In October 1874, a petition was sent to the Minister of Education to have a school established in the vicinity of Rosebud. However, it was only signed by 25 residents and was unsuccessful. Then in 1894, another petition was made for a schoolhouse and a schoolmaster to be built, as children had to walk to Dromana or Boneo to get to school. It was again unsuccessful. Another application in 1882 was rejected, even though there were 32 children living in the area. But the next year, parents and school-aged children managed to find success with the Department of Education. A decision was made in 1883 to lease a building to be used as a school. A Head Teacher was appointed to the building and the school finally opened on 4 September 1884. 37 students attended; 21 of those were transferred from Dromana State School. In 1885, after complaints from parents about the schools problems, the Education Department purchased two-acres of land on the opposite side of Nepean Highway. The cost was £20 per acre. In November, a school house with a teacher's residence was built on the two-acres of land. The building consisted of a 24 foot by 16 foot school room with an iron gable roof and a front porch. A skillion verandah ran the length of the building. 7 April 1887, school furniture from the original building was moved to the new building. The principal at the time moved into the residence, enrolling his four school-aged children. Then in 1888, a split post fence was built around the school site to stop the problem of wandering cattle and sheep from grazing in the schools shelter. By May 1893, 40 students were now attending the school. Most being children from lighthouse keepers' parents in McCrae. Enrolments continued to increase, as well as additional buildings. In 1944, there were now 114 pupils at the school. In 1954, Rosebud Secondary College opened, which meant the school didn't have to cater for Grades 7 and 8. But with secondary students being moved, the school was still overcrowded with 400 students now attending. As 1966 came around, the school committee wanted a library at the school. The Education Department paid a grant of $6000 for a library. And then a further $9630 was raised through fundraising. Construction started in February 1968 and finished in April that year. It was officially opened in November and named in the honour of the principal at the time. A farm is also one of the school's main features, with chickens, ducks and rabbits. There are four bunnies and three ducks. The duck names are: Daffy, Moth and Princess Lucy. There are also about 20 chickens. The idea of a farm came to Mr Fisher, the school's assistant principal. In 2012, MPMartin Dixon funded $190,000 for the school to complete planning for its $3 million modernisation.
