History:
Rev. Mother Paul Mulquin arrived at Sandridge (Port Melbourne) on Sunday 21 December 1873, faced with the making of a new foundation. On 28 March 1883, these Presentation Sisters opened St James School in converted stables, which proved a most auspicious beginning. Twenty-eight students attended and shortly after that a separate school was opened with four pupils – Star of the Sea. In 1885 Mother Byrne paid £90 for a special horse-drawn omnibus, which was certainly the first school bus run anywhere in Melbourne. In the 1920s St James, with 285 pupils, was the largest primary school in the district.
In 1961 a new school building was erected on the present site after the original school, which had been next door to the Church, was demolished. It was on 17 December 1978 that the Presentation Sisters withdrew from the school after 95 years of remarkable service.
The present staff has the pleasure of carrying on into the future the tradition of excellence in education. And we give credit to those wonderful women who educated so many Catholic children in the extensive area that Gardenvale then was.
Description:
The school has two campuses separated by a lane. One campus is an Infant School with its own grassed playground with play equipment. This building was refurbished in 1997. The Senior building houses two classes, a Library, a Computer Room and Art Room.
Features:
We believe that one special feature of St James' is its caring for all members of the school community in the manner in which Jesus would have wished. We are a small school with a broad curriculum including: Physical Education, Japanese, Computers, Art and Performing Arts. We offer a variety of before and after school activities such as: Choir, School Band, Garden Club, Taekwondo, Sport and more.