Thank you to all of you who have taken up the invitation to join a range of our community events and initiatives we have held so far this term. Having families come into the school has been missed over the last few years and its such an important facet of the schooling journey for our students.
We were really pleased with the turn out to the Richie Hardcore community event where Iona and SJC families were treated to an informed session all about respect, consent and the harmful effects of social media & pornography on healthy relationships. Our Year 10, 11 and 12 students also heard from Richie and we have had overwhelming feedback that he has been the best speaker many of them have heard from since being at the college.
Our Mothers’ Day breakfast was also a really nice occasion and we were pleased to have over 400 in attendance. Our staff were up early preparing, cooking and setting up and it was nice to see many sons, Mums and guests spending some quality time together.
Our Music Band Showcase evening was also a great evening and I would like to congratulate Head of Music Amy Young and the team for this great evening and it was great to see the Performing Arts center at capacity with over 350 people in attendance.
I was pleased to see our NAPLAN testing go off with out a hitch and I thank families and staff for preparing our students to have a positive mindset about NAPLAN. We look forward to utilising the data to help progress the way we embed literacy and numeracy into our learning at St Joseph’s.
Our Edmund Rice Day was a huge success and all staff and students involved had a meaningful and fun day. Our fundraising efforts for our friends in Uganda eventually saw us raise over $40,000 which I am pleased with. There is still an opportunity for those who have not contributed to do so via the following link. Our Edmund Rice Day Liturgy involved former SJC teacher, Monika Ercoli sharing her experiences and reflections on her immersions to Manya and how the partnership and friendship with Manya commenced. Monika also explained how the funds raised will be put to use at the St Joseph’s Vocational School in Kensekka, Uganda.
We have been keeping an eye on the number of COVID cases as we have had a recent spike in the Year 9-year level for staff and students. Whilst we are committed to remaining open and continuing the learning of all our students we may need to continue to adopt measures that keep our students and staff safe. I will always communicate these updates with the cohorts that are affected. We encourage families to follow the usual process when notifying absences and to obviously keep their child at home if they have symptoms or test positive.
As always, I thank you all for your ongoing support.
I had the pleasure of attending the Year 12 Renewals for Brophy at Arrabri Lodge in Warburton recently. The renewals program was well balanced with outdoor activities as well as an opportunity for reflection and future planning. The students were engaged in the activities and it was great to see the boys enjoy the opportunity of spending time together and forming stronger connections with each other. By all accounts, all four Year 12 renewals were a huge success and I would like to thank Belinda Milverton and the Heads of Houses for their coordination.
The College also sent a representative table to the 500 supporters club, an annual fundraising lunch at the MCG to raise funds for the Reuben Centre in Nairobi Kenya. Three of our Year 11 Leaders attended, with past alumni and current staff in attendance and we had the opportunity to listen to Cameron Ling, Gary Ablettt Jr, Alex Saundry and Lily Mithen. The funds raised support primary health care and education initiatives at the Centre.
In the coming weeks, we will be recognising diversity, as the World Day for Cultural diversity is on 21 May, leading into Reconciliation week with National Sorry Day on Thursday 26 May. This will also be the key focus for the Justice and Solidarity Assembly on 30 May, prepared by our Justice and Solidarity student leaders.
Learning
The Year 7 and 9 students completed NAPLAN over the past fortnight. The students' behavior and effort was commendable. I also extend recognition to our Heads of Learning, given the number of students who had to sit catch-up sessions, this has been an incredibly busy fortnight to manage, but we successfully had a significant proportion of our students complete these tests.
Unit 3-4 and Year 12 VCAL Parent Student Interviews are scheduled for Monday 30 May from 4.00pm to 7.00pm. These interviews have been changed to online interviews via Microsoft Teams due to the current levels of COVID infections in the school. The timing of these interviews coincides with the completion of Unit Three, and as these conversations focus on students’ learning, the College strongly encourages students to attend with their parents.
The Bookings for these interviews will open in PAM On Friday 20 May.
Exam Dates for Semester 1
The Mt Sion Exams have been brought forward to the end of week six. The Year 10 and 11 English and Mathematics Exams will be held on Friday 10 June in the Gymnasium and allocated classrooms.
The remainder of the exam program will continue from Tuesday 14 June to Thursday 16 June.
Students are not required at school on these days if they do not have an examination, and the exams will be scheduled where they would normally have a double period for the subject. There will be no Homerooms on these mornings, and students can study from home in the mornings or afternoon, or there will be supervised study areas for students who need to be at school. Students will be issued with an Exam timetable in the coming weeks and must be in full school uniform whilst at school.
From the very moment our students walk in the gates on their first day of Year 7 to the very last day they leave after completing Year 12 our community lives and breathes Edmund Rice. We are taught about his story, his gifts to the poor, the sacrifices he made, and the legacy he left to, ‘Give to the poor in handfuls’.
But this year in our Edmund Rice Day liturgy we posed the following questions. Have we ever wondered how his life’s work, the Christian Brothers, arrived on the shores of Australia? How different would our lives be if the Christian Brothers never spread from Ireland? Never expanded to Australia, to Geelong?
We then explored the journey of this spirit-filled man, Brother Patrick Ambrose Treacy.
For 30 years, Br Patrick Ambrose Treacy would lead his followers and open 27 schools for young men in Australia and New Zealand. Ambrose’s story shows a man on a mission. What motivated him? Providence was truly his inheritance, he had a close relationship with Mary, to whom he said he owed his vocation, and he worked unselfishly, expecting no personal reward for his labours. The prayer he said so often came alive within him: Live Jesus in our hearts . . . forever.
Annually we continue to be inspired by our founders and their call to action for the most vulnerable in our world to continue to give the gift of a liberating education to those who are most in need. To truly enact the values of Edmund Rice, we have to make a real difference in the lives of the poorest people in the world. St Joseph’s has always proudly funded and supported St Joseph’s Vocational School in Kensekka, Uganda. So far, we have made a real difference in this community, providing education and hopes for a brighter future.
Our guest speaker this year was one of our treasured teachers, Monika Ercoli, who has been lucky enough to attend our early Uganda immersions and passionately explained where the funds we raise primarily go and why it’s so important. She shared a special video message from Fr Emma sharing their hopes for the next steps in updating facilities to allow more students to attend school. Thank you to each family who generously donated for their son to participate in the fun-filled day and recognise they are part of a community whose gospel value of compassion for others shines through into the future.
Year 8 Student Reflection
At the Edmund Rice Liturgy, we not only got to celebrate Edmund Rice but we discovered the story of another Christian Brother, named Ambrose Tracey and his long journey from Ireland on the ship the Donald McKay to set up schools in Australia. He continued the work of Edmund Rice after he died to provide a free education to those most in need in Australia. Just like we are doing when we contribute our $25 to help the kids in Kensekka to get a better school to go to and learn in. After the Liturgy it was great to compete in the cross country run and walk which I won for Year 8. After the 4.3km journey, we were able to relax with our mates while doing all the fun activities across the school. We ended the day watching the Gaelic football match and somehow the teachers won against the students.
Alex, Harley & Jonathan, Year 8
There is a lot coming up - apprenticeships, traineeships, information sessions and university Open Days - check out the downloads below:
Congratulations to all the students involved with the numerous music performances last week. Our Autumn concert was a particular highlight, with the debut performances from the 2022 Junior Band Academy. This was our first full band concert in the newly refurbished PAC and it was a delight to welcome family and friends back to the comfort of an indoor concert, featuring our wonderful young musicians.
Eddie Rice Day was a huge success once again, with the senior band performing at the liturgy under the baton of Mr Collinson. Thank you to those boys who remembered their instruments and were organised to be in the right place at the right time. This is a timely reminder to please read the daily bulletin and musical notes each Friday for information on upcoming performances and rehearsals.
Edstock Battle of the Bands was a highlight of Eddie Rice Day, with “We Love Jazz” taking out the trophy for 2022. Despite the challenges of band members falling ill before the big day, all the bands performed well and made the occasion a truly entertaining experience.
We have a number of performances coming up so please remember to read musical notes on a Friday afternoon, check the bulletin and attend rehearsals regularly.
Please let us know if your son experiences a concussion outside of school to enable us to support in his recovery
There has been growing concern in Australia and internationally about the incidence of sport-related concussion and the potential health ramifications, including potential long-term consequences of multiple concussions. Research has shown a slower rate of recovery in children and adolescents aged 18 and under.
With more contact / collision sports played at this time of year such as football, soccer, rugby etc the risk of concussion is increased.
To enable us to support you and your son in his return to study and sport safely, following a concussion, it is important that you notify the school should your son sustain a concussion outside of school.
You can do this when you notify the school of your son’s absence, should he be away due to the concussion, the best way to do this is via PAM or, if he does not require time off for the concussion he sustained outside of school could you please email the information to [email protected]
Please familiarize yourself with the SJC Concussion Policy and discuss the information in this policy with your son(s). The policy can be found on the St Joseph’s website on the College Policies, Codes & Principles page.
St Joseph's College won the Victorian Schools surfing competition on Monday 9 May at Jan Juc. The SJC team has now won it for the last six years! Thanks to Mr Matthew Walsh for taking the team.
The team:
Jarvis B
Patrick H
Ethan H
Jerry K
Finn M
Thomas O
Malachi W
Lila B (SHC)
On the first week back at school, all the Year 9s engaged in a Science incursion that focused on forensic science in solving crimes. As part of the incursion, we were given a crime that we had to solve. The crime was that someone by the name of Dean Johnson had been murdered in a National Park. The suspects included an accused person, a drug dealer, and a couple.
Throughout the incursion, we learned how to use different methods to solve the crime. We used methods such as digital forensics, which involved going through someone’s phone to see who they had been in contact with, and DNA forensics, obtained by blood and different substances, such as residue on a cigarette. We also engaged in using older forensic types, such as fingerprinting, blood typing, and identifying tyre treads left by cars at the scene. We even found out how to check if someone had fired a gun using ways to check if there was any gunshot residue on the clothes or hands of the suspects. Finally, we got to work out who the killer was. We did this using the information collected throughout the experiment. The person who was the murderer of Dean Johnson turned out to be the drug dealer, using an unregistered firearm to shoot the man three times.
The experience allowed us to apply the knowledge and skills we had been learning in our Science classes and we found the sessions really interesting and engaging.
Congratulations to our elite runners who tackled the Cross Country run on Edmund Rice Day! With House Points up for grabs, it was not just the first groups of runners that had hot competition, the points were very close. Congratulations to FOLEY House who took home the Edmund Rice Day Cross Country Shield and to Massimo P for winning the Edmund Rice Gift!
Thank you to all of our students and families who supported Edmund Rice Day, just like Edmund's vision of providing opportunity for the poorest of the poor, your contributions will be helping those in need at St Joseph's Vocational Secondary School in Kensekka, we directly fund school projects such as building much needed classrooms, providing a meal for students (often their only meal for the day) and more.
Edmund Rice Day Results:
A full photo gallery is published on our College Facebook page!
Our Year 11 Food Studies Students travelled to the Queen Victoria Market this week to go on a culinary adventure!
Students have been studying the impact of migration on Australian cuisine. The market allowed the Food Studies team to see first hand how the patterns of migration have changed, along with how our modern-day cuisine has been influenced by our Indigenous Australians, the arrival of the First Fleet, European immigration post WW11 through to current refugee settlements. The boys had an extensive tour of the fresh food area, with plenty of delicious samples included.
St Joseph's College and the Combined Refugee Action Group present a screening of "Scattered People" with special guest speaker: Fran McAloon, Executive Member of CRAG.
Scattered People
Produced by John and Lizzi Swatland
www.scatteredpeoplefilm.org
When Australian musicians go into a Brisbane detention centre to share music, they meet two Iranian musicians, Mas and Saha, who sing on their three albums.
Missy Higgins, John Butler, Harry James Angus (The Cat Empire), Katie Noonan, Michael Franti, Archie Roach, Dan Sultan, and Robbie James talk about the power of music, its ability to break through barriers, unite people and create shared experiences.
What does the music we produce, sing and listen to tell us about ourselves, our country and life experience?
Academics, psychologists and refugee specialists talk about the role artistic expression plays in building personal and national identity, and the healing power of creative expression and shared stories.
BOOK TICKETS:
Event Guidelines during COVID-19
Due to the uncertainty that the COVID-19 pandemic has created around holding public events, we would like to reassure our future guests of the following:
All of our events will be held in accordance with the latest COVID guidelines. Guest and staff wellbeing will be our priority.
At this stage, current vaccination status is not required to be shown for event attendance, however we will be ultimately bound by the current rules on the day of the event.
If restrictions prevent a scheduled event from occurring, we will attempt to reschedule. If rescheduling is not practical, then tickets to the event will be fully refunded.
Guests unable to attend our event due to being unwell, awaiting COVID tests or restricted by quarantine regulations can contact us to organise a refund.
We look forward to continuing to host a variety of events for our community to enjoy. Thank you for supporting St Joseph’s College Geelong.
On 16 May each year, schools show their appreciation for all staff who work in Educational Support. Here at St Joseph’s our ESOs work in classrooms to support students with individual learning needs and support teachers with adjustments to curriculum tasks. Our ESOs also assist students by developing resources, implementing Literacy programs, attending camps and excursions, and working with small groups who need additional instruction. Our staff are dedicated to ensuring the best learning outcomes for students with additional needs.
On behalf of Mark Turner and all SJC staff and students, THANK YOU TO OUR EDUCATIONAL SUPPORT STAFF.
Congratulations to the following boys who won the ACC open golf tournament at Northern Golf Course on Monday 16 May.
Louis V also shot the best score for the day for the Division 1 schools.
Scores:
Louis V 72
Edward S 75
Christopher F 76
Ben W 77
James H 86
William N 88
Charlie W 95
Tom H 96
Matt Irwin passed away at 84 years of age, grandfather to Jamieson (current), Finbar Cleary (SJOC 20), Piper Cleary (SHC Year 9) and Matthew, Jacob and William Cleary (SJOC).
Rest in peace.
Bec Spark’s father Tom passed away last suddenly last week. Love, prayers and support to her, her husband David and sons Lincoln (Yr 9) and Harvey (Gr 6) on behalf of all of us in the SJC community.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace