A weekly snippet of what’s happening ‘behind the hedge’ at Mercedes College…
It was a case of déjà vu last week, as McAuley House lifted the winner’s cup for our Year 3 to Year 6 Athletics Carnival!
Our Ovals and Rose Garden were a sea of colour as students ran, threw, jumped and cheered for their House, showing great spirit across the day. It was wonderful to see so many families enjoying a freshly brewed coffee and cheering everyone on.
The final results were…
McAuley – 2,862
Dalton – 2,563
Barry – 2,422
Fitzpatrick – 1,929
These House points will be added to the Secondary Carnival results and go towards our Sports House Award for Term 1.
Next on the calendar is our Junior School Swimming Carnival, and our youngest swimmers are getting ready to hit the blocks next Friday 20 March. Click here for the class schedule.
There are still spaces to fill in our competitive races – available for all year levels – so if you haven’t done so already, please nominate your children before Monday (16 March).
We’re also looking for a few extra helpers on our buses, so if you are able to help out on the day, please nominate here.
All families and members of the Mercedes College community are invited to attend the 2026 Annual General Meeting, where our Principal Andrew Balkwill will share the College’s vision for 2026 and beyond – as well as give updates on innovations, initiatives and programmes around the Campus.
Monday 23 March 2026
6.30pm – 8.00pm
Gleeson Theatre
We’d love you to stay after the AGM, to enjoy some light refreshments and catch up with our College Council and Senior Leadership Team.
One of our most popular community events by far is our Mother’s Day Lunch, and we’re looking forward to welcoming you to Carrick Hill next Term. Please put this date in your diary – we expect another sell out event!
Mercedes College Mother’s Day Lunch
11.30am – 2.30pm
Carrick Hill Pavilion
Friday 8 May
This year, the College has welcomed a new Chef to our Café – Lou Paglia.
Lou has worked in several schools in Adelaide, most recently at Rostrevor. She enjoys working in schools because it’s always busy and she loves nothing more than seeing a group of students lining up each day outside the Café.
As a mum of two, Lou understands the value of healthy food at school, and her philosophy is to serve fresh, seasonal food for students. She has also looked after boarders and says serving quality food is important, as school is their home away from home, and meals are an important time to come together.
Lou and her family have worked in the catering business for more than 20 years, and we are looking forward to seeing and sampling her nutritious delights each Term.
Our Year 9 to Year 12 students and their families are invited to hear from Adelaide and Flinders Universities about possible options for a career in the medical industry.
Learn about entry requirements, different pathways and the variety of roles available across this large and varied professional field.
Monday 30 March
6.45pm to 7.30pm
Mercy Lecture Theatre
Note: This information session follows the first night of Year 11 and Year 12 Learning Reviews.
Earlier this week, our student leaders from across the Middle School dedicated time to building their leadership and teamwork skills, and developing their understanding of personal responsibility.
Working together in small groups, students participated in a series of engaging activities focused on collaborative problem-solving, visioning, and team-building, all as part of their leadership journey.
We look forward to seeing these young leaders immerse themselves in their roles this year.
We are flying through the Term and our Summer Sports schedule. Planning is well underway for our Winter Sport Programmes, which run in Term 2 and Term 3.
This year, we are hosting two Winter Sport Launches – on Wednesday 8 April – in Gleeson Theatre, with our Sports Team, Coaches and Directors of Sport.
There is a Primary Sport session – Reception to Year 6 – from 3.45pm – 4.30pm.
This will be followed at 5.30pm by our Secondary Sport session – Year 7 to Year 12.
This is a great opportunity to come along and listen to our plans for the Winter season, meet some of our Coaches, and learn a bit more about the standards and expectations of our Mercedes College sporting teams.
Please let us know using the links above, if you are coming along – we’d love to see you there.
Last Friday morning, 18 of our Middle and Senior student leaders joined our Deputy Principal Narelle Sandercock and Head of Middle School Ben Dray, along with 2,000 other guests at the annual International Women’s Day Breakfast the Adelaide Convention Centre.
The Keynote address was given by Katherine Bennell-Pegg, 2026 Australian of the Year (and a proud South Australian!). Katherine is the first astronaut to officially represent Australia and the first Australian woman to receive professional astronaut wings – and the theme of the event was ‘Balancing the Scales’.
It was a wonderful experience for our students to be part of such an important event.
Our Year 9 Drama students recently enjoyed a slice of the Adelaide Festival, visiting the Wandering Hall of Possibilities in the Adelaide Botanic Gardens to immerse themselves in the unique production, Tree of Light, by Adelaide-based Slingsby Theatre.
Students were exposed to storytelling that used immersive soundscapes, evolving sets, lighting and projection to bring characters to life inside of Mother Tree.
This was a perfect opportunity to inspire our students, who will create their own company and engage as theatre makers for a live performance in Term 2.
Meanwhile, our Arts Leaders Pallas and Eleanor recently joined Arts Leaders from other South Australian independent schools to learn about opportunities for creative learning.
They also practised ensemble work with the esteemed Julian Ferraretto, South Australian jazz violinist, composer, and educator, with Pallas even taking on the role of conductor!
We look forward to the ideas and reflections they bring back to share with our Arts students.
Our Junior School students have been facing off over the past weeks in the annual Pétanque Tournament, with the aim of representing Mercedes College at the SA French Teachers Association Pétanque Finals.
Today our first two positions were established!
Congratulations to Percy (Year 5, Barry) and Thomas (Year 5, McAuley) on winning the overall Mercedes College competition, and to Evie (Year 5, Dalton) and Cassie (Year 5, McAuley) for taking second place.
The final two teams will compete next week to learn which pair will join our first and second place winners at the SA contest.
This week, our Year 10 Religious Education students heard from reconciliation advocate, former AFL footballer, and musician, Marlon Motlop. This was part of their unit “Respect, Responsibility, Reconciliation – Indigenous Australian Spirituality”.
Under the inquiry of “Christians in Australia have a responsibility to our Indigenous Communities in bringing about a more just society inclusive of all our brothers and sisters”, Marlon shared his stories and experiences as an indigenous Australian. His honest storytelling through music and his work with his cousin’s native foods business as a form of reconciliation through education, had a positive impact with our students.
More upcoming activities can be found on the College Calendar.
