Nazareth Catholic College, Adelaide

Nazareth Catholic College
Motto:
Location
Findon (ECC & Primary), SA, Australia Flinders Park (Secondary), SA Australia
Information
Type	Roman Catholic, Independent, Co-educational, Day
Established	1949 (Our Lady of the Manger School) 1950 (Cardinia Catholic School) 1956 (Mater Christi School) 1971 (Siena College) 2007 (Amalgamation)
Key people	Michael Dahl (Director)
Enrolment	~720 (Primary), 941 (Secondary) [1] ~1080 (Secondary)[1]
Colour(s)	Old Gold, Charcoal & Cream
Website	www.nazareth.catholic.sa.edu.au

Nazareth Catholic College is a Roman Catholic, independent, co-educational, day school, located across two campuses: a Primary Campus in Findon, and a Secondary Campus in Flinders Park–in South Australia. The College is part of the larger organisation Nazareth Catholic Community.

The College was established in January 2007 with the amalgamation of Siena College (Findon), Cardinia Catholic School (Flinders Park), Mater Christi School (Seaton), and Our Lady of the Manger School (Findon).

The Findon Primary Campus caters for approximately 720 students^[1] while the Flinders Park Secondary Campus caters for 941 students,^[1] a total of 1661 students, Early Childhood Centre (ECC) to Year 12, across the two campuses.

Nazareth Catholic College is a member of the Sports Association for Adelaide Schools.

History

Nazareth Catholic College was established in January 2007 with the amalgamation of three neighbouring Catholic Primary Schools and Siena College.

At the time of its inception in 2007 the Secondary College consisted of a predominately female population, as the Secondary College had previously been Siena College, a school for girls. In 2011 the first co-educational cohort of Year 12 students graduated from the College.

As an essentially new College, Nazareth Catholic College underwent significant building works on both campuses. In 2011 the Primary Campus completed a multipurpose space and gym funded by the Building the Education (BER) funding provided by the Australian Government. In the same year the Secondary Campus at Flinders Park completed a Music Centre with additional classrooms built above the new Music Centre as well as additional classrooms in place of the previous Music Centre.

In 2012 an additional Technology workshop was created from an existing classrooms as was a Textiles Room from a previous storage area at the Secondary Campus.

In 2013 another learning space was created in the Secondary College Library, with additional transportable classrooms added. With funding received from the Australian Government the Secondary Campus added new ventilation, skylights and lighting in the existing gym.

Leadership Structure (Secondary)

To cater for the growth in student numbers as the College became more established, the Secondary College employed additional personnel in College leadership roles. At the time of its inception in 2007 the Secondary Campus Leadership structure consisted of the Secondary Co-Principal, one Deputy Principal as well as Positions of Responsibility such as the Director of Daily Administration and Director of Curriculum.

In 2011 to facilitate growing student numbers a second Deputy Principal was employed at the Secondary Campus with one Deputy Principal responsible for the oversight of the Curriculum and the other for Administration and Pastoral Care matters.

In 2012 additional personnel were employed in Positions of Responsibility. The Director of Administration position was maintained while the Director of Curriculum was renamed to Director of Student Learning, and the additional positions of Director of Student Development, which was responsible for the oversight of then newly structured college Mentor Group programme, and the Director of Learning Technologies (R-12), which had oversight of the Secondary College timetable, as well as learning technologies across both the Primary and Secondary School campuses.

Until the end of 2012 there was a single position of Assistant to the Principal in Religious Identity and Mission, more commonly known as an APRIM employed by the College.

In 2013 were two APRIMs employed by the College, one at the Primary School Campus at Findon and the other at the Secondary Campus at Flinders Park. The position of Director of Student Development was also expanded to include the previous role of Year 12 Coordinator/Events Manager, which was responsible for the oversight of the College Formal, Graduation and other Year 12 specific matters, and Student Leadership Coordinator, responsible for the coordination of the College Student Leaders.

School Structure

Nazareth Catholic College is divided into two "sub-schools":

1. Primary School (Early Learning Centre to Year 7)
2. Secondary School (Years 8 to 12)

Students and Staff are allocated into one of five "houses", which are used for school events such as sports day. The houses are as follows:

1. Dominic (Yellow), named after Saint Dominic of Osma.
2. Catherine (Green), named after Saint Catherine of Siena.
3. MacKillop (Red), named after Saint Mary of the Cross MacKillop.
4. McAuley (White), named after Sister Catherine McAuley, a Sister of Mercy.
5. Romero (Blue), named after Archbishop Oscar Romero.

Pastoral Care and Mentor Group Programme (Secondary)

At the College's beginning in 2007 the Secondary Pastoral Care structure consisted of 30 Pastoral Care groups of approximately 25 students divided equally amongst the five College Houses.

In 2010 it was decided to move to a vertical grouping structure where each of the then renamed 35 Mentor Groups, which had also increased in number due to the increase in student population, would consist of students from Years 8 to 12. This vertical grouping structure continues to the present day under the philosophy that students can learn from both older and younger students and provides a sense of continuity to students as the same Mentor Group teacher is maintained from year to year where possible.

In 2011 the College adopted the MindMatters programme with a particular focus on mental health. During this same year the College became a MindMatters school, recognising its positive steps toward mental health prevention and education across the College.

In 2012 there were 40 Mentor Groups divided equally amongst the five houses.

Five Habits of Excellence

In 2012 the College adopted a philosophy to highlight the expectations of the College to students and the wider community, known as the 'Five Habits of Excellence. These are:

1. Attendance
2. Punctuality
3. Application
4. Completion of Work
5. Involvement in the Nazareth Community.

These serve as a basis through which it is expected that all students can achieve personal excellence. These Habits of Excellence are strictly monitored by the College through the College Mentor Group programme.

Curriculum

The Nazareth Catholic College curriculum follows a framework that covers the eight nationally recognised key learning areas: English, Mathematics, Science, Society and Environment, Languages, Arts, Health and Physical Education and Technology. As with other Australian Schools these subjects conform to the requirements of the Australian Curriculum and the South Australian Curriculum Standards and Accountability (SACSA) Framework.

From Reception to Year 7, students study core subjects of English, Mathematics, Science, Design and Technology, Visual Arts, Drama, Dance and Music, Studies of Society and the Environment, Health and Physical Education, as well as Religious Education, and commence studies of a second language with Italian. Japanese is offered as an additional second language for study from Year 8.

In Years 11 and 12 a full range of South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) courses are offered, as is the Vocational Education and Training module Community Studies.

Nazareth partnered with EFM Health Clubs in 2008 to add an on-site health club to the college's facilities. The facilities include a complete range of premium health and fitness equipment for curriculum use.

See also

• List of schools in South Australia

References

External links

• Nazareth Catholic College website

35°01′04″S 138°31′22″E / 35.017908°S 138.522790°E / -35.017908; 138.522790Coordinates: 35°01′04″S 138°31′22″E / 35.017908°S 138.522790°E / -35.017908; 138.522790