We are all taught to show respect for people, places and environments

Service learning

At Seymour, our Vision is "Women of strength, optimism and justice, contributing to an equitable world for all."

Firmly embedded in the College's motto, Crescam Ministrando, (I grow by serving), our Vision statement demonstrates that the Christian principle of service is central to Seymour College's ethos, and that each of us not only has a responsibility to community, but actually gains much by reaching out to our fellow-humans.

Our extensive Service program is a defining feature of Seymour College.

Not only does it further strengthen our students' sense of connectedness, it also provides students with opportunities to learn, by experience, something of what it means to live in a self-giving way. This notion of servant-leadership - central to the College's ethos - is best exemplified by Jesus, who said; "Whoever would be great among you must be the servant of all."

Our Service Learning program has four central aims:

  1. Raise awareness of need - this we achieve by several means including a service and justice program that is integrated into our curriculum, across all disciplines and from Pre School to Year 12; invited speakers, assemblies, and staff and parent role models. Via such means, we remind ourselves daily of the needs of those who are marginalized, locally and globally.
    Sarvodaya India, a trip of service to India to work with communities in need, presents students and staff with the opportunity to give hope and joy to others, and to build relationships.
  2. Create opportunities for empathy - developing young people's awareness of, and empathy for, others is a critical step in fostering our students' emotional intelligence. Assisting at an aged care facility, donating blood, serving meals to the homeless on Saturday evenings and knitting warm scarves are examples of the wide range of ways in which they can contribute to making a difference in our world. Large scale events such as Service Week also raise a consciousness amongst our students of what it feels like to be in need.
  3. Giving - at our fortnightly Service meetings, we discuss opportunities to reach out to others using our time, gifts and energy to benefit others. We hope to develop in our students a rational approach to giving, and the ability to distinguish charity from justice. As an example, our annual Can Clan Plan collects and donates goods at Christmas time to allocated charities to enable them to prepare hampers for people who would otherwise not have food at this time.
  4. Fundraising - At Seymour, we stress that fundraising is not a synonym for service. There is, however, certainly place in our program for collecting funds for designated charities and projects. The annual Service Fair, held in the last week of the school year, requires each form to organize a stall to raise funds for a specific project chosen by the students.

The aim of Service at Seymour is primarily educational:

Our goal is send out into the world a generation of young women who are committed to making ethical and just decisions, and a desire to make a difference in our world.