Year 12 students of St Joseph’s College, a high-fee independent Marist school in Sydney’s Hunter Hill, have received priority access to the COVID-19 vaccine. In June, 163 students who board at the school were given the Pfizer vaccine.
Many of the school’s alumni are highly placed. Of the 45 Liberal members of NSW Parliament, three are St Joseph’s alumni. Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves graduated from the school in 1993, followed by Member for Albury Justin Clancy who graduated in 1995, while Member for Riverstone Kevin Conolly graduated in 1975.
Former Hunters Hill mayor and former Liberal Party member Richard Quinn is currently director of advancement at the school. Quinn quit the Liberal Party in 2019 to unsuccessfully run as an independent for the seat of Lane Cove. Quinn told Crikey he wasn’t involved in any correspondence or request to NSW Health regarding the vaccination of students.
For the mass vaccination to happen, the school had to apply for vaccine access via NSW Health. The boys’ parents would have had to sign permission slips before the boys were bussed away to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital to get the jab. They’re set to get their second dose next week.
It’s an example of privilege like no other. The vaccine is currently only available to people aged over 40, workers in the healthcare and aged care sectors, people with other health risks, and Indigenous Australians. The school said it had asked for the vaccinations for the benefit of Indigenous students — who make up just 4% of its overall student base — though the whole year level was invited.
NSW Health has apologised for the error but still hasn’t explained exactly how it happened.
Despite the school’s fees, which can total $50,000 a year, St Joseph’s College was among a series of elite independent schools that qualified for the government’s fortnightly JobKeeper payments.
Sidgreaves confirmed to Crikey he graduated from St Joseph’s but said he didn’t have any involvement in the decision to vaccinate students. St Joseph’s, NSW Health, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian, and the offices of Clancy and Conolly have been contacted for comment.
Please stop calling such schools “elite”. It feeds into their propaganda that they are somehow superior to public schools. They are certainly “elitist” but, as such, are deeply inferior to public schools who are capable of educating kids from all social backgrounds.
They are just expensive schools, not elite.
Floaters would be a more accurate description
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Old_Boys_of_St_Joseph%27s_College,_Hunters_Hill#Politics_and_self_service
List of Old Boys of St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill
Some of the biggest Liberal leaners and floaters.
Hockey came from St Alo’s in Kirribilli and Toned Abs was a Riverview rugby thug.
Yes I know, Large Leaner Hockey’s seat was that in which Hunters Hill is situated. another happy bit of happenstance.
Don’t call them independent schools either. They are massively taxpayer subsidised schools. Call them what they are….subsidised.
Just so. It is a wonder how so many of those who are so loud championing private enterprise and condemning welfare or any state-run body (where there will be at least some public accountability) manage the cognitive dissonance of simultaneously accepting huge wads of public money pumped into private businesses, cash-hungry religious bodies and super-wealthy private pockets in the guise of subsidies, grants, low/no interest loans, tax dodges and so much more, all more or less unaccountable and confidential.
The Catholic education system pre-dates the public system and so their subsidy is about the same as the public except that the parents pay fees on top.
Public system? Are you referring to the floaters so called independent schools?
The Kings School is the oldest ‘independent’ school.
Catholic school subsidies began under Menzies and increased under Whitlam. In 1872 free, compulsory and secular education was introduced in Victoria.
NSW government schools operating since 1848, with the Sydney Public Free Grammar School, opened in 1825
Vic led the way in 172 with The Education Act it was a basis for a uniquely centralised model of school education, unlike those in Britain, the United States or Canada. Victoria was the first of the Australian colonies to set up a central public school system based on the principles of free, secular and compulsory education.
History of Australia Education is a good source site.
Hazzard has this morning told a journalist, to ” move on”, regarding the alleged “mistake”.
Similar to his response last year when he and his people were responsible for the Ruby Princess debacle.
Border control, quarantine and biosecurity are Federal responsibilities. If NSW is being blamed, our constitution doesn’t mean sh!t.
Bit like an Australian passport these days.
And mass vaccination?
For Liberal kids only and with precious limited pfizer. Aged care and health workers end of queue.
Some notables old boys: Jack Doohan , Laurie McGinty , Kevin Cairns , Bill Heffernan, Craig Laundy, Roy Butler
What gets me is nobody at the school had the integrity to stand up and say ‘hang on a minute, I’m not sure what we are doing is right.’
They wouldn’t be running a training academy for the Liberal Party if they had any ethics.
Yes, my first thought was – Why didn’t the principal let the vaccinators know that this was wrong? – at the very least the classroom teachers should have been getting the vaccine before the pupils.
Same as Morriscum made sure he got pfizer, not the big commercial AZ secret in the nation’s interest that his mate ex Liberal hack signed taxpayers us to, that’s for sure.
Self interest always a great motivator for conservatives; assisted by a stunted if existent, social conscience
Don’t loose the real question – why is the Pfizer vaccination not readily available for all now?
We won’t find out as Scum has declared the AZ contract a national security issue.