Welcome to St Patrick's College
By Mrs Liz Illingworth, Principal
A very warm welcome to the 2025 College year to you all. Welcome to our returning students, families and staff and a special welcome to our new students, families and staff.
Over the past weeks, we have welcomed new staff, new students across Years 8 -12, and 280 new Year 7 students. Along with our staff and students we are of course welcoming many new families. I hope that each new community member feels welcome and is open to embracing membership of our St Patrick’s College community. It is hard to believe that we are already at the end of Week 3.
I wish to thank each family for the way students have been prepared for their return to the College. Our start has been very calm, students are well presented, have been respectful and are engaged in their learning. Of course this needs to continue across the year.
A positive family and school relationship is such an important factor in ensuring that students have a successful time at school. I encourage all of you, whether you are new to the College, or in your final year with us, to ensure that you have full access to Schoolbox and that you attend important events during the year including Parent Teacher Events, Subjection Selection Evenings and other opportunities where we celebrate student progress and achievements.
Can I strongly encourage you that, if you are not on Schoolbox, you make it a priority to gain access, as this is where all our College communications are shared and where your child’s learning is at your fingertips. If you are having issues please visit our College Contact Page for support.
We know that when parents/guardians are engaged, students are more engaged and generally have better attendance and success at school. Attendance at school is a problem across Australia. When students feel supported, we know that their attendance is better. We ask you to please support us in ensuring that your child is at school everyday, unless they are unwell. Everyday matters for your child, everyday matters for learning and for wellbeing. We look forward to supporting each other as we strive to reach our goal of 90%+ Attendance across the school year.
As a Catholic Education Tasmania (CET) School, we operate under the Policies of CET and under the Protocols of our College. All Policies and Protocols and our CET Feedback Portal can be viewed through Schoolbox or on our webpage. I encourage you to view these documents and support us in ensuring that students meet our expectations.
Our staff are fully committed to ensuring our students have the opportunity to be the best they can be. You can contact staff through Schoolbox when you need to touch base with them. We value the wellbeing of all our staff and ask that you be mindful of their right to disconnect and allow them to enjoy their own family and personal time outside College hours. Staff will read and respond to emails and queries between 8:30am and 5:00pm only. Please always allow 24-48 hours for staff to respond to your enquiries.
At our Academic Assembly at the end of Week 2, we had the opportunity to celebrate those who achieved academic success in 2024. This Assembly was an opportunity to celebrate our 2024 Year 12 students - in particular the 28 students who achieved ATARs of 90+. Our Year 11 students, who achieved highly, were also recognised, as well as students from Year 7 2024 - Year 10 2024 who received Academic Honours.
Congratulations in particular to our College Dux from 2024, Gabriella Smith. Gabriella addressed students at the Assembly, inspiring us to do what we love. Congratulations to Gabriella, Owen Millar and Tumai Bennet who were recognised in the Top 100 students in Tasmania and to Gabriella and Owen, who received Outstanding Academic Awards from the Governor of Tasmania.
We are all looking forward to a fantastic year. As our STEM Centre nears completion the excitement of moving into these innovative teaching and learning spaces is rising. We are also looking forward to the increased ease of moving around our campus. With all progress there are challenges and our staff and students have been resilient in dealing with the inconveniences of a large building site in the middle of the College. We will keep you posted on the upcoming timelines as the completion date of the project comes closer.
Many co-curricular events are already underway. If your student is not engaged in any activities, please encourage them. We know that being involved in College life grows connections, and growing connections is so important for feeling good about yourself and others. Please mark Wednesday 30 April (Opening Night) - Friday May 2 in your calendar and purchase tickets to come along to see MIDNIGHT - The Cinderella Musical presented by St Patrick’s College.
ARE YOU A VOLUNTEER AT ST PATRICK’S COLLEGE OR INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING?
In order to volunteer at the College, you must have a valid WWVP Card and complete a Short Safety Briefing. This is for all volunteering, including coaching a sports team. If you don’t already have a volunteer WWVP, you can apply by accessing this link: WWVP Application Process
Thank you for choosing St Patrick’s College. Have a great week!
