An overall sense of family and community is the hallmark of St Philip's boarding. Small numbers and great facilities which cater for the individual and the special needs of young people often raised in great isolation, set St Philip's apart from more traditional boarding schools.
St Philip's College provides accommodation for up to 60 boarders. The facilities are co-educational, with girls and boys accommodated in separate boarding houses but sharing common facilities such as dining room, recreation room and recreational facilities on the College grounds.
Boarding House staff are chosen for their ability to recognise and assist with the special problems and challenges which face young people boarding a long way from home. They are also familiar with the special needs of former School of the Air students, and young people who sometimes are more comfortable with adults than with people their own age.
Families living at the College, including the Principal and Deputy Principal, and other teaching staff, have a regular and relaxed interaction with the boarders.
Our boarders come mainly from remote cattle stations and communities throughout Central Australia, from the islands off the north coast of the NT, to Coober Pedy in South Australia and the Kimberleys in WA. Their parents manage cattle stations, are nurses, teachers, social workers, store keepers, administrators, linguists, policemen, mining company employees and members of isolated Aboriginal communities. A strong international flavour is injected by exchange and GAP students who come from all over the world.
As the College's international focus has gained momentum, boarders, in particular, have had extended opportunities to learn about and make friends with visiting students who have made their home at the College for a term or more. Overseas and GAP students spending time at St Philip's are accommodated in the boarding houses, enabling the boarders to get to know them well and build strong friendships. This exposure has encouraged St Philip's students, many of them boarders, to seek the experience for themselves.
The Boarding House, like the rest of St Philip's College, is underpinned by a strong Christian philosophy. Students are encouraged to practice their faith and all are expected to attend the College chapel service on Sunday evenings.
Head of Boys' Boarding, Sam Muir and his staff offer a boarding experience which is as distinctive and varied as our boarders themselves. Our boarders come from diverse geographic and economic regions throughout the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia. Their different backgrounds and life experiences, goals and ambitions create enormous diversity under one roof and provide a tremendously stimulating and challenging environment in which young people can learn and grow.
These young people are the sons and daughters of long-established residents and newcomers to the north Australian outback. Their parents manage cattle stations, are nurses, teachers, social workers, store keepers, administrators, policemen, mining company employees and members of isolated Aboriginal communities.
Adding further to the diversity of their educational experience is the clientele of the St Philip’s College day school whose families live in Alice Springs. They reflect Alice Springs’ multi-cultural mix of people, many of whom have come from elsewhere. These people include scientists, linguists, sociologists, anthropologists, palaeontologists, computer experts, defence personnel and members of a large American community servicing the US-Australia joint defence force facility at Pine Gap.
Conscious of its geographic isolation, the school works hard to offset this, with the result that within the College and the Boarding House in particular, there is strong international flavour and constant encouragement for students to participate in a wide range of activities and opportunities which broaden their horizons. They travel to Darwin and inter-State to take part in sporting, cultural, and academic activities, supported and supervised by College staff.
All of the College’s students, but the boarders in particular, have the opportunity of making friends with and learning from visiting students who make their home at the College for a term or more. Exchange and GAP students spending time at St Philip’s are accommodated in the boarding houses and the resultant interaction has encouraged many St Philip’s students to venture overseas themselves. 2003 saw our first three indigenous students head to schools in the UK and USA on exchange for a term.
St Philip’s is a vibrant community, where the differences and needs of individuals are recognised and met. Small boarding numbers promote a strong sense of community and allow an informal, family approach to activities such as meals and recreational activities. Families living at the College regularly dine with the boarders, sharing conversation about the day’s events and individual interests. Staff involvement in many boarding activities adds further to an overall sense of family and community – the hallmark of St Philip’s College.
Dining at the Boarding House - Healthy Eating Philosophy
St Philip’s Boarding College promotes the education and consumption of a healthy and nutritious diet. Our menu endeavours to educate students toward healthier eating practices. We believe that healthy eating contributes to healthy living, which leads to better educational outcomes and greater personal and social development.
Head of Girls' Boarding, Ms Marg Stevenson and her staff offer a boarding experience which is as distinctive and varied as our boarders themselves. Our boarders come from diverse geographic and economic regions throughout the Northern Territory, South Australia and Western Australia. Their different backgrounds and life experiences, goals and ambitions create enormous diversity under one roof and provide a tremendously stimulating and challenging environment in which young people can learn and grow.
These young people are the sons and daughters of long-established residents and newcomers to the north Australian outback. Their parents manage cattle stations, are nurses, teachers, social workers, store keepers, administrators, policemen, mining company employees and members of isolated Aboriginal communities.
Adding further to the diversity of their educational experience is the clientele of the St Philip’s College day school whose families live in Alice Springs. They reflect Alice Springs’ multi-cultural mix of people, many of whom have come from elsewhere. These people include scientists, linguists, sociologists, anthropologists, palaeontologists, computer experts, defence personnel and members of a large American community servicing the US-Australia joint defence force facility at Pine Gap.
Conscious of its geographic isolation, the school works hard to offset this, with the result that within the College and the Boarding House in particular, there is strong international flavour and constant encouragement for students to participate in a wide range of activities and opportunities which broaden their horizons. They travel to Darwin and inter-State to take part in sporting, cultural, and academic activities, supported and supervised by College staff.
All of the College’s students, but the boarders in particular, have the opportunity of making friends with and learning from visiting students who make their home at the College for a term or more. Exchange and GAP students spending time at St Philip’s are accommodated in the boarding houses and the resultant interaction has encouraged many St Philip’s students to venture overseas themselves. 2003 saw our first three indigenous students head to schools in the UK and USA on exchange for a term.
St Philip’s is a vibrant community, where the differences and needs of individuals are recognised and met. Small boarding numbers promote a strong sense of community and allow an informal, family approach to activities such as meals and recreational activities. Families living at the College regularly dine with the boarders, sharing conversation about the day’s events and individual interests. Staff involvement in many boarding activities adds further to an overall sense of family and community – the hallmark of St Philip’s College.
Dining at the Boarding House - Healthy Eating Philosophy
St Philip’s Boarding College promotes the education and consumption of a healthy and nutritious diet. Our menu endeavours to educate students toward healthier eating practices. We believe that healthy eating contributes to healthy living, which leads to better educational outcomes and greater personal and social development.
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