OCC President

One of the things I have noticed since becoming President earlier this year is the variety of ways people stay connected to MLC. 

Some Old Collegians attend events every year. Some reconnect through mentoring or professional networks. Some quietly follow along online from interstate or overseas. Others disappear completely for twenty years and then return for a reunion, lunch or conversation as though no time has passed at all. 

For those I have not yet met, my name is Sarah Mote (2007) and I was honoured to be elected President of the MLC Old Collegians’ Club (OCC) following our AGM in March. 

Since joining Council in 2022, one of the things I have valued most is meeting Old Collegians across generations, industries and life stages. What continues to stand out is how life unfolds after school differently for all of us. That diversity has been reflected throughout the first part of our year. 

Our International Women’s Day event brought together conversations around leadership, resilience and the realities of balancing different parts of life. In April, we launched the 2026 Mentoring Program, continuing to create connections between alumnae navigating careers, study, family, uncertainty, reinvention and everything in between. 

More recently, the Chapel Service and Lunch gave many of us an opportunity to slow down and reconnect in a different way. Helen Walker OAM (Price 1980) reflected on compassion, dignity and supporting vulnerable women – insights that stayed with many of us long after the event finished. 

Behind the scenes, Council has also been focused on strengthening the way we work, improving communication, refining processes, supporting volunteers and thinking carefully about how the OCC remains relevant and welcoming for Old Collegians now and into the future. 

What I continue to appreciate is that involvement in the OCC does not need to look one particular way. 

You do not need to attend every event. You do not need to live in Melbourne. You do not need to have followed a certain career path or stayed constantly connected to the school. 

Sometimes belonging simply looks like staying curious about one another. 

As we move further into the year with Celebration Evening, Golf Day and other opportunities to come together, I hope more Old Collegians will find moments of connection and reconnection in ways that feel meaningful to them. 

Sarah Mote (2007) 
President, MLC Old Collegians’ Club