Statement to school community

13th August 2020

Dear staff & families,

Earlier this year I wrote to you apologising on behalf of Trinity College for the actions of former staff member Kevin Myers who was sentenced to prison for the sexual abuse of former students. The actions of Myers in the early 1980s were reprehensible and also highlighted serious failures in the leadership of the College at the time.  

The purpose of this letter is to inform you of three actions that Trinity College, with support from the College Board, will be taking to acknowledge the suffering and courage of all victims of child sexual abuse, particularly those who attended Trinity College in the early 1980s.

The current Stewart Wing will be renamed

After attending the court case and hearing the victim impact statements, as well as having ongoing communication with some of the victims, it is clear to me that, as Principal of Trinity College, Brother Stewart did not support the students who were abused by former staff member Kevin Myers in a way that we would expect from someone in a leadership position at the school.

In addition, Brother Stewart did not do enough to ensure Myers was held responsible for his actions. Myers was able to leave Trinity College and commit further offences. In my opinion, the key role of a Principal is to ensure all students in the school are safe and cared for, as well as to ensure that when students suffer trauma, they are provided with care and support. This basic right was not afforded to the students who were abused at Trinity College.  

For the interim, the current Stewart Wing will be referred to as the ‘Mercy Precinct’, given the Wing’s close proximity to the Mercy Wing.  

The removal of plaques

Two plaques currently attached to buildings honour Bishop Ronald Mulkearns as having opened and blessed those buildings. Bishop Mulkearns was the leader of the Catholic Church in Ballarat during a time where large numbers of children were abused by a number of different priests. Bishop Mulkearns was guilty of covering up these crimes and relocating offenders to other parts of the Ballarat Diocese where they continued to offend.

In respect for all victims of child sexual abuse in the Ballarat Diocese, the College will be removing the two plaques.

An established symbol honouring victims of child abuse

Following a consultation process, the College will establish an appropriate symbol that recognises the courage of all victim survivors of child sexual abuse, particularly those who suffered at the hands of Kevin Myers whilst attending Trinity College. The symbol may be a garden, a plaque or an appropriate structure that acknowledges the crimes of the past, but which also has a focus on a future where young people in Catholic schools are protected and kept safe.  

I would like to thank the College Board for accepting and supporting our proposal to take the actions listed above. I would also like to thank and commend the survivors of child sexual abuse who were students at Trinity College. Their thoughts and feelings around these actions have enabled these changes to take place. As one victim survivor said to me: “We are not rewriting history, just acknowledging the real history, no matter how ugly and confronting”.

As a College community, we would like those who suffered as a result of attending Trinity College to know that we care about them and are listening to them. We also hold out hope for a better future where all young people attending schools and other institutions are kept safe from abuse.

If the contents of this letter raise any issues, please know there is help available and we would encourage you to contact Lifeline or Beyond Blue;

https://www.lifeline.org.au/  

https://beyondblue.org.au/  

If anyone would like to discuss the information outlined above, please contact me at the College.

Kind regards

Paul Clohesy, Principal