Aquinas College, Melbourne
Encyclopedia
Aquinas College is a co-educational Roman Catholic college located in the Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

 suburb of Ringwood
Ringwood, Victoria
Ringwood is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Maroondah. At the 2006 Census, Ringwood had a population of 15,185....

.
The current Principal is Tony O'Byrne, who has held the position since 1989. In 2007, O'Byrne was selected by the Herald Sun
Herald Sun
The Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...

as "Principal of the Year". The school is currently celebrating 50 years since its inception in 1961 as an all-boys school.

Grounds, buildings and facilities

The campus of Aquinas College consists of seven (7) building blocks. These are: the New Senior Years Building (first phase completed in 2011), the Year Nine building (the original school building), the Dominic Arts & Media Centre (including the Aquinas Resource Centre), the Staff and Technology Centre, the Gymnasium and Mahon Theatre, the Middle Years Campus and the MacKillop Chapel.

The Senior Years Building consists of three floors and is currently still being completed. The ground level contains the Year 12 Wing, Social Space & Study Facilities. It also houses the Science Labs, Classrooms and Computer Facilities. The south wing of the first floor generally functions as Senior LOTE rooms as well as all Year 10 & 11 classes. The north wing of the second floor is devoted to the new VCE & VET kitchen, a new state-of-the-art Hospitality Training Centre. The third floor which was completed and opened in June 2011 houses a North & South wing. The South wing is an inside pavilion overlooking the lower ovals. It contains seating for up to 300 for EISM competitions. The North wing contains 3 purpose built study centres, one for each of Year 11 & 12 students, as well as an environmental science space which can be used as a fully functioning greenhouse.

The Junior Campus, which is set for restoration in the near future, houses 22 general learning spaces, science labs, offices, and college administration. The Junior Block is the home of all Year 7 & 8 students.

The staff and Technology Centre also known as the 'G' Block was completed in 1999. It houses a Staff Study Centre for 200+ staff as well as a staff Dining Room in the Northern Wing. The southern wing is housed to the technology department. It features a fully operational Design & Technology workshop on the ground level and a Systems Technology & Hydraulics room on the second level.

In addition, the school's grounds include a hockey field
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...

, tennis court
Tennis court
A tennis court is where the game of tennis is played. It is a firm rectangular surface with a low net stretched across the center. The same surface can be used to play both doubles and singles.-Dimensions:...

s, three ovals for cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

 and various codes of football
Football
Football may refer to one of a number of team sports which all involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball with the foot to score a goal. The most popular of these sports worldwide is association football, more commonly known as just "football" or "soccer"...

, cricket nets
Cricket nets
Cricket nets are practice nets used by batsmen and bowlers to warm up and/or improve their cricketing techniques. Cricket nets consist of a cricket pitch which is enclosed by cricket nets on either side, to the rear and optionally the roof. The bowling end of the net is left open...

 and basketball court
Basketball court
In basketball, the basketball court is the playing surface, consisting of a rectangular floor with tiles at either end. In professional or organized basketball, especially when played indoors, it is usually made out of a wood, often maple, and highly polished...

s for sporting purposes.

The College also has a city campus located in East Melbourne. The campus is based at the Catholic Theological College on Victoria Parade. All Year 9's participate in the city program and are based at this campus also. The building is based over three levels and includes a reception, gardens, and specifically built rooms and lecture halls.
The College has recently invested in two overseas campuses to help broaden the International culture of the school. The Chantonnay Campus located in Vendée, France is situated next door to the College's sister school Lycée Sainte Marie. It boasts French Culture, and is a great Language Experience.
The Second Overseas campus is in Downtown Beijing, China. It is one block from Tian'anmen Square and is in the heart of the city. This small campus is the most recent acquisition of the College. The running of the campus is looked over by Ms.Sudi Malone.

Facilities

Facilities at Aquinas College include:
  • Science and Computer Laboratories
  • Aquinas Resource Centre
  • Mary MacKillop Chapel
  • Photography and Ceramic Facilities
  • Technology Centre
  • Gymnasium with 2 Full-Sized basketball courts and a Weights & Lifestyle room
  • An outdoor track and field training area
  • Industry Standard Hospitality / Food Technology Centre
  • Outdoor Tennis Courts
  • Dance Studio, Music Facilities & the Mahon Theatre
  • Electronic Whiteboards
  • Staff Centre

See also

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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