The King's College Foundation

Old Collegian Phil Ryall (School, 1943 –44) has been supporting the College through his namesake Bursary for more than ten years.

His story of how he got to be at King’s is a touching one. “I came from a pretty hard up family in the heart of the King Country,” explains Mr Ryall. “We lived in a real back-country location and I had no way of getting to a high school – there simply weren’t any in the area!

“My father had a pretty hard time in the War, but he was determined that I would receive a high school education. Through his persistence and determination, I was able to attend King’s. I was never able to complete my King’s education, however, because my father became really sick while I was at school so I had to leave to help my mother on the farm.I enjoyed my time at King’s in the short time I was there. I was never a top athlete or anything like that, but I made some good friends there,” says Mr Ryall.

Over the years, Mr Ryall worked hard on his farm – rearing sheep and cattle – and did reasonably well for himself, to the point where he was finally in a position to set up a bursary which would give children from rural New Zealand the opportunity to receive a good high school education. 

“I wanted to help people who came from the sort of rural life I came from, and that’s what I did.” Mr Ryall hopes that all the recipients of his namesake bursary enjoy their time at King’s and try their utmost to make the best of the opportunities that they are lucky to now have exposure to.

Thank you, Mr Ryall, for your generosity to the King’s Foundation, and the College.

Since 2014 Old Collegian and Orthopaedic Knee Surgeon Mr Mark Clatworthy (Averill, 1978-82) and his wife Angela have chosen to provide yearly boarding scholarship solutions for promising students as their focus.

Up to five scholarships can be awarded to students of Maori or Pasifika descent who have a strong academic and/or sporting ability or who because of financial disadvantage might otherwise have been unable to receive an education at the College. This support represents over a quarter of a million dollars.

The Clatworthy family encourages those in the King’s community to consider supporting a scholarship so as to provide a young person with an education and networks that will hopefully allow them to reach their full potential as an individual and in their prospective careers.

The Hall Family Scholarship was established by Old Collegian Richard Hall (Major, 1977-81), to support female student(s) of Māori decent; with preference given to members of Ngāti Kahungunu to study at King's College, Auckland. 

Richard is proud of his Ngāti Kahungunu ancestry. The family are direct descendants of the Paramount Chief Takamoana Karaitiana of Hawkes Bay. Takamoana Karaitiana was born in the 1820s and involved in the New Zealand Māori Wars; he also became an influential chief. in 1871 he stood in the House of Representatives for the Eastern Māori seat.

Richard and Yvette wish to provide better opportunity for a female student of Māori family background to join the College from Year 11 and enjoy the same rewards as the Hall families have over several generations.