Sister Philippa Ridgway
Principal 1969 – July 1970
Philippa Ridgway joined the Mercy Order in 1959 and completed her Bachelor of Arts degree and her Diploma of Education prior to being admitted to Final Profession on the 25th of November, 1964.
Sr. Philippa taught at St Aloysius until 1968 when she was appointed Deputy Principal. This appointment was followed in 1969 by her appointment as principal of the college.
Sr Philippa’s relatively brief tenure of the position was marked by the development of a new basic framework for the task of educating students. The new structure was structurally dependent on team-teaching and the involvement of the school library and its resources. The approach was initially referred to as General Studies, a term that was later altered to Integrated Studies, an approach to the education of Junior High School students that was followed at SAC until the 1990s.
Another aspect of Sr Philippa’s tenure was an examination of the concept of justice, interpreting it as essentially the quality of the relationships we are building in the world. This meant examining our own lives as well as the larger issues of social structure and equity. This became a central objective of the General Studies program.
By Neville Stapleton
Archivist, St Aloysius College, 2020
