Iona College (Queensland)

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Iona College
Latin: In Hoc Signo Vinces
In this sign you will conquer
Location
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia Australia
Coordinates 27°26′18″S 153°8′55″E / 27.43833°S 153.14861°E / -27.43833; 153.14861Coordinates: 27°26′18″S 153°8′55″E / 27.43833°S 153.14861°E / -27.43833; 153.14861
Information
Type Private, Roman Catholic, Single-sex, Day school
Established 1958
Principal Fr Mark Edwards OMI
Enrolment 1,500 (5–12)
Campus Lindum
Colour(s) Black and White
         
Website www.iona.qld.edu.au

Iona College, is a private, Roman Catholic, day school for boys, located in Wynnum, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

Founded in 1958, the college currently caters for approximately 1,500 students from years 5 to 12, on a 27–hectare campus [1] 16 km east of the Brisbane central business district.

Iona is operated by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, a religious order that was founded in 1816 by Saint Eugene de Mazenod.

History

Iona was founded by Fr. Tim Long and Fr. Denis McCarthy in 1958. Iona College is named after the island Iona, which is located in the Inner Hebrides off Scotland.

On 1 October 1957, Father Tim Long and Father Denis McCarthy arrived on the hill at Lindum in an old second-hand Vauxhall, with only five pounds in cash, a gift of blankets, sheets and towels from the Oblate parish of Eagle Junction and a 'Mass Kit' from the Mercy Sisters at All Hallows School. The site, of 32 acres (13 ha), had been given to the Oblates by Archbishop James Duhig to begin a school for boys. [2] With the help of local families, the preparing grounds for students, interviews and designing the uniform, College arms and motto and constant quest for finance became easy. On 28 January 1958, 58 students arrived at the school.

In 1961, Father Tim Long suffered a heart attack in London while making his way back to Ireland at the age of 65.

There are two other schools run by the OMI in Australia: Mazenod College, Victoria and Mazenod College, Western Australia.

Arms, motto and colours

The College colours are black and white. The College crest consists of a shield on which is depicted an arm holding a cross, while underneath is the Latin phrase "In Hoc Signo Vinces", which translates to "In This Sign You Will Conquer".

Campus

The college is situated on 63 hectares and the campus includes such facilities as:

  • 2x performing arts centre (IPAC)
  • 8 basketball courts - indoor and outdoor
  • Indoor Volleyball courts
  • 7 cricket / rugby / soccer / athletics ovals
  • An Olympic sized swimming pool
  • A fully equipped gymnasium and weights room
  • 4 tennis courts

In total the school has 26 different blocks with a chapel, a staff and priests' house.

Iona College has an outdoor education centre called "Glendalough" near Peregian Beach on the Sunshine Coast. Most year levels visit the camp every year.[3] The site has an area of 19 hectares and Glendalough is close to the southern shores of Lake Weyba, one of the large shallow lakes of the region. Double kayaks are provided for use on the lake. Other nearby activities include climbs of Mt Coolum and Mt Peregian, the environmental walk at Stumer’s Creek Reserve and numerous local patrolled surf beaches.

Performing Arts Centre and cultural activities

The Iona College Performing Arts Centre (IPAC) was opened in 1998, giving the school's cultural activity such Speech & Drama, Music and Art a venue to display their talents.

Iona has a proud tradition in many cultural activities such as drama, music, art, debating and public speaking, titration and mooting.

Every year The Festival of Music, a state wide competition open to all schools is held in the Iona Performing Arts Center (IPAC). Both state and private schools are allowed to enter this competition. Iona's musical, play and band concerts all are performed here. Music at Iona College maintains a good reputation, such as the Symphonic Winds Band, Percussion Ensemble and Big Band receiving great success in their relevant fields of competition.

The school provides over 14 school bands. It can be divided into 5 categories. These include:

  • Concert bands
  • String orchestras
  • Vocal ensembles
  • Jazz ensembles
  • Percussion ensembles

These categories can divided into three levels: beginner, intermediate and advanced. The bands use IPAC to perform and practise. The school also provides music lessons for students.

Iona has been very successful in public speaking with various regional, state and national representatives. The Carter Shield is an annual public speaking competition between Moreton Bay College and Iona. 2006 celebrated the tenth year of this competition. Iona has been successful in winning the competition eight times.

Sporting

The college offers a variety of sports including:

Iona is a member of the Associated Independent Colleges and competes in this sporting competition against such schools as Marist College Ashgrove and St Patrick's College. Iona College has a reputation of winning the Associated Independent Colleges Cross Country, Athletics and Volleyball aggregates. The Junior School (Yr 5 to 7) is a member of C.I.C. Combined Independent Colleges Association playing against many preparatory schools in the Greater Brisbane Region.

House system

As with most Australian schools, Iona College utilises a house system. Iona currently has 8 houses, many of which are named after famous Oblates. They are:

  • Albini (Gold) – named after Fr Charles Albini
  • Anthony (Mauve) – named after Brother Anthony Kowalczyk
  • Cebula (White) – named after Fr Jozef Cebula
  • Charlebois (Orange) – named after Fr Ovide Charlebois
  • Gérard (Green) – named after Fr Joseph Gérard
  • Grandin (Red) – named after Fr Vital-Justin Grandin
  • Mackillop (Maroon) – named after Saint Mary MacKillop
  • Mazenod (Blue) – named after Saint Eugene de Mazenod

Many inter-house competitions are held throughout the year, such as swimming, athletics and cross-country. Although inter-house sport is an important aspect of inter-house activities, it is by no means the only area. Houses also compete in the arts and academic arenas. The winner of each competition receives points which contribute towards the Oblate Trophy.

Notable alumni

Sport

  • Ashley Callus, 2000 Summer Olympics freestyle swimming relay gold medallist.
  • Graham Quinn, Australian rugby league team
  • Ben Turner, 2006 Commonwealth Games weightlifting Gold Medalist, 2010 Commonwealth Games Silver Medalist
  • Chris Hill, Australian triathlon team and World Junior triathlon champion
  • Shane Drahm, Australian 7-a-side rugby union and Queensland Reds
  • Andrew Johns, Olympic triathlon British representative 2000 and 2004
  • Grant McGregor, Australian swimming team
  • Luke Doherty, Under 19 and Under 21 Australian rugby union representative, former Queensland Reds and current Western Force player
  • Damien MacKenzie, former Queensland cricketer
  • Wayne Broad, former Queensland cricketer
  • Tony Hackett, former Australian indoor cricketer
  • Jared Waerea-Hargreaves, U/19 Australian rugby representative, New Zealand rugby league representative, Sydney Roosters NRL player
  • Mitch Felsman, Australian Schoolboys 2009, Australian 7's 2010, QLD Reds A 2011.
  • Dan Power USA 7's & 15's Rugby
  • David Tyrrell, South Sydney Rabbitohs NRL player
  • Mitchell Dodds, Brisbane Broncos NRL player
  • Josh Maeder, Australian Triathlete
  • Ed Quirk, current Queensland Reds player.
  • Tom_Hickey_(footballer_born_1991) Current AFL Player - St. Kilda
  • Tom_Bell_(Australian_footballer) Current AFL Player - Carlton
  • Josh_Thomas_(Australian_footballer) Current AFL Player - Collingwood

Politics

  • Cr Ryan Murphy, Councillor for Doboy Ward in Brisbane City since 2012

Academic

  • Tom Ward, Rhodes Scholar in 2001[4]

Philanthropy

  • John Dougherty, Managing Director of Rosies from 2002–2005[5]

Entrepreneurs

Actors

See also

References

  1. "College Campus". Iona College Website. Retrieved 2008-10-20. 
  2. "History". Iona College Website. Retrieved 2008-10-20. 
  3. Iona College page on Glendalough's facilities
  4. New Rhodes Scholar will help people with disability,UQ News Online
  5. The torch is passed to a new leader at Rosies Youth Mission,The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Brisbane website

External links

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