Principal's report

Reconciliation Week

This year’s National Sorry Day ceremony was hosted by our friends and colleagues at Damascus College. I was honoured, humbled and moved to attend the gathering and to hear the powerful insights and presentations of the indigenous student leaders from Damascus – Kyeema Brown, Loreto – Isabella Jungbauer and St Patrick’s – Luke Atkinson who led the ceremony as the Masters of Ceremony, and the guest speaker, Brenda Matthews. 

At the age of two, Brenda and her six siblings were taken from their Aboriginal parents and placed into the foster system. Subsequently adopted by a loving white family, Brenda spent six years knowing nothing of her heritage, and the family desperately fighting for her return. She has produced a movie about this experience, ‘The Last Daughter’, and she spoke beautifully about the impact all of this had on her, her families and her outlook on life and the importance of Reconciliation for Australia. It was a very honest and moving presentation, and I hope that our boys who were in attendance have heard Brenda’s message and carried this with them and reflected on its significance this week.

National Sorry Day is a special day when we remember and reflect on the hurt caused in the past and how we can make things right. It's about acknowledging the tough times when Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children were taken away from their families - the Stolen Generations.

National Sorry Day isn't just about saying sorry; it's about taking action. We need to strive for real change, equality, and social justice. By listening to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and learning from them, we can create a more fair and inclusive society.

As the Catholic secondary schools in Ballarat, it is really encouraging that St Pat’s, Damascus and Loreto Colleges continue to work together to walk the journey towards genuine reconciliation. Education is vital in this process, and it is a privilege to be a part of this. 

St Patrick’s College – with one of the largest enrolments of First Nations students in any Catholic school in Victoria, is proud of its Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and of its partnership with the Loreto and Damascus College communities in this important enterprise. We are honoured to be given this opportunity and look forward to once again, hosting National Sorry Day at St Pat’s in 2026. 

Together, we can build bridges of understanding and empathy, breaking down the barriers that divide us. Let's support initiatives that promote healing, education, and preserving Indigenous cultures. By treating everyone with respect and recognising the rights and contributions of Indigenous Australians, we can continue to move forward on the path to genuine reconciliation.

I finish with a prayer Reconciliation Week 2205 from the Rev’d Canon Aunty Di Langham (Secretary to the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Anglican Council and the first Director of Reconciliation with the Newcastle Anglican Diocese):

Creator God of Holy Dreaming

Bring us together as one, 

Reconciled with you and one another. 

Bless Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of this land.

The first peoples to receive your blessings in this land.

The first peoples to see your beauty in this land, water, sky and nature.

The first peoples to hear your voice in ancient stories.

The first to give you praises in ancient places.

The first to know your love and love you in return.

God bless the Elders keeping culture and languages alive.

Bless all who work in Indigenous and non-indigenous communities, making friends, growing partnerships to a deeper understanding of culture and languages, learning to love and grow together.

Give us grace to travel together towards reconciliation for the sake of Jesus Christ. 

Amen.  

‘Newsies’ – Congratulations! 

For those who saw the production of ‘Newsies’ last week in the Performing Arts Centre, you won’t be surprised, I’m sure, to read how proud I was of the entire production. I did not really know much about the storyline of ‘Newsies’, the characters or the music. I was thoroughly engaged, enthralled and entertained from the opening scene right through to the final curtain.   

The performance standards of the College productions continues to improve with every show that takes to the stage and ’Newsies’ was easily the best production we have seen in recent times. Given the wonderful success of our recent shows – ‘Spamalot’ and ‘Oliver Jnr’ in 2023, and ‘School of Rock’ and ‘Lion King Jnr’ last year, it is so exciting that the skill and performance level continues to improve. 

And it was wonderful to have the students from Loreto involved in this combined production. 

A massive congratulations to all involved in ‘Newsies’, the entire cast and crew who made it so enjoyable and such a success! 

Special mention must go to Ms Monique Allen (Director), Ms Samantha Bashford-Leger (Assistant Director), Mr Matthew Pankhurst (Musical Director) and Ms Jinah Waters (Choreographer) and all the Production Team for providing this incredible performance opportunity to our students and the community. Congratulations to the main lead characters – George Rogers (‘Jack Kelly’), Addi Muller (‘Katherine Plumber’), Henry Gilbert (‘Crutchie’), Riley Shaw (‘Davey’), Abe Muller (‘Les’) and Gabe Bristow (‘Joseph Pulitzer’).  

‘Newsies’ brought so much joy to its audiences last week and it will certainly be a highlight for me when I recall the 2025 school year at St Pat’s. Well done one and all…I look forward to our next production! 

Catholic Education Week

Today marks the end of Catholic Education Week.  The reflection in this week’s newsletter from Catholic Education Ballarat states:

“Catholic schools are “called upon to offer an educational service appropriate to the present times”. They are communities of welcome, forgiveness, equality, inclusion and encouragement to experience, live and proclaim the joy of the Gospel. They are nourished by prayer, liturgy, witness, social justice, service and pastoral care.  The mission of Catholic schools is centred around the integration of faith, learning, life and culture. This does not just happen in the classroom, but through the witness offered by teaching and non-teaching staff, and through the experience of the student being part of a community which models this integration in a life-giving way.”  

I am beyond proud to work in Catholic Education and thank all staff at the College for enabling our students to have such fullness of life.  

Tonight, there will be at Mass and dinner at Damascus College to celebrate and honour Catholic Education across the Diocese of Ballarat.  We will acknowledge those who have worked in Catholic Education for 30 years, which is a wonderful achievement, including Julie Delaney, one of our teachers.  We will also be acknowledging those who have been nominated for a Spirit of Catholic Education Award, including James Couzens, another one of our teachers, who has been nominated for Rich Pedagogical Practices for Deeper Learning and Wellbeing.  The winners will be announced during the dinner tonight, good luck James!  I would like to congratulate both Julie and James and wish them a wonderful time tonight.