In 1968 the House system was reintroduced to the school. With the rapid growth of the roll, the class competition had become most cumbersome and the running-off of competitions too time consuming.
So, instead of the four Houses of the 1930s and 1940s when the school was small, six Houses were introduced. It was decided that the names of six New Zealand women should be selected for the Houses, and, in a ballot where girls recorded their votes, six names, representative of different fields of achievement were chosen:
Jean Batten, the aviatrix and adventuress; Doris Gordon, the doctor of “Back Blocks Baby Doctor” fame; Janetta McStay, the pianist and an Old Girl of the school; Katherine Mansfield, the writer; Sheila Traill, naturalist and again an Old Girl; and Yvette Williams, the sportswoman.

With the re-introduction of the House System, competition in different fields was encouraged and grew enthusiastically. House drama involved many girls in one-act performances, debating though slow to start became keenly contested, as was the music competition, and while the range of sports initially was small, the long awaited gymnasium did eventually make possible a greater variety of competitions.

Extract taken from: Not For School But For Life, Southland Girls’ High School 1879-1979; (Deaker, Olive, 1978, p.124-125)