When your College Patron is St Vincent de Paul, and the founding Congregation of the College is the Sisters of Charity it is no surprise that being a champion of change is a highly regarded attribute of a Vinnies girl. The defining qualities of a graduate of St Vincent’s College is that she has been informed, transformed and empowered by her secondary education. Alumnae of the College are some of the first women to gain University entrance and enter professions typically the exclusive preserve of men.

Every year the student at the College who achieves the highest ATAR is awarded the Grace Robinson Prize. Grace Robinson graduated from the College in 1884. She was one of the first women to graduate from the University of Sydney in Medicine. She was awarded prizes in surgery and midwifery but rejected by a selection panel for a position at the Hospital of Sick Children on the grounds of gender! Our graduates continue today to push the boundaries and leave the College ready and inspired to be champions of change (for the common good). Students are immersed in a culture of academic rigour, the social teachings of the Catholic Church, inclusive and pastoral practices, a challenging co-curricular program, broad opportunities in social justice initiatives and strong friendship networks. This is a great culture in which to practise advocacy for others, learn the persuasion of debating and the reasons of philosophy and implement strategies for change. Recent initiatives of students have led to changes in school uniform, recycling practices and energy usage.

Each of the dynamic learning areas of curriculum offered by the College uses the Learning Framework to inform, transform and empower. This might be through Robotics in Digital Technology, the choice of challenging Literature in English, analysing legal and political issues in Economics or Legal Studies or Bio-ethics in the Sciences. It is our ethos to be a College of advantage, not entitlement. Our current and graduate students need to champion the change they want to see, no-one is there to do it for them!