A great opportunity to get involved in the life of your parish, your school and your community and to earn a bronze, silver or gold medal for your efforts! You can even earn the Papal Cross Award if you wish. The Award enables participants to take an active part in the life of their Church – in the life of their community and society. It enables young people to become more aware of the teaching and role of the Catholic Church in the world and to engage at a deep level with Christ. 

The European Youth Parliament (EYP) Ireland is a non-profit, non-partisan organisation that runs several weekend long conferences every year for young people. For our region these conferences are normally held in Castlebar or Galway. The mission of EYP Ireland is to develop an interest in European issues in young people in Ireland. We seek to empower the youth to question the world around them and come up with innovative solutions to global problems, while emphasising concepts of cooperation and respect. It is with great pleasure that we invite you to join us in this mission and let the voices of our young people be heard. 

The College has an active Green Schools’ committee which works on all kinds of issues – from Litter and Waste, Water, Energy, Travel and Biodiversity. Our aim is to promote long-term, whole-school action for the environment which is student-led and seeks involvement from the wider community. 

Our students get many opportunities to visit residents of the local nursing homes and the Western Alzheimers’ Home in Ballindine. They tell stories, play cards and games, as well as sing for the residents and enjoy their company. The visits at Christmas are very special indeed and our students help to decorate the homes as well as deliver presents to the residents.  

It is always a privilege for our students to use their skills and talents for the benefit of others so we get involved in all kinds of Charity work and Volunteering throughout the school year: St. Vincent de Paul, Team Hope (Christmas Shoebox appeal), Irish Pilgrimage Trust, Western Alzheimers’, Mayo/Roscommon Hospice, Serve among many others. We try to foster a deep understanding of and appreciation of Social Justice in our students. 

Every summer we take about twelve students to Lourdes to spend a week working with the Irish Pilgrimage Trust. The students fundraise in advance of the pilgrimage and do a lot of preparatory work and then work in Lourdes with adults with special needs. This is a deeply moving experience for all those involved and is very rewarding.  

Our students are encouraged to volunteer in their local community in many different ways. Over the past number of years, the Mayo Gardai have presented awards to young people across the county in recognition of this voluntary work and our students have been to the fore in these awards.  

The “Future Leaders Transition Year Programme” is a joint initiative from the GAA and the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST). It is a cross-curricular programme comprising of a series of modules designed to encourage maturity, initiative, responsibility and leadership skills in pupils. The Programme gives pupils the knowledge and skills to support all roles required in the effective staging of Gaelic Games. As part of the Programme students are challenged to organise and run both on-field and off-field events for younger students Blitzes information talks and fun days and activities.

In this programme the students learn about sports statistics, Performance analysis through Maths. Sports Nutrition through Science /PE, SPHE, Wellbeing is covered as a module to give the students extra skills to cope in these uncertain times. Events Organisation through Business Sports Journalism through English.GAA Coaching and the role of a referee in PE .The History of the GAA in History .This is a relatively new programme and we are fortunate to have been involved with it since its inception 5yrs ago .

Gaisce – The President’s Award is a self-development programme that encourages you to find your passion, get active and make a difference in your community! Gaisce is a direct challenge from the President of Ireland to young people aged 15-25 to dream big and realise their potential. There are three levels of Gaisce – Bronze, Silver and Gold. The more time and energy you give, the greater the reward! By taking part in Gaisce, you will take on exciting personal, physical and community challenges and develop new skills and new friendships.  

Every year we invite students to participate in the Model Council of the European Union, held in Dublin Castle. This gives students an opportunity to participate in a debating competition with other schools from across the country on topical issues that MEPs tackle every day on our behalf. A great chance to improve debating skills and to foster an interest in current affairs and worldwide issues of importance. 

The College has an active Green Schools’ committee which works on all kinds of issues – from Litter and Waste, Water, Energy, Travel and Biodiversity. Our aim is to promote long-term, whole-school action for the environment which is student-led and seeks involvement from the wider community. 

Every year our Transition Year students stage a musical in the Claremorris Townhall. This is a hugely popular event and always has packed houses on three nights, as well as a very popular matinee for local primary school children. Out TYs work with the girls from Mount St. Michael to stage the production and it is always a highlight in the school year for all of us! 

We have an active Student Council in the College with a number of students from each year group elected to represent all the students in the College. The Student Council plays an active part in forming school policy in a range of areas and the members bring issues/concerns/questions to school management on a regular basis. A great opportunity to see democracy and decision-making in action! 

Every year we encourage our students to Volunteer at Knock Shrine. This is very popular with our students as they learn that in giving, you receive. They do lots of work over chosen weekends at Knock Shrine and meet many other young people at the same time. A fantastic opportunity for our students, right on our doorstep! 

As its tradition here in St Colman’s , our Transition Years go on tour every year.. it’s an integral part of our programme. Over the years we have visited the USA, France , Spain and Italy.. visiting iconic monuments in each of its famous cities. Lately we have swapped a bus to skiing as a way to explore the famous peaks in Italy and Spain.