The Herald Sun’s Who’s Who of Private Schools: Part Two
Go inside the world of Victoria’s most prestigious schools and find out everything you need to know about some of Melbourne’s elite institutions.
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Welcome to the second instalment of the Herald Sun’s Who’s Who of Private Schools.
With yearly fees heading towards $40,000 a year at the top colleges, parents are paying closer attention than ever to how their schools are performing.
Principals these days aren’t just educators – the best ones are running businesses with annual incomes of $138m and grounds worth $258m.
Post-Covid, the private school landscape continues to evolve, leading to a shift away from girls’ schools which means larger co-ed schools are starting to dominate.
Here’s the Herald Sun’s Who’s Who of Private Schools: Part Two
>>Read Part One here.
Carey Grammar
As one of the only co-ed schools in the leafy east’s private school belt, Carey Grammar is “going gangbusters” according to one insider.
“The principal Jonathan Walters is doing a good job and surrounding himself with excellent people,” one staff member said.
This includes head of senior school Kellie Lyneham, who has a strong background in girls’ education.
The proudly progressive Walter, who came back to the school in 2020, is becoming well known for his Instagram account, giving him the nickname JWalt.
Carey is sailing well, and after a challenging period a few years ago, the Old Carey Grammarians organisation is now productive, with members of all ages feeling heard.
Movers and Shakers: Tim Chilvers, Mary Wooldridge, Graeme Liebelt, Jane Favaloro, Anthony and Nicola Bergelin, Sam Ponsford, Ash Mehta and Rob Coombes.
Notable alumni: James Tomkins, Steve Vizard, Jack Macrae, John and Tom Elliott, Peter and Tim Costello, Tiffany Cherry and Suzie Wilks.
Caulfield Grammar
Known as the sportiest school among some very sporty schools, Caulfield Grammar is the Carey Grammar of the southeast, hoovering up sporting talent thanks to a raft of generous scholarships.
The facilities at the school’s Wheelers Hill campus are next-level and the new six-level teaching and learning building is costing $80m – four times the annual budget of many high schools.
Principal Ashleigh Martin has held the post since 2017 and many believe is doing a good job promoting school values and academic success. However, the school’s success – 3228 students and counting – is coming at the expense of local residents and a number of smaller schools in the area such as Shelford Grammar.
The school’s sporting ethos and win-at-all-costs mentality also makes it unpopular among some of its competitors.
Movers and shakers: Andrew Aitken, Emily Davis, Henry Jones, Fleur Katsmartin, Jim Hayman, Adrian Redlich, Richard Jones, Louisa Durbin.
Notable alumni: Hamish Blake, Nick Cave, Kelly O’Dwyer, Emily Angwin, Jack Rafshauge, Mack Horton, Tamsyn Lewis, Brett Deledio, Chris Judd, Christopher Skase, Matthew Wales, John Landy, Tony Beddison.
The Knox School
The school was founded in 1982 and is going through a turbulent time.
Revelations that many long-serving members of the school council have been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to run the school – a job that others do for free elsewhere – has rocked this tight-knit college.
With relatively low fees compared to other eastern suburbs private schools, The Knox School has grown in recent years, but a high turnover of staff continues to cause instability. As one former staff member put it: “the school was an absolute nightmare to work at but I loved the kids”.
Movers and shakers: Wendy Lewis, Barry McIlwaine, Cathrine Burnett-Wake, Ted Gale, Genia Janover, Craig Spagnol, Sandra Ball.
Notable alumni: Jackson Irvine, Shanae Greaves, Xander Speight, David Glascow, Victoria Caetano, Mitchell Phelan and Bhavesh Kapadia.
St Catherine’s School
Stability of leadership has been a boon for this high-end, successful sporty school. Principal Michelle Carroll has been at the helm for a decade and worked hard to overcome a “Mean Girls” reputation a few years ago.
One St Cath’s old girl said the school “used to be full of girls from Toorak whose dads had a lot of money and didn’t care what they did”.
Now St Catherine’s calls itself the “number one girls’ school in Victoria” off the back of its impressive VCE results and prestigious Henley Royal Regatta rowing win in 2022.
It’s an approach that hasn’t impressed other top-performing girls’ schools.
An all-female leadership team, campus in the heart of leafy Toorak and cashed-up parent body all make St Catherine’s one of the state’s most impressive schools.
Movers and shakers: Jane Hodder, Roxanne Ktenevos, Tom Shelton, Julia Soutter, Maryann Jesudason, Marnie Pringle, Irene Karas, Scott Reinke, Kirsty-Manning Wilcox, Annabel and Rupert Myer, Sarah O’Brien, Jamie and Rebecca Gray, Simone and Andrew Demetriou.
Notable alumni: Natalie Bloom, Lady Anna Cowen, Dame Elisabeth Murdoch, Lady Marigold Baillieu Southey, Sunday Reed, Linda Dessau, Lauren Hewitt, Celia Burrell, Jane Campton, Carolyn Cresswell, Sophie Mirabella, Susan Richardson, Flip Shelton.
Haileybury
Haileybury’s is one Victoria’s largest schools and it’s capably led by Derek Scott – only the eighth principal since 1892.
Despite balancing multiple sites across the city, including the state’s first online private campus (which charges nearly $20,000 a year), Haileybury manages to avoid some of the gender, race and sexual skirmishes of other top-drawer private schools.
Impressive grounds – especially its Keysborough campus which stretches for more than 2km along Springvale Rd – and further international expansion will see the school’s 4432-student headcount rise in coming years.
But the school’s relentless pursuit of academic and sporting excellence comes at a cost.
“High achievers will love Haileybury – everyone else, not so much,” one former parent said.
The school was also fined $140,000 over safety breaches after a groundsman suffered a fatal head injury when he was struck by a tree.
Mover and shakers: Russell Davidson, Neil Sutcliffe, Tom Poulton, Scott Doran, Scott Pendlebury, Nathan Jones, Matthew Lloyd.
Notable alumni: Maddison Connaughton, Barbara van der Merwe, Adam Elliot, Ross Wilson, Ian Henderson, Lex Lasry, Martin Pakula, Alice Burke, James Pattinson, Amy Lawton, Ty Vickery, Max and Ben King, Andrew Brayshaw, Angus Brayshaw, Luke Davies-Uniacke, Cody Weightman, Jack Gunston, Oscar Piastri.
Ballarat Clarendon College
The mid-priced rural college in Victoria consistently posts some of the very best academic results, topping the state in 2022 for VCE.
The school hit the headlines in October last year after staff revealed a long list of grievances to the Herald Sun, accusing long-serving principal David Shepherd of bullying and harassment.
Staff reported a culture of “genuine misery” thanks to the crippling workload.
“Shepherd was very strong, maybe too strong, but the school has unbelievably good results. He drives staff very hard,” one insider said.
There were investigations galore. However, Shepherd was cleared by an independent panel.
But no one was surprised when he decided to retire after a 27-year stint in the top job at the fifth-oldest private school in the state.
The school was lauded this year for winning Head of the Lake, won by both the girls’ and boys’ teams for the first time ever.
Movers and shakers: David Shepherd, John Livingston, Fiona May, Mark Patterson, Jacqui Sewell, Stuart Postlethwaite, Jen Bourke, Greg Ashman, Mehdi and Colleen Qerim, Warwick and Megan Read, Victoria and Rod Kennedy, Jane and Ashley Miller.
Notable alumni: Matt Olver, Gwyn Hanssen Pigott, Joe Saba, Kimberley Davies, Bill Hunter, John Button, Percy Beames, Alastair Clarkson, Hugh McCluggage, Sarah Heard, Bob Davis, Georgina Kemp.
Mentone Grammar
In a move still having repercussions around the southern beachside suburb, Mentone Grammar decided to admit girls in 2006.
Its sister school, Mentone Girls’ Grammar, had rejected a merger proposal the year before.
The decision was controversial and opposed by many parents at the time.
It caused the departure of the school’s principal which led to the appointment in 2007 of Mal Cater in the top job. An old scholar, Cater has been there ever since, but will leave at the end of 2023 after deferring his retirement in 2020.
“Mal handled the move to co-ed well at Mentone Grammar,” another principal said.
“He’s set the school up for the future very well.”
The school is dealing with some historic sexual abuse claims, and was condemned for sacking staff during Covid, with Cater offering satirical prayers which didn’t go down well.
Movers and shakers: Simon Appel, Mark Henricks, Jon Ponnusamy, Georgia Ahern, Ross Joblin, Kylie Watson-Wheeler, Sally Buckley, Natalie Burrows, Kate Edwards, Hayden McNamara, Molly Grant, Niki Buschkuehl, Robina Shearer, Lisa Kirwan.
Notable Alumni: Shane Warne, Stan Alves, Bill Granger, Mal Walden, Kate Hore, Oliver Florent, Jared and Daniel Daperis, Lee Cormie.
Mentone Girls’ Grammar School
Three years ago, Natalie Charles, formerly head of Carey Grammar senior school, took over as principal at Mentone Girls.
“Nat” is proving to be a confident and effervescent leader. But the school has been struggling with declining enrolments also affecting a number of high-end private girls’ schools. “Everyone wants bigger schools, and over time the smaller ones are just getting smaller and smaller,” another principal said.
Fifteen years after going co-ed, Mentone Grammar has 1770 students and Mentone Girls’ Grammar has around 600.
Mentone Girls’ is also at war with neighbours who are objecting to the opening of its $15m wellness precinct – which includes an indoor pool – to non-student groups.
The school recently refinanced five prestigious beachfront properties in a bid to expand its premises along the foreshore, but is not in a position to proceed with developing them.
Movers and shakers: Courtney Walsh, Caitlin Cole, Chrissy Slater, Daphne Soh-Simpson, Penelope Morey-Siemering, Tiffany Middleton, James Stewart, Amanda Robertson, Dr Heather Schnagl and Nicole O’Donnell.
Notable Alumni: Margaret McLorinan, Annette Kellerman, Nancy Wynne Bolton, Dulcie Boling, Mary Bawden, Sarah Derrington, Nicole Bradtke, Suzie Sheehy, Neary Ty.
Fintona Girls’ School
The up-market Balwyn college has excellent VCE results, but small year 12 cohorts and only 450 students across all year levels
The school’s reputation has been helped by revelations in 2022 that students had been complaining for some years about the “non-sexual physical conduct” of former deputy principal Sarah Carter.
An investigation led to Ms Carter leaving the school, but the fallout is continuing, with principal Rachel Falloon currently on sabbatical. The deputy principal and acting head Mark Geraerts is described by one staff member as a “breath of fresh air”.
Movers and shakers: Jackie Besley, Catherine Vickers-Willis, Alison Rodriquez, Jane Rodgerson, Claire Levi, Michael Lee, Jason Karamentos, Andrea Phillips.
Notable alumni: Lucinda Hartley, Joanna Syme, Dame Beryl Beaurepaire, Helen Caldicott, Andrea Coote, Dame Pattie Menzies, Dora Mary Lush, Louise Bawden, Dr Bronwyn King, Dr Gael Jennings, Jill Sewell, Olivia Cranwell, Georgia Griffith.
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