Dominican Charism

The school’s history, traditions and in particular, Dominican Charism
In 1867 a group of brave Dominican sisters took a risk and moved from their beloved home in Ireland to move to Maitland NSW to establish the Dominican foundation in Australia. In 1892 under the request of Cardinal Moran, the Dominican sisters purchased two acres of land in Strathfield, and Rosary Lodge the building that stood on this land. This land was intended to become a school and a convent. The school was to be called Santa Sabina and be a day and boarding school in Strathfield which was, at the time, in the country. The school was to provide country children, mostly girls with an education based on the spirituality and philosophy of St Dominic. And as the school today
During the year we have many masses and liturgies. At the beginning of every year, we have a whole school mass and house masses. These are important because they help us celebrate an important milestone in the school year and connect with the people in our school. We also have a liturgy for Lent and Easter because these are important elements if the church's liturgical year and it is important that we celebrate these as a school. We also have masses for Mothers day and Fathers day. These are important because they help us remember the importance of our parents and families. There is also a wisdom mass. Our grandparents, older relatives and friends are important members of our community. The wisdom mass helps us appreciate the value and wisdom of the older members of our community. There is also an optional mass every Thursday morning for anyone who wants to go. This is important to our school because it allows members of our school community to have a regular opportunity to take part in a liturgical celebration. We also have a religion class every week where we learn about the different types of events in the church year, and the importance of regularly celebrating all aspects of our Christian
We have links with Caritas. Every Lent we do activities and fundraisers to raise money for Caritas. Caritas is an international network of 165 Catholic relief, development and social service organisations, together they are working towards building a better future for the poorest of the poor in over 200 countries and territories. They create programs for people in developing countries, to help people and families have a brighter future. During the year, year 10 and 11 students go to Central Australia, The Solomen Islands and South Africa for an Immersion. On these Immersions, they learn about the culture and religion in these countries. Every Christmas we bring in can food for a charity. Each stage brings in food for a different charity. Middle years also do a service learning task. This can be doing a donation drive for a charity, volunteering somewhere or donating to something. Last year I did an underpants drive for the Exodus Foundation in Ashfield. Doing this service learning task connects the students with the broader community and links us with other church agencies and organisations. As a school, it is important to do this and to understand the importance of donating and doing service. It is important to support the homeless and others in need, those who are less fortunate than us. As a school, we come together and make a difference in our wider