Our College offers a range of educational programs providing varied learning opportunities for students from Year 7 to Year 12. We have a proud tradition of cultural, spiritual, academic, and sporting excellence. The pastoral care at the College enables a safe and caring environment where students can confidently grow to achieve their full potential. We believe in our motto ‘Learning for Life’ as we aim to foster in the students the desire to make a difference in our world.
As a Catholic school in the Edmund Rice tradition Clontarf Aboriginal College is a place of learning and understanding that respects Aboriginal culture and spirituality and encourages students to reach their dreams.
Welcome to Whadjuk Nyoongar country. Nidja Whadjuk Nyoongar Boodjar Noonook Nyininy. This is Whadjuk Nyoongar country you are sitting in. Clontarf Aboriginal College is situated in Whadjuk Nyoongar Boodjar. Nyoongar* is the general name for Aboriginal people in the south-west of Western Australia. Of the fourteen Nyoongar language groups, the people who live in the Perth region are known as the Whadjuk people.
The Whadjuk land south of the Swan River and west of the Canning River to the coast is known as Bilya (Beeliar). The land across the Canning River to the Helena River is Beeloo land. The Canning River is the border between these two great Whadjuk clans. It is here at the Canning River that the Youran (bobtail lizard) meets the Nyingarn (echidna). The Youran is the totem animal for the Bilya people; and the Nyingarn is the totem animal for the Beeloo people.
This area once had an abundance of wildfowl, especially Moornyi Koolyak (black swans) and ducks – traditional Nyoongar food. It was an important camping ground where Whadjuk people foraged, fished and hunted. It was here that they gathered to camp under their Mia Mias (shelters).
After their arrival in 1829, Wadjela (white) colonists quickly took over the Whadjuk Nyoongar Boodjar and used it for farming. The Whadjuk people fought a losing battle against this loss of their land. In this early conflict, the Whadjuk people were led by Midgegooroo and his famous son Yagan.
This was a sad story of dispossession which finally left the Whadjuk people without the land on which they depended so much – spiritually as well as materially. The Whadjup Nyoongar Boodjar (Clontarf) site remains of important spiritual and cultural significance for contemporary Whadjuk people.
Clontarf Aboriginal College has taken the Moornyi Koolyak – the black swan rising in flight – as the central image in its crest. This powerful image is a direct link back to the traditional Whadjuk Nyoongar Boodjar on which the College now stands. *Nyoongar can also be written as Nyungar or Noongar. Nyoongar is the spelling adopted by the Board for the 2005-2008 Strategic Plan.
The Clontarf Aboriginal College Christian Service Learning Program is inspired by Blessed Edmund Rice. Blessed Edmund Rice was the founder of the Christian Brothers. Students at Clontarf Aboriginal College are encouraged to live out their call to service as Edmund Rice did and to make service a core aspect of College life. Christian Service is a fundamental responsibility of each Christian person. As reflected in the motto of the Christian Brothers – ‘To do and To teach’ as well as the College motto of ‘Learning for Life’. So therefore, it is our responsibility as Christians and as a Catholic College to actively live the Gospel values and ‘To do’ Christian service whilst learning valuable lessons for life.
That Clontarf Aboriginal College:
Clontarf Aboriginal College promotes the following core values:
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The education my child receives here is top-notch, bolstered by an incredibly dedicated staff that inspires growth and confidence in every student.
By Mio Ito (Sep, 2024) |