On Tuesday 3rd March, members of St Aloysius College's student community, accompanied by English Learning Leader Pippa Mills, travelled to St Leonard's College to take part in the 2026 Student Leadership Conference: The Ripple Effect: Small Actions with Big Consequences.
The annual conference brings together student leaders from schools across Melbourne, providing an opportunity to develop leadership skills and build connections with peers from other schools. This year's program featured a series of keynote addresses and interactive workshops designed to challenge and inspire the next generation of leaders.
Among the distinguished speakers were Professor Emerita Gillian Triggs AC, who recently concluded her role as United Nations Assistant Secretary General and Assistant High Commissioner for Protection with the UNHCR, and who has also served as President of the Australian Human Rights Commission; Olympic gold medallist and pole vaulter Steve Hooker OAM, one of Australia's most celebrated athletes; and Dr Ari Metuamate, Master and Head of Ormond College at the University of Melbourne and a respected higher education executive and political scientist.
Students came away from the day with fresh perspectives on leadership and the impact that small, intentional actions can have on those around them. Below, some of our student attendees share their reflections on the day.
On the 3rd of March we were very lucky to attend the annual leadership conference at St Leonard's College. The College Co-Captains and Vice Captains were very welcoming to their school, we were also honoured to have met so many other school leaders from various schools.
Ms Mills accompanied us on our trip, we're very grateful to have had her come with us. We're also very grateful to St Leonard’s College for hosting this wonderful event and the hospitality shown by their Principal and school leaders.
The theme of the conference was ‘The Ripple Effect: Small Actions with Big Consequences’ with a focus on the Source, the Impact, and the Ripple. For each section we had a guest speaker and a workshop. The workshop allowed us to build connections between other students, as well as develop our school initiatives.
We were very lucky to have Steve Hooker speak to us about his Olympic gold medal and how he achieved it. He told us about his journey to success in the Olympics, including the support and value in finding a team who supports you, and the relief of living your goals and what comes afterwards. Some of the key takeaways from his presentation were: “Find joy in mediocrity” and “Pressure is a privilege”. This really opened our eyes, we were able to realise how lucky we are to have an education and have that pressure to do well, because not everyone has that opportunity. He also reminded us that it is okay to be average at times, we do not have to be amazing in everything and do something grand every hour of the day.
Additionally, Professor Gillian Triggs and Dr Ari spoke to us about how to use our leadership for good and to stay accountable as a school leader. We hope to aim to implement some of these strategies as school prefect to ensure our school can be the best we can!
Overall, the experience was extremely valuable and opened our perspectives more to all aspects of leadership in our roles and in everyday life, and we were able to make new friends!
Mischa Fahey and Mary-Grace Fitzgerald, both 12A