Aurukun was established as a Presbyterian Mission in 1904 in remote western Cape York in Far North Queensland.
The name 'Aurukun' came from the local language name for the large lagoon at the back of the mission. Aboriginal people were relocated from large surrounding areas to the mission over several decades.
The Aurukun Shire, with its own Shire Council, was established in 1978. It includes much of the traditional country of the Wik, Wik Way and Kugu people. The 7500 square kilometre shire has rare and beautiful environmental values.
Traditional owners are very proud of their country and traditional language and culture are strong. The shire is one of only a few welfare reform communities in Queensland and has about 1200 people.
Aurukun State School opened in 1974 and remains the only school in Aurukun. We cater for almost 200 Pre-Prep to secondary students. Our school is also known locally as Koolkan Aurukun Community School.
In 2002, our school amalgamated with Western Cape College (Weipa).
In 2010, our school joined a number of other Cape schools to amalgamate with the Cape York Aboriginal Australian Academy (CYAAA).
In 2015, our secondary department closed.
In 2017, our school returned to the Department of Education and reopened our secondary department.
In November 2022 the school established a local Governance Board comprising of all local First Nation representatives. The Governance model was initiated through the Department of Education's Local Community Engagement Through Co-Design Pilot Program.