From the Principal

Dear Parents and Carers,

As we embark on the journey of Term 3, I want to extend a warm welcome back to all our students, staff, and families. It has been truly life-giving to see the students return in such high spirits this week – and it is always a JOY to be back with them. 

I hope that this break has provided you with a chance to recharge and rejuvenate. For those families who were unable to take a vacation due to your work commitments, please know that your commitment to providing an outstanding education for your girls here at Mount Alvernia College is deeply appreciated and recognised - we hope that you do find a moment to pause at some stage very soon! At Mt A we are very mindful of the hardworking parents and carers that support our girls and recognise the enormous financial investment that is being made by most of our families. Please know that you are all playing a crucial role in shaping the future of your daughters, and together, we continue to extend the olive branch of ‘partnership’ in this important work. There is nothing more important in our world right now than shaping the next generation of good, kind, ethical, educated, hope-filled, socially just, faith-filled, critical thinking young people – but we cannot do this without you! It truly is our “WHY” here at Mt A.

If you have been following our social media over the holiday break, you will also have heard the wonderful news of our Open A Netballers who claimed victory in the Grand Final of their division at QISSN (Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Netball) in Bundaberg during the holidays. We congratulate the team on this outstanding achievement and for your dedication, tenacity, and grit throughout. Furthermore, we acknowledge their outstanding Coach and Mentor, Tamara Richardson, our Head of Sport - Charmaine Ferguson, Sports Coordinator - Kat McMain and Sports Administrator - Emma Boswood who supported the team throughout the competition and accompanied the girls during the holidays. Your support is immeasurable. Well done all!

The Attitude of Gratitude – Let’s say it and express it!

As we step into this term, I want to revisit the importance of gratitude and the need for gestures of thanksgiving in our community. I am particularly thankful for our homeroom mentors and our Set Planning Staff who have worked tirelessly to provide bespoke feedback tailored to each student’s needs and to ensure that senior pathways planning is undertaken with care and due diligence. Similarly, I am incredibly grateful of those staff, who in their own holidays accompanied students in co-curricular endeavours and academic support. Explicitly, I wish to acknowledge those families who have taken the time to express their appreciation to our staff following the conclusion of Term 2 and more recently in our mentoring meetings. Your kind words and short emails of gratitude mean the world to our Homeroom Mentor Teachers, Heads of House, Heads of Faculty, and staff more broadly. It is this spirit of gratitude that strengthens our community bonds. Please do not hesitate to share your positive and encouraging feedback – it inspires us and encourages us to continue to undertake the often-challenging work we do! 

I would like to take this a step further: As my Joy Challenge to parents and carers this month, I do encourage you to take this opportunity to thank and notice the great work of individual staff who support your daughter, if you have not already done so this year. We are incredibly blessed at Mt A to have the calibre of staff that we do - so together, let’s continue to express our gratitude through words and gestures of thanks – it really matters!

Mentoring Meetings

We do hope that for those families who participated in our Mentoring and Set Planning Meetings this Thursday and Friday, that they have been beneficial conversations. These meetings, in this format, are unique to Mt A. We believe that they continue to contribute to a culture of learning, growth, and improvement. More importantly however, we believe that they have been instrumental in continuing to enhance and build the relationships we have with our students and families and to provide our girls with meaningful mentorship, encouragement and affirmation which are the hallmarks of an exceptional girls’ education. Using the extensive educational wellbeing data we collect, our dedicated teachers ensure that every student is known, encouraged, and supported in their aspirations and educational wellbeing. 

Partnership is Paramount

With this strong motivation in mind, it has been disappointing to note that this year our parent engagement in these meetings have declined since 2024. Furthermore, we have also been made aware that some families have opted to take these 2 days as an extended long weekend! Sadly, this is not at all in alignment with the intention or purpose of these days and what we are trying to achieve together here at Mt A. In the case of our Year 10 Set Planning, these meetings are legally mandated for all students.

In our spirit of continuous improvement, we are committed to reviewing these dedicated days with the goal of enhancing parent engagement rather than diminishing it. Your feedback on the nature and purpose of these conversations and their scheduling, is always welcome.

St Bonaventure and the Pursuit of Knowledge

On Tuesday 15 July, as a Franciscan community we celebrated the life and influential work of St. Bonaventure; Franciscan Bishop, Cardinal, scholastic theologian, philosopher, and Doctor of the Church (1221-1274). On this evening, members of the CLT and I, attended the annual St Bonaventure Lecture at Padua College, which this year, was presented by Fr Paul Rout OFM, His presentation was entitled “The Canticle of the Creatures – A song of hope for our wounded world.” Attended by many of our Franciscan educator colleagues and parishioners, this lecture was a powerful and moving keynote, offering profound insights and a message of hope that resonated deeply in our contemporary times. Among the many ‘takeaways’ from Fr Rout’s address was his description of St Bonaventure’s 3 tiers in the ‘pursuit of knowledge’ - which were categorised as follows:

• Intellectual knowledge (scientia)
• Wisdom (sapientia)
• Love (ecstasis) 

As we reflect on our Franciscan mission and values, let us be reminded that it is love above all other knowledges, that leads us to a greater good for all, as identified by St Bonaventure. This form of knowledge is experienced in, and through the relationships with have with each other, and all of creation. Fr Rout’s discussion posed further questions around our contemporary pursuit of knowledge and the more existential questions of technology, (dis/mis) information, AI and for whom and for what purpose this serves? As educators and parents, these are profound topics which require our critical care and attention.

As we move through Term 3, let us keep our vision clear: to enhance relational love in all that we do. Together, we can create an environment where every student thrives, grounded in the values we share.

Thank you for your unwavering support and commitment to our shared mission. Let us make this term a truly joyful and remarkable one.

The perfection of a religious man (person) is to do common things in a perfect manner, and a constant fidelity (commitment) in small matters is great and heroic virtue! – Saint Bonaventure.

Peace and all good,

Samantha Jensen

Principal