Opening in 2018 with the now Year 12 students as the only class cohort, the school has evolved into a comprehensive 7 to 12 Secondary College.

John Murphy, Foundation Principal said, “I think back to this journey of interviewing these students and meeting their families. I feel like we’ve really created this school from Years 7 to 12 and the students have built a great culture.”

“We’ve allowed students to have a voice, allowed parents to have a voice and co-construct the type of school we wanted to build. It’s been about building relationships and the culture,” he said.

“There are so many fond memories over these school years for this group, a lot of satisfaction and I hope they are excited for their next chapter.”

Eaden Dawson, 2023 College Captain reflected on the early days.

“I think back to when we started in Year 7 and there were hardly any buildings but it’s like we’ve really grown with the school,” she said.

“Sometimes in our junior years we felt like the guinea pigs, especially as other groups coming through and things were different for them, but as we got older we started to realise, we’re not the guinea pigs, we’re really the trailblazers. We’ve built the culture and community.”

“I feel a mixture of excitement and uncertainty and a little bit sad in ways, as it’s really hard to say goodbye to St Bede’s. I love it and I feel like we have grown so much in this College community. I feel like we’ve built a strong legacy.”

Bella Sepos, fellow Year 12 graduate agreed. “As the first Year group through we have known we had to build the culture, we could pave the way for others and that’s been really exciting,” she said.

Standing in a landscaped courtyard surrounded by St Bede’s impressive multi-storey buildings Bella gestured to the change in surroundings as she said, “I actually can’t really believe we’re here graduating considering I remember starting out across the road, basically in a little house, where we did our family interviews.”

Eaden, Bella and their peers have completed their HSC exams and are eagerly awaiting results. Many have received early acceptance to university courses locally and afar, while others are contemplating a break and part time work.

Blaze Brockman looks forward to his future with a foundation of learning from St Bede’s.

“I feel good moving onto the next chapter in my life but St Bede’s will always have a special place in my heart. Even the buildings and the people here – I’ll miss it and I feel it’s been special,” he said. Hear more from St Bede’s graduates.

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