Sister Norberta (now Therese) was teaching a class of about 40 students in secondary school (which went up to year 10) from 1969-1972.
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There were about four sisters and one lay teacher for over 100 students.
"In the early 1970s our dress was changed... skirts were shortened and the veils modified. This was because the Vatican Council wanted the Orders to modernise.
"The boys got wind of this habit change so on the morning the students all lined up and cheered with a roar as the Sisters came in," Sister Therese said.
“I used to teach religion, English, social studies (history and geography), French and science. Maths was taught by a lay teacher.
“Students came to the high school from Bega, Candelo, Cobargo, Eden and everywhere in between; there were about half a dozen boarders then.”
With few resources available at the school, Sister Norberta had to be resourceful e.g. the boys brought live rabbits from their farms and had to kill them before the science lesson on anatomy.
"The students travelled to Cooma to the Brigidine Catholic School for sports and debating once a year," Sister Therese said. "Coming back down Brown Mountain, the bus would stop at the top of the pass so that the students could run down the mountain ahead of the bus. I took off in full habit with them for the fun of it."
Now Sister Therese works at Mary MacKillop Place in North Sydney (Mary MacKillop is the only proclaimed saint in Australia and is buried here).
Sister Therese is looking forward to catching up and celebrating the 150th anniversary with everyone.