The Mission and Vision of our school is clearly enunciated, in
detail, in the Mission Statement Document, a foundational document of
the philosophy of our School.
The Loreto Toorak Educational philosophy is values-based and
framed around an equal commitment to Social Justice and Academic excellence and
could be summarised thus:
This is our vision: that Loreto schools
offer a Catholic education which liberates, empowers and motivates students to
use their individual gifts with confidence, creativity and generosity in loving
and responsible service.
Our goal is to foster in each student the
foundation for a strong, mature faith – in God, in herself and in life. These
foundations will provide a vibrant core of values and beliefs that will stand
her in good stead to face and, indeed, to embrace all the challenges, the joys
and the adventures that lie ahead in life.
The tradition in which we stand is one that
is proudly and confidently committed to an education of the whole child, both
heart and mind, and based on a strong set of Loreto values. These lie at the heart of all our
endeavours
We embrace genuine values of freedom, justice, sincerity, verity and felicity. With these values, we foster a mutual respect and deep understanding of the individual, and a compassion for the broader community.
Living with sincerity was something Mary Ward always envisaged. Her ideal was that “we should be such as we appear and appear such as we are”.
Closely linked to sincerity is Mary Ward’s concept of verity. For Mary, this meant having integrity and truth, particularly the truth of who we are and what gives meaning to our lives - a truth that centres fundamentally on the mystery of God.
Felicity is an attitude of mind, a disposition of the heart which manifests itself in cheerfulness, good humour, joy, happiness, hope, optimism, friendliness, courtesy, positive thinking, inner peace, self-acceptance and courage.
The qualities of freedom, justice and sincerity are at the core of Mary Ward’s spirit. Her understanding of freedom was grounded in her sense of personal relationship with God. Her belief was that each one of us, in our ordinary experience of life, has access to God’s loving care. This is the truth that sets us free. It is an inner freedom, accepting of self, open to others and trusting of life.
Justice, as Mary Ward describes it, involves personal integrity based on a harmonious relationship with God, other people and with the whole of creation. It is expressed through “works of justice” that aspire to bring about such harmony.
