Kilbreda College
Encyclopedia
Kilbreda College is a Roman Catholic private girls secondary college located in Mentone
, Melbourne
, Victoria, Australia
. It was founded in 1904 by The Brigidine Sisters and is administered by the Brigidine Order. In 2004 Kilbreda celebrated its centenary.
In the 1890s due to competition with Mentone Hotel and the Depression, the Coffee Palace could no longer be run. In 1894 it fell into the hands of the Mercantile Bank of Australia, and the name of the building was changed to Como House.
After this the Coffee Palace was only used occasionally for varying purposes.
The Brigidine Sisters bought the Coffee Palace in mid-July 1904 for £2,050, considering the actual cost of the building and furniture, excluding land, was £25,500.
, and classes began the next day.
On opening, the school had 3 pupils enrolled in the Convent School and 25 pupils enrolled in St. Patrick's Parish Primary which was located in the Church. The school also began taking boarders in 1905. Boarders and students of primary school age have been phased out since, the final primary class being in 1978.
In the 1930s the school's name was changed to Kilbreda College, the name coming from the Gaelic Cill - church or community and Breda - Brigid. Therefore Kilbreda means Church or Community of Saint Brigid.
(1916–1926)
(1927–1965)
(1966–1971)
(1972–1973)
(1974–1978)
(1979–1980)
(1984)
(1985–1995)
(1995)
(1981-1983/1996-1999)
(1999–2006)
(principal, 2007-presently)
Most Brigidine schools follow the same core values, motto and school symbols.
The Brigidine Schools' symbols are:
In 1945 the house Lourdes was added to the housing system making the houses:
1963 saw the addition of two more teams, Alacoque and Delany. So the houses present in 1963 were:
These school houses were kept till 2006 when they were changed to:
There was no adjustment made to the winter uniform. The winter uniform consists of fawn tights or knee high fawn socks, a green and red tartan skirt, fawn blouse and a bottle green tie, jumper and blazer with brown shoes.
The sport uniform consists of a red sports shirt with school emblem, bottle green jacket, bottle green shorts and bottle green trackpants.
The Skipping Girl Sign
used by the vinegar brand was originally modelled on Catherine Minogue, later Sister Felicitas, a teacher of Kilbreda. Her brother made the original sketch, sent it in for a competition, won, and the image was used for the brand.
Mentone, Victoria
Mentone is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 21 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Kingston...
, Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, Victoria, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It was founded in 1904 by The Brigidine Sisters and is administered by the Brigidine Order. In 2004 Kilbreda celebrated its centenary.
Origins of the school building
The original façade of the building was built by the Royal Coffee Palace Company Limited. It was opened in November 1887 and was known as the Mentone Coffee Palace. The Coffee Palace was the social centre of the town, situated on the corners of Mentone Parade, Florence Street and Como Parade. It is also near Mentone station (formerly known as Balcombe Road Station until 1884) and is surrounded by the local shops.In the 1890s due to competition with Mentone Hotel and the Depression, the Coffee Palace could no longer be run. In 1894 it fell into the hands of the Mercantile Bank of Australia, and the name of the building was changed to Como House.
After this the Coffee Palace was only used occasionally for varying purposes.
The Brigidine Sisters bought the Coffee Palace in mid-July 1904 for £2,050, considering the actual cost of the building and furniture, excluding land, was £25,500.
A Brigidine Convent
On the 7 August 1904 the Brigidine Convent School was officially opened and blessed by Archbishop Thomas CarrThomas Joseph Carr
Thomas Joseph Carr was the second Roman Catholic archbishop of Melbourne, Australia.-Early life:Carr was born near Moylough, Galway, Ireland, and educated at St Jarlath's College, Tuam, and at St Patrick's College, Maynooth. He was ordained on 19 May 1866, was a curate for six years, and was then...
, and classes began the next day.
On opening, the school had 3 pupils enrolled in the Convent School and 25 pupils enrolled in St. Patrick's Parish Primary which was located in the Church. The school also began taking boarders in 1905. Boarders and students of primary school age have been phased out since, the final primary class being in 1978.
In the 1930s the school's name was changed to Kilbreda College, the name coming from the Gaelic Cill - church or community and Breda - Brigid. Therefore Kilbreda means Church or Community of Saint Brigid.
Principals
- Mother Margaret Mary Murphy 1904-1915
- Mother Berchmans Foley
(1916–1926)
- Mother Margaret Mary Bourke
(1927–1965)
- Sister Barbara Mathews
(1966–1971)
- Sister Pius Kennedy
(1972–1973)
- Sister Marietta Rea
(1974–1978)
- Sister Rosemarie Joyce
(1979–1980)
- Sister Catherine Kelly
(1984)
- Sister Mary Dalton
(1985–1995)
- Mrs Carmel Smart
(1995)
- Sister Angela Ryan
(1981-1983/1996-1999)
- Sister Helen Toohey
(1999–2006)
- Ms Mary Stack
(principal, 2007-presently)
Kilbreda's core values and symbols
The Brigidine Schools' symbols are:
- Brigid's CrossBrigid's crossBrigid's cross, Brighid's cross, or Brigit's cross, often with the "Saint" prefix, or Cros Bríde, Crosóg Bríde or Bogha Bríde, though not recorded before the seventeenth century, is an Irish symbol. Though a Christian symbol, it possibly derives from the pagan sunwheel. It is usually made from...
-The kind of cross St. Brigid used when teaching about the Catholic faith. It is made from woven reeds. - The Oak TreeOak TreeOak Tree may refer to:*Oak, the tree*Oak Tree, County Durham, a village in County Durham, England*The Oaktree Foundation, a youth-run aid and development agency*Oak Tree National, golf club in Edmond, Oklahoma...
- St. Brigid's monastery in TullowTullowTullow is a town in County Carlow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney where the N81 road intersects with the R762.-History:There is a statue of Father John Murphy, one of the leaders of the 1798 Rebellion, who was captured near Tullow and executed in the Market Square on 2 July...
, is called KildareKildare-External links:*******...
. Kildare meaning 'the church of the oak'. Many Brigidine schools grow an oak tree from an acorn taken from one of the oak trees in Tullow. - The Lamp of Learning - represents the light of Christian faith
- School Badge - was designed by the Irish CollegeIrish CollegeIrish Colleges is the collective name used for approximately 34 centres of education for Irish Catholic clergy and lay people opened on continental Europe in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries. The Colleges were set up to educate Roman Catholics from Ireland in their own religion following the...
of Heraldry. The large cross of diamonds is taken from the badge of Bishop Daniel DelanyDaniel DelanyDaniel Delany was the Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin. He was born on the first of two sons into a farming family in January 1747...
, the Bishop who founded the Brigidine Sisters in 1807. The middle diamond contains an image of the lamp of learning, and the image of St. Brigid's cross is contained in the top section.
Houses
As the school expanded Kilbreda developed school houses and as more students joined the school the number of houses increased. The housing system was started on the 2nd of May 1934 with the three houses:- Kilbreda - green - to honour St. Brigid
- LisieuxLisieuxLisieux is a commune in the Calvados department in the Basse-Normandie region in northwestern France.Lisieux is the capital of the Pays d'Auge area, which is characterised by valleys and hedged farmland...
- red - to honour St. Therese - PaduaPaduaPadua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
- fawn - to honour St. AnthonyAnthony of PaduaAnthony of Padua or Anthony of Lisbon, O.F.M., was a Portuguese Catholic priest and friar of the Franciscan Order. Though he died in Padua, Italy, he was born to a wealthy family in Lisbon, Portugal, which is where he was raised...
In 1945 the house Lourdes was added to the housing system making the houses:
- Kilbreda - green
- Lisieux - red
- Padua - fawn
- LourdesLourdesLourdes is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in south-western France.Lourdes is a small market town lying in the foothills of the Pyrenees, famous for the Marian apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes occurred in 1858 to Bernadette Soubirous...
- gold - to honour Our Lady of LourdesOur Lady of LourdesOur Lady of Lourdes is the name used to refer to the Marian apparition said to have appeared before various individuals on separate occasions around Lourdes, France...
1963 saw the addition of two more teams, Alacoque and Delany. So the houses present in 1963 were:
- Kilbreda - green
- Lisieux - red
- Padua - fawn/white
- Lourdes - gold
- Alacoque - light blue - to honour Mother Alacoque Bourke, the founder of the convent school
- Delany - dark blue - to honour Daniel Delany, the founder of the Brigidine Sisters.
These school houses were kept till 2006 when they were changed to:
- Brigid - green - named after one of the patron saintPatron saintA patron saint is a saint who is regarded as the intercessor and advocate in heaven of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or person...
s of Ireland St Brigid who hence the name of the brigidine schools - KildareKildare-External links:*******...
- blue - means "place of the oak". It is where Brigid established her first monasteryMonasteryMonastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...
. - Delany - gold - Bishop Daniel Delany refounded the Brigidine Order in 1887 to help educate the community.
- TullowTullowTullow is a town in County Carlow, Ireland. It is located on the River Slaney where the N81 road intersects with the R762.-History:There is a statue of Father John Murphy, one of the leaders of the 1798 Rebellion, who was captured near Tullow and executed in the Market Square on 2 July...
- red - where Bishop Daniel Delany refounded the Brigidine order.
Uniform
Since its opening, Kilbreda's uniform has changed a number of times. The latest change was made in 2004 when the long kept 'Candy Striper' summer uniform was replaced. It was named so because of their resemblance to the candy striper uniform, Kilbreda's having white, green and red vertical stripes. The new dress is green with green and red pin stripes in a tartan like pattern. The summer uniform also consists of the "straw hat" or green sports cap, short fawn socks and pair of lace up brown school shoes.There was no adjustment made to the winter uniform. The winter uniform consists of fawn tights or knee high fawn socks, a green and red tartan skirt, fawn blouse and a bottle green tie, jumper and blazer with brown shoes.
The sport uniform consists of a red sports shirt with school emblem, bottle green jacket, bottle green shorts and bottle green trackpants.
Facilities
Facilities available for students include:- Four Tennis courts
- Sporting track
- Sports oval and equipment
- Mary Dalton Hall
- Theatrette
- Drama rooms with costume department
- Library with VCE study room, fiction area, non fiction area, newspapers, a computer lab, viewing rooms and a classroom.
- Atrium
- Undercroft
- Maths Resource Room
- 15 Computer Labs
- The canteen named 'The Healthy Bite'
- Four science labs, including a Physics room
- Food Tech classrooms, one prac and one theory
- Function room
Activities for students
Students at Kilbreda are encouraged to participate in a wide range of activities such as team sports, the annual Athletics carnival, Swimming Carnivals, Book Clubs, Public Speaking, Debating, Justice and Democracy, Peer support and many more actitivites.Kilbreda's sister schools
Kilbreda is one of nine Brigidine Sponsored Secondary Schools that is linked by the governance of the Brigidine Sisters in Australia. The other eight are:- St. Joseph's CollegeSt. Joseph's College, EchucaSt. Joseph's College is a Roman Catholic, co-educational, Secondary College in Echuca, Victoria, Australia. St. Joseph's works under the governance of the Brigidine sisters. The school was established in 1886.-St. Joseph's sister schools:...
, Echuca, VictoriaEchuca, VictoriaEchuca is a town located on the banks of the Murray River and Campaspe river in Victoria, Australia. The Border town Moama is on the northern side of the Murray river in New South Wales. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Shire of Campaspe...
(1886) - Marian CollegeMarian College (Ararat)Marian College is a Roman Catholic, co-educational secondary day school in Ararat, Victoria, Australia.Established in 1955, Marian College works under the governance of the Brigidine sisters....
, Ararat, VictoriaArarat, VictoriaArarat is a city in south-west Victoria, Australia, about west of Melbourne, on the Western Highway on the eastern slopes of the Ararat Hills and Cemetery Creek valley between Victoria's Western District and the Wimmera...
(1889) - Brigidine College, Randwick, New South WalesRandwick, New South WalesRandwick is a suburb in south-eastern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Randwick is located 6 kilometres south-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local government area of the City of Randwick...
(1901) - Brigidine College, St. Ives, New South WalesSt. Ives, New South WalesSt Ives is a suburb on the Upper North Shore of Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia. St Ives is located 18 kilometres north of the Sydney Central Business District in the local government area of Ku-ring-gai Council...
(1954) - Killester CollegeKillester CollegeKillester College is a Roman Catholic girls secondary college in Springvale, Victoria, Australia. Killester works under the governance of the Brigidine Sisters...
, Springvale, VictoriaSpringvale, VictoriaSpringvale is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, approximately 20 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Greater Dandenong...
(1955) - Clonard CollegeClonard CollegeClonard College is a girls' secondary school located in Geelong West, Victoria, Australia.Founded and owned by the Brigidine Sisters in 1956, Clonard College draws its rich heritage from the traditions of Brigidine order....
, Geelong West, VictoriaGeelong West, VictoriaGeelong West is a commercial and residential suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia. When Geelong was founded, the area was known as Kildare but its name was changed to Geelong West in 1875. The main street is Pakington Street.-History:...
(1956) - Marian CollegeMarian College (Sunshine West)Marian College is a Roman Catholic girls secondary college in Sunshine West, Victoria, Australia. Marian College works under the governance of the Brigidine Sisters...
, Sunshine West, VictoriaSunshine West, VictoriaSunshine West is a suburb 13–16 km west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Brimbank. At the 2006 Census, Sunshine West had a population of 15,906.Sunshine West is a residential and industrial area...
(1958) - Kildare CollegeKildare CollegeKildare College is a Roman Catholic secondary college for girls in Holden Hill, South Australia. The school works under the governance of the Brigidine Sisters and was established in 1966.- Houses :Kildare has four houses...
, Holden Hill, South AustraliaHolden Hill, South Australia- Government :Holden Hill is in both the City of Port Adelaide Enfield and City of Tea Tree Gully local government areas, and is in both the South Australian House of Assembly electoral districts of Florey and Torrens. It is also in the Australian House of Representatives Division of Sturt.The...
(1966)
Skipping Girl
Skipping Girl Sign
The Skipping Girl Sign or Skipping Girl Vinegar Sign, colloquially known as Little Audrey, is the first animated neon sign in Australia. The sign is located on Victoria Street within the inner Melbourne suburb of Abbotsford.-Construction:...
used by the vinegar brand was originally modelled on Catherine Minogue, later Sister Felicitas, a teacher of Kilbreda. Her brother made the original sketch, sent it in for a competition, won, and the image was used for the brand.
See also
- St. Brigid
- List of schools in Victoria
- Victorian Certificate of EducationVictorian Certificate of EducationThe Victorian Certificate of Education or VCE is the credential awarded to secondary school students who successfully complete high school level studies in the state of Victoria, Australia. Study for the VCE is usually completed over two years, but it can be spread over a longer period in some cases...
- Vocational Education and Training
- Victorian Certificate of Applied LearningVictorian Certificate of Applied LearningThe Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning is a 'hands-on' option for students in Years 11 and 12 in Victoria, Australia.The VCAL gives students practical work-related experience, as well as literacy and numeracy skills and the opportunity to build personal skills that are important for life...