In the aftermath of Cyclone Fina, there were serious concerns about what kind of classrooms and boarding houses students of Tiwi College would be walking back into when school restarted next year.

As the current school year started winding down for the Christmas break, staff were overjoyed to see donations in the hundreds of thousands of dollars coming through to help their recovery from the damage.

Within a couple of days an appeal raised more than $500,000 dollars; to be doubled when matched by donors connected to Melbourne school Scotch College, a partner school of Tiwi College.

In Pickataramoor on Melville Island in the Tiwi, the school is home to 78 students, all boarders. The school operates its own power, water and sewerage.

Cyclone Fina left an estimated around $600-700 thousand worth of damage to the school. With sections of roof ripped away, water entry, carpet ruined and serious impact to their farm, practically just frames of buildings had been left, Tiwi College principal James Faraone told National Indigenous Times.

Roads had also been cut off in the storm.

Staff spent two nights in a bunker at the school during the passing system.

Students had returned home earlier per evacuation protocols.

"Nobody was hurt, everyone was safe," Mr Faraone said, before a "scramble" to get on top of the clean up.

Students were able to return for the final few weeks of the year, albeit in a different environment.

"We worked pretty hard to clean up and make safe enough rooms to have kids in classrooms, and also for those boarding houses, even though they'd walk into them and they didn't have ceilings," Mr Faraone added.

Some local contractors had already been doing some works around the school in the previous couple of months, who volunteered to fly out and help with the immediate efforts post-Fina.

More recently support has come from far and wide.

"Scotch College's relationship with Tiwi College is one of our most treasured and enduring partnerships. For decades, our two schools have worked together to provide opportunities for our students to grow," the Melbourne school wrote with the appeal for funds they launched.

The $500,000 target set was reached in a short time, with hundreds of donations coming through. They ranged from $50 to a couple of hundred, to the tune of $20,000 from Old Scotch Collegians' Association and $100,000 from a single name.

"If it wasn't for our good friends at Scotch College, we wouldn't be able to fix up the damage that was done," Mr Faraone said.

It was particular relief amid inability to access NT or federal government support, Mr Faraone added.

At a Christmas event last week, staff "were just over the moon, because it means so mean to all of us" to see the money rising, he said, also acknowledging people from outside the Melbourne school's community who got wind of the fundraiser and dug into their pockets.

The cyclone damage was a massive hit for a school which runs like "our own little town" just between the 45-odd staff with various roles and qualifications, Mr Faraone said.

Scotch head of Indigenous programs Robert Smith has had an involvement with Tiwi College for close to 30 years, from early footy tours up to the Tiwi Islands with the school, through informal partnerships and now in the more recent official relationship.

"A lot of people were very confident that we would get (to the $500,000) because our community has just become so involved and understanding of Tiwi College and its people that it really touched a nerve," he said.

"It was great. It was really good to see."

With the support, purchase orders have already been made by Tiwi College, with payments also facilitated for works by those same local contractors who volunteered their help.

Ceilings, classrooms and boarding houses are priority number one, Mr Faraone said, with fingers crossed for term one next year.

"By the time school starts, we should be looking quite reasonable," he said.