Matt Thistlethwaite (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

This year marks the 50th anniversary of education of young men in the Marist tradition at Marist College Pagewood. From humble beginnings in 1961 as an eight-room primary school in the south-east of Sydney, this well-respected Catholic college has produced generations of fine community members: scientists, engineers, tradesmen, teachers, professionals, sports stars, Olympians and even a humble senator. I am very proud to include myself in the alumni of this great school and I welcome to the Senate gallery today principals past and present, teachers and students of Marist College Pagewood. The school was established in 1961 by the Marist Brothers at the invitation of Father John Power, the local parish priest at Our Lady of the Annunciation. Originally it was formed as a primary school with 84 students and later became a high school in 1969.

The congregation of Marist teaching brothers was founded in 1817 by St Marcellin Champagnat, a young priest in France. The mission of the Marist congregation is to educate youth in schools as well as informal educational settings, with particular emphasis on the rights of the poor. Worldwide there are more than 4,300 Marist brothers working in 76 countries throughout the world, educating more than half a million students and young people. Their vocation remains as relevant today as it was when the order was established 194 years ago.

After the Second World War, Australians were challenged to populate or perish by Arthur Calwell, the Minister for Immigration in the Chifley Labor government. Our nation's vulnerability during this conflict highlighted the need for a mass immigration program in our nation to bolster our economy and our military capability into the future. The majority of these new migrants were from new destinations to Australia. They came from Eastern Europe and other parts of Europe, eager to escape the devastation of decades of conflict and to begin a new life with their families. Many of those who came to Sydney settled in the south-east in suburbs like Mascot, Rosebery, Eastlakes, Kingsford and Maroubra, where housing was affordable and employment in the factories and workshops was plentiful. At the same time, post-war housing settlements were being constructed to cater for returned service men and women and their families. They were built in the suburbs of Maroubra, Matraville and Chifley and made for a booming local population. A large Indigenous population also exists in La Perouse. It made the area a melting pot of cultures and a great microcosm of our nation's development.

This phenomenon was reflected in the rich multicultural population of Marist College Pagewood. For five decades that school has brought together young men, predominantly the sons of working-class parents, and moulded them into young men in a manner that values and teaches tolerance, respect, celebration of diversity and, most importantly, community. When I think of the great legacy of Marist College Pagewood in its first half century, I think that is the characteristic that stands tallest amongst all. I have fond memories of meeting and developing mateships with students from diverse cultural backgrounds, learning of their heritage, their culture and, in some cases, their families' journeys to a better life in the great democratic experiment of Australia. Our nation is multiculturalism and its diversity is one of our greatest assets, and the values taught at Marist College Pagewood over the last 50 years have been the foundation of that strength. It is pleasing to see that those ideas endure at the school today.

One of the missions of the college today is to develop mutually beneficial partnerships within and outside the college community. During my time at Pagewood I was proud to be involved in the establishment of a St Vincent de Paul group, which worked in the local community to promote the great work of Vinnies. It has always been common to see teachers and students of the school active in local community groups—in the surf clubs, in the sporting clubs, in the church groups, charities and welfare organisations. Each term, many students volunteer with Matthew Talbot Hostel, assisting in serving meals, entertaining people and socialising with the homeless, whose lives have been dramatically affected by illicit drugs, alcohol or simply by unfortunate circumstance.

In recent years, students of the college have had the opportunity to take part in the Bougainville immersion program, which began in 2009. Every year, a dozen students travel to the east coast of Papua New Guinea to provide assistance and aid in the work of the Marist community in this remote part of our northern neighbour. Prior to their departure, the boys of Marist Pagewood fundraise to support the provision of basic necessities for the local community. Marist Pagewood also regularly welcomes students from St Joseph's College, Mabiri, in Bougainville, to Sydney for student exchanges—a great example of the Marist tradition and the Marist mission in action. This year, nine students and two teachers attended World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain. The group undertook a pilgrimage to Jordan and Israel en route to Madrid, along with 540 other student pilgrims from Sydney Catholic colleges.

Over the last half century the school has had many great principals and teachers. Brother David Hayes and Brother Ernest Houston are two such leaders who built the community legacy that endures to this day. In my time at the school, I was fortunate to benefit from the wisdom, integrity and encouragement of Brother Robert Aitken, a wonderful leader of the school community, who was a local boy and who taught me the value of hard work, humility and patience. He increased student numbers during his stewardship as principal, was instrumental in ensuring additional curricula were available to students and even reinitiated the school song, Sub Tuum, which funnily enough I am still able to recite after 20 years post school.

In modern times the school has had lay principals, with no finer than David McInnes, who I am pleased to see is in the gallery today. David is a long-term teacher, community member and activist, and great leader of the school who has fostered the continued involvement of old boys in the school community. As an old boy I have been pleased to see the school grow stronger and stronger in recent years, with increasing student intakes, including a number of Indigenous students and students with special needs, and the continuation of the school's community spirit. The school currently has 30 Indigenous students, who are mentored by a former college captain, now a teacher at the school, and member of the local Indigenous community, Mark Heiss.

It is often remarked that we can give our children no greater gift than a decent education. But a good education does not simply involve rote learning or routine; it also involves stimulating the inquisitive mind, providing the tools and encouragement to inspire a child to challenge and think creatively. During my time at Marist College Pagewood I was fortunate to benefit from such inspiration from my economics teacher, Peter Singer, a man who grew up in the local community and who has devoted his whole life to educating young people in that area. I have vivid memories of Peter teaching us, in economics classes, the concept of pricing externalities, such as pollution, as a means of changing human behaviour. At the time it was a relatively new concept in mainstream political debate in Australia. It was an economic method I was challenged by Peter to go and learn a little bit more about and I did so during my university years. Just two weeks ago in this very chamber our nation enacted the clean energy future package. Finally, after decades of debate and inquiry, our nation has moved into the next phase of our economic development by implementing a scheme to price carbon emissions in our economy, putting into practice the very concepts I first learnt in a classroom at Marist Brothers Pagewood through Peter Singer. It is proof, I guess, that the lessons we learn at school remain with us, shaping us and our beliefs and values. I have no doubt that the Labor beliefs that I hold were developed and came from my Catholic education at Marist College Pagewood.

An education in the Marist tradition is not simply about economic achievement but also about gaining a holistic and well-rounded education. At Pagewood, like at many Marist schools, sport played a big part in this. This is evident in the design of the school colours: the gold and black. Many believe that it has some religious significance or connection to the local environment. But, no, the Pagewood gold and black simply derives from the fact that Father John Power, the priest who formed the school, was an ardent Balmain Tigers supporter—proof positive that some in the community do consider rugby league to be a religion.

This year, the school community has marked its golden jubilee celebrations with a number of events, one of which was an old boys luncheon at the South Sydney Juniors Rugby League Club, at which the Marist Pagewood rugby league team of the half century was announced. Members of the team included former first graders Mark Ellison, Paul Mellor, Craig Salvatore, Shannon Donato, Mark Lyons and Blake Ayshford and former Wallaby and rugby league first grader John Berne. The team captain was former test player Mario Fenech. This is a formidable team for any generation. Mario still maintains a connection with the school, regularly mentoring students in leadership and goal setting. The school has also produced multiple Olympians, Australian Schoolboys and national representatives. Other activities at the school to mark the half century have included a mass at St Mary's Cathedral and a celebration dinner at the school attended by students, members of the school community, old boys and every living principal of the school—a tribute to the influence the college has had on the local community.

Last week, I had the great fortune of welcoming the very bright and talented Johnson Ashak, a Pagewood student in year 10, to my office for work experience. Johnson performed a number of tasks in my office with great enthusiasm, one of which was to assist in the drafting of this very speech. Over the week, Johnson said to me that the importance of the ability to rise from adversity is something he learnt at Marist College Pagewood and something that he will always remember beyond his school years. To him, this is what politics is all about: being genuine not only to the community but to yourself—a true Marist quality.

When we come to this place, we reflect on our journey, our influences and the people who helped to shape who we are, our beliefs and our values. I am fortunate to have had the great gift of an education in the Marist tradition. It is a significant factor in who I am and what I stand for and it provided the inspiration for me to run for public office. I congratulate the Marist College Pagewood community for celebrating 50 years of education in the Marist tradition and involvement in the community. We look forward to the next 50 years of success at Marist College Pagewood.