the schoolâs Ngarrindjeri staff and students to ensure the new logo and motto accurately represent their vision for the future of our school and honour our connections to their culture.â
Students Kiah Edwards, Riley Lienert and Zella Worden, pictured at the top of this story, said they were enthusiastic about the planned changes.
âI think itâs a really cool idea,â Kiah said.
âWhat we have at the moment, weâve had such a long time.
âI think anything more original than navy blue and red (would be better).â
The school will introduce the new branding â including new uniforms â next year.
However, students will be able to keep wearing the current uniform for several more years yet.
Year 7 students will arrive at Murray Bridge High School in 2022, by which time a new building intended to house the middle school will be complete.
The schoolâs new tech studies building is due to be finished by the end of the year.
- More information: www.mbhs.sa.edu.au.
- Complete the survey: www.surveymonkey.com.

Latin motto dates back more than 2000 years
Murray Bridge High Schoolâs current motto is the Latin phrase sic itur ad astra, meaning âthus one goes to the starsâ but more commonly taken to mean something like âtogether we rise to the starsâ.
It comes from a work called the Aeneid, by the ancient Roman poet Virgil, and refers to courage.
Alongside the high schoolâs logo, it is translated into Ngarrindjeri as ngunangk tuldar witjunggildhur toran, or âtogether we gather the starsâ.
The schoolâs values of excellence, respect and working together are also commonly written beneath the logo.
The school originally had a different motto when it opened in 1913: labor vincit omnia, or âwork conquors allâ â another Virgil quote.

Logo has changed several times since 1913
The schoolâs original logo, pictured above, was designed during the early years when it occupied a single room at what is now Murray Bridge North School.
It was shaped like a horseshoe and featured the letters DHS, for Murray Bridge District High School.
A new logo was introduced in 1934 after a competition among staff and students.

Like the current logo, it featured the lamp of learning, sitting on the open book of knowledge, surrounded by the laurel wreath of achievement; as well as the school's current name and motto.
The blue, red and gold version was introduced in 2001.
No obvious choice for town colours
Most other public schools in the Murraylands reflect the colours worn by their townsâ sporting teams: blue and gold for Tailem Bend, black and gold for Mypolonga, green and gold for Mannum and so on.
As a two-team city â in football and netball, at least â Murray Bridge lacks any clear choice of colour scheme.
The River Murrayâs representative football and netball sides have traditionally played in the state colours of red, blue and gold, the same as the high schoolâs current colours; but other sports use various other combinations.
The Ngarrindjeri flag is mostly blue and white, though Ngarrindjerri country extends well beyond the Murray Bridge district.
The cityâs council has used blue and orange for years, and its library and art gallery use orange.
Could the âbig Mâ brand identity developed for the cityâs welcome and informational signage â teal, orange, yellow, green and blue â offer some inspiration?

Clarification: This story has been updated to reflect the fact that even the school's  name could change. Photo of students Kiah Edwards, Riley Lienert and Zella Worden: Peri Strathearn. Video: Murray Bridge High School/YouTube. Images: Murray Bridge High School, Algo Mas.