From classroom teaching to trauma-informed practice, Mr Sam Wright is reshaping how Padua College approaches wellbeing – ensuring care, resilience, and student voice remain at the centre of its culture.
On the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Padua College stands out not only for its size – four campuses and 2,500 students – but also for its commitment to student wellbeing.
At the heart of this effort is Mr Sam Wright, Vice Principal of Students, who oversees pastoral care and wellbeing across the college.
“We have three junior campuses for Years 7 to 9, and then all students come together at the senior campus for Years 10 to 12,” Mr Wright explains. With 2,000 students at Mornington and about 300 each at Rosebud and Tyabb, consistency and coordination are essential. “We all follow the same timetable, so pastoral lessons, recess, and lunch breaks happen simultaneously across campuses. It creates a strong sense of unity.”
Mr Wright has been at Padua for nearly six years, bringing with him experience from smaller regional Catholic schools. Previously Deputy Principal at Mary MacKillop Catholic Regional College in Leongatha and St Mary MacKillop College in Swan Hill, he had held portfolios in both wellbeing and teaching and learning.
Mr Wright won the inaugural National Education Summit Melbourne Outstanding Leadership Award, announced at the event on 28 August.
“I am very lucky to have so many great people to work alongside me. This includes family. My mother – who was also my principal at one point in my primary school years – God mother, three aunties and older brother are all teachers, and my wife is a school counsellor. I’m honoured to have education be part of my life growing up. I want to acknowledge all the shoulders I stand on and for the support I receive from family to achieve what I have achieved.”
Education was not always the plan. Mr Wright originally studied zoology before taking up teaching.
“I joke with my students that if I couldn’t be a zoologist, the closest thing is being a vice principal at a secondary school – it’s not far off a zoo.”
Despite the demands of leadership, Mr Wright still teaches senior classes. Last year it was biology; this year it’s a Year 12 subject on Catholic social teaching. “We found ourselves, particularly during the teacher shortages, having to step back into classrooms,” he says. “But I’ve always valued it. It keeps me connected. It gives authenticity with staff – you understand the marking, the preparation, the challenges. And with students, it builds relationships.”
For Mr Wright, those relationships extend beyond the classroom. He regularly coaches sports teams and attends outdoor camps, where shared experiences – like rafting mishaps in freezing rivers – help strengthen bonds. “It reminds students that we’re in this for more than administration. We’re here because we believe in the ability to change lives.”
When Mr Wright arrived at Padua, one of the first things he noticed was the need for a structured approach to wellbeing. “In a school this size, things can’t happen by default. They have to happen by design,” he says. The pandemic only heightened this need. “Coming out of COVID, mental health was a significant issue. Anxiety, depression, low-level mental health challenges – all of these were increasing. We had to be deliberate about how we supported students.”
Padua’s response has been comprehensive. Data is gathered through surveys, research, and internal feedback, as well as from counselling services. The results informed a tiered wellbeing program, with initiatives ranging from pastoral lessons and guest speakers to systemic staff training. A major shift was reframing the role of the counselling team. “We use what I call the RACV model,” Mr Wright says. “Like roadside assistance, their role isn’t to replace the gearbox – it’s to get students back on the road, back into class. If further help is needed, we refer out.”
One of Padua’s flagship initiatives has been training all 350 staff in youth mental health first aid. “We made sure it wasn’t just teachers – it included librarians, aides, office staff, everyone,” Mr Wright explains. “If students are going to learn the language of mental health, staff need to understand it too.”
This training laid the groundwork for student programs. All Year 8 and Year 10 students now participate in teen mental health first aid, which addresses the top five adolescent challenges: anxiety, depression, disordered eating, psychosis, and substance abuse. Alongside this, seminars cover respectful relationships, consent, gender stereotypes, and cyber safety. “We’re now into our second year of running it for students, and we’ve extended it to parents as well,” Mr Wright says. “It’s about the whole community developing literacy around mental health.”
Mr Wright emphasises that Padua’s wellbeing approach must remain strategic but flexible. “We capture the right stuff at the right time,” he says. For example, road safety and safe partying programs are scheduled just before senior socials. “Teenagers listen when it’s relevant.” Student voice is also central. Forums on multiculturalism, run entirely by students, have been powerful. “You could hear a pin drop,” Mr Wright recalls. “It’s about ensuring students have agency and opportunities to be heard.”
He also points out the importance of involving external experts at the right moments. For cyber safety, respectful relationships, or resilience, Padua often brings in guest speakers and facilitators to complement what staff provide internally. “It’s a balance,” Mr Wright says. “Sometimes our coordinators run sessions, other times we use external providers. It keeps the program fresh and responsive to student needs.”
Staff wellbeing has also been prioritised. Recently, Padua partnered with the MacKillop Institute to embed trauma-informed practice across the school. “It comes back to that airline analogy – you put your own mask on first. Supporting staff ensures they can support students.” For Mr Wright, this balance between student and staff care is vital. “In the current teacher climate, we can’t just talk about resilience for kids without ensuring our staff have the capacity and support they need.”
He highlights how the school creates captive audiences to deliver key messages. Before Year 11 and 12 socials, students must attend sessions on road safety or safe partying to collect their tickets. “If you have teenagers, you know they’ll listen when it’s connected to something that matters to them. So we deliver the right learning at the right time.”
Mr Wright speaks with both humour and intensity about his role. “I found out when I was backpacking in Africa that hippos don’t talk back. I need to be somewhere I can talk,” he says. More seriously, he reflects: “I get passionate about this work because we’re not just managing schools – we’re shaping lives.”
Mr Wright’s focus remains on ensuring Padua’s students and staff are equipped to navigate challenges with resilience and care.
“It’s about design, not default,” he says. “And about keeping students – and their wellbeing – at the centre of everything we do.”
