Merici College

Merici College
Address
10 Wise St, Braddon, ACT, 2612 Australia
Information
Type	Independent, Secondary, Roman Catholic, All Girls, Day School
Motto	Fidelitas
Established	1959 (1959)
Principal	Mrs Loretta Wholley
Assistant principals	Trazel Scott
Grades	7-12
Enrollment	1000 (approx.)
Colour(s)	Navy blue Maroon Gold
Affiliations	Associated Southern Colleges
Website	http://www.merici.act.edu.au

Merici College is a private Roman Catholic girls' high school located in the suburb of Braddon in Canberra, Australia. It caters for years 7-12. The school's Principal is Mrs. Loretta Wholley.

History

Merici College is named in honour of Italian saint St. Angela Merici. The college is the oldest Catholic girls' school in Canberra. It was founded in 1959 as Canberra Catholic Girls' High School. The letters CCGH can be seen on the original gates at the Ipima Street side of the building. At that time, although there were several Catholic boys schools in the area, there was no equivalent institution for female Catholic students. The founding of Merici is unusual among Catholic schools in that, rather than being established by a single order of nuns, it was originally intended as an archdiocesan school. The school was staffed by nuns from six different orders; they were: The Sisters of Mercy, The Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart, the Presentation Sisters, the Ursuline Sisters, the Brigidines and the Sisters of the Good Samaritan. When a second Catholic girls' college opened in Canberra in the 1960s, the school became known as Braddon Catholic Girls High School. In the Year 1977 following a delcine in enrolments it was decided to trial co-education with 7 boys enrolling. The name was changed to Braddon Catholic High School. 1978 saw the largest intake of boys with 49 in total enrolling. During 1978 it was decided that the school should once again return to being a girls only school with a decision being taken to no longer enrol boys. A letter was sent out to parents of the boys already at the school suggesting that it might be preferable for the boys to enroll at Daramalan, St Edmunds or Marist Brothers. Total number of boys dwindled over the ensuing years to just 4 during 1983. In 1983, as part of its Silver Jubilee, the school was renamed Merici College in honour of St Angela Merici, the founder of the Ursuline Order. The school celebrated its Golden Jubilee in 2009.

Pastoral Care System

Merici College has a vertical pastoral care system. This system replaces the more common Australian system of having a year coordinator assigned to each year group. Upon enrollment to the school, each student is assigned to one of six houses, each associated with one of the founding religious orders. The houses are: Balgo (yellow), Brescia (purple), Ningil (red) (named for a mission in Papua New Guinea founded by Nano Nagle's Presentation Sisters), Penola (white and black), Seiwa (named after Seiwa College) (blue) and Tullow (green). Students remain in their appointed house throughout their time at the college. They are also assigned to a vertically integrated Pastoral Care class consisting of students from all year levels in the same house. The House Coordinator and the Pastoral Care teacher for each student remain constant (excepting normal staff turnover) throughout the student's time at the College. This allows for continuity in dealing with students and helps to foster strong relationships between parents and these key teachers at the school.

Community involvement

Merici College has an active St. Vincent de Paul Society Conference operating at the school which is involved in charitable collection and fund raising, as well as supporting the Canberra Night Patrol which works with the homeless in the Canberra area.

Each year, Merici participates in sporting events organised by various Canberra sporting bodies. Sports that the school competes in include: soccer, softball, netball, hockey, basketball, volleyball, swimming, water polo, track and field, touch football, golf, tennis, equestrian and snow sports. The school is affiliated with Associated Southern Colleges.

Merici College is the sister school of Marist College Canberra. The two schools are closely linked, sharing many common activities. In the past, these activities have included the Duke of Edinburgh program, as well as ski and snowboarding trips. In recent years, year-specific socialising activities have been included.

Notable alumni

Rosemary Follett AO - The first Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory, first woman to become head of government in an Australian state or territory.

External links

Merici College Website