On November 30th and December 1st we, the SFCC Captaincy Team, were invited to attend a leadership retreat organised by Bishop Brian Mascord, and deliver a presentation about our College. We were one of nine Catholic schools from the Wollongong Diocese who attended this inaugural leadership retreat and we are proud of the community we established there on behalf of St Francis Catholic College.

The first day involved a range of icebreaker activities as well as several talks and discussions surrounding ‘Catholic Leadership’. We all had opportunities to express our opinions and perspectives regarding the nature of leadership in our lives and within a religious environment. During our breaks we developed friendships with the leaders of other schools and got to learn more about who they were as a person, rather than a school leader. We woke up early on the second day to watch the Australian soccer team vs Denmark in the world cup. Despite being tired, this experience brought us closer together. The remainder of that day involved the school presentations and a concluding Mass, which allowed us to reflect on our experiences as leaders.

Overall, we are honoured to have represented our school at this retreat. As the youngest College there, we were able to learn about a range of different initiatives, events, and qualities that other schools have incorporated into their community, which have inspired us with ideas for the community at SFCC. We hope that this opportunity is available for future leaders at our College as it has great potential to establish a greater community beyond our College.

Liam, Courtney, Shandesh and Oscar