We want to partner with you!

We want to build strong partnerships with our parents/guardians and set up a strong foundation for your child’s journey at Padua College.

An Annual Action Plan (AAP) goal for Padua College is centred on partnerships with our community. We want to hear the voice and wisdom of our parent community.

Research indicates that effective schools have high levels of parental and community partnerships. The result of parent involvement can have a major impact on student learning (Australian Government, DEEWR, Family-School Partnerships Framework – a guide for schools and families).

Parents are an integral part of a Catholic school as a valuable instrument in the important partnership in education. They help to promote the mission of Padua College and they foster a true spirit of community. Canon Law 796, lays the foundation for the relationship between parents and friends and the Catholic school, it states –

‘Among the means of advancing education, Christ’s faithful are to consider schools as of great importance, since they are the principal means of helping parents to fulfil their role in education. There must be the closest cooperation between parents and the staff to whom they entrust their children to be educated. In fulfilling their task, staff are to collaborate closely with the parents and willingly listen to them; associations and meetings of parents are to be set up and held in high esteem’.

Therefore, our Parent of Padua (POP) group aims to in partnership with parents:

• To foster a distinctive Catholic environment.
• To provide a vehicle for information sharing and participation of parents, in a spirit of collaboration and common purpose.
• To identify gifts and talents within the parent community and making them available to meet the mission and identity needs of our college by the sea.

Please email mwilliams@padua.vic.edu.au with any thoughts or suggestions that you have seen work well in other schools or any new ideas to increase our partnership with parents.

Our 2025 College Theme

The Mercy tradition is based on the values of compassion, respect, integrity, justice, hope and joy, as inspired by Catherine McAuley, the founder of the Sisters of Mercy. When the Sisters of Mercy arrived on the Mornington Peninsula in 1898, they recognised the importance of providing an education for young people that would enable them to assume their role in society with confidence and to be initiators of change within the spirit of the Mercy charism.

Our 2025 theme is around challenging our Padua College students to have a growth mindset. Catherine challenged her community with the goal to be better today than yesterday, with a plan to become even better tomorrow.

‘Resolve to be good today, but better tomorrow’

Catherine McAuley, founder of the Mercy Sisters

Year 10 Wominjeka Retreat

On 30 January, our Year 10 cohort had a Retreat Day. The name of our retreat program is Wominjeka, an indigenous word for ‘welcome’ as the retreat is at the start of a school year and welcomes the Year 10s to the Senior campus at Padua College.

The goals of the Year 10 Wominjeka program include:

• Exploring the story and legacy of our House Patrons.
• Exploring the ability of human beings to do what is correct and maintaining the courage of convictions despite the odds and pressures.
• Exploring the pressures that can be unfairly placed on others.
• Appreciating the uniqueness of each person to avoid stereotyping.
• Developing decision making skills.
• Valuing the role of prayer and Christian discernment within decision-making.
• Supporting the transition from the Junior Campuses to our Senior Campus.

Student Photo Permissions

At times, photographs or videos of our students will be published in newsletters, on the school intranet or website, or in our social media. Copies of our Standard Collection Notice and Privacy Policy are available on the College website in the Enrolments section of our Policies page. Please note that consent to use these images in this way, if provided at enrolment, may be withdrawn at any time by contacting our marketing team via email: marketing@padua.vic.edu.au .