Term 2, Week 5

Welcome to the College Newsletter for Week 5 of Term 2, 2025.

This week we passed the halfway mark of Term 2. With multiple short weeks and public holidays to begin the Term, the focus at the College has been for staff and students to maintain consistency and routine around our College Agreed Practice Framework and general habits of learning. As we transition into full school weeks, with an eye on the beginning of new units or forthcoming assessment for most grades, learning and revision should be the priority for all students. 

On Wednesday, the College held a formation focussed assembly where students were reminded of the traits of a Lauries Gentleman. In preparing for the assembly, I was considerate of the term gentleman in a contemporary context. The term gentleman was once used to note a person’s social status and class, however, in modern society and in the context of 110 years of a Lauries education, the term has evolved to represent polite behaviour, respect and good manners. All things we want from our young men at the College.

With the Lauries Gentleman as a focus, our students were challenged on assembly to be respectful and to honour the dignity of all. They were asked to be humble and to be engaged in learning, service and their community. As a part of each family's Lauries Journey, I encourage all families to this week have a conversation about what makes a Lauries Gentleman and the importance of explicitly naming your young man’s good behaviours. 

Australian Teacher Excellence Awards

In exciting news, St Laurence’s College has been named a finalist in the 2025 Australian Education Awards in the category of Secondary School of the Year – Non-Government. This accolade highlights the exceptional contributions of the College to the educational landscape in Australia.

The award is based on several key criteria including consistently high standards of teaching and learning, academic and other co-curricular achievements, rigorous professional learning to improve teaching and curriculum delivery, community communication and commercial sustainability. With hundreds of nominations for the award, being selected among the top eight schools in Australia is a tremendous honour for the College.

Loreto College Visit

It was great to see our Year 9 students participating in the Loreto Twilight Social Justice Forum—an event designed to foster social interaction while nurturing students' spiritual and emotional development. Our boys engaged in activities, group discussions, and storytelling, about real-world issues, as a part of the event. Friendships were established between students from Loreto College, Villanova College, and our own community, that will hopefully serve our boys well into the future. I thank Mr Mendoza and the Identity Team for all of their organisation of this initiative and also thank Loretto College for hosting. 

Back to Runcorn

This week we celebrate our annual Old Boys Round with the Back to Runcorn event. Beginning with Chess tonight, followed by Football and Rugby tomorrow, the occasion is shaping to be a great community weekend. I welcome all families to come and enjoy the long overdue sunshine at Runcorn this weekend, with the highlights being both First’s games and the Old Boys Touch and Football games vs Marist College Ashgrove. We wish all teams good luck and good sportsmanship. 

110 Year Flashback – The College Blazer and a Preserved Bible

As our 110 anniversary year progresses, pausing to acknowledge our community and it’s great tradition, can provide insight and understanding to the events of today. Take for example, The College Blazer.

Wearing the College Blazer has meant many things to the boys who have travelled the Lauries Journey and none are more coveted today than the bumblebee blazer of Black and Gold worn by our College Student Leaders. 

In 1915, the College colours were blue, green and white, which changed to the black and gold of today in 1937. Photos dating back to 1929 depict a smattering of boys with similar ties and socks to those worn today; however, as the images are in black and white, the colour combination cannot be ascertained. The earliest photo of a student wearing a black College Blazer is Maurice Browne in the Junior University Class of 1941. 

In another interesting acknowledgement of our history, our College museum holds a beautiful bible from 1885. Father Breen, the Principal of the former St Kilian’s School, which was later to be destroyed by fire, was renowned for creating one of the best libraries in the colony, which was a vital resource for students.

Remarkably, after the fire, only one item survived the blaze: a Bible, now preserved in the College Museum. Printed in 1885, it contains the translation approved by the Council of Trent and bears the official sanction of Pope Leo XIII – the last Pope to take Leo as a name, before our current, Pope Leo the XIV.