Chair College Council

To our new and existing families, welcome to a new school year. This is an exciting time to be at Mercedes College as we build for the future.

2022 shapes up to be a year, where as a college community we will need to show agility and reliance as we manage our response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The College leadership must be commended for the excellent and tireless work that has been done to ensure the well being of staff and students.

Mercedes College is focussed on ensuring that it excels and remains at the forefront of Catholic education, and as such has made many positive changes in the last two years. This will revitalise our operating model to enable long term sustainability. In the words of Catherine McAuley, “The simplest and most practical lesson I know is to be good today, but better tomorrow,” this applies to the College and its community. The 10-year financial and masterplan starts this year, with the first key project our Arts and Sports Precinct. This project has become a reality, and I would like to acknowledge the constructive work between Catholic Education SA and Mercedes College, and more importantly the perseverance of our College leadership to see this realised. Learning and wellbeing are a cornerstone of our College and heavily linked to projects within the strategic plan. The academic results continue to improve significantly on prior years as we shape our learning experience to produce confident, ethical and successful global citizens ready to address the challenges of their time. Our industry leading wellbeing frameworks continue to nurture our students to flourish and reach their full potential. This is my second year as College Chair and I’m confident that the key strategic initiatives that have been put in place are gaining traction and in line with our guiding principles of Mercedes College. The council will continue its work on maintaining and improving the governance model, as it is important that we remain relevant and progressive. The other key emphasis of the Council is to provide support to the College leadership. The Council acknowledges the forward-looking work that Andrew Balkwill and his team have instigated and completed during the last two years. We have much to celebrate moving forward. Enjoy the year, promote the Mercy spirit and immerse yourselves into the community.

Alf Ianniello Chair of College Council