| St Patrick's College Launceston | |
| Motto: | Strength Through Faith and Knowledge |
| Established: | 1984 |
| Principal: | Liz Illingworth |
| Fees: | A$4,620 p. a.[1] |
| Address: | 282 Westbury Road |
| Coordinates: | -41.4736°N 147.1269°W |
| Fundingtype: | Private |
| Enrolment: | ~1466[2] |
| Colours: | Green and gold |
St Patrick's College is a coeducational Catholic secondary school located in Launceston, Tasmania. The college has close to 1500 students enrolled and caters to Years 7 to 12.
The present St Patrick's College began on 7 February 1873, when the Presentation Sisters began teaching pupils at their convent in Launceston and Sacred Heart College was established. The growing need for the education of Catholic children in Launceston was further met by the arrival of the Christian Brothers and the opening of St Patrick's Christian Brothers' College at York Street on 3 February 1919. The third branch of the threefold educational tradition in Launceston began with the establishment of St Thomas More's School under the auspices of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart in March 1938 at Newstead.
The three schools flourished, and the Religious Orders made a significant contribution to the Catholic community of Launceston. Despite the hardships of earlier years, the Catholic community of Launceston continued to invest in the education of their children. Further financial strain and the challenges of a more extensive curriculum soon led to an amalgamation of the two secondary girl's Colleges of Sacred Heart and St Thomas More's. On 3 March 1978, the two schools joined to form Marian College.
In 1984, St Patrick's College became a co-educational secondary school when the secondary classes from Marian College were transferred to St Patrick's. In 1987, St Patrick's Preparatory School (boys, Grade 3–6) joined with Sacred Heart School (co-educational to Grade 2, then girls only) to form a co-educational primary school which continues to operate at the original Sacred Heart College buildings.[3] In 1998, St Thomas More became solely a primary school and its secondary school students were taken in by St Patrick's College.
In 2019, St Patrick's College celebrated the 100th anniversary of the opening of the St Patrick's Christian Brothers' College. On Saturday, 17 August a gala dinner featuring parish clergy, alumni, staff, students and the wider community formally celebrated the anniversary.
The College crest, designed by staff and students, combines elements of the crests of the three Catholic colleges that previously existed in Launceston. The three sides of the triangle represent the three founding orders that were involved in the College (the Presentation Sisters, the Christian Brothers and the Sisters of St Joseph). The three red flames in the centre of represent the influence of the Holy Spirit on the founding orders, and the circle running through the triangle in the crest represents the unity of the three colleges combined. The chain in the crest symbolises the College's motto, and the cross represents the Christian faith as fundamental to the College.
St Patrick's College is divided into four major houses. These are: MacKillop (blue), Tenison (yellow), Rice (red) and Nagle (green). These Houses act in the same way as houses do in many other Australian schools and students represent these bodies in school athletics and swimming carnivals as well as various academic competitions. Furthermore, each major House is divided into two sub-Houses.[4]
| Tenison | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bourke | Cotham | |||
| Delany |
This House system is intwined with the college's pastoral care system through the Tutor groups, Tutor roles and House Head support roles
St Patrick's College is situated on approximately 16 hectares (39 acres) in Prospect, a suburb of Launceston, Tasmania. With approximately 1500 day students it is the largest school accommodating Years 7 through to 12 in Tasmania.
St Patrick's College is a member of the Sports Association of Tasmanian Independent Schools (SATIS). The school competes in various competitions including: athletics, badminton, basketball, cricket, cross country, equestrian, football, hockey, mountain biking, netball, rowing, soccer, swimming and tennis.
St Patrick's College has won the following SATIS premierships.[5]
Combined:
Boys:
Girls:
St Patrick's College has won the following NSATIS premierships.
Combined:
Boys:
Girls:
Business
Entertainment/Journalism
Politics
Science
Sports