SMC NEWS 2022 - Term 3 Week 5

Principal's Note

Dear Parents and Carers,

St Mary's College - Camping Program

The last fortnight has seen an amazing amount of activity at the College.  It has been wonderful to see the full, post-COVID reinstatement of our camping program this year.  A great example of this has been the Year 6 and Year 11 camps that occurred over the past week.

I wanted to offer a sincere vote of thanks to our St Mary's College staff on these camps.  It is important to recognise that there is no overtime nor time in lieu for the extra time that our staff give on these co-curricular activities.  A special thanks to Ms Shari Pauli (Year 6 Camp) and Ms Kerrie Connolly (Year 11 Camp) for their organisation of the camps for the boys.  Having spoken to the boys on Year 11 camp, I am looking forward to working with this group as they move into their final year of schooling.  They are already looking like a very positive group in leadership of students at the College.

Homework Assistance

This term, the College is offering Homework Club for Years 7 - 12 in the library after school until 4.05pm and will run at the following times:

*Homework Club will not run Tuesday Week 6 and Tuesday & Thursday Week 10.

Additionally, Mr Dave Roy offers assistance for homework and assignments every morning and afternoon in The Hub. 

Parent Engagement

We had an outstanding attendance for our first Parent Engagement last Monday evening 1 August.  On 22 and 29 August we are hosting further nights, aimed at older students in the College.  These will be held in the Edmund Rice Cultural Centre.  We would like to see many more visitors to the College in the coming weeks at these information nights.

Over the next week

Subject selections for next year have become due over the weekend for a number of year levels at the College.  If these are yet to be submitted, could you please work on these to allow us to make some decisions around our schedule for 2023?  This is an exciting time for these students as they shape their academic future through their subject selections.  Aligned with this are our Year 10 SET planning meetings.  Thank you to Mr Glass for organising these in 2022.

Peace,
Mr Brendan Stewart, College Principal - principal@stmaryscollege.com

What's On: Term 3, Weeks 5 & 6

Student Engagement News

At St Mary’s College, we are proud to be school in the Edmund Rice tradition. As an Edmund Rice school, we base everything we do on the four touchstones - gospel spirituality, liberating education, inclusive community, justice and solidarity. The touchstone that I'd like to focus on today is that of inclusive community. In today's assembly I spoke at some length to the students about what it means to be included and what it means to be excluded. We live in a diverse and fascinating society, and we have a school community mirrors that diversity. As human beings and as people who pride themselves on their values, being inclusive is something that we need to work on every day.

One of the challenges I gave the boys today was the idea that it is not my job to make our community inclusive. Neither is it Mr Stewart's job, Mrs Banks's job or Mr Grealy's job. Neither is it the job of our year 12 leaders, or our Year 6 leaders. Rather, building an inclusive community is everyone's job and it takes everyone’s work every day. Specifically, I spoke to the boys about the importance of valuing all the contributions to our community. There is no place at St Mary's College for language, behaviour or attitudes that exclude a person because of their socioeconomic background, their appearance, their abilities or disabilities, their sexuality or their cultural background. As Mr Grealy says so frequently when we gather to celebrate – “all are welcome”. I hope that this is a conversation that you can extend to your home.

Attendance

As parents, choosing the right school for your son was a big decision, and I know how much time, effort and research families put into this decision. Equally, ensuring that your son maximises his attendance at school should attract a similar level of effort and attention. Student attendance is so important, that it rates a specific mention in the College Strategic Plan with the goal of 95% attendance for each student. That means that your son could have approximately 10 days away from school and still meet this goal. As we consider Covid, winter colds, the sporting injuries and the unexpected illnesses, it does not take long to accumulate 10 days of absences. My advice to boys and their families that prioritising attendance at school is always a good strategy.

In particular, all Year 12 boys were addressed last week regarding the College’s expectations regarding attendance through to the end of the year. Boys who do not meet the College expectations will be risking their involvement in graduation events such as Final Assembly and Valedictory.

If your son is late to school, he will need to see the staff at Student Reception to sign in. This also applies if – for some reason – your son misses the roll marking in his first period class. In the event of an emergency, it is essential that we have accurate records and this is one way that we can manage that requirement.

If you need to collect your son from the College before the end of the normal school day, you will need to collect him from Student Reception and complete the ‘sign out’ process there. For boys who are older, written parent permission to leave the College and walk or drive to an appointment is required so that we are all aware of your son’s whereabouts and travel arrangements. A hand-written note is acceptable, although many parents prefer to send an email to reception@stmaryscollege.com

Uniform

The extensive feedback that was gathered last term with regard to the uniform has been collated and is being used to inform any changes that might be made to the College uniform and presentation policy. In the meantime however, the existing uniform policy is still in place and our expectation is that boys will adhere to those guidelines. If your son is not wearing the correct uniform, please ensure that he has a note that explains the issue and indicates when it will be fixed.

Mrs Samantha Parle, Assistant Principal - Student Engagement - parls@stmaryscollege.com 

Primary News

Welcome to halfway mark of the Term. It has been a busy 4 weeks in the Primary with many great opportunities for the boys.

Lucas Proudfoot

On the 21^st of July, the boys had a visit from Indigenous performer Lucas Proudfoot. He is an author and musician and entertained the boys with many stories about his culture. The boys were highly engaged and in fits of laughter at his wonderful stories.

Shrek the Musical

The Year 5 students had the opportunity to attend the Shrek Musical, performed by students at St. Saviour’s College and St. Mary’s College. From all reports, the boys had an amazing time and were excited to have this cultural experience afforded to them.

Year 6 Camp

Last week 75 Year 6 boys enjoyed 5 days of fun in the sun at K’gari (Fraser Island). They got to experience many beautiful sights including Lake Mackenzie, Champagne Falls, Pile Valley and Eli Creek. They also learnt about the island’s Indigenous Peoples and had talks from park rangers on dingos and how to keep the island pristine and enjoy it safely. Many tourists and staff from the island commented on the beautiful manners and behaviour of the boys and the staff on camp couldn’t have been prouder of how the boys conducted themselves.

Catholic Schools Touch Carnival

On the 29^th of July, 110+ boys attended the Catholic Schools Touch Carnival and competed against 14 different schools across the day. The boys represented the College extremely well and they came out victorious in both the Year 5 competitive and Year 6 competitive divisions beating Mary Mackillop and Our Lady of Lourdes. We look forward to defending our titles next year at the carnival.

Mrs Shari Pauli, Head of Primary - paulis@stmaryscollege.com 

Arts News

Art

Future Visions Visual Art Exhibition

Congratulations to the following students exhibiting in the Future Visions Art Exhibition at USQ on 12 August.

• Zack Lyons
• Ruben Sellar
• Xander Gilbert-Johnston
• Carrick Wiggall
• Christon John
• Charlie Coorey
• Liam Woodward

Event details: School of Creative Arts Gallery, A Block, USQ. Open 9 am to 5pm.

Drama

Congratulations to the following boys who performed in St Saviours College Musical on Friday the 5^th of August and Saturday the 6^th of August:

• Caleb Allan – Shrek
• Nik Elwell – Donkey
• Nick Bielby – Papa Ogre/Duloc Performer #2/Rooster
• Noah Thomas – Lord Farquaad
• Thomas Chapman – Captain of the Guards
• Keith Concordia – Duloc Performer/Deer
• Lucas Norton – Pig #1
• Uri Mensies – Pinocchio

The boys have been rehearsing with the ladies of St Saviours College for the past two terms and have thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

Library News

COMING SOON: BOOK WEEK!

Just a general reminder that the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s (CBCA) Book Week is Week 7. This year’s theme is “Dreaming with Eyes Open”, which can be interpreted several ways. This year’s chosen author-illustrator is Jasmine Seymour: a Darhug woman and previous Best new illustrator CBCA winner. Jasmine has discussed her interpretation of this year’s theme as being centred around country, and The Dreaming. For further information on Jasmine, her books, and her (very interesting!) family history, visit here: https://www.magabala.com/collections/jasmine-seymour

Step into Stories

On Tuesday 1st August SMC Year 5 students were able to participate in Step into Stories, which was a truly fantastic experience where our students had an online art lesson and discussion with prolific Australian author and illustrator Mark Wilson. Wilson’s works include two books Year 5 have or are about to look at in their classes: Beth: The Story Of A Child Convict – a look at what life was like aboard the First Fleet and in Australia through the eyes of a child convict; and Eureka!: A Story of the Goldfields – a book that looks at the Australian gold rush, and touches on a number of topics through that period of time, including racism and the roots of why the Eureka Stockade rebellion happened.

Mrs Gemma Tracy, Teacher Librarian - tracyg@stmaryscollege.com 

Sport News

Our Volleyball and Touch teams had great success over the last weekend, heading away to compete in regional and state competitions. The touch sides won the final in both the U15 and Opens at the South West Queensland Touch Competition. A big thank you to Ms Tammy Banks, Mr Tim Marsh, Mr Jack Muller and Mr Brian Steer for their time and coaching efforts.

The Hub

Support is available to all students who require assistance with homework, assignments or reviewing current classwork. Support is available in the Hub every morning before school from 7.00am and at both lunch breaks. Support will also be available after school on Thursday afternoons from 3.05pm until 4.00pm. If you would like further information, please get in touch.

  Mr Dave Roy, Learning Support Teacher - royd@stmaryscollege.com

Notice Board

Principal's Tours

Family or friends considering St Mary's? Term 3 tour dates now available.