Malaysia's First All-Male Religious Secondary School in Ipoh

In 1959, the Sultan of Perak at the time, Sultan Yussuf Izzuddin Shah, officiated the opening of the all-male religious secondary school in the state of Perak.

This school is the first religious secondary school in Malaysia to integrate religious and academic studies at the Sijil Rendah Pelajaran and Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia levels. In 1960, the school was named Sekolah Izzudin Shah, taking the name of the late Sultan Yussuf Izzuddin Shah. This school was one of the ideas conceived by the first Menteri Besar of Perak after the independence of the Federation of Malaya, Tan Sri Haji Ghazali bin Jawi. In addition to this school, another school with the same orientation but specifically for female students was established a year later, namely Sekolah Raja Perempuan Taayah, located about 5 kilometers from Sekolah Izzudin Shah and near the official residence of the Menteri Besar of Perak Darul Ridzuan.

Sultan Yussuf Izzuddin Shah

At that time, Sekolah Izzudin Shah and Sekolah Raja Perempuan Taayah began opening Form One classes, accepting Malay students from Malay schools throughout Perak, particularly around Ipoh. The first group of students at Sekolah Izzudin Shah studied up to the Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) level. Sekolah Izzudin Shah offered education up to the SPM qualification, and in the early 80s, the school began offering Form Six education with the Sijil Tinggi Pelajaran Malaysia (STPM) qualification and opened Form Six classes to female students.

Tan Sri Haji Ghazali bin Jawi

The school was built on Tiger Lane, Ipoh. The purpose of building this religious school was to accommodate Malay students in Perak who could not continue their studies in fully residential schools, allowing them to continue their education with a religious orientation. It aimed to provide formal and systematic religious education in line with modern education to produce administrative officers, executives, educators, and scholars who firmly uphold religious values. It also aimed to accommodate students in the state of Perak so they could continue their education at the secondary level and subsequently to higher education. Initially, the school was administered by a Board of Managers chaired by the President of the Council and the Head of the Perak Islamic Religious Affairs Department. This Board of Managers was responsible for formulating school policies, overseeing school administration, planning the syllabus and curriculum, and selecting academic and rabie thanawi teachers.

In 1978, an Administrative Board was established with the aim of streamlining school control and administration as well as planning school policies. This board was chaired by the State Secretary of Perak. Both the Board of Managers and the Administrative Board were also responsible for Sekolah Menengah Agama Raja Perempuan Ta’ayah. In its early stages, the school only had one building, a two-story student dormitory with the ground floor used as classrooms to accommodate the first group of 80 students.