A beloved former principal is being remembered as a respected educator who “loved a laugh and to have fun” after he suffered fatal injuries falling through a skylight at a Melbourne school.
Paul Hogan, 61, is believed to have been retrieving balls from the roof at St Margaret Mary’s School in Spotswood when he fell 3m to the concrete ground below about 2.30pm on Thursday.
He suffered critical head injuries and was taken to hospital, where he died on Friday.
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7NEWS understands students were still at school and parents were on campus for parent-teacher interviews when he fell.
WorkSafe is investigating.
The experienced educator worked as a teacher and principal at several schools across the city throughout his 36-year career.
Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools executive director Dr Edward Simons said Hogan was a highly regarded educator and leader in the Catholic community.
“We extend our sincere condolences to Paul’s family, friends and colleagues, and we hold all of those impacted in our hearts and prayers.
“Paul was a friend and mentor to many in our MACS community and he will be dearly missed.”
Hogan’s first classroom teaching role was in 1988 and went on to teach in several schools in Melbourne’s north and west.
He served as principal at Our Lady of Mount Carmel School, Sunbury in 2009 and later as principal at St Mary’s Primary School in Ascot Vale in 2016, until his retirement in 2022.
Hogan continued working as a part-time and casual relief teacher at St Anne’s Sunbury, St Mary’s Ascot Vale, and St Margaret Mary’s Spotswood.
Ascot Vale Panthers Junior Football Club said Hogan served as a “confidant, mentor and friend” to all who attended St Mary’s.
“His infectious personality, energy and passion saw him loved by parents and students alike,” the club said.
“Hoges was a tremendous supporter of the Ascot Vale Panthers Junior Football Club and the wider Ascot Vale community.”
St Bernard’s Old Collegians Cricket Club, where Hogan rejoined in 2022, described him as a “great family man who loved a laugh and to have fun”.
“Hoges was a fantastic teammate and loved by all,” the club said.