Year 11 Retreat: Together we Rise

In Week 7 our Year 11 students and a number of staff attended the Year 11 overnight retreat at The Tops Conference Centre at Stanwell Tops. 

The aim of this retreat experience was to engender a sense of Christian community, one that is based on growing trust, openness and friendship and in keeping with our College theme of “Together we Rise” and College Motto of “Serviam”.  The retreat allowed students to step away from the pressures of ordinary life, their busy study and work schedules and to reflect upon what it means to “Lead with a servant heart”.  Through a range of experiences such as prayer, staff-directed inputs, student discussion and community time, students had the opportunity to develop a deeper understanding of themselves and the ways that they can be women of Christian service and leaders in their families, school, parishes and workplaces.

The retreat also focused on our Year 11 Ursuline value of Empower and marked the beginning of the leadership process for this group for 2025-2026.

We are very grateful to the staff who attended retreat; Mrs Monk, Mrs Nader, Ms Awad, Ms Sukkar, Ms Neumann, Ms Magee, Ms Kattos, Ms Baker, Ms Butcher, Mrs Guiffre, Ms Demel, Ms Worth, Mrs Brooks and Mr Bozikis. We are also are grateful to Fr Tom, from Holy Family Parish at Menai, who joined us to celebrate a year group Mass to conclude the retreat.

Julie Monk
Religious Education Coordinator

Our Year 11 retreat was an inspiring one-night camp where we explored the idea of servant leadership and what it means to be a part of the Ursuline community. We learned that leadership isn’t about having a title or holding a position of authority; it’s about influencing others through kindness, generosity, and sharing our passion for countercultural, radical social justice. This impacted us significantly as we reflected on how anyone can make a positive difference, no matter their role.

Throughout the retreat, we had opportunities to connect, collaborate, and reflect as a year group. We united through prayer before meals and enjoyed engaging presentations from our teachers and Mrs Awad, who shared their personal leadership journeys. The retreat also included fun group activities that encourage teamwork and helped us bond closer as a cohort. It was a great balance of meaningful discussion and time with friends to listen and learn from each other in a beautiful setting with stunning views. This retreat was the perfect, peaceful break before our Year 11 exams, rejuvenating and refreshing us for the sprint ahead. 

This retreat was a time of faith development and spiritual growth . We learnt more about ourselves and the types of leaders we want to be, while also learning about each other. We put aside our past differences and empowered each other to share and dream about our future leadership prospects. Every girl enjoyed the time to quietly affirm and uplift those around her, and every individual was reminded of our connectedness as a part of St Angela Merici’s company of women. We had the opportunity to step back and focus on our spiritual journey as we engaged in a year’s mass and discussions on how we can integrate Mother Mary virtues and Jesus’ love into our lives. 

Year 11 students participated in a reconciliation activity to strengthen bonds with friends or build a new friendship. This retreat allowed the girls to grow as individuals based on respect, love, unity which we are called to live out as serviam women. The retreat reminded us that true leadership begins with compassion and the courage to serve others selflessly. It inspired us to carry forward the Ursuline legacy by being agents of change in our school and wider community. We as a cohort left the retreat feeling empowered and united as a year group, as we continue our senior years. 

Mary-Anne El Azzi, Ava Zygouras and Olivia Holt
Year 11