The school is working towards a more comprehensive history of philanthropy, and if anyone has any knowledge about significant donations not included below, we invite you to contact our archivist Mary Surtees msurtees@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Even the many generous and known donations to the school are too numerous to mention in this brief summary; however, St Margaret’s wishes to acknowledge and thank all those who have donated to St Margaret’s.

1895

The Sisters of the SSA

The Sisters of the Society of the Sacred Advent purchase Eton High School in Nundah, which would later become known as St Margaret’s. The SSA educated thousands of women across Queensland through sheer persistence, determination, and hard work. In the early days, the Sisters rattled tins of coins, asking for donations to continue their mission. In this era, the Sisters were an anomaly within religious schools, not drawing a wage, thus helping to sustain the school when many others closed due to financial strain.

1930s

Darnell Bequest – Darnell Art Room 1933; Darnell Music Room 1936

Anglican philanthropist John Darnell left large sums of money for educational and charitable purposes. St Margaret’s was a beneficiary of the Darnell Estate, building the Darnell Art and Music rooms.

1950s

1958 – Tooth Bequest

The school received £1,000 from the estate of Sir Edwin Tooth, Brisbane businessman and philanthropist, which was used to purchase an organ for the new Chapel.

1980s

1984 – Hassell Bequest – Sister Elisabeth Memorial Collection

Rhoda Hassell (1920 and 1921 school captain and 1919 OGA Prizewinner) boarded at St Margaret’s from 1913 – 1921. In 1984, an $8000 bequest was left to the school for the purpose of buying library books.

1984 – Jackson Bequest – The Jackson Wing

Lorna Jackson attended St Margaret’s from 1942 – 1953. Lorna sadly passed away in her late twenties, and her family’s subsequent generous donation helped to build the Jackson Wing in 1984.

1990s

Campbell Brown Bequest – A new tuckshop

Kathleen Campbell-Brown was a teacher of French at St Margaret’s from 1933 – 1945. After leaving St Margaret’s, she held numerous academic and administrative positions within the French department at The University of Queensland. St Margaret’s was a beneficiary of her generosity, with her bequest helping to establish a tuckshop.

Sister Chaseley-Anne Memorial Fund

Following her sudden death in November 1990, the Sister Chaseley-Anne Memorial Fund was established as a Boarder’s Bursary.

1996 – Margaret Frances and Colin McCulloch Scott Memorial Scholarship

This scholarship was to be awarded to a student/s attending or wanting to attend St Margaret’s, with preference given to applicants residing outside a 200km radius of the school and whose parents have the least means to meet the payment of fees.

2000s

2001 – Arts Centre Foyer

The St Margaret’s community donated over $300,000 to deliver the Arts Centre Foyer Building, a new home for visual arts and drama.

2004 – St Margaret’s Foundation established

The St Margaret’s Foundation is established to bring together a committed group of individuals passionate about St Margaret’s, its future, and its students’ futures to assist in promoting and stewarding a philanthropic culture to help raise funds to enable the school to carry out its mission, now and into the future. St Margaret’s Foundation Scholarship and Building funds allow the community to make tax deductible donations to the school’s needs-based bursary program and capital projects. 2005 – Archive Centre The Old Girls’ Association donated $25,000 towards the establishment of the Archive Centre.

2010s

2011 – Eunice Science and Resource Centre

A capital campaign raised over $700,000 towards the Eunice Science and Resource Centre. Opened in 2012, the building is home to modern science laboratories and the secondary library.

2012 – St Margaret’s Foundation Endowment Fund established

In 2012, the Foundation received a modest donation to establish an Endowment Fund, representing a symbol of faith in the future of St Margaret’s. The fund’s purpose is to invest and build on the capital, so that, ultimately, the interest earned can be used to further the school’s educational offerings.

2013 – Helene Jones Bequest

Helene Jones left a gift in her Will, in honour of her sister, Nora Baird, a St Margaret’s teacher, Queensland Conservatorium foundation member, church organist, examiner and supporter of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The bequest provides regular contributions to St Margaret’s Foundation Scholarship Fund for music scholarships.

2013 – The Godlee Family Gift – Barley Sugar Gardens

The Barley Sugar Garden, completed in 2014, was created through the generosity of the Godlee family.

2016 – The Loft, Atelier, M’s Café and Toorak Gardens

The philanthropy of the St Margaret’s community help to create The Loft, our 120-seat collaborative lecture theatre; Atelier – a primary school ‘tinker’ space which fosters creativity and problem solving; M’s Café – a popular community meeting place; and Toorak Gardens, where once bare bitumen is now a tranquil green gathering space.

2018 – St Margaret’s joins The Australian Universities and Schools USA Foundation

The AUS USA Foundation was created to give US-based alumni, friends, and funding organisations a way to support educational institutions in Australia. The Foundation is a non-profit tax exempt 501(c)(3) corporation, complying with US regulations for charities, allowing donors to the St Margaret’s Foundation to claim their gift as a deduction on their US income tax return.

2018 – St Margaret’s Sports Precinct

Our community donated $1.35M to invest in the health and wellbeing of our students, through the construction a word class sports precinct, providing new physical education and sporting facilities.

2018 – Bursary support grows significantly

Several passionate individual donors established Named Bursaries on multi-year commitments to assist those in need, including the Sister Mary SSA Bursary, the Olivia Campbell Bursary, and the Boarding Bursary Donor Circle.

2020s

2020 – First annual Giving Day

St Margaret’s hosted its first annual Giving Day uniting all members of the community in support of girls’ education. Now the school’s annual day of philanthropy and passionately championed by our students, Giving Day has raised more than $1M for facility improvements, capital projects and needs-based bursaries.

2021 – Senior Studies Centre and Circular Drive Classrooms

Funds raised through our annual appeal helped build the Senior Studies Centre, a contemporary flexible learning space for Year 12 students, and new secondary classrooms.

2023 – 21 students supported by donations to bursaries

2023 – The Canopy Café and Forest

Thanks to donations to the Building Fund in 2022 and 2023, work has begun on the development of The Canopy Cafe, a new cafeteria that articulates to a beautiful and functional greenspace – The Forest, featuring a shaded garden and outdoor seating to benefit all primary and secondary students.

2024 and beyond: Community House Student Wellbeing Centre and Performing Arts Precinct

An exciting future awaits as we look to focus on several upcoming projects, including the restoration of Community House to create a student wellbeing centre, the development of a new Performing Arts precinct, and further classroom and amenity upgrades.