Be. My. Best. - Be. Your. Best. - Be. Our. Best.
Our aspiration today. Our commitment through 2022-2024. Our inspiration by 2025.
The Strategic Plan is a product of extensive consultation and a reflective process undertaken by the College Board and Sub-committees, in collaboration with the leadership team, and is informed by community feedback collected throughout the school review process.
The Strategic Plan focuses on who we are, what we believe and who we are becoming. It is underpinned by the principles of Catholic social teaching and the critical importance of a safe and inclusive environment for every child and young person.
It is designed to enable each Damascus community member to reach their potential and to make every individual an agent of their own future. It is in this context that Be. My. Best. has emerged as our aspirations statement. A statement that grows out of the rich Mercy and Diocesan traditions of the College and that draws heavily on the story of the conversion of St Paul as inspiration to drive our plan.
The plan identifies five core pillars for Damascus College. The five pillars are linked, and each pillar is vital to activating and achieving the strategic plan. Each pillar’s strategic priorities will activate concurrently in a measured and considered way, with the other pillars over the 5-year journey, these pillars are:
- Faith & Catholic Identity
- Learning & Leading
- Wellbeing in Action
- Community Connection
- Future & Stewardship
Our Vision
Damascus College is a dynamic Christ-centred learning community that values each member and is committed to inspiring and challenging students to reach their potential and contribute confidently to the global community.
Holistic Framework:
Our Strategic Aspiration: 2021-2025
Be. My. Best. requires an integrated spiritual, educational, emotional and social worldview that can be crafted to suit each individual. At its core lies the concept of self-determination: by being the best I can in every circumstance, I will flourish as a person, as a member of the community, and as a global citizen.
The experience of a Damascus education has a profound impact on all members of the community and develops attributes for life beyond school. Students will have developed a Gospel focus in the Mercy tradition, self-awareness, emotional wellbeing, critical thinking and problem solving, cultural awareness and global citizenship.
It is our strategic aspiration that by 2025 - Be.My. Best.- Be. Your. Best. - Be Our Best – will be woven into the institutional fabric of Damascus College. It will enable every student, every staff member and every family member or community partner to become agents of their own futures. We will have opened pathways of self-determination relevant for today, tomorrow and forever.
Be. My. Best. will be evident in the capacities, the authenticity, the discernment, and humanity of those within the College who learn, teach, and enable. It will shine always in the lives that are illuminated by living in the light of Christ.
The Five School Improvement Pillars are below.
Faith & Catholic Identity
Our Aspiration
An inclusive community of respectful dialogue that enriches faith and deepens the celebration of our Catholic traditions.
Strategic Priorities
- Extending a recontextualised and joyful exploration of the encounters that lead to, and express, faith
- Developing a merciful embrace of our global responsibilities, including sustainability, First Nations people and multiculturalism
- Building life-giving relationships of integrity, justice and peace
Learning & Leading
Our Aspiration
A culture of learning where the identity and purpose of the learner empowers them to thrive in and shape their current and future world.
Strategic Priorities
- Achieving agency for life at school and beyond through the development of Social & Emotional Learning (SEL) capabilities and its contribution towards our learners’ development of deeper learning competencies
- Recognising that educators are co-agents in a mutually supportive relationship that helps all learners to progress towards their valued goals
- A culture supported by educators committed to their professional growth in the best interests of the learner
Wellbeing in Action
Our Aspiration
An environment where students flourish and can manage their wellbeing effectively, enriched by a holistic learning and teaching program and the development of SEL skills.
Strategic Priorities
- Promoting a community where SEL can help students learn the competencies and skills they need to give them agency over their lives
- Ensuring that everyone has access to a meaningful and purposeful curriculum that allows them to positively engage in their learning pathway
- Nurturing an environment where active care and compassion to others is embedded into school culture and traditions
Community Connection
Our Aspiration
A proud school community of members that is confident, connected and value links with the local and global community.
Strategic Priorities
- Fostering confident and diverse means of communication that builds pride, creates dialogue, celebrates our points of difference, and enhances our position as a College of first choice
- Developing strong, intergenerational connections that build parent and alumni collaboration
- Building quality links to the local, national, and global community with partnerships that strengthen capacity, student pathways and student experience
Future & Stewardship
Our Aspiration
Attention to the changing educational environment of our community and acting as responsible stewards.
Strategic Priorities
- Providing the facilities and infrastructure to support continued growth and development
- Ensuring financial policies, systems and practices enable short term financial viability, is sustainable over the long term, and flexible to respond to opportunities
- Improving policies, systems and practices that continually identify, assess, and treat business and operational risks while ensuring ongoing regulatory and system compliance
View the Strategic Plan Brochure below:
Damascus College Attributes
The Damascus College experience has a profound impact on all members of the community. These attributes describe the broader purpose of a Damascus College education. For students leaving the College the following are the lived expression of their education and for life beyond Damascus College. These attributes are listed below.
Damascus College Attributes
Students have a developing sense of joy and wonder in their life and the world as a gift. They make informed choices showing commitment to human dignity, the common good, sustainability, justice and peace, creative and constructive acceptance of hardship in the spirit of Christian freedom and hope.
Students are self-aware, reflective and respectful of the uniqueness of each individual and of human diversity; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity, foster inclusiveness, demonstrate empathy and take responsibility for their actions.
Students have the knowledge and skills to apply their learning reflectively, creatively, critically and practically in various contexts. Students are well prepared for ethical living, working autonomously and in collaborative teams responding to future challenges.
Students understand, respect and embrace the cultures and traditions of First Nations people and multicultural Australia.
Students recognise their place and responsibility in the wider world and take an active role in their community, working with others to make our planet more peaceful, sustainable and just.
Aspiration Delivery Platforms
- Damascus College Strategic Plan: Aspiration 2025
- Strategic Priorities (2022-24)
- Implementation/Focused Initiatives (Stepped introduction 2022-24)
- Damascus College Annual Plans
- Progress/Accountability Reports (Annual Board Progress Report)