College History
Our college was established in 1995 but our foundations go much deeper.
We were formed as the result of an amalgamation of three former schools which were conducted on the sites of our two campuses, Sancta Sophia College (1967) at Glenroy, and Therry (1969) and Geoghegan Colleges (1973) at Broadmeadows.
The College name, Penola Catholic College, was chosen because of the strong link of our Broadmeadows campus with Saint Mary MacKillop and the Sisters of St Joseph who established a foundling home on this site in 1901.
Penola, a small town in the south-east of South Australia, is where Mary MacKillop opened her first school in 1866 and where, together with Fr Julian Tenison Woods, she founded the order of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart.
The Sisters of St Joseph ministered to the local community and lived on this site from 1901 until the late 1980’s.
College Emblem
The three leaves symbolise the spiritual, physical and intellectual growth potential of the members of the College community and also represent the three Colleges from which Penola Catholic College has sprung.
The trunk of the tree is represented by the cross and points to the life of Christ as a model for the members of Penola Catholic College.
The tree reminds us of the aboriginal origins of the name Penola, which means stringybark.
The three words surrounding the emblem of Penola Catholic College are Faith, Excellence and Community which are the cornerstones of our school.