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Welcome to Holy Cross College.

The Holy Cross College community works in partnership towards the Catholic education of young people from Pre-kindergarten to Year 12. The Catholic ethos is at the core of our College and is encapsulated in our Vision – A Community of Transformation in the Spirit of the Risen Christ, through our Patron Saint – Saint Oscar Romero.

The College is committed to creating a culture where students can develop a love of learning. Our students are encouraged to be collaborative, communicative, critical thinkers, and creative. We aim for the formation of character, enabling success in becoming a contributing citizen.

At Holy Cross, we strive to be a learning community in which every student is engaged, challenged and progressing.  The LIFE curriculum provides students a strong foundation with a focus on Learning, Inter-relationships, Faith and Enrichment activities.  Students learn in contemporary learning spaces with state-of-the-art facilities and magnificent outdoor spaces.  We provide our young people with diverse opportunities through a rich extra-curricular programme.

The pastoral care at the College enables a safe and caring environment where students can confidently grow to achieve their full potential. We believe in our motto ‘Life to the Full’ as we aim to foster in the students the values of our House Patrons – Mother Ursula Frayne, Frederic Ozanam, Sister Irene McCormack and Bishop Rosendo Salvado, and the desire to make a difference in our world.

To make a decision as important as your child’s education, many factors must come into careful consideration. Our Enrolment Officer is available to guide you through this process and to answer any questions you may have. +61 892 977 600 or enrolments@holycross.wa.edu.au

In the spirit and ethos of our Patrons, I invite families and the wider community to enjoy browsing through our website as an introduction to Holy Cross College. Also, I encourage you to participate in a College Tour by contacting us on +61 892 977 600.

‘I CAME THAT THEY MAY HAVE LIFE AND HAVE IT TO THE FULL’ John 10:10

Ms Julie Hornby

Principal of Holy Cross College

Patron Saint – Saint Oscar Romero

In the life he lived, Saint Oscar Romero spoke very clearly to our College Vision;

‘A Community of Transformation in the Spirit of the Risen Christ’. 

With great courage, he embraced the journey of the cross, standing up for the poor and for justice, knowing that the cost was likely to be his own life. 

Archbishop Oscar Romero became the ‘bishop of the poor’ for his work defending the people of El Salvador. He promised history that life, not death, would have the last word. ‘I do not believe in death without resurrection,’ he said. ‘If they kill me, I will be resurrected in the Salvadoran people.’ Romero was assassinated while saying Mass on 24 March, 1980.  Pope Francis canonised Oscar Romero in Rome on 14 October 2018.  A group of Holy Cross College staff and students were in Saint Peter’s Square for this very special occasion.

House Patrons

Frayne House – Learning Pillar

Mother Ursula Frayne led a group of courageous Irish women, The Religious Sisters of Mercy, in sailing to Australia in 1846.

Ursula Frayne had a passion for teaching and learning, especially for women and disadvantaged people. Together, with her small group of dedicated and faithful Sisters, she established the first convent school in Western Australia in 1846 in the Convent of the Holy Cross. Begun as a free school, it was to cater for girls of any religious creed. Starting with one student in February 1846, it grew to an enrolment of 100 by August. This was the beginning of Catholic education in Western Australia in the tradition and charism of the Sisters of Mercy and their founder, Catherine McAuley.

Today, the Sisters of Mercy work in many countries, dedicated to serving people who suffer from injustices related to poverty, sickness or lack of education.

In naming the Learning Pillar after Ursula Frayne, we honour her as a woman who challenged each person to achieve their personal best in an environment that valued the respect and dignity of each person.

The Mercy Cross is at the heart of the logo of Frayne House. The shamrock reflects Ursula Frayne’s Irish roots, the ship her courageous journey to the Swan River Colony. Ursula Frayne represents the Learning Pillar and her key role in the journey of Catholic education is symbolised by the book.

Ozanam House – Inter-relationships Pillar

Throughout his life, Frédéric Ozanam’s simple hope was to: ‘become better – to do a little good’.

Living in a time of economic and social upheaval, Frédéric Ozanam worked to address the needs of the poor by founding the Society of Saint Vincent De Paul. From its small beginnings in Paris, the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul now supports the needy in communities throughout the world.

In naming this House after Ozanam, we also acknowledge the link to the parish and its work with the Saint Vincent de Paul Society, which we will support. In his short life, Frédéric Ozanam was a man who developed a legacy of caring, compassionate and connected communities, which endures today.

The logo for Ozanam House depicts the hands from the Saint Vincent de Paul logo – these hands hold the cup of giving. Enmeshed with the cross in the Ozanam logo is an oak tree, symbolic of the growth that can come through caring, compassionate and connected communities. From small seeds, great things grow.

McCormack House – Faith Pillar

Sister Irene McCormack was a West Australian of great faith and courage. Having worked as an educator in Western Australia for thirty years, she reflected on her life and made the decision that her faith was calling her to work with the poorest of the poor.

Irene made the decision to go to Peru to work with the very poor – she said she was answering the challenge to ‘choose life’ in the historical circumstances of our time. Irene was murdered by Communist rebels in the village of Huasahuasi in 1991. Her crime in the eyes of her assassins was working with Caritas handing out food parcels and caring for the impoverished villagers.

Irene McCormack was truly a woman whose faith grew from reflection and led to justice and service and it is these attributes that we name the Faith Pillar in her memory.

As a Sister of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart, she represents the enduring legacy of Saint Mary MacKillop.

The logo includes the distinctive cross of the Sisters of Saint Joseph of the Sacred Heart, the order to which Irene belonged. Irene was an Australian and this is represented in the stars of the Southern Cross. In the McCormack logo, the path up the mountain represents Irene’s courageous journey, her quest for justice that would lead to her death.

Salvado House – Enrichment Pillar

Bishop Rosendo Salvado, who established the Benedictine monastic community of New Norcia, was selected to represent the Enrichment Pillar to acknowledge the proximity of Holy Cross College to New Norcia. Bishop Salvado concentrated his activity on giving a practical education to the Aboriginal children who were brought to New Norcia from all over the state.

He demonstrated an empathy and love for indigenous culture that was rare in his day. On one occasion, Salvado walked 130 kilometres to Perth alone, eating whatever he could find, to petition Bishop Brady, Bishop of the newly formed Diocese of Perth, for funds for his mission. On this walk, he would have passed close to Ellenbrook. Upon being turned down in his request for funds, Salvado used his own musical gifts to acquire money for the New Norcia mission, performing a piano recital to raise the necessary money.

Bishop Salvado and the New Norcia community, past and present, represent the importance of receiving the gifts of God with gratitude, developing them responsibly and sharing them lovingly with others

Salvado House Logo

The Salvado logo has at its centre a rendition of the Benedictine Cross, which hangs in the Learning Resource Centre, a gift to us from the community of New Norcia. The olives represent the fruits of the labour – the gifts of the land that Salvado and those who followed nurtured.

The entrance of the New Norcia chapel symbolises our link to the faith community of New Norcia and is a reminder of the importance of prayer. Gratitude is a key component of the Enrichment Pillar and the Monday morning gratitude prayer has become part of the tradition of the College.

Salvado shared his gifts with the Aboriginal people in his establishment of the New Norcia mission, represented by the dots, depicting ‘a meeting place’.