Lourdes Hill College

Lourdes Hill College
Respice Stellam Voca Mariam "Look to the Star and Call Upon Mary"
Address
86 Hawthorne Rd Hawthorne, Queensland Australia
Coordinates
Information
Type	Private/Independent, Single-sex, Day
Denomination	Roman Catholic (Sisters of the Good Samaritan)
Established	1916
Principal	Robyn Anderson
Enrolment	~1000 (7–12)
Colour(s)	Silver, Purple and White              House colours = Beck: orange, Cullen: maroon, D'Arcy: yellow, Healy: pink, Hendricks: blue, McKee: green, Lee: black, Roche: red
Website	lhc.qld.edu.au

Lourdes Hill College is a Roman Catholic, secondary, day and was a boarding school until 2011 for girls, located in Hawthorne, an inner-eastern suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

The college was named after Lourdes in France, where Mary is said to have appeared to a young girl named Bernadette Soubirous. It was founded in 1916 by the Sisters of the Good Samaritan of the Order of Saint Benedict, and currently caters for approximately 970 students from Years 8 to 12 (12 to 18 years of age), which included 70 boarders.

Lourdes Hill is affiliated with the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA), the Australian Boarding Schools' Association (ABSA), and the Brisbane Schoolgirls Sporting Association (BSGSA). The school is one of eleven colleges incorporated by the Sisters of the Good Samaritan.

History

Lourdes Hill College traces its origins to 1915, when the Archbishop of Brisbane, James Duhig, invited the Sisters of the Good Samaritan to establish schools in Brisbane. Subsequently, that same year, thirteen Sisters travelled from Sydney opening convents at Bulimba and Coorparoo.

Archbishop Duhig offered the sisters one of the choicest sites in Brisbane for a convent and a secondary girls' school. Lourdes Hill College was established in January 1916, with Mother Berchmans and thirteen sisters sailing up the river on the ship "Osterley" and docking at the site.

The College was named after Lourdes in France, where Mary is said to have appeared to a young girl named Bernadette Soubirous. When the Good Samaritan Sisters were setting up the school, Archbishop Duhig commented that the site reminded him of Lourdes.

Campus

Lourdes Hill College is situated on the Bulimba Reach of the Brisbane River in suburban Hawthorne, across the river from New Farm Park. The campus is 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) from the Brisbane central business district.

Boarding

The aim of the College Boarding House was to provide a homely environment. Year 8 students lived in rooms of four girls, while Years 9 to 11 students were located in single, two, three or four bed accommodation. All Seniors had single rooms. The Boarding House closed in 2010.

Curriculum

Lourdes Hill offers a broad curriculum covering the faculties of English, Religious Education, Mathematics, Science, Social Science, Languages, Information Technology, Business, Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Health and Physical Education, and Hospitality.

Students may also choose to combine their secondary school studies with Vocational Educational Training (VET) and workplace learning. The Work Education Program can be incorporated into the Year 11 and 12 academic program. Students who complete their senior studies in combination with this program receive a Senior Certificate and a QTAC selection rank that allows access to TAFE and many university courses. Opportunities also exist for students to commence a school based apprenticeship or traineeship, involving part-time school and part-time paid employment. Find more information at the website: www.lhc.qld.edu.au

Co-curriculum

Sport

Lourdes Hill students may participate in a range of sporting activities, both at social and competition level. The school is a member of the Catholic Secondary Schoolgirls' Sports Association and participates in Wednesday afternoon competitions for sports such as basketball, hockey, netball, soccer, softball, touch football, and volleyball. Carnivals are also held for swimming, athletics, and cross country, both within school and against other girls' schools.

The college offers five sporting clubs, in canoeing, rowing, hockey, sailing, sport aerobics and tennis. These clubs participate in a variety of competitions.

Notable alumnae

Alumnae of Lourdes Hill College are commonly referred to as 'Lourdanians', and may elect to join the schools alumni association, the Lourdes Hill College Past Pupils Association (LHCPPA). Some notable Lourdanians include:

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

• Candy Devine – Australian broadcaster
• Clare Polkinghorne – Co-Captain, Australia Women's National Football Team (The Matildas)
• Elizabeth Julia Reid – Grail worker and journalist
• Jackie Trad – Politician, Current Deputy Premier of Queensland
• Mary Gabrielle Healy – Catholic nun, musician and liturgist
• Natalie Blair – Actress, best known for her role as Carmella Cammeniti on Neighbours
• Susie O'Neill – Olympic Swimmer

See also

• List of schools in Queensland
• List of boarding schools
• Head of the River (Queensland)

External links

• Lourdes Hill College Website

• About us", Lourdes Hill College. Accessed 3 April 2011.