From the Principal Marist Netball Carnival A big congratulations to Landon Toohey and Matthew Vail for winning the Under 15’s Doubles convincingly with a score of 6-1. Our Under 13’s & 14’s Doubles teams consisting of Joseph Seo & Lewis Purdon, and Norm Nakhoul & Justin Rudd respectively, made it to the Semi’s after playing extremely well all day.
Dear parents, staff, students and friends,
On Thursday afternoon and evening I was privileged to see students in Year 12 exhibit their work in the Visual Arts display and others perform in music and drama.
The quality of these exhibitions was admirable. Obviously the students engaged in these classes are talented people and also apparent was that they had been working with their teachers to bring out their full potential. Hopefully, both students and teachers have been encouraged by the glowing praise from those who were fortunate enough to see the displays. Mrs McPhillips, Mrs Lyons, Ms Eccleston, Ms Moule, Mrs Peachey and Miss Lawrence are deserving of our gratitude for organising and running the event.
At the end of last Term our senior netball team participated in the Marist Netball Competition in Adelaide. This was a high standard competition in which our girls performed with credibility despite the team having been handicapped by the effects of illness and injury. My thanks to Ms Ellison and Ms Moule for their time and energy in caring for the team.
Over the next few weeks all students in Year 12 will be sitting for the Trial Higher School Certificate. These exams are an important component of their assessment and we wish them all the very best. No doubt our Year 12 students would now be realising that time, or the lack of it, is of vital importance. Hence, it is worthwhile for all of us to remember that we should use our time wisely and keep a good balance in our lives between pleasurable pursuits and our ongoing responsibilities.
Brother Robert
On 5th July our Marist Netball team hobbled on to the plane on our way to Adelaide. As the 3 day carnival progressed and our team became increasingly riddled with injury our eagerness to compete and show off our new body suits and St Pat’s spirit continued.
At the end of each gruelling day we were still up for happy half hour before heading home for a proper feed. Our commitment and team spirit allowed an awesome, valued experience to be had by all.
Kelly and Kate deserve a special mention due to their awesome photography and also to Ms Ellison, Ms Moule Mrs Wicks, Mrs Hofmann, Mrs Dalziel and Mrs Ingle fortheir great dedication, amazing lunches and taking on 12 extra daughters for the time away.
As a team we would like to thank Ms Ellison, Ms Moule and Mrs Wicks for all their hard work leading up to the competition and also for giving up their time to come away with us and share their knowledge about the game.
Nicole Tedesco (Vice Captain) Natalie Hofmann (Captain)
Computer Skills Competition
The above competition was compulsory for all IST students and I would like to congratulate the following students for their excellent results. One High Distinction, four Distinctions and eighteen Credits were achieved. Well done!
High Distinction Year 9
Ryan Miller
Distinctions Year 10
Stefan He, Rafael Nascimento,
Anthony Pazin
Year 9
Matthew Knox
Credits Year 10
Michael Bayeh, Joe
Bouchabake, Joe Dilag, Shant Javian, Mitchell Lilley
Year 9
Chanel Donahoe, Ryan
Dowds, Asheesh Elete, Peter
Park, Timothy Simon, Ben
Simpson, Lauren Star, David
Tam, Ameri Upadhyay,
Timothy Vaughan
Year 8
Joseph Alphonse, Christina
Lee, Akhil Sud
Ms M. Laing – Head of TAS
Creative Arts Exhibition
The depth of talent and strength of commitment among the Creative Arts students is evident every day in classes at the College and is seen at its most sophisticated level in the senior school.
Year 12 students from Drama, Music and Visual Arts presented the body of work they are submitting for HSC marking to a wide audience of staff, friends and family during their exhibition in the La Valla Centre on July 30th.
Actors, artists, musicians and audience had a pleasurable evening, intellectually enriched by the conceptual and technical skills of the Creative Arts students and physically enriched by the culinary skills of the Year 11 Hospitality students who provided an outstanding food and drinks service.
Mrs J. McPhillips - Creative Arts Co-ordinator
School Fees
School fee statements for Term 3 were issued to students in homeroom on Friday 31st July. Fees for Term 3 are payable by 28th August.
Catholic Education Scholarships
Donations and Applications
The Diocese of Parramatta Catholic Education Scholarship Fund is helping to make a Catholic faith-based education available to financially disadvantaged families.
Thanks to generous donations, the fund has so far been able to provide 9 scholarships. A further 15 scholarships are still available for 2009 and 2010.
Applications can be made through the local school at any time throughout the year. The scholarship helps cover costs such as school fees, excursions and levies with an allowance towards uniforms in the first year at the school.
Donations are critical to the Fund’s ability to help those in our communities who are less fortunate. With regular donations the fund will be able to offer more scholarships in te future. To make a donation or for more information please visit www.scholarship.parra.catholic.edu.au
Junior Tennis Tournament
Last Thursday 12 boys represented our school at the MCS Junior Tennis Tournament.
We did very well with 3 of our teams making it into the Semi-Finals and one of our teams eventually going on to win the Finals.
Congratulations to all of the boys, they did the College proud.
Junior Tennis Squad
Andy Tsang Lewis Purdon Justin Rudd Matthew Vail Marcos Cho Joseph Seo Norm Nakhoul Landon Toohey Dhaval Shah Luke Profilio Albert Kim
Greg Omura-Davis
Miss M. Mance
Love Beyond Borders Exhibition
An art exhibition to celebrate the Centenary of Blessed Mary MacKillop with art by Veronika Dimac will be held at the Mary MacKillop Place School House, 7-11 Mount Street, North Sydney from 2nd – 16th August. For more information: www.injoyinternational.org
Kids on Board
Smoking with kids in the car is now illegal! From 1st July smoking in a car with a child under the age of 16 is against the law. A $250 on the spot fine applies to the driver and any passenger who breaks the law.
Why is this new law in place?
The NSW Government introduced new laws to protect children from secondhand smoke. Secondhand tobacco smoke harms children’s growing lungs. Other new laws include placing tobacco products out of sight in shops and increasing penalties for selling tobacco products to children.
For more information please contact the Tobacco Information Line on 1800 357 412 or visit www.health.nsw.gov.au
Free Graduated Licensing Scheme Workshops for Parents of Learner Drivers
Young drivers are three times more likely to be involved in casualty crashes. That’s why the RTA has introduced a new licensing scheme, with more supervised driving practice for learner drivers.
To help parents to supervise learner drivers, the RTA has set up a FREE 2 hour workshop for parents offering practical advice on how to help learner drivers become safer drivers.
A FREE RTA parents’ workshop will be conducted by David Riches on Wednesday September 2nd at the Dundas Sport and Recreation Club (9 Elder Road Dundas) from 6.00 pm – 8.00 pm.
Early bookings are essential, so phone 0438 215323 now to reserve your place, or email parentworkshop@optusnet.com.au
Trial HSC Examination Timetable
10th August am: English
pm: Music
11th August am: English
12th August am: Bus. Studies, Hospitality
pm: Drama, Music (Practical)
13th August am: Chemistry, Senior Science
pm: SOR (1U), SOR (2U),
Hospitality (Practical)
14th August am: Modern History
pm: Drama, Hospitality
(Practical)
17th August am: General Mathematics,
Mathematics, Mathematics
(Ext. 2)
pm: Economics
18th August am: Ancient History
pm: Physics
19th August am: Biology
pm: PDHPE
20th August am: Legal Studies
pm: Mathematics (Ext. 1),
Visual Arts, French
21st August am: English (Ext 1),
Construction
pm: Geography
24th August am: Food Technology
pm: History Extension,
Society and Culture
Any parents who can assist with supervision of the exams could you please contact the office. Your help would be most appreciated.
23rd September, 2009 FROM THE PRINCIPAL Dear parents, staff, students and friends, Year 9 Lecture ATAR replaces the UAI University and College Open Days Year 11 Retreats On 10th and 11th August the first half of Year 11 went to Edmund Rice Retreat Centre where we were able to escape from our daily routines and embrace each other as a year group. Both days were filled with team building activities where we would have to learn to work together eg tug-of-war, electric fence activity and blind man walking. On 12th August, Year 11 (Group 2) went to Mulgoa for their Retreat. We were split into groups and were involved in numerous fun activities. Mulgoa was definitely not what we expected. We set out for a retreat on 12th August awaiting what we thought would be the boring bush! However, it was a really nice relaxing area. We did numerous activities that brought our year group much closer. School of Astronomy 29-30 August
Do you ever have those rare moments when you stop and think? Those times when you get the chance to reflect, to start making sense of the world and our lives in the world.
Well, in our hectic society they are few and far between. Our lives are constantly full of activity and discussion. We have places to be and plenty of things to do. It all seems to be a necessary part of successfully dealing with the modern world.
Unfortunately, when most people are then confronted with nothing to do we have to quickly fill the void. We rush to the TV, the Ipod, the telephone, anything but face the prospect of being alone with ourselves.
Of course this pattern can only lead to a superficial life. It is a life where the more important questions are not faced and where we can only cope when things are going well and when we are not challenged to grow.
Recently the Year 11 students had the opportunity to get away from the normal routine of life and reflect about themselves and their lives. It was one of those treasured times that come rarely in life. It had its potential in providing the wonderful opportunity for each person to hold the mirror up and take a look at themselves. To take a look at who they are, what they have become and what they would like to be. Of course the answers to those questions do not come in a few days, but at least the right questions are being asked.
If we see the opportunity to reflect and question, then it is wise to take it rather than rush to fill the gap.
Brother Robert
On 10th August, the top 75 Science students in Year 9 attended a lecture at Riverside Theatre in Parramatta. We were spoken to by Dr Karl Kruszelnicki and Dr Ruben. These two men may be familiar as they both have television shows and are also TV personalities.
During their talks, both scientists showed us pictures and videos of science “miracles” and “disasters” as well as Dr Ruben showing us experiments with liquid nitrogen.
The reason for this lecture was for us to be aware of National Science Week which started on 15th August. Overall, we would like to thank Mrs Nowak and Mr Paterson for taking us to this event and also Mr McFarland for organizing our participation.
Andrea Montes and Lauren Moujalli (9 MacKillop)
MCS Tennis
On Thursday 6th August our Under 16s through to Opens Tennis Squad competed in the MCS Competition.
Congratulations to Steven Vail (Year 11) who won the Under 17s Singles convincingly, he played brilliantly all day to come out well in front.
Richard Byun (Year 8) made it through to the finals in the Under 16s (even though he is 14) only to play against someone who looked like they belonged at Wimbledon. Richard came home with the silver medal.
Ricky Raad and Nicholas Govers (Year 12) were our Open Doubles team. They played extremely well all day and made it to the semi-finals, unfortunately, they suffered some injuries and didn’t make it to the finals. Thank you to Patrick Mazzolo (Year 11) for playing very well in that match.
Well done to the whole team, most only just missed out on getting into the semi finals.
Tennis Squad
Richard Byun Steven Vail Nikalai Fedotov Reuben Davies Sahand Farzaneh Ricky Raad
Paul Kim Joshua Martinez Nicholas Govers
Miss M. Mance - Coach
Careers News
Electrical Apprenticeships
Electro Group is a group training company for the Electrotechnology industry. They are currently recruiting for 2010 and are interested in meeting with students who are technically minded and self-motivated. Students must currently be in Years 11 or 12. For further information contact Kath Sargeant on (02) 9736 1076 or email her at kaths@egt.com.au .
In June 2009 the Universities Admissions Index (UAI) was replaced by the Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR). There isn’t a great deal that changes although the highest rank a student can now receive is 99.95 instead of 100.00 and some ranks are altered slightly. The eligibility rules for the ATAR are exactly the same as for the UAI. If you are in need of further advice you can refer to the Universities Admissions Centre website at www.uac.edu.au or contact Mr Tuffy or Mr Bonora at the College.
The next month is a very busy time for higher education providers. All students in years 10 to 12 are encouraged to go along to the various open days and find out a little more about what university and College life can provide. Some of these are UTS (29th August), Sydney Uni (29th August), UWS (30th August), ACU (12th September), Macquarie Uni (!2th September) and Bedford College (19th September). It is a good idea to log-on to the institution website to find out about information for prospective students.
Mr Bonora - Careers Adviser
Last week from 10th – 14th all Year 11 ventured on the experience of a lifetime. Year 11 Retreat allowed all Year 11 to have a break from their busy lives and a chance to bond as a cohort.
From spiritual activities to fun and games we shared a memory that will never be forgotten. This memory included a “Dance Off” between Christie-Lee Goodenough and Graham Poleweski to a competition between teachers and students in a quiz. Overall Year 11 Retreat gained all Year 11 new friends as well as a happy experience shared by all.
Joshua Martinez (11 Chavoin)
For once camp food was actually edible and we were fed almost every hour! We would like to thank Mr Hopley for giving us this opportunity and organizing such a great couple of days and thank you to all the teachers that gave up time away from their families.
Keira Bolsdon and Natalie Mooy (11 MacKillop) Amy Tompsett (11 Chavoin)
If you felt like an outcast in your group that would soon change. At the end of Retreat you found yourself talking to people you hardly knew and having the time of your life.
The teachers, the challenging activities, the food, the Dance Off! These all made for a retreat that I know no one will forget. Overall, a wonderful experience which Year 11 will never forget.
Boris Jakimov (11 MacKillop)
The camp food was good, not to mention, abundant. We had a Trivia Night which brought a lot of rave between the groups but it was fun and interesting. We also did an activity where we had to get outside an enclosed rope without touching it. This was made possible by our teamwork and efforts.
We thank all the teachers for helping us and taking time out to join us on this retreat. This was a retreat which will always be remembered.
Christine Nematalla (11 Xavier)
Recovery Workshop For Those Widowed, Separated or Divorced
The Diocesan Solo Parent Ministry runs a seven week self-help Program twice a year, to assist those who have experienced trauma, loss and grief over the separation or death of a partner or spouse. The program has proved to be highly effective in helping people heal wounds, restore self confidence and hope and set new goals.
The next Program begins on Wednesday 21st October 2009 at 7.30 pm, at The Diocesan Assembly Centre, 1-5 Marion St, Blacktown. Cost is $5.00 per session.
It is highly recommended that participants attend all seven sessions. For registration or further details contact Sister Eileen Quade 9890 2968 or eileen.quade@ccss.org.au.
The school comprises eight lectures over two days. The speaker and topic list is yet to be finalized but so far we have:
* Laszlo Kiss (Sydney Uni) – Stellar explosions
* Amanda Karakas (ANU) – Stellar evolution
* Orsola De Marco ( Macquarie Uni) – Planetary nebulae
* Andrew Hopkins (Anglo- Australian Observatory) – Galatic evolution
* Simon O’Toole (Anglo-Australian Observatory) – Dwarf stars
We look forward to presenting an interesting variety of talks. An updated programme will appear in due course at: http://www.astronomy.mq.edu.au/public/FFA-SoA.html
Opening Ceremony for the New La Valla Centre
On Friday the 18th September at 10am a special ceremony will be held to officially bless and open the new multi-purpose and music buildings. This will be an important event for the College and parents are most welcome to attend. Further details will be provided closer to the event.
5th August, 2009