St Mary’s College for the Deaf
In 1985 St John’s Regional College made history, when it became the first Catholic Regional College in Victoria to open its doors to a unit of children with impaired hearing.
The children were students of St Mary’s School for the Deaf at Portsea. The school was established in 1947 by the Dominican Sisters as Victoria’s first oral school for the deaf. With dwindling numbers and a reluctance for students to be away from home as boarders, a decision was made in 1984 to relocate the school to integrated settings.
The Secondary section of St Mary’s began at St John’s in 1985 with students integrated into regular classes with support from St Mary’s staff.
Today St Mary’s (now called St Mary’s College for the deaf) is still part of the fabric of St John’s, and the integration continues to be an outstanding success.
Visit the St Mary’s College Website