School History
After many months of discussions, hard work, and organisation, the Berne Education Centre officially opened its doors for students in Term 2 of 1998. Staff from that day will clearly remember the students, activities, and the end-of-day meeting when the famous words were uttered: “Well, back to the drawing board!” Ten years later, the students are still coming through the doors, there are many activities, and the end-of-day meetings still take us back to the drawing board: always improving, always changing, always hoping. In such a small period of time this small school has had a life changing impact on so many individuals and their families, the main reason being that it has always dealt with the individual.
Since that first day there has been a phenomenal amount of change. At the very beginning there was an office, a couple of teaching spaces, and the community room, with access to the canteen and one of the technics rooms. It was a small campus for a small school: 8 staff and 30 students. There are now 10 classrooms, a science lab, a technics room, an art room, 3 special program areas, 3 counsellors offices, a community room, 3 garage spaces—and the list goes on. The increase in facilities has been matched with a growth in population—25 staff and approximately 40 students.
Berne has certainly been graced with many different characters—they will stay in our hearts for a long time to come. It is often said that teachers rarely see the fruits of their labour; this is somewhat different for Berne. Nothing can compare to graduation evening at the end of year 10 where students are presented with the certificate that many may have been told they would never receive. It is on this night that we as educators truly understand what our vocation is all about.
Throughout our 10 years we have been blessed with the army of volunteers that have constantly supported our staff and students. A founding staff member, Geoff George once commented that this place is full of angels; the volunteers have certainly attested to this—often arriving at the very moment that we desperately needed them.
An understanding of the individual is what has led to the development of many of our programs. Throughout the last 10 years the following programs and activities have been undertaken and are what characterise this special school.
- Annual ski camp
- Canoeing camp to the Barrington River
- Work Experience
- Year 11 (not current)
- Changing Lanes
- Student Withdrawal & Assistance Program
- Buddies and Friends
- Girls’ camps
- Bushwalking camps
- Community involvement
- Education for leisure
- Parenting Program
- Behaviour Unit
- Support Unit (not current)
- Learning Advancement Centre
This short history of Berne would not be complete without mention of the founding principal, Br. Michael Flanagan. Everyone would certainly agree that the success of any school can be directly attributed to the success of the principal. Berne has been a success and that is because Br. Michael has been a success. Br. Michael’s ability to see beyond the surface of not only his students but his staff is what has made the key difference at Berne. His constant encouragement to each member of the Berne community—students and staff—to go beyond and to dream is what has enabled the different programs to come into existence and to constantly evolve. What truly stands out is the fact that Br. Mick has witnessed to each of us what Marcellin Champagnat has asked him to do: to walk in his footsteps and to treat each student as if they were his own.
2008 saw a new principal—Br. Darren Burge—take over from Br. Michael. It also saw perhaps the change most visible to the outside world, the change of name to The John Berne School. This reflects the acceptance of change, but also the change from a centre to a fully fledged school.
