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Catholic Diocese of Sandhurst
Year in Review 2016
LEADERSHIP & STRUCTURE
I
n 2016, Sandhurst welcomed Sr Geraldine Larkins back to the Diocese, as she took up the
executive position of Deputy Director of Catholic Education Sandhurst, with responsibility
for Catholic Identity.
If home is where the heart is, then Sr Geraldine Larkins has returned to the Sandhurst
Diocese where, by her own admission, she left her heart when she moved from the Diocese
six years ago.
A Sister of St Joseph for 30 years, Sr Geraldine brought an impressive array of skills and
qualifications which held her in good stead in her new role.
Born in the beachside suburb of Chelsea inMelbourne’s south-east, Geraldine is the daughter
of a watchmaker and a teacher. With an older brother and younger sister, Geraldine’s parents
Don and Claire provided an idyllic childhood for the trio.
Following a primary education at St Joseph’s in Chelsea with the Sisters of St Joseph,
Geraldine attended Kilbreda College under the tutelage of the Brigidine Sisters.
Upon graduation, Geraldine studied to become a teacher and, after taking up her first full-
time teaching position in Spotswood, she gained an Associate Diploma in Opera and Music
Theatre at the Victorian College of the Arts by studying three nights a week. This love of
learning would last a lifetime and, over the course of the next 30 years, seven more degrees
would follow.
At the age of 25, Geraldine entered the novitiate in Sydney to become a Sister of St Joseph;
the Josephites had played a large part in her formation and the decision to join the order was
a very natural decision for her.
Sr Geraldine’s first teaching position upon leaving the novitiate was in the Sandhurst Diocese
at St Joseph’s, Numurkah where she remained for the next three years before returning to
Melbourne to complete her Bachelor of Education. This association with the Sandhurst
Diocese would continue for much of her professional career and, in 1994, Geraldine was
appointed Principal of St Mary’s Primary School in Rushworth.
For the next four years Sr Geraldine was part of the Rushworth community and along with
duties as Principal was also classroom teacher, science specialist and librarian! It was during
her time at Rushworth that Sr Geraldine realised that there was a need for more external
support for students with special needs. She contacted Denis Higgins, who was Director
of Catholic Education Sandhurst at the time, to see if a role might exist at the Catholic
Education Office if she were to gain qualifications as a psychologist, to which Denis readily
agreed.
From 1998 until 2009 Sr Geraldine worked at the Catholic Education Office, during which
time she gained Graduate Diplomas in Psychological Studies and Educational Psychology, a
Masters in Psychological Education and completed her PhD.
A warm welcome home to
Sandhurst