Brief History
| Name of School | St Mary’s Catholic Primary School, South Mackay |
|---|---|
| Primary/Secondary/P-12 | Primary P-6 |
| Date of Foundation | 1924 |
| Founding Religious Order | The Sisters of Mercy |
| Foundation Principal | Sister M Dympna O'Reilly |
| Present Principal | Mr Wes Rose |
| School Motto | "Learn from Christ" |
Significant milestones in the school’s history
| 1972 | First Library established |
| 1981 | Sr Dolores is the last Sister of Mercy Principal |
| 1986 | Opening of new (present) Library |
| 1990 | Office/Administration building built |
| 1995 | Introduction of Pre- School to St Mary’s School |
| 2006 | Opening of multi-purpose undercover area and refurbishment of B and D block |
| 2011 | Opening of new administration building, library, hall, E and F block |
| 2021 | Opening of F block, B block, Early Years Precinct |
Points of interest
The school was originally named Our Lady of Mt Carmel School.
For the first 11 years, the nuns lived at the River Street convent and travelled daily by taxi to the school. This sometimes proved treacherous as South Mackay was low-lying and poorly drained, which often led to the taxi becoming bogged and the Sisters being carried across the deep gutters in times of heavy rain.
In 1974 a visit from the then Prime Minister of Australia, Mr Gough Whitlam and his wife, proved somewhat awkward as the Whitlams (both being tall people) had to stoop in order to visit the old Library. Concerned about the conditions of the building, including the broken asphalt floor, the PM requested the Federal Member for Dawson, along with the Qld member for Mackay Mr Ed Casey to note the library’s needs. Major improvements soon followed as government funding became available and parishioners assisted with some amazing fund raising.
In 1923 some people thought that the Bishop had “gone a bit mad” buying land and building a school in that part of town (South Mackay) as it was considered a great distance from the Mackay township (approximately 2kms). Today St Mary’s School South Mackay is a thriving and progressive inner city school with an enrolment of approximately 380 students and 40 staff members. The school boasts a positive community spirit as it faces further demands and growth into the future.
Achievements of past students
| Jason Chetcuti | International Fashion Designer |
| John Smith | Foot and Mouth Painter |
| Graeme Connors | Acclaimed country singer/songwriter |
| Vicki Attard | Principal Artist, Australian Ballet Company |
| Brett Dallas | Rugby League International Player |
| Edmund Casey | Queensland State MP |
| Jason Costigan | Queensland State MP |
| Tim Mulherin | Queensland State MP |
Future statement
We believe that St Mary’s School community is a community of faith, with Jesus as our model and Mary, His Mother, as our patron. Our priest, staff and parents work together in a spirit of Christian cooperation. We aim to develop in each child a sense of his or her own potential and to provide the climate and encouragement for each to achieve at his or her maximum level in a caring environment.