Santa Sabina College

Established in 1894, Santa Sabina has a non-selective enrolment policy and currently caters for approximately 1,400 students, with co-education from Kindergarten to Year 4, and girls only from Years 5 to 12.²

History

Eight Dominican sisters arrived from Ireland in 1867, to establish schools for Catholic children in New South Wales. Subsequently, 6.5 acres (3 ha) of land and a house in Strathfield were purchased from wine-grower, Harold Lindeman. Santa Sabina College was established on this site in January 1894, with seven day students. The first three boarders were enrolled in April of that same year.⁹

Although the College saw its first student matriculate in 1906, it was not officially recognised as a secondary school until 1912, with the passing of the New South Wales Bursary Act. Organised sport was first introduced in 1918, with Tennis the most popular sport at the time.⁹

In 1936, Santa's most prominent building, Holyrood, was purchased from William Adams of the Tattersall's Hotel. The carved sandstone facade came from the City Bank building in Moore Street (now Martin Place). This building was used as the College boarding house until boarding ceased in 1975. The building now houses the College music department.⁹ The Del Monte property, located across the road from the College, was leased in 1949, with the first primary school students taking up residence later that year. In 1950, the owner of the property, Mary Bailey, died, leaving the property to the Sisters. Del Monte was subsequently renamed Santa Maria del Monte. Santa Maria del Monte was expanded in 1968, with the purchase of Lauriston,⁹ which had been the home of the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney during the Second World War.¹⁰ This purchase provided the school with a sports ground and additional classrooms.⁹

1996 saw the establishment of the Out of School Hours Centre (OOSH), and in 1997, a property at Tallong was purchased for outdoor education. In 1998, Mary Bailey House was opened as an Early Childhood Centre, and in 2002 classes for Years 6 and 7 commenced at the Middle School campus, Martin De Porres.⁹

Santa Sabina is recognised as an employer of choice for women by the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency.⁸

Principals

Campus

The Strathfield campus includes a 33 m outdoor swimming pool, six tennis courts, three ovals and a chapel. In 2002, a Middle School was established for students in Years 6 and 7. In 2005 the Aquinas Learning Centre was opened, featuring a library, lecture theatre and student services facility.

Crest

The backdrop of the College crest is a black and white shield of the Dominican Order of Preachers. At the base of the shield is the book of Gospels, containing the central motivation of the Order's existence. The rosary beads, held to be Dominican in origin since the 17th century are shown, as is a crown - signifying the joy of eternity. The dog represents the traditional story of a dream which St Dominic's mother had before his birth. She dreamt of a dog with a torch in its mouth, lighting up the world with the truth of the Gospel. The star signifies the compass points that the Gospel is to be brought to all corners of the earth. The lily and palm symbolise a life lived with purity of intention and self-sacrifice that others might live.

Co-curricular activities

Debating

The College debating activities include: The Archdale Competition for Years 7 to 12, against twenty similar type independent girls' schools; the AHIGS Festival of Speech; the Catholic Schools' Debating competition; Schools' Speaking competition; the Catholic Schools' Speaking competition; the Junior Legacy Speaking competition; Senior Plain English Speaking competition; and the Rostrum Voice of Youth Competition.¹¹

Debating and Public Speaking is also offered through inter-house competitions.¹¹

Sport

The sporting program at Santa Sabina includes: School sporting clubs, Saturday and midweek competitions, gala days, and representative opportunities up to national level. Each year the College takes about 2500 sports registrations for approximately 85 sports competitions and activities across 22 sports.¹²

House system

As with most Australia schools, Santa Sabina utilises a house system. In 1997, the College's original four houses (Murangaroo, Lakkari, Timbarra and Kuramin) were replaced by six houses. These six houses have been given the following Indigenous names: Gunagulla (blue), Kurrawa (aqua), Mundawora (purple), Teangi (orange), Weelya (green) and Yetinga (red). The houses compete in swimming, athletics and public speaking.

Notable alumni

References

^ "Schedule of Fees 2008". Enrolment. Santa Sabina College (2008). Retrieved on 2008-02-04.
^ ^a ^b "Overview". About Us. Santa Sabina College (2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ ^a ^b "Annual Report 2006" (PDF). About Us. Santa Sabina College (2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ "Directory of Schools for the Archdiocese of Sydney". Our Parishes. Archdiocese of Sydney. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ "AHISA Schools". New South Wales. Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (November 2007). Retrieved on 2007-06-19.
^ "JSHAA New South Wales Directory of Members". New South Wales Branch. Junior School Heads' Association of Australia (2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ ^a ^b "Heads of New South Wales Independent Girls' Schools". About AHIGS. Association of Heads of Independent Girls Schools. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ ^a ^b "Santa Sabina College" (PDF). Organisational Profile. Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Our History". About Us. Santa Sabina College (2007). Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ McFarlane, John (1988). "War And Disruption 1942-1945", The Golden Hope: Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney 1888-1988. Croydon, NSW: P.L.C Council, Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney, pp. 89-98. ISBN 0-9597340-1-5.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Debating". Co-Curricular. Santa Sabina College. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ ^a ^b "Sport Overview". Sport. Santa Sabina College. Retrieved on 2007-12-11.
^ "Cynthia Mitchell". Stories. Violet Foundation Supporting Meningococcal (2007). Retrieved on 2008-01-17.

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