Ursula Hall
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Ursula Hall, Australian National University | ||||||||
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| Full name | Ursula Hall | |||||||
| Motto | The Truth Shall Set You Free | |||||||
| Mascot | Bear | |||||||
| Type | Fully-catered, co-educational | |||||||
| Named after | St Ursula | |||||||
| Established | 1968 | |||||||
| Head of Hall | Keith Conley | |||||||
| Dean | Charis Teh & Elizabeth Mullen | |||||||
| Association | Ursula Residents Committee | |||||||
| President | Mathew Derrig | |||||||
| Location | Building 50, Daley Road, The Australian National University, Canberra 0200, Australia | |||||||
| Residents | 204 (2006) | |||||||
| Website | http://ursula.anu.edu.au | |||||||
Ursula Hall is a fully-catered residential hall for undergraduate students of The Australian National University. Its residents are drawn primarily from rural and regional Australia and from overseas.
[edit] History
The Hall was founded as an all-female institution in 1968 by the Ursuline Order. In 1971 it became a co-educational college. In 2004, Ursula College became known as Ursula Hall.
"Ursies" welcomes undergraduate and postgraduate students of all nationalities, religions and cultural backgrounds. The diversity of its residential population is one of the most enriching features of Ursula Hall - it has residents from dozens of countries, including Canada, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, New Zealand, Thailand, Korea and the United States.
Ursula Hall is part of a rich educational tradition. The Ursuline Order, which previously owned and managed the hall, has been involved in education for over 450 years. The Order, which was founded in 1535 by an Italian woman called Angela Merici, has a commitment to education which enhances the dignity of each person and which promotes constructive critique of the society in which we live. Today, there are Ursuline education establishments throughout Asia, Europe, North America, South America, Africa and Australia.
The stated aim of Ursula Hall is to provide an environment of support where both undergraduate and postgraduate students are able to pursue their studies. Important to this environment is a feeling of "at homeness", being able to wrestle with new knowledge and share new experiences, being able to make choices and respond to challenges, being unafraid to develop new visions of life and to respond to them, and being appreciative of the sense of possibility in a community as diverse as Ursula Hall.
[edit] Hall Arms
Green and white are the traditional colours of Ursuline educational centres. They are the colours all Ursies representatives wear when competing in any activity for the Hall. The Hall's badge has on it the laurel tree - something that has been traditionally associated with Colleges bearing the name of Saint Ursula. In Ancient Greece the victor in the Pythian Games was given a wreath of laurel leaves. The ancients believed that the laurel communicated the spirit of prophecy and poetry. They had the custom of putting laurel leaves under their pillows at night to acquire inspiration. The hope at Ursula Hall is that people will be both energized in the task of prophecy, in order to critique society, and reflective in the task of poetry and artistry in order to find new, creative expressions for society.
In contrast to the earthiness of the laurel tree, we have the Southern Cross constellation. Ursuline schools and colleges in the northern hemisphere have the Ursa Minor, the "Little Bear", constellation on their badges. This is the origin of the Bear as the Hall's mascot. The Ursa Minor constellation is the pointer to the Polar star which has been a major direction finder for people in the northern part of the world. It is considered appropriate that in the 'land of the Southern Cross' should they should use this constellation on their badge. Stars communicate an expansion of vision and of mind - an all-embracing welcome to all who gaze upon them. Ursula Hall is a centre where visions can be created and encouraged, where diversity is accepted as a gift.
Ursula Hall's motto is "The Truth shall set you free". In an academic environment such as Ursula Hall members are called to be seekers of truth, open to the truth of another, willing to dialogue with others and to have our worldviews challenged, reformulated and reignited with life.
