Student Leadership Retreat

On 4-6 December we had the great pleasure of holding our second annual Student Leadership Retreat at Presentation Family Centre. Two 2020 Year 12 leaders from 10 schools gathered to explore leadership through the Kildare Ministries lens with a particular focus on the 2020 value of Justice and the Kildare Ministries Living Justice Charter. Enormous thanks to the staff who put much time and effort in during a very busy period. We are also very grateful to the support of Kilbreda College for hosting the welcome lunch and to Lisa Gray and the staff at Presentation Family Centre for their hospitality.

The following reflection has been prepared by Macy O'Sullivan, an incoming Year 12 Leader from Star of the Sea College;-

"Beginning at Kilbreda College in Mentone – students from Kildare Ministries schools across Australia embarked on a 3 day leadership retreat to Balnarring in Victoria. Across the course of retreat, we kept the aims of reflection and collaboration in mind, as we explored the 2020 theme – Justice – making the needs of the vulnerable paramount. Together, we worked to unpack this stimulus and explore the ways in which we as leaders can guide students to appreciate and understand what this truly means.

Our first session explored the history of the land we call home, and our responsibility to care for and acknowledge the traditional owners as leaders in 2020. Discussing the rich history of Indigenous Australians, we listened to stories from the Dreamtime, and were invited to explore and question our understanding of the past of our young country. As our first evening drew to a close, we moved to our own leadership journeys thus far, and how leadership takes many different forms in different people. It reminded us to celebrate the actions of students in our community next year; both big and small.

The second day commenced with a session led by Bernadette Keating – who educated us on both the Brigidine and Presentation Traditions, and how the Kildare Ministries has progressed to what it is today. The rich legacies left behind by all of our founders reminded us of the story we are soon going to become a part of, and the values which should be at the forefront of our positions next year. The next few sessions informed us of the skills necessary for 21st century leadership and how to successfully and compassionately guide our teams across the course of the year.

Spread throughout the 3 days, we shared meals, were involved in great discussion and formed such great friendships with students from schools all over Australia. It was both interesting and uplifting to share our stories and ideas from our past and future endeavours.

Overall, the retreat provided a wonderful opportunity to facilitate growth and collegiality amongst all Kildare Ministries leaders. We were all reminded of the importance of our 2020 theme – and how to think deeper, striving to inspire students to consider the fact justice and dignity is deserved by all people."