| St Paul's College, University of Sydney | ||||||||||
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| Full name | St Paul's College | |||||||||
| Motto | Deo Patriae Tibi For God, Country and Thyself |
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| Named after | Parish of St Paul’s, Redfern | |||||||||
| Established | 1856 | |||||||||
| Sister College(s) | None | |||||||||
| Warden | Rev Canon Dr Ivan Head | |||||||||
| Location | University of Sydney, N12 9 City Road, Camperdown NSW, 2050 |
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| Undergraduates | 179 | |||||||||
| Postgraduates | 18 | |||||||||
| Homepage | Alumni Homepage | |||||||||
St Paul's College in Sydney, Australia, is an Anglican residential college for men which is affiliated with the University of Sydney. Founded in 1856 by an 1854 act of the New South Wales Legislative Council, it is Australia's oldest university college. St Paul's is familiarly referred to as "Paul's", its residents as "Paulines" and its alumni as "Old Paulines". The College has nearly 200 residents, of whom about 150 are undergraduates; the remainder are graduates undertaking further study or holding university positions.[1] It retains most of its original 18-acre (73,000 m2) grant and has its own oval and tennis and basketball courts.
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St Paul's was one of the two earliest university colleges in the Australian colonies along with Christ College, Hobart, which was founded in 1846.[2] Its development followed an unsuccessful attempt by members of the Anglican church to incorporate the earlier St James's College within the new University of Sydney, and was led by Sir Alfred Stephen (Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of New South Wales).[3] The college is independent of the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, although the warden must be an ordained Anglican clergyman. There are 18 fellows, six of whom must be Anglican clergy and 12 laymen. Fellows serve six-year, renewable terms and are elected by graduates of the college who have spent at least three semesters in residence. The Reverend Canon Dr Ivan Head has governed the college as warden since 1995. The college is an independent body corporate, legally desifnated as "The Warden and Fellows of St Paul's College".
Educators affiliated with the college participated in the founding, in the 1890s, of the adjacent Women's College. The two colleges are still closely linked; St Paul's has remained men-only, since 2000 the two other large former men's colleges have become co-residential.[4] The college has formal dinner five nights a week, to which college members wear tie, jacket and academic gown.
The original building was designed in Gothic style by English-born architect Edmund Blacket. Blacket was a distinguished ecclesiastical architect; he also designed the main university building and supervised the construction of the Catholic St John's College at the same university.[5][6] Other buildings include a chapel (designed by John Leslie Stephen Mansfield and completed in 1960) and a residential wing designed by Clive Lucas, Stapleton & Partners which opened in 1999.[2]
In November 2009, a Sydney paper reported that several former residents of the college (all players on the same social soccer team)[7] were members of a Facebook group called "Define Statutory", which described itself as "pro-rape, anti-consent".[8][9] The group was alleged by the reporter to be part of a broader culture amongst privileged youths which demeaned women in a sexist (or sexually violent) way.[10] Warden Ivan Head issued a public response condemning the students' behaviour.[8][11]
In the 2010 World University Debating Championship two former Paul's students (Chris Croke and Steve Hind) took the title, winning the final against teams from Oxford, Harvard and the London School of Economics.[12] Since the 1890s, the college has fostered social-justice ideals (as part of the liberal Anglican tradition) and most students are involved at some point in philanthropic activities. During the first decade of the 21st century, half the male Rhodes Scholars from Sydney University have been Paulines. In 2010, Jack Manning Bancroft was named NSW Young Australian of the Year for his work in indigenous education.[12][13]
The college has a full tutorial program, supporting and extending university work, and hosts frequent seminars and symposiums. Its Wednesday night forums bring leading intellectuals and public figures to the college for debate with students, and its "History of University of Life" seminars are also popular. The college hosts an annual symposium focused on historical and theological issues. Its Senior Common Room (numbering 30–35 scholars) plays an important part in the life of the college, and includes several senior scholars and postgraduates. Academic life is the responsibility of the Senior Tutor, until January 2010 Dr Dugald McLellan and Professor Alan Atkinson after that date.[14] St Paul's also has an active Middle Common Room, with gatherings led by honours students and others.
Officially granted by the Earl Marshal in 1961, the college coat of arms displays crossed swords and the Maltese cross to represent St Paul in the official colours of gold and gules. The college's motto, "Deo Patriae Tibi", can be translated as "For God, country and yourself."[15]
The college has a substantial library (named in honour of John Leslie Stephen Mansfield, an alumnus), which is being restocked to meet ongoing undergraduate needs. It includes the Cannington Law library and an enlarged college archive, which holds manuscript material dating to the 1850s. The Old Library, assembled mainly during the 19th century, has many valuable books from as far back as the 15th century (the older ones are held in the university library), and includes an original edition of Thomas Hobbes's Leviathan.
St Paul's is one of three colleges within Sydney University to have its own fully licensed bar.[16] The Salisbury Bar usually opens Sunday to Thursday from 8 pm. Each year the bar is run by a student group committed to the legacy of alumnus Charles Salisbury, whose donation created the service; according to legend, Salibury set a condition requiring the establishment of a bar for the residents. He reportedly declared that "no man should have to walk more than 50 metres for a beer". St Paul's has a fully stocked wine cellar (providing members of the college with reduced-price entry-level wines) and a large collection of stored vintages. The wine cellar is also run by senior residents of the college.
The St Paul's College Mummers (the college's dramatic society) is one of the longest-continuously-running university drama groups in Australia. College men are involved as actors, producers, directors, and stagehands to create theatrical productions which may be enjoyed by the wider University community.
As do most of the Sydney University colleges, St Paul's has its own oval where informal touch football is played every weeknight. All are welcome; many players are academics on study break. The Rawson Cup was donated for the intercollegiate competition by Governor Sir Harry Rawson (who had a son at Paul's) in 1907. Each year, St Paul's College competes for the cup with the other Sydney University men's colleges – Wesley, St Andrew's College, and St John's College. Rawson sports are played throughout the university year and include cricket, rowing, Rugby, swimming and diving, soccer, tennis, basketball and athletics. St Paul's won the Rawson Cup for five consecutive years, from 2005–2009.
During the year the college holds a number of large events, of which the largest are Victoriana!, the Informal, the Jazz Dinner Dance, and the College Formal. The Jazz Dinner Dance ('JDD') is an intimate black tie occasion for collegians and their guests. The College Formal is an annual event, organised and run by a committee (usually selected from senior students). Up to 500 guests attend the black tie function. Usually held in the quadrangle, recent themes have included School of Rock (2007- including a guest performance by Austrian glam-metal band Gerspunken), Neon Mirage (2005 – Las Vegas) and Circus Royale (2004). The 2004 Formal took the event to the college oval, with dodgem cars, a jumping castle, fire breathers and the largest traveling Ferris wheel in Australia. Previous years have also allowed guests to bathe in hot tubs, ride in hot air balloons, take motorbike rides around the oval and view fireworks displays.
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