A pilot leadership program for Year 8 students at Mater Christi College in Melbourne is providing formation in Benedictine and Good Samaritan leadership values, as well as hands-on experience and training, to prepare young women to be leaders not only of today, but also of tomorrow.
By Debra Vermeer
Mater Christi College is a Good Samaritan Education school located in Belgrave, and its Year 8 Good Samaritan Leadership Program is firmly anchored in the school’s spiritual charism.
College Principal Maria Haggett said the program aimed to provide students with practical and formative experiences to help them develop as leaders.
“One of the things we found after COVID-19 was that the normal opportunities for leadership in schools had diminished,” Maria said. “We wanted to begin again developing leadership from a younger age because we didn’t have anything like that in the Middle School.”
Maria said a distinctive part of the Leadership Program is that it is based on the Benedictine-Good Samaritan tradition.
“That tradition is part of everything we do here at Mater Christi, and we wanted to show the students that in the Parable of the Good Samaritan, there are different models of leadership,” Maria said.
“Sometimes in leadership we are the Good Samaritan, but sometimes we might be the innkeeper who offers quiet help along the way.”
The program is based on three pillars: Service, Formation and Training, with students engaging in all three areas throughout the year.
“Service is very much part of the Good Samaritan tradition, and the program acknowledges that Formation and Training are different and equally important things,” Maria said.
“Formation is about that understanding of the values, while training relates to more practical leadership experience, such as public speaking, having conversations with older people and other skills that can be developed.”
Peter Woodhouse, the Mission Identity Leader at Mater Christi College, said that providing leadership training and formation in earlier years would not only enrich students’ personal growth but also prepare them for possible school leadership roles in the senior school.
“We decided we needed to be providing leadership formation earlier and giving opportunities for our younger people to learn what it is to be a leader, particularly in our context of being a Good Samaritan school,” he said.
Image: Mater Christi College, Belgrave.
Thirty-five out of the 135 students in Year 8 volunteered to participate in the pilot program, even arriving one day early for school at the beginning of this year to undertake their first formation day, an Introduction to Leadership in the Benedictine Tradition.
The day included team-building and getting to know each other activities, learning about leadership and key values, such as hospitality, from the Benedictine-Good Samaritan tradition and exploring ways they can contribute to building a culture of ‘holding each other up’.
Peter said that each student in the program also had to sign up to participate in a variety of service opportunities throughout the year.
“So far, these have included helping with College tours for prospective students and families, putting together tour packs, being a Home Group Representative, raising and lowering the school’s flags at the beginning and end of the day, serving in the school café, and helping with the school’s International Women’s Day Breakfast,” he said.
Activities for this term will include forming a Welcoming Party at the school gates each day and participating in events such as Clean Up Australia Day. It is hoped that in the future the program might include service opportunities outside the school, such as visits to nursing homes, primary schools and participation in community activities like Landcare groups.
The students participating said the program had already had a significant impact on their lives.
“This program has been great because we have been getting to know each other and how we can be Good Sams at school and outside too,” Thanushri Srinivasan said.
Chantal Wanigasinghe said she has enjoyed the range of activities she has experienced.
“In my time as a Good Samaritan Leader, I have been able to help with College tours, be a voice for my cohort, a part of the College’s Women’s Day Breakfast, and many more opportunities,” she said.
“Although good deeds aren’t always recognised, just like Jesus says, ‘if you do your merciful deeds in secret, then your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly’ (Matthew 6:4). With the assistance of our wonderful staff, we have been able to lead just like the Sisters of Good Samaritan!”
A number of students said the program not only strengthened their leadership skills but also helped form friendships.
“The Good Sam leadership group has been a wonderful team-building experience where I have involved myself in volunteering and gained wonderful memories,” Allora Cumming said.
Genevieve Askew said that, along with forming new friendships among her peers, she has broadened her interactions across the entire College: “I have become more of a leader and have been able to assist those around me in the wider school community.”
“The Good Samaritan program has been a gift to participate in,” Quinn Simpson said.
Maria Haggett said it is expected that the Good Samaritan Leadership Program will continue after 2025.
