Celebration of 150 years of Loreto

150 Years of Loreto in Australia & South East Asia

As we celebrate 150 years of Loreto in Australia and South East Asia in 2025, we reflect on the Loreto spirit and companionship that sustained the ten founding Sisters throughout their journey to Australia to begin the ministry of Loreto in Australia and South East Asia in 1875. Their faithfulness to grace and shared mission to empower women to seek truth and do justice laid the foundation of the Loreto Network we are all part of today, 150 years later. Together, may we continue to be guided by the charism of Mary Ward and her values of Verity, Justice, Sincerity, Freedom, and Felicity, now and into the future.

The Loreto education tradition spans many centuries, inspired first by the founder of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mary Ward, and grounded into the Australian context by Gonzaga Barry ibvm in the late 19th century. Each of our six Loreto schools in Australia is outstanding in its commitment to this shared mission. The leadership of our schools over the years has been exceptional, supported by the dedication of parents, teachers and past students.

• Loreto College Ballarat
• Loreto College Coorparoo
• Loreto Kirribilli
• Loreto College Marryatville
• Loreto Normanhurst
• Loreto Mandeville Hall Toorak

History of Logo

   The artwork was created by Evie Davidson (Year 9) Loreto Ballarat and it is inspired by

• The blue waters of Lake Wendouree which greeted Mother Gonzaga Barry on her arrival in Ballarat and integral to the life of the traditional owners of the land, the Wadawurrung people
• The Eucalyptus Blossoms which is the name of the first school magazine at Loreto Ballarat
• The yarning circles reminiscent of Mary Ward’s Open Circle of friends
• The constellation of stars in the night sky – the sisters who accompanied Gonzaga across the seas in 1875