From the Principal: Term 3, Week 6 2026

Dear Mercedes College Families  

It is hard to believe that we are already halfway through Term 3. Over the past two weeks, the College has been particularly busy with Humanities and Social Science Week followed by the celebration of Science Week, and Book Week this week overseen by our English Learning Area. It has been a pleasure to see such enthusiasm across our learning areas, with teachers and students embracing the opportunity to celebrate their disciplines and bring learning to life in different ways.  

These past two weeks have also provided many moments to celebrate the breadth of talent and opportunity across Mercedes College. From academic challenges and learning experiences beyond the classroom to sporting competitions, artistic achievement and leadership development. Our Year 8 students recently took part in their Reflection Day, marking the culmination of two years of learning through Catherine Kolomyjec’s Kindness Challenge. Catherine joined the students as a guest speaker and the day provided an opportunity for students to reflect on compassion, forgiveness, humility and curiosity, and to consider how these qualities are reflected in their own lives and embodied through living our Mercy values. It was wonderful to see students engage openly with these themes, step outside their comfort zones and share their reflections. The day provided a valuable opportunity for our students to pause, reflect and consider the young people they are becoming. 

Science Week was a particular highlight. Students across all year levels were given opportunities to explore, investigate and discover through practical activities and experiments. From forensic investigations and hands-on scientific challenges to the popular Bakeology activity, students were encouraged to apply their scientific thinking in creative and engaging ways. We were also pleased to welcome Mercedes College alumni, who shared their experiences pursuing careers in STEM and provided Year 10 students with insight into the different pathways available within science and engineering. It was inspiring to see our students embracing these opportunities to get hands-on with their learning, ask questions and explore the possibilities that Science can offer.  

The Arts have also been at the forefront of College life. Our production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast: The Broadway Musical was simply superb. I have been incredibly proud to watch our students bring this creation to the stage at the Regal Theatre. The enthusiasm of the cast, musicians, crew and production teams throughout the entire process was evident, and seeing their months of preparation come together across the performances was a wonderful achievement.  

I would particularly like to acknowledge Miss Emily Hunt, Head of Arts and Creative Director of the Production. This was Miss Hunt’s first time serving as Creative Director, and she has done a fabulous job guiding our cast and creative team throughout the production process. Her leadership, vision and commitment were instrumental in bringing the production together, and I thank her for the care she showed in supporting our students and creating such a wonderful show.  

The response from audiences has been exceptionally positive, and we have received a great deal of wonderful feedback on the quality of the production and the experience our students created. With the strongest ticket sales of any production at Mercedes College, Beauty and the Beast has been a significant success for our College. I extend my sincere thanks to every student involved, both on and off stage, and to our staff, families, volunteers and wider community who supported the production throughout its journey. 

I would also like to congratulate our students whose artistic achievements were recognised at the 2026 Angelico Art Exhibition. These achievements provide another reminder of the creativity and talent within our College. It highlights the importance of giving students opportunities to share their gifts with the wider community. This exhibition forms part of the Catholic Performing Arts Festival, which continues this term. We look forward to sharing our many successes in a future newsletter.  

In Sport, our Inclusive Education students recently participated in the ACC Inclusive Education Cricket Carnival. It was wonderful to see students representing Mercedes College with enthusiasm and enjoying the opportunity to participate alongside students from other ACC schools. The day highlighted the importance of inclusion, teamwork and creating opportunities for all students to enjoy sport.  

Student leadership has continued to thrive across several year levels. Our Year 7 Student Representative Council (SRC) members were recently commissioned during a special liturgy, marking the beginning of their leadership journey at Mercedes College. I congratulate our new SRC and look forward to seeing them contribute to their Houses and the wider College community throughout the year. Following their commissioning, students also participated in leadership training, providing them with an opportunity to consider what it means to be an effective and responsible student leader.  

Our Year 11 Students are now approaching an important stage in their leadership journey as they prepare their speeches and move through the Prefect voting process in the coming weeks. Over recent weeks, students have participated in formation sessions and explored the responsibilities and opportunities that accompany student leadership. I wish all students involved every success as they take this next step. It is an exciting time for our College as we look towards welcoming our 2027 student leaders and Prefects. I look forward to seeing the qualities, ideas and aspirations of our Year 11 Students emerge throughout this process and to supporting our new student leaders as they begin their journey of service to the College community.  

Senior Leadership Team member, Mrs Kirsty Murphy will be finishing at Mercedes at the end of the year after 18 years of service in roles such as teacher, Head of Science, Dean of Operations and in her current role as Deputy Principal Teaching and Learning. Mrs Murphy will be moving to Salvado Catholic College as the Deputy Principal Teaching and Learning from 2027. Mrs Murphy has made a significant contribution to our community, we will miss her and we wish her well with this new chapter. 

Following the retirement of Mrs Adams and the stepping down of Mr Poga from leadership, this week we have appointed two middle leaders, who will join the community next year. Our new Head of Humanities and Social Sciences is Mrs Belinda McCagh. Mrs McCagh has many years of experience as Head of Humanities and Social Sciences at both Newman College and Chisholm College. She also has experience in staff development and early career teacher mentoring as the Leader of Pedagogy PK-12. Our new Head of Year is Mrs Danielle Griffiths who will also join us as a middle leader from 2027. Mrs Griffiths comes to us from Ursula Frayne, where she has spent 18 years serving in roles such as Head of Year, Director of Sport, Learning Area Coordinator, Cluster Leader, Campus Activity Coordinator and School Improvement Team Member. We look forward to welcoming these new staff members into our community.  

As we enter the final four weeks of Term 3, there is still much to look forward to across our College community. I thank our students, families and staff for the energy, commitment and support they continue to bring during what is a particularly busy time of the year. I look forward to the weeks ahead and the many opportunities we will share as a community before the conclusion of the term. 

Warm regards 

Dr Lucie McCrory 

PRINCIPAL