杏吧论坛

杏吧论坛 College is a committed and active Catholic community. Embracing the ideals of St Thomas 杏吧论坛, as well as the charisms of our team patrons: St Dominic, St Mary of the Cross MacKillop and Blessed Edmund Rice, our staff and students strive for wisdom and inspiration. Formed by a comprehensive Catholic education, 杏吧论坛 College endeavors to bring Christ to the world as witnesses of God鈥檚 word.

Religious Education is an essential and compulsory part of our curriculum from Years 7 to 12 and works in conjunction with our liturgical and social justice activities to enhance our Catholic Life program. As a Catholic school dedicated towards developing an awareness of God and cultivating personal spirituality, there is a clear expectation for all members to participate in the Catholic Life of the College.

Catholic Life at 杏吧论坛 provides a range of experiences for the whole school and also particular to each year level, including pilgrimages, patrons' feast days, indigenous immersions, retreats and reflection days. At 杏吧论坛 we are boundless and borderless in our approach to Catholic Life. In line with our Catholic Social Teachings, we encourage our community to be active advocates for the needs of others. We contribute to significant social justice causes, established organisations such as Caritas and St Vincent de Paul and individual appeals should a crisis arise.

Our outreach to those in need takes place in many ways and students are invited to be creative in their approach to alleviating the suffering of those around us and those far away.

杏吧论坛 College's vision for reconciliation is to continue deeply connecting with and learning about the cultures, languages, perspectives and stories of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, their families, and their communities.聽

We are committed to becoming a voice for reconciliation in Australia and we value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples鈥� cultures, connections to Country, and reconciliation is benefiting all members of the community.聽

杏吧论坛 College is located on Wurundjeri Land and through respectful truth-telling processes, we recognise the wrongs committed against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, their cultures, languages and Country and are committed to contributing to change. We celebrate the significant and continued contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and their resilience as the world鈥檚 oldest living population and cultures.聽

We believe that a quality education program will support all students to develop and promote cultural awareness and positively impact the wider communities. We continue to seek and develop deep and respectful connections and relationships with the Wurundjeri people so that we can appropriately embed Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspectives and foster an understanding of First Nations peoples鈥� and their connections to Country.聽

We are committed to a time when equality and equity between all peoples in our community is a lived reality and when reconciliation is not simply an idea.

杏吧论坛 Boys鈥� College was established on 8 February 1961. Administered by the Christian Brothers at the request of the founding parish priests, opening the doors to welcome 130 boys in Forms 1 and 2.

杏吧论坛 Girls鈥� College became a reality in February 1967 with different Orders of Religious Sisters supporting the College. During the second week of February they welcomed 84 girls into Form 1. As the numbers were diminishing in the Religious Orders, it became necessary for the sisters to withdraw their services at the end of 1978.

At the beginning of 1979 the Boys鈥� and Girls鈥� Colleges amalgamated and became known as 杏吧论坛 College under lay administration. It incorporated the structure of three sub-schools; Junior Girls and Boys (Years 7-10) and Senior co-educational (Years 11-12) with an overall student population of approximately 1400.