Marist-Sion College celebrates new $4.5M Saint Mary MacKillop Centre 

August 2024

Marist-Sion College celebrates new $4.5M Saint Mary MacKillop Centre 

The Marist-Sion College community gathered to celebrate the Blessing and official opening of the school’s new Saint Mary MacKillop Centre.

Fr Brendan Hogan - Parish Priest of Warragul and Drouin Parish officially blessed the Centre. He was joined by Senator Raff Ciccone, Federal Senator for Victoria who officially opened the building.

Also attending was Mr John Swan - Board Director of Diocese of Sale Catholic Education Limited, Mr Paul Velten - Director of Catholic Education for the Diocese of Sale, Ms Lisa Harkin - Principal Marist-Sion College, along with staff, students, invited guests, and friends of the school and parish community.  

Principal Ms Lisa Harkin said the new Saint Mary MacKillop Centre was a transformative addition to the College. 

“The project involved the demolition of existing portables and the construction of six new general learning areas and break out spaces with enhanced technology capability. The Centre connects seamlessly to the main building through a series of ‘Village Walkways’. It has been designed to allow for flexibility in teaching and learning while ensuring effective noise moderation. Wide corridors and breakout zones provide collaborative spaces for students to engage in group work outside the traditional classroom setting.”

Ms Harkin said the building featured design elements that reflect the College’s Catholic identity providing students with visual reminders of the importance of the spiritual dimension of life.

A new fire safety system was also installed throughout the College as part of the project. 

Director of Catholic Education for the Diocese of Sale, Mr Paul Velten, said the Saint Mary MacKillop Centre project was part of the College’s Masterplan to meet the needs of the growing school community now and into the future. 

“This project exemplifies the collaborative efforts between school and parish to cultivate excellence in education, to inspire faith, and encourage in students a life-long love of learning."

“Each space within the Saint Mary MacKillop Centre is designed to spark creativity and facilitate meaningful interactions among students, allowing them to thrive both academically and spiritually."

Mr Velten thanked the project team, school leadership team, building designer - Chris Brown, builder - Langden Constructions and all those who contributed to bringing the project to fruition. 

The Saint Mary MacKillop Centre was completed in June 2023 at a total cost of $4.533 million

The replacement of fire services, tanks and pumps was an additional $442,418.

The project was supported by a $1.8 million funding grant from the Australian Government Capital Grants Program, a $1.5million loan from the Catholic Development Fund (CDF) and funds from the school community.

Mr Velten thanked the Australian Government and Catholic Development Fund (CDF) for their support of the project.

“May the Saint Mary MacKillop Centre not only serve as a place of learning but also as a beacon of faith and inspiration for many years to come.”

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