Our Houses
St Mary's four Houses — MacKillop (green), Chisholm (blue), Polding (gold) and Romero (red): their patrons, how House points are earned, House events and the House Cup.
Every student at St Mary's, from Prep to Year 12, belongs to one of four Houses, and stays in it for their whole time at the college. Siblings are always placed in the same House, so many families have flown the same colour for two generations. Houses are how we mix year levels, build belonging and run a healthy bit of competition — and they are the reason the Main Oval turns green, blue, gold and red on carnival days.
The four Houses
| House | Colour | Patron | Why we chose them |
|---|---|---|---|
| MacKillop | Green | St Mary of the Cross MacKillop (1842–1909) | Our college patron and co-founder of the Sisters of St Joseph, who opened schools for poor children across Australia. |
| Chisholm | Blue | Caroline Chisholm (1808–1877) | Catholic humanitarian who sheltered and found work for thousands of migrant women and families in colonial Australia. |
| Polding | Gold | Archbishop John Bede Polding (1794–1877) | Australia's first Catholic bishop, a Benedictine who championed education and the rights of Aboriginal people. |
| Romero | Red | St Oscar Romero (1917–1980) | Archbishop of San Salvador, martyred for speaking up for the poor; patron of our social justice work. |
House allocation happens at enrolment. New families without a sibling connection are placed to keep the Houses balanced; you will find your child's House on their enrolment confirmation letter and in the Parent Portal under Student Details.
House leadership
- Senior House Captains – two Year 12 students per House, elected in Term 4 of Year 11 and commissioned at the Opening Year Mass.
- Junior House Captains – two Year 6 students per House, announced at the first Junior assembly of the year.
- House Coordinators – a staff member for each House in each school. They run House meetings and are a great first contact if your child wants to get involved: MacKillop – Mr Will Turner (Senior) / Mrs Fiona Grant (Junior); Chisholm – Ms Hannah Kim / Mr Josh Pham; Polding – Mrs Sarah Donnelly / Ms Ellie Marchetti; Romero – Mr Nick Papadopoulos / Mr Ahmed Saleh.
- Senior House meetings are held on Monday mornings at 8:40am in the even weeks of term (Senior assembly takes the odd weeks).
How House points work
House points are tallied across the year in four categories. The totals are displayed on the House board in the Hall foyer and updated each Friday.
| Category | How points are earned | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Sport carnivals | Swimming, Cross Country and Athletics carnivals. Placings earn 1st 100 / 2nd 80 / 3rd 60 / 4th 40 for the House overall, plus one participation point for every student who enters an event. | ~40% |
| House Arts | House Arts Festival (drama, dance, choir, film and visual art), plus House Chess and House Debating in the Senior School. | ~25% |
| Service | Points for participation in Vinnies drives, Project Compassion, the Christmas Hamper Appeal, and hours logged by Senior students in community service. | ~20% |
| House Spirit | Weekly homeroom/class points for uniform, attendance, effort and kindness; costume and cheer awards on House Spirit Day; participation on casual-clothes days. | ~15% |
Participation counts for more than winning. A House full of Year 8s who all swim a 50-metre heat will out-score a House with three champion swimmers and an empty grandstand.
House events 2026
| Date | Event | Who |
|---|---|---|
| Thursday 26 February 2026 | Junior Swimming Carnival, Wattle Creek Aquatic Centre | Years 3–6 |
| Friday 27 February 2026 | Senior Swimming Carnival, Wattle Creek Aquatic Centre | Years 7–12 |
| Friday 8 May 2026 | Cross Country Carnival | Whole school |
| Thursday 28 May 2026, 7:00pm | House Arts Festival, Mary MacKillop Hall | Years 7–12 (Junior items at Friday assembly) |
| Friday 4 September 2026, 9:00am–2:45pm | Junior Athletics Carnival, Main Oval (Prep–2 Mini Olympics 9:30–11:00am) | Years 3–6, Prep–2 |
| Tuesday 8 September 2026 | Senior Athletics Carnival, Ringwood Athletics Track (buses 8:45am, return 3:15pm) | Years 7–12 |
| Friday 11 September 2026 | House Spirit Day — casual clothes in House colours, gold coin donation to Vinnies | Whole school |
| Friday 11 December 2026 | House Cup presented at the Senior final assembly; Junior House Shield at the final Junior assembly on Friday 18 December | Whole school |
More detail on each carnival is on the Sport pages: Athletics Carnivals, Swimming Carnivals, Cross Country Carnival and House Spirit Day.
What to wear
On carnival days and House Spirit Day students wear their House polo in their House colour, with navy sport shorts, hat and runners. House polos cost $38 from the Uniform Shop (Tuesdays 8:00–11:00am, Thursdays 1:00–4:30pm) and are the only House-coloured garment permitted with the sport uniform. Face paint and coloured hair spray are allowed on House Spirit Day only.
House Cup honour board
| Year | House Cup (Senior) | Junior House Shield |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Polding | Romero |
| 2024 | Chisholm | Chisholm |
| 2025 | Chisholm | MacKillop |
| 2026 (after Term 2) | Romero leads by 140 points | Polding leads |
Contact
House Program — Mr Luke Ferraro, Director of Sport (Senior House events) · sport@stmaryswc.vic.edu.au Mr Daniel Ruiz, Junior Sport Coordinator (Junior House events) · juniorsport@stmaryswc.vic.edu.au · College Reception (03) 9555 0100.