Mission

The life of Jesus, the Gospel message and the Marist charism are at the core of our beliefs and frame everything we do. The College regularly celebrates the Eucharist; boarders gather for mass on Sunday evening, and the whole college community comes together for the feasts of St Marcellin and the Assumption of Mary – key holy days for Marists. As well as these eucharistic celebrations, there are liturgies of the word that reflect other cultural aspects of college life.

At Saints we are committed to the idea that faith is lived through action. To be authentic members of our Catholic community we ask our staff and young men to show compassion and to be of service wherever possible. The College is active within its walls as well as in outreach to the wider Cairns community. There are multiple opportunities for students to volunteer their time to help charitable organisations such as St Vincent de Paul, Rosies, or for free community events such as Park Run.

Men of Saints fundraise and raise awareness for worthy causes such as global Marist projects that focus on delivering education to children in under privileged countries. Local charities are supported such as the Cancer Council's Relay for Life and Daffodil Day where students sell flowers and turn the College yellow, St Vincent de Paul's Sleep Out under the stars where students reach outside of their comfort zones and expand their awareness of diversity and privation within the community.

The donation of goods by students for needy charities is also a strong part of the Saints culture, with a long standing reputation for its generosity in supporting the Winter Blanket and Soup Drive for Rosies and the annual Christmas Hamper Appeal for St Vincent de Paul. Since 1995 St Augustine's has held an annual fundraiser to support its sister Marist school in India, with a family banquet well supported by the College community.

Service awards are presented to students for their volunteer work and commitment to community service, an attribute our Men of Saints hold in high regard as they strive for a more just world.

We offer a Catholic sacramental program where students can learn about our faith. The sacraments of baptism, reconciliation, first Eucharist and confirmation are all offered. Please contact the College reception for more information.

During the boys' education about the sacraments, they are encouraged to ask questions and develop their understanding of the traditions and the associated rituals. Students receive these sacraments during boarders' masses in the College chapel.

Marist Mission includes standing in solidarity with our global neighbours in their plights as well as serving our local community. For many years St Augustine's College has offered an Immersion Program in other countries to provide an experience in contrast with a holiday. The immersion experience has taken groups to Papua New Guinea and Thailand. The living conditions in these places are very different to those in Australia. It gives the students an insight into what Marist teachers and volunteers are doing for education and for community building in other parts of the world. This is an opportunity to foster Christian leadership within our community, and Men of Saints find this experience life changing.

Student leaders take on the roles of prefects. There is strong emphasis on developing cohesive leadership that has positive and far reaching effects on the student body. Collectively, they attend a leadership camp where they cement their commitment to themselves as senior students, and to the service they will provide. Selected senior leaders represent Saints at an annual Marist gathering where they attend workshops with other student leaders in the state.

Seniors take on the following roles: college captain, college vice-captain, liturgy captain, service captain, academic captain, arts captain, sports captain, student representative captain, boarding captain, public speaking captain and each of the four house captains.