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The College is named after the Scottish Isle of Iona, on which the Irish Saint Columba (or Columcille) founded a community in 563AD. Iona became a centre of learning from which Saint Columba and his monks set forth to spread the Gospel into Scotland and the north of England.

The Presentation Sisters who came to Mosman Park had originally come from Kildare in Ireland to Hay in New South Wales. In 1900, five Sisters volunteered to answer a call to come to Western Australia. They arrived in Southern Cross in 1900, Collie in 1902, Cottesloe in 1902 and Mosman Park in 1907.

Bishop Gibney, who was the Bishop of Perth, remarked that the site in Mosman Park, situated on a rise, with the Swan River on one side and the ocean on the other, reminded him of the Isle of Iona off Scotland. He said he hoped that this too would become a centre of learning and a centre from which the Gospel would be spread.

Furthermore, one of the four founding sisters was Sister Columba and so it was decided that an appropriate name for the College would be ‘ Iona.' It was founded on 11 September, 1907.

In accordance with the teaching of Jesus Christ, through the tradition of the Catholic Church and inspired by the compassion of the founder, Nano Nagle, Iona Presentation College strives to achieve the best spiritual, intellectual, physical and cultural outcome for every student.

The aims of the College are to provide a Christian environment where the faith-life of each student can be developed and strengthened and lead to growth that will continue throughout life. In harmony with this is the aim to help each student realise her own dignity and worth; and to strengthen and develop the character of each student by encouragement, firm but just discipline, and concern and love for the individual student.

This Christian environment gives each girl an opportunity to develop as a whole person through an education that is in keeping with the needs of the age and will challenge the intelligence and potential of each student. This will prepare her to take her place responsibly in society and be a Christian witness in that society.

THE COLLEGE CREST

The Crest is in the form of a shield and depicts the Southern Cross and gum leaf.

The shield portrays faith and courage; the Southern Cross portrays Australia, land of the Holy Spirit and the gum leaf the Australian equivalent of the oak leaf is a symbol of the Presentation Sisters