NAIDOC Week 2026
By Mrs Liz Illingworth, Principal
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continue to call us into right relationship. Give us courage to show up, to listen deeply, to learn humbly, and to celebrate generously. Help us to walk together in truth, justice, healing, hope and in your love. Amen
Celebrated on the first Sunday of July each year, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Sunday is a time when the whole Church comes together to celebrate and acknowledge the gifts of Australia鈥檚 First Nations people. It falls on the first Sunday of NAIDOC Week. The annual observance provides the opportunity for Catholics throughout Australia to recognise and celebrate the gifts and contributions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to the life of the Church.
At Mass last Sunday in our Chapel, it was wonderful to have our Aboriginal Learning Leader, Mr Paul Thomas, and Aboriginal Elder, Uncle Hank, present to conduct a smoking ceremony and welcome us all to Country.
As a College, we continued our recognition of NAIDOC Week in our College Assembly on Monday, where Aunty Dawn Blazley, supported by Year 12 Aboriginal students Katie and Noah, welcomed us to Country. Our Assembly Prayer reminded us all of the importance of walking together in love.
This year's NAIDOC theme is Fifty Years of Deadly. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, 'deadly' is not a negative term - it is a term of high praise meaning awesome, great, amazing, and excellent.
There were two main topics of our Assembly this week: celebrating NAIDOC Week and presenting our Thomas Bourke Scholarship winners for 2026, our Semester 1 Principal Study Awards, and our Term 2 Leaders. In doing so, we were recognising endeavour and excellence across our student cohort.
When we look at our College theme for 2026 - Endeavour and Excellence, to me, the connection to the NAIDOC theme is absolutely clear.
Excellence is about achieving something 'deadly.' It is about pushing your boundaries, finding your brilliance, taking pride in your achievements and milestones. We recognised this in many of our students this week. While not all students were publicly acknowledged at our Assembly, we wish to celebrate every single individual who worked to achieve excellence across the first half of the year.
We know excellence doesn't happen overnight; it requires endeavour. The 'Fifty Years' in the NAIDOC theme celebrates five decades of resilience, grit, and the continuous effort of First Nations people. Similarly, the success we celebrated during our Assembly this week is the result of daily endeavour, the quiet choices to keep trying, showing up, and pushing forward.
At our Assembly, we encouraged each of our students to commit to trying their best, to showing up as the best version of themselves, and to pushing outside of their comfort zones to be better than they were yesterday. Students were encouraged to commit to this mindset in their studies, relationships, and in everything else they do.
The Thomas Bourke Scholarship is awarded each year to two Year 7 students. The award is based on academic excellence and supports the recipients throughout their time at the College. We congratulate Eva Lewis and Raphaella Rossilli-Morrison on receiving this award for 2026.
A reminder that Monday 27 July is a Student Free Day. All staff at the College will be involved in our Staff Spirituality Day where this year our focus will be on living and learning about the Charism of the Presentation Sisters and the Nagle Spirit.
We hope all our students enjoy the two week break and we look forward to seeing everyone back, rested, ready to learn and engage in our community for Term 3 on Tuesday 28 July 2026.
