Students were asked to wear blue on the day and bring in a gold coin donation to support Dolly’s Dream. To make the day more meaningful, Year 12 students prepared small gift packs and notes which were distributed to students.
“After lengthy discussions with our fellow students about supporting “Do it for Dolly Day”, we as the student leadership action team, decided that this is a cause that we would like to support and is something we are all passionate about. Dolly’s Dream’s message is to be kind and speak even if your voice shakes, ” said College Captain Brady Phelan.
“We applied for these positions because we wanted to make difference in the school community. We asked for the help and support from the College Leadership Committee – which they gave.”
Student leaders used resources and infographics from the ‘Do it for Dolly’ website to promote awareness around the campus, online and via the school newsletter.
“If we applied national statistics to our Nagle College community, it could be estimated 58 of our students could be suffering from mental health issues. This is a statistic we need to drastically decrease, so we decided that educating our fellow students about this issue was imperative,” said Brady.
Money raised on the day was twice the amount of a ‘normal’ out-of-uniform day – highlighting the success and importance of the day.
“We could not be prouder of our peers for the turn out and the support that was seen with everyone wearing blue and generously donating to this worthy cause,” said Brady.
“I think this was a great initiative from our student leaders. The out-of-uniform day also coincided with other student-led initiatives including presentations at assemblies and a mentorship program between the school captains and junior students. It great to see our student leaders raise awareness for such an important issue,” said Mrs Sharon Buurman, Deputy Principal – Pastoral.