Salesian College (Rupertswood)

Salesian College is an independent Roman Catholic, co-educational secondary school located in Sunbury, Victoria, Australia.

Salesian College
Rupertswood, located adjacent to Salesian College's main school buildings
Location
Sunbury, Victoria

Australia
Coordinates37°34′22″S 144°44′19″E
Information
TypeIndependent secondary school
Religious affiliation(s)Roman Catholic
DenominationSalesian Society
Established1929 (1929)
Years7-12
Websitewww.scr.vic.edu.au

History
Main article: Rupertswood

The school was established by the Salesian Society in 1927, when Rupertswood Mansion, one of the largest private houses in Victoria, originally constructed for Sir William Clarke, was purchased from the estate of industrialist H. V. McKay.

Salesian College was originally an all-boys boarding school. The Salesian order's charism meant that "under-privileged" boys were included as boarders, particularly in the college's early decades.[1] In the 1950s, the school began admitting day students as well as boarders. After the nearby town of Sunbury grew in the 1980s, girls were admitted. By 1997, the school had become fully co-educational and had ceased student boarding.

The college is now located on the grounds of the mansion, which is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register.

Salesian College has a broad curriculum ranging from agriculture to visual communications, with its own sporting facilities, including a 25m swimming pool, a large stadium, a cross-country equestrian course, and a full-size football ground.

The school was exclusively served by the adjacent Rupertswood railway station, originally provided for Sir William Clarke, from 1962 until its closure in 2004.[2][3]

Sexual abuse convictions

There have been a number of convictions related to sexual abuse by teachers and priests at the school, particularly in regard to offences committed in the 1970s and 80s,[4] including: Michael Aulsebrook, gaoled for the sexual abuse of a 12-year-old student in 1983;[5] and again in 2016 for rape, sexual assaults[6] Peter Paul van Ruth, who was sentenced to 28 months gaol in 2011 for indecently assaulting two 12-year-old boys;[7] and Frank Klep, a former principal of the college who "...was convicted in 1994 of four charges of sexual assault relating to incidents during the 1970s."[8]

Other priests from the college reached settlements with substantial compensation payments paid to their victims, over allegations of sexual abuse, but were not otherwise convicted.[9][10][11][12]

On 30 August 2013, David Rapson, a former vice principal, was found guilty of eight indecent assaults and five rapes committed against students at Salesian College between the mid-1970s and 1990.[13][14] That conviction was then quashed and he was retried. At the retrial he was found guilty of multiple accounts of sexual abuse and was given a 12-year prison sentence.[15]

Julian Benedict Fox, the former head of the Salesians in Australia, and a past teacher at Salesian College Rupertswood in Sunbury, pleaded guilty on 28 August 2015 to three counts of common assault, related to beating three other boys with a pool cue at Salesian College in 1978 and 1979.[16]

Alumni

The Past Pupils Association is the alumni association of Rupertswood for all students since its foundation in 1927. This association networks with the other Salesian Past Pupils Associations in Australia and around the world. The group aims to foster and cultivate a continuing association with the college and to build on the networks and friendships developed over the years.

Notable alumni

References
  1. Bellholme. "Rupertswood - A Brief History". bellholme.com.au. Australian IT Business Directory. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  2. "Victorian Station Histories - Sunbury (including Rupertswood)" (PDF). www.vrhistory.com. Retrieved 20 May 2008.
  3. "VICSIG - Infrastructure - Rupertswood". vicsig.net. Retrieved 20 May 2008.
  4. "Salesian Provincial breaks silence on sex abuse". Catholic News'. July 2004.
  5. Lowe, Adrian (23 August 2011). "Sunbury priest jailed for sex abuse". The Age.
  6. Cooper, Adam (21 June 2016). "Former Salesian priest Michael Aulsebrook jailed for rape sex assaults". The Age.
  7. "After 42 years, boarding school molester finally brought to justice". The Age. 8 March 2011. Retrieved 18 September 2011.
  8. "More Salesian old boys speak out". The Age. 3 July 2004.
  9. Daly, Martin (19 July 2004). "Mission to defrock sex abuser". The Age. Retrieved 28 August 2013.
  10. Lowe, Adrian (23 August 2011). "Sunbury priest jailed for sex abuse". The Age. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  11. Stayner, Guy (25 June 2004). "Paedophile priest arrested in Melbourne". Lateline. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  12. Daly, Martin (24 July 2004). "Priest used drink on boys: victim". The Age. Retrieved 17 September 2011.
  13. Cooper, Adam (30 August 2013). "Former priest David Rapson convicted of sex abuse of eight boys". The Border Mail. Albury/Wodonga.
  14. Cooper, Adam Sex abuse priest David Rapson jailed for 13 years The Age, 17 October 2013. Accessed 30 October 2013
  15. "Defrocked priest David Rapson jailed for sexual abuse of schoolboys at Catholic boarding school", (11 May 2015). Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 12 May 2015.
  16. Cooper, Adam; Russell, Mark (28 August 2015). "Paedophile priest found guilty of sex, physical assaults at Salesian College". The Age. Retrieved 15 August 2019.
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