Citipointe Christian College, previously known as Christian Outreach College Brisbane (COCB), is a
K-12
K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...
Christian
independent day school located in
Carindale
Carindale is a suburb of the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located by road south-east of the Brisbane GPO, and borders Belmont, Carina, Carina Heights, Mackenzie, Mansfield, Mount Gravatt East, and Tingalpa. In the , Car ...
,
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia. It is allied to the
Evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
founding church of the Christian Outreach Movement,
Citipointe Church
Citipointe Church, formerly Christian Outreach Centre Mansfield, is a Pentecostal Christian church founded in 1974. It is the founding church of the Christian Outreach Centre network, now known as the International Network of Churches. The foun ...
.
The school was the subject of public controversy in January 2022 when the college disseminated an enrolment contract requiring parents to agree with the school making male/female distinctions on the basis of sex rather than gender identity, and to agree to a statement of belief addressing matters of gender and sexuality. This controversy resulted in the contract being withdrawn and the principal stepping down.
History
The school that is now Citipointe Christian College was founded as Christian Outreach College Brisbane on 16 May 1978, four years after the establishment of the Christian Outreach Centre. Pastor Ian Feeney was the college's first headmaster, and its campus was initially at Kurilpa Street,
West End.
In 1982, the college relocated to its current campus at Wecker Road,
Mansfield
Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...
.
In 1985, the fourth headmaster of the college Pastor Ron Woolley was appointed.
By 1990, the campus included three buildings: A Block, an expanded B Block, and Kurilpa.
Throughout the 1990s, four more buildings were constructed including a library; an oval was also made out of an acquired neighbouring property.
Construction continued throughout the 2000s, including a science centre opened in 2006.
In 2018, Pastor Brian Mulheran was appointed principal of the school; he stood down from this position to take leave in February 2022.
On March 31, he formally resigned his role.
2022 enrolment contract controversy
On 28 January 2022, Citipointe Christian College disseminated a new enrolment contract, and communicated to parents that their students' enrolment at the school would be dependent on signature of this contract. The contract asked parents to agree that the college would make male/female distinctions on the basis of sex rather than gender identity (“inclusive of, but not limited to, for example, uniforms, presentation, terminology, use of facilities and amenities, participation in sporting events and accommodation”); it also purported to enable the school to expel a student for actions that are non-compliant with these terms (or “doctrinal precepts”).
The contract additionally included a schedule containing a declaration of faith that "God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other" and that "God has commanded that no sexual activity be engaged in outside such marriage". The statement of belief listed examples of sexual immorality which deemed all sexual activity outside of heterosexual marriage to be "sinful and offensive to God and... destructive to human relationships and society":
including
homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...
,
bisexuality
Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whic ...
,
bestiality,
incest
Incest ( ) is human sexual activity between family members or close relatives. This typically includes sexual activity between people in consanguinity (blood relations), and sometimes those related by affinity (marriage or stepfamily), adoption ...
,
paedophilia
Pedophilia ( alternatively spelt paedophilia) is a psychiatric disorder in which an adult or older adolescent experiences a primary or exclusive sexual attraction to prepubescent children. Although girls typically begin the process of puberty ...
,
pornography
Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults, , and
fornication
Fornication is generally consensual sexual intercourse between two people not married to each other. When one or more of the partners having consensual sexual intercourse is married to another person, it is called adultery. Nonetheless, John ...
. This declaration was drawn from the formal statement of faith of the International Network of Churches, which is the school's governing body.
The contract drew backlash, and on 30 January the school published a media statement on its website. A teacher at the school resigned in protest and planned to move her child to another school,
An online petition calling on the school to rescind the contract grew quickly, garnering more than 150,000 signatures before the school finally retracted the contract on 3 February. As of 6 February 2021, a petition in support of Citipointe has attracted over 35,000 signatures. Queensland's Education Minister
Grace Grace
Ignazia Graziella "Grace" Grace (née Farfaglia; born 12 August 1958) is an Australian politician from the state of Queensland. She has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland for the seat of McConnel and its predecessor seat, ...
described the contract as "unacceptable" and "very distressing", and federal member
Angie Bell
Angie Marion Bell (born 11 July 1968) is an Australian politician who has been a member of the Australian House of Representatives, House of Representatives since the 2019 Australian federal election, 2019 federal election, representing the Divis ...
said she thought it was "simply wrong". The
Lord Mayor of Brisbane
The Lord Mayor of Brisbane is the chief executive of the City of Brisbane, the capital of the Australian state of Queensland, and the head of the Brisbane City Council. Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner of the Liberal National Party was sworn in on ...
,
Adrian Schrinner, a former student and current parent at the school, said that he would be raising his concerns with the principal.
On 3 February, Prime Minister Scott Morrison signalled his opposition in a radio interview, and said that his government's proposed Religious Discrimination Bill would make such contracts illegal under federal law. It was reported that some families planned to leave the school.
The school was referred for review to Queensland's Non-State Schools Accreditation Board by Education Minister Grace Grace in response to complaints to the Education Department, and complaints were additionally lodged with the state's Human Rights Commission. In response, the Commission released a statement to say that discrimination in enrolment on the basis of gender identity or sexuality, as well as disciplinary action and expulsion on these grounds, constituted unlawful discrimination.
There is no information to indicate that these complaints were taken up. Human rights lawyer and academic Matilda Alexander said that action against a student under the policy would be grounds for a case under Queensland's ''
Anti-Discrimination Act 1991
The Queensland ''Anti-Discrimination Act 1991'' is an act of the Parliament of Queensland that provides protection against unfair discrimination, sexual harassment, and other objectionable conduct. The Act was passed by the Queensland Parliamen ...
'', and so suggested that the contract may therefore not be legally binding.
Legal academic Liam Elphick speculated that the contract would likely be illegal under Queensland anti-discrimination law,
as did journalist Naomi Neilsen. Neilsen also noted, however, that under the proposed federal Religious Discrimination Bill 2021, the contract would be legal, which is also the understanding of Simon Rice.
The school's principal said that the school had sought legal advice during the contract's drafting.
Legal academic Neil Foster, however, identified that the contract would not be constitutionally invalid due to the operation of section 109 of the
Australian Constitution
The Constitution of Australia (or Australian Constitution) is a constitutional document that is supreme law in Australia. It establishes Australia as a federation under a constitutional monarchy and outlines the structure and powers of the ...
with regard to the
Sex Discrimination Act 1984
The ''Sex Discrimination Act 1984'' is an Act of the Parliament of Australia which prohibits discrimination on the basis of mainly sexism, homophobia, transphobia and biphobia, but also sex, marital or relationship status, actual or potential ...
, and that the proposed Religious Discrimination Bill would have had nothing to do with the controversy, as it was a matter that fell under the purview of the existing aforementioned Sex Discrimination Act.
On 3 February, the school withdrew the contract,
after having "doubled down" the previous day in a defensive video sent to parents by Principal Mulheran.
A group of 23 parents issued a statement calling on Mulheran and the school board to resign, saying that Mulheran was "totally unfit to fulfil the duties required by his post". He held no teaching qualifications, although this is not required for private school principals. On 5 February it was reported that Mulheran would be stepping down from his role as principal to take "extended leave",
after being pressured to do so by some of the school's senior teachers, who had threatened to resign. On 6 February, senior pastor of
Citipointe Church
Citipointe Church, formerly Christian Outreach Centre Mansfield, is a Pentecostal Christian church founded in 1974. It is the founding church of the Christian Outreach Centre network, now known as the International Network of Churches. The foun ...
Mark Ramsey apologised to the congregation for any hurt caused to them by the contract controversy, then led a
standing ovation
A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus a ...
for Mulheran.
On 26 May, the school was referred to the Queensland Human Rights Commission. Five people lodged complaints with the commission over the school's enrolment contract. If the matter isn't able to be resolved by the commission the complainants would like the matter referred to the
Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal
The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal (QCAT) is statutory organisation responsible for reviewing administrative law decisions of some Queensland Government departments and agencies, and also adjudicating some civil law disputes. The t ...
.
2022 employment contract controversy
In late March 2022, it was reported that the school was requiring teachers "to sign employment contracts that warn they could be sacked for being openly homosexual" and that at least one teacher had already resigned rather than sign it.
In response to the contract, Queensland attorney general,
Shannon Fentiman
Shannon Maree Fentiman is an Australian politician. She has been the Labor member for Waterford in the Queensland Legislative Assembly since 2015 and is the current Queensland Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Women, and the Prevention ...
, said “It is absolutely appalling to see these awful and damaging clauses in the employment contracts for Citipointe College teachers – especially after the recent outrage and controversy around their student enrolment forms”.
Campus
Citipointe Christian College stands on a campus that is shared with
Citipointe Church
Citipointe Church, formerly Christian Outreach Centre Mansfield, is a Pentecostal Christian church founded in 1974. It is the founding church of the Christian Outreach Centre network, now known as the International Network of Churches. The foun ...
Brisbane, Citipointe ChildCare, and Christian Heritage College (a private tertiary).
It is situated in the south-eastern suburbs of Brisbane and is located between the suburbs of
Carindale
Carindale is a suburb of the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located by road south-east of the Brisbane GPO, and borders Belmont, Carina, Carina Heights, Mackenzie, Mansfield, Mount Gravatt East, and Tingalpa. In the , Car ...
and
Mansfield
Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area (followed by Sutton-in-Ashfield). It gained the Royal Charter of a market tow ...
at the address 322 Wecker Road, Carindale 4152.
The "Citipointe Campus" includes:
* the school
*
Citipointe Church
Citipointe Church, formerly Christian Outreach Centre Mansfield, is a Pentecostal Christian church founded in 1974. It is the founding church of the Christian Outreach Centre network, now known as the International Network of Churches. The foun ...
*Citipointe Christian College International (ELICOS Centre)
*a college of higher education (
Christian Heritage College)
*a Bible college (Citipointe Ministry College)
*a daycare centre (Citipointe Child Care)
Music
From 2012 to 2014, students at the college were picked as finalist in
triple j
Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian Radio in Australia, radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greate ...
's ''Unearthed High'' competition. These included Lauren Coutts, aka Azura; Jordan Hankins, aka Tyler Touché; and
Vancouver Sleep Clinic
Vancouver Sleep Clinic (VSC) is an Australian band led by singer, songwriter, and record producer Tim Bettinson.
Career
Tim Bettinson, a past student of Citipointe Christian College, was a finalist in triple j's Unearthed High competition in 2 ...
, led by Tim Bettinson.
[
]Violent Soho
Violent Soho were an Australian alternative rock band that was formed in 2004 in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield, Queensland originally under the name of "showroom". For the majority of the band's existence, the line-up was composed of Luke Bo ...
band members are also alumni of the school.[
]
Rankings
In 2020, Citipointe Christian College was ranked at 47th in the State of Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
for Academic Results. Between 2012 and 2019, the school placed between a low of 103rd in the state (2018), and a high of 22nd (2012).
In 2022, Citipointe Christian College was ranked 2nd for NAPLAN results for primary schools in the State of Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, establishe ...
, and the 14th for secondary schools.
Enrolments and staff
The school had a population of around 1700 students from preparatory to Year 12, including students in the International College, as of 2008. There were over 200 staff members employed by the school in 2008.
Notable alumni
*Alberto Campbell-Staines
Alberto Jonathan Campbell-Staines (born 27 June 1993) is an Australian athlete with an intellectual disability who competes in the T20 classification. He won two bronze medals at the 9th INAS Athletics World Championships.
Personal
Campbell wa ...
, Paralympian
The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...
athlete and teacher's assistant at the school as of 2015
* Adrian Schrinner (1994), Lord Mayor of Brisbane
The Lord Mayor of Brisbane is the chief executive of the City of Brisbane, the capital of the Australian state of Queensland, and the head of the Brisbane City Council. Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner of the Liberal National Party was sworn in on ...
as of 2022
* Band members of Violent Soho
Violent Soho were an Australian alternative rock band that was formed in 2004 in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield, Queensland originally under the name of "showroom". For the majority of the band's existence, the line-up was composed of Luke Bo ...
References
External links
*{{official website, https://citipointe.qld.edu.au/
Private secondary schools in Brisbane
Educational institutions established in 1978
1978 establishments in Australia
Private primary schools in Brisbane