Those of you who have been with GPCC for a while may recall I wrote to you about the plan the College had for forming a group of schools which would work together for each other’s betterment. The Melos Foundation was formed in late 2020 and GPCC became a member in mid-2021.

The Melos Foundation is a charitable company set up to coordinate the working together of a group of like-minded Christian schools. Melos is the Greek word used by the Apostle Paul in some of his New Testament letters. It refers to the body as an organism of many parts all working for a common good. The Foundation exists to provide expertise in governance, leadership, and business management to its members.

GPCC, like many evangelical Christian schools begun in the late 70’s and 80’s, was birthed by a Church (Green Point Baptist Church) as a means of supporting the families in the congregation with a school that shared and passed on the Christian beliefs of the Church. The governance of the school was by means of a charitable company established by the Church and with Church members who selected Directors from amongst their midst. As the school grew, it became harder for a smaller Church to provide the level of expertise required in an increasingly compliance-driven environment with growing responsibility and accountability for the Directors.

The decision by the GPCC Directors to establish the Melos Foundation was in response to the school’s need but also a need shared by many similar schools. The Melos Foundation now provides the Directors for member schools and employs (on a part-time basis currently) an Executive Principal (myself) and an Executive Business Manager (GPCC’s Business Manager, Michael Lowbridge). Each school remains a separate legal entity so that any financial difficulty they may get into is not shared across the group. The Foundation offers services to members on a fee for service basis and according to the needs of each individual school.

So far, the Melos Foundation has two members (GPCC and YVCS) and two more are expected to complete their membership application process in the next two months. Others are expressing interest and we hope the group will grow over the coming years. Independent schools have great freedom to develop in any direction they wish but it also brings the risk that if things go wrong there is no-one to help them out. Both the Association of Independent Schools and Christian Schools Australia, provide some services to their members but have no jurisdiction over them and cannot give them direction. GPCC is a member of both these associations and will remain so, but the Foundation gives us the security of a group to which we are accountable and from whom we can draw wisdom and direction.

We believe that establishing the Foundation helps to ensure the growing strength and longevity of GPCC and also of other schools. When each member of the body does their work well, the whole body is strong.