This is the first of a series of getting to know our teachers and staff at St Brigid’s College. As a College, there have been some changes to the Academic teaching structure, as well as new faces who have joined the College over the last 12 months. Here’s us getting to know our Deputy Principal, Teaching & Learning (Year 7 to Year 12), Mrs Marsha Pengilly:   Share with us your experience and some of your achievements as an educator. My teaching career has been quite diverse in location, I began my teaching journey in the public system which grew to a range of Government High schools in the city and in the country, this included a two year stint at Harvey Senior High School where I was also employed as a House Mother at the Agricultural Campus. I then moved into Catholic schools where I started at Sacred Heart College and then with Emmanuel College before moving to Santa Maria College (SMC) where I taught for 20 years holding numerous roles in my time at there. Like SMC, St Brigid’s is a Mercy School and I thoroughly enjoy working within this environment. To be able to share the rich history and traditions of Catherine McCauley is a great point of difference. The values of Mercy Education connects to me both professional and personally and I believe provides an excellent foundation for our students. My years in girls education has developed my expertise in this valued and niche area of study and development. I have developed an extensive knowledge and skill set around ensuring our girls are able to learn and grow to become strong Mercy women of the future who will light the way for others. What have been the pivotal / milestone moments in your career as a teacher and now as Deputy Principal? A definite milestone was completing my Master of Education: Leadership and Management, at the end of 2023 which has enabled me to successfully work in the leadership roles I have held. I particularly enjoyed being the Dean of Students at SMC where I led the students in each of the year groups from Year 7 to 12. This provided a very broad understanding of the academic and pastoral needs of each of the year groups which is essential in my current role. Another very unique highlight was accompanying SMC students in Years 11 and 12 on an Art Tour of Milan, Florence and London in 2019. Seeing the students experience such amazing art and the impact this had on their learning to enrich their own work and also their understanding of the masters. This trip further inspired my passion in the Professional Development and Teaching and Learning areas. The growth in academic achievement is limitless when we provide high quality, real world learning opportunities and experiences to both our students and teachers. In my new role at SBC I hope to continue facilitating this for our community.  What are your favorite subjects to teach? One of my pet subjects is Accounting and Finance. In 2024, we introduced Accounting and Finance to our Year 11 and 12 ATAR subject selection, with a view to this being taught in future years. For students studying A&F, the course work is entirely new as students are generally not exposed to these concepts in lower school. The students I have taught love the challenge of this course and the opportunity to learn something completely new and different. They are also able to see the real-world application of A&F into their lives. I am always excited to hear of previous students who have embarked on careers in the business world and how their initial enjoyment of A&F has sparked their curiosity and progress in this field. I also really enjoy teaching maths and supporting students to gain more confidence in their abilities. I try to encourage my students to have a growth mindset to maths and challenge them to feel positive about their abilities in this subject area. How do you envision our students growing both pastorally and academically at SBC?  I am looking forward to seeing the growth of our students academically at SBC. It is a privilege to be a teacher of secondary students and to journey with them as they move through the senior years of their education. It is at this time that you really see the students grow and mature as they find their passion and work out where they intend to head post school. Supporting students as they shape their future goals and work toward achieving them is such a unique opportunity. What is the biggest point of difference in learning/teaching at SBC? Our environment provides unique opportunity for our students to learn about our impact on the environment. Being able to walk in our own school grounds and see almost perfect bushland and to be able to study our native flora and fauna on our doorstep provides some amazing real life lessons and great classroom experiences for our students. The amazing boarding community at SBC and what they provide to our college when they bring their diverse backgrounds and “home” experiences to our community. Means our students learn from and gain an understanding of the world, beyond the hills.      

This year, in our Primary School, we welcome back our students, staff, new staff and also our Heads of Primary, Mrs Christine Padua (PK – Y2) and Mrs Catherine Brunt (Y3 – Y6). Let’s get to know our new Heads of Primary and what drives their passion in education. Mrs Christine Padua With over two decades of experience in education across various settings, Mrs Padua has had the privilege of contributing to the development and growth of students in both government and Catholic schools. Throughout her career, she has held positions in education support, teaching and leadership in metro and regional schools, with her last role before joining St Brigid’s College as an  Assistant Principal in a regional Primary school in the Pilbara. Her passions include working collaboratively with staff, students and families to foster a supportive and inclusive learning environment while implementing strategies to enhance educational outcomes. Her diverse background and commitment to student success drives her ongoing dedication to making a meaningful difference in the lives of those she serves. As a leader in early childhood education at St Brigid’s College, she is dedicated to promoting a philosophy that appreciates the importance of both explicit teaching and play-based learning experiences. Mrs Padua’s educational approach prioritises the seamless fusion of explicit teaching methods alongside immersive play-based activities to support holistic development and cultivate lifelong learners. This philosophy is imbedded in the recognition that young children thrive when they are actively engaged, curious, creative and collaborative. By harmonising these dual approaches, we strive to establish an educational atmosphere that fosters the comprehensive growth of every child, instilling them with a lasting passion for learning.   Mrs Catherine Brunt Mrs Brunt has began her career in teaching 15 years ago and has worked within the Catholic Education across two Catholic school. In fact, she began her career at St Brigid’s College, where she had the opportunity to grow as a teacher and ignite her leadership training, in particular in inquiry-based learning. During her early years at St Brigid’s she collaborated with the School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA) to develop judging standards for Geography and Visual Art for the Primary School. More recently, over the past six years, she has been teaching at Sacred Heart Primary in Thornlie, where she served as Lead Teacher for the Talk 4 Writing and Digital Technologies teams. During her time there, Sacred Heart Primary, evolved as the model school for Talk 4 Writing and established an embedded Digital Technology program. This program has since expanded into a network involving seven local Catholic primary schools, fostering collaboration and the sharing of digital technology ideas among staff and students. As a leader in the middle years of primary education, she is passionate about building upon the foundation of learning established in the early years and preparing students for the transition to high school and is committed to collaborating with students and parents to ensure that each student maximises their primary education experience. One of her priorities is to always challenge every student to seize the opportunities available to them, fostering resilience and communication skills to navigate challenges. Her educational approach focuses on guiding students to develop essential skills, apply them effectively, and take ownership of their learning journey as they evolve into 21st-century learners. By empowering students to understand their learning preferences and encouraging collaboration with family and teachers, we aim to cultivate a culture of lifelong learning and curiosity.  

Starting this week, from Wednesday 5th February 2025  St Brigid’s will now have three bus routes facilitated through our private bus service . Please note that all students will need to have a College SmartRider and registered on the TransportME System to travel this service. If a student would like to travel on this service, please arrange for your child to attend Student Services/Main Reception this week to register with TransportME if they have not already have done so We are currently in the works of adding a new page on our website with details on our private bus services- we’ll share the news when it’s live. Meanwhile, please contact communityrelations@stbrigids.wa.edu.au for further information