Our Visit to Rosebank College

The entrance to Rosebank College

When I arrived yesterday, I thought that maybe I had overpacked for "winter" in Australia. After a lashing rainstorm last night, this morning dawned sunny but a respectably chilly 41 degrees! Needless to say, I as grateful to have the extra gear I packed at the last minute. The main agenda item today was a visit to Rosebank College, a Benedictine school with whom we have had a partnership for five years.

I grabbed a cab and headed off to Rosebank  - a grade 7-12 coed school of about 1,300 students. Rosebank is about 30 minutes from the center of the city in morning traffic, which today was not too bad. I arrived a little earlier than expected but had a nice chat with the receptionist while waiting for the official welcome. I was also waiting for my Delbarton colleague, Dan Pieraccini, who was coming from a different part of Sydney.  Once Dan arrived, we began a series of meetings with Rosebank staff and students to talk specifically about how to maintain and strengthen the exchange program between our two schools. We also compared notes about the programs and curriculum in our schools as a way of promoting a better understanding of our schools. Of particular interest was the exchange of ideas of how we were attempting to inculcate our schools with Benedictine values, especially in staff formation.

In addition to talking, we also got to experience a bit of daily life at Rosebank. Dan and I were invited to a bi-weekly mid-morning tea for faculty, at which birthdays and other accomplishments are acknowledged. My impression that our colleagues at Rosebank enjoy each others' company, much in the same way that Delbarton's faculty does. We had a brief walking tour of the very extensive and handsome facilities. Rosebank is in a suburban neighborhood and quite land-locked compared to Delbarton. A highlight for me was our visit to the original cemetery of the Sisters of the Good Samaritan, who founded the school some 150 years ago. What was moving was to see how young the majority of the sisters were when they died, many before the age of 30!. The pioneer days in Australia must have been very difficult indeed. We finished our visit with a light lunch and an exchange of gifts. Our colleagues at Rosebank showed us great Benedictine hospitality and we are most grateful.