College News
Shrove Tuesday & Cartias Launch
By Mahima - Social Justice Captain
Loreto holds many meaningful and consistent events within our school calendar that are celebrated with passion and enthusiasm by our students. One of the most significant is our Caritas Launch. This year, it commenced with a Sunday Mass on 15 February alongside other Catholic diocesan schools, including St Patrick’s College and Damascus College. As Loreto’s Social Justice Captain, I felt incredibly grateful to represent our school community and to learn more about Caritas’ vision. We were encouraged to carry this mission forward through action, service and leadership within our own school and the events we plan.
Shrove Tuesday and our ongoing fundraising efforts for Project Compassion are reflections of this commitment. Our JPIC group worked collaboratively to plan and organise the Shrove Tuesday pancake fundraiser before school, which was enjoyed by students across all year levels. It was great to see such strong participation and generosity from our students.
Through these small but meaningful acts of charity, we contribute to Caritas’ initiatives supporting vulnerable communities in countries such as Cambodia. Together, our efforts help reduce poverty and create opportunities for a more hopeful and sustainable future for others.
Year 9 Reflection Day
By Stella - Year 9
For Year 9 reflection day we discovered what Felicity and leadership in 2026 looks like for us. We discovered this through activities stretched across the day.
One activity was run by Ms Slater. She wanted us to discover what leadership can look like through an activity of making hats out of newspapers and other crafty decorative materials. After making our own personalised hats we then went on a little fashion parade around the school.
Another activity was run by Ms Knobel in which we explored this year’s Felicity Prayer - unpacking it and seeing what Felicity meant for us. After this we spilt of into groups in our mentors to figure out our class norms, take a photo and create an art piece symbolising our mentors’ values.
Two more activities were run as well. One was tai-chi ran by beloved Jack who helped us feel the flow and spiritual connection through the movement. The last activity was a decoration one, where we made our very own flowers out of tissue paper. These flowers than had petal with our name and day of birth to go into a handmade small tapestry with vases for each month with different fabric but matching to our corresponding colour for our mentor. This day aligned with our value of Felicity and our Year 9 theme of finding the Felicity beyond our comfort zones.
FUEL Leadership Summit
By Lilli & Milla - Year 10
On 16 March, a group of Year 10 students attended the FUEL Leadership Summit. This summit was funded by the community bank Buninyong and was held in Civic Hall. Ran by a group of enthusiastic young people and volunteers, it was a highly interactive day, collaborating with Year 10s from other Ballarat schools.
There was a wide range of activities that taught us about leadership in many different ways. We worked on tasks that required teamwork, compromising, and dealing with difficult situations when put on the spot. There were different experiences to get involved in; public speaking opportunities, communication skills, creative contributions, and critical thinking. As the groups were combined of people from different schools, it brought people out of their comfort zone and allowed for the day to be really different and fun!
Overall, it was a very fun and engaging day, teaching us the important aspects of what it is to be a leader. We have made new connections with people and have learnt how to implement these ideas in the community. This is a very beneficial experience, and we would definitely recommend it for others to try.
Year 9 Mini Adventure
By Nicolle Orr - Year Level Coordinator
On 31 March, our Year 9 students took part in the Mini Ballarat Adventure, spending the day navigating Ballarat in an 'Amazing Race' style challenge. Working in teams of 6–7 within their mentor groups, students were required to navigate Ballarat, complete challenges, follow safety guidelines, and work together to solve problems along the way.
It was fantastic to see students demonstrating strong teamwork skills, communication, and problem-solving throughout the day. Students represented the school with pride by following the rules, working cooperatively in their teams, and embracing the challenge with enthusiasm and positivity.
This experience is an important part of the Year 9 program, helping students develop teamwork, independence, problem-solving skills, and confidence in real-world situations and prepare them for Melbourne.
When students returned, they were welcomed back with six fun activities run by our Student Representative members and Year 9 student leaders, who did an outstanding job organising and leading the activities. It was wonderful to see these students step up into leadership roles and create such a positive finish to the day.
