New classrooms, uniforms take shape as Marist College prepares for first female students
There are changes afoot at a north shore boys’ school as it prepares to welcome girls for the first time in its 131-year history. But not everyone is happy with the changes …
North Shore
Don't miss out on the headlines from North Shore. Followed categories will be added to My News.
New uniforms, classrooms and school colours are taking shape at one of the largest Catholic boys colleges in Sydney’s north as the campus prepares to welcome its first cohort of female students.
For the first time in its 131-year-old history, male students at Marist College North Shore will be taught alongside their female counterparts as the college moves towards becoming a fully coeducational school from 2021.
Once completed, the major shake-up will involve combining the Marist North Shore campus in North Sydney with St Mary’s Primary School, located next to the site, for kindergarten classes to Year 12.
Marist North Shore assistant principal Richard Grech, who was recently appointed to oversee the process, said the transition will include new subjects, sporting activities and school logo.
He said enrolment applications for the first stage of the transition, covering Year 7 classes, have already “exceeded expectations” with a full cohort of male and female students set to walk through the gates for the first time in 2021.
“At this stage we have enough students to start a solid year 7 class in 2021 – we would normally accept 150 boys each year and we’ve exceeded that with boys and girls,” he said.
“Part of the process was looking to ensure an even distribution (of boys and girls) in 2021 and we’ve been able to do that. It’s a very exciting time for the college.”
Behind the scenes, the transition has included planning work to accommodate an influx of enrolments. The existing high school site will increase from 850 students to 1200.
Mr Grech said the first stage of the process included construction of new play and recreation areas, the refurbishment of four classrooms and facilities for female students including bathrooms. Construction will begin by the end of the year.
He said the school’s current plans were for each class to become coeducational – as opposed to a “diamond model” that would have female and male students split off in certain subjects.
“At this stage we’ll be fully comprehensive,” he said.
“We’ve also looked at some of our current course offerings from Year 9 such as woodwork, which girls will be able to have access to, but we’re also offering new courses such as design and textiles which girls and boys will be able to access.”
Mr Grech said other work in the transition included the establishment of a committee to create a “wellbeing structure” for students, sporting pathways for female students in sports ranging from water polo to cricket and a site masterplan, incorporating the final stages of the development.
Once completed, the school will also have a new name – Marist Catholic College – and with that will come cerise and gold school colours, replacing black, gold and navy blue, and revamped uniform by prominent designer Jonathan Ward.
Mr Grech said feedback from parents had been largely positive and that the school was prepared for the cultural change.
“It will give students the opportunity to experience leadership together and learn side-by-side as they collaborate – that’s what our parents are after,” he said.
“Our boys have great respect for females and they have more contact with girls in a social context at their age than we ever did so placing girls in the schools I believe will be a positive. Life’s coeducational.”
The transition comes as various other colleges across Sydney have moved towards providing coeducational classes, including Barker College in Hornsby last year.
The trend has met some resistance from parents, with an online petition stating plans by Marist were “another example of how many single-sex, boys institutions are under pressure to become coeducational, whilst other girls institutions are not at all pressured into adopting a coeducational system.”
“130 years of Marist boys education in the north shore will be abolished if this plan is adopted,” the petition stated.
Mr Grech said he “was not aware” of the petition however “parents were free to make arrangements that suited” their child.
Once completed, Marist will become the only coeducational Catholic school offering kindergarten to Year 12 classes on the north shore.
Mr Grech said enrolment demand was also expected to increase due to demographic changes across the region, population growth and the new Metro line stations due to open in Crows Nest and North Sydney by 2024.