Minaret College is the largest co-educational Islamic school in South-Eastern 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...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. Established in 1992 with only 22 students, the college now has approximately 1200 students from Prep to Year 12.
The college is located at 1 Birch St, Springvale

Springvale, Victoria

Springvale is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, approximately 20 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Greater Dandenong...

, with a new primary campus in Tivendale Rd, Officer

Officer, Victoria

Officer is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 49 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Cardinia. At the 2006 Census, Officer had a population of 1417.- History :...

, which was opened in 2009.

Academic program

Minaret College has produced excellent academic results, with the highest VCE

Victorian Certificate of Education

The Victorian Certificate of Education or VCE is the credential awarded to secondary school students who successfully complete high school level studies in the state of Victoria, Australia. Study for the VCE is usually completed over two years, but it can be spread over a longer period in some cases...

 score of 98.8 achieved in 2004.

Students have achieved outstanding results in World Maths Day

World Maths Day

World Maths Day is an online international mathematics competition. In 2007, World Maths Day was originally held on the March 14 , and then on the 1st Wednesday in March in subsequent years...

 and various State and National Maths, Science and Literacy benchmark tests & competitions. Minaret College is active in regional Debating competitions and also offers VCE Religion & Society and Texts & Traditions from the Islamic perspective.

Sports

The College has an active sports program, and is involved in interschool sports including Australian rules football

Australian rules football

Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...

, cricket, basketball and soccer. Swimming lessons for primary students are provided for water safety. The year 9/10 Boys Cricket team in 2008 had a 54-run victory over Balwyn High School to win Cricket Victoria's Super 8's state championship. Recently, the College has completed an upgrade to its sports oval by laying synthetic turf.

Religious activities

The college provides Islamic studies, Arabic language classes, Friday & daily prayers and halal catered canteen. Minaret College has been an active participant in interfaith

Interfaith dialog

The term interfaith dialogue refers to cooperative, constructive and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions and/or spiritual or humanistic beliefs, at both the individual and institutional levels...

activities, such as the Building Bridges project.

Other facilities

Minaret College has a new junior Primary campus opened in 2009 with computerised interactive whiteboards in every class. The Multi-purpose Hall caters for all indoor sports and a table-tennis room and recently geared gym. A complete Wood-work room, textiles, technology and a home economics room with numerous ovens and stoves allow Middle School students to experience new skills, while a new Language Centre and Science Lab have been approved for development in 2010. Construction has been completed on stage 1 of the brand new Primary campus in Officer.Stage 2 construction is well underway.

History and governance

The College was founded by Mr Mohamed Hassan,OAM (2007 Queens Birthday Honours) in 1992 as the Islamic College of Noble Park. The Springvale campus (Whiteside P.S) was acquired in 1996. The Minaret Trust is a not-for-profit entity and the College board of parents and community volunteers meets monthly. The College is a member of the AISV and a founding member of the ACIES.