MacKillop Chronicles Term 1, Week 9

Thursday 4 April, 2024

A Message From Our College Principal

 Dear Families

I trust that you and your family had a restful Easter.  In my family, we always get together at Easter time and partake in religious traditions because we, as a family, can proclaim the Resurrection every time we go to Mass.  Christians often describe themselves as ‘Easter People’ because the resurrection of Jesus shows us that suffering, disappointment, and death can be transformed into new life.  Easter gives us hope - a hope that promises fullness of life.  I take this opportunity to wish each family hope and joy as we journey together as a school community.

New Building Project for Primary

As you are aware, MacKillop Catholic College will undergo a capital works project involving demolishing the current primary school facilities and constructing new primary classroom buildings that are functionally sited and catering to four streams and associated outdoor recreational spaces.  Senior College Leaders have now met with Stanton Dahl Architects, and plans are currently with the council.  This project investment is over 29 million dollars and will significantly improve our current facilities.  I am most appreciative of the support of the NSW Government for partially funding this project.

Please find attached the architectural drawings of these imagined new spaces.

Strategic Direction- Structural Improvement

Currently, I am consulting with staff regarding structures across the College that would lend themselves to better operational efficiency and a stronger K-12 focus. Some of these roles are ‘imagined’ roles that currently do not exist at the College. These roles will potentially create development opportunities for current staff or offer opportunities for new staff to join our College.

I look forward to continuing the consultation process with staff this term and reading their feedback. I will be meeting with Mr Danny Casey, Director of Schools, Broken Bay Diocese, to present him with the structural proposals mid-year.

Operational Structures- Secondary

The Secondary school will undergo some operational changes to bring better consistency of time across the school day. Mr Paul Lynch will communicate these changes to families through the College newsletter. It is expected that these changes will commence in Term 2.

An Easter People Prayer

God of Hope and Joy,

We strive to be Easter people, recognising the goodness and beauty that surrounds us.

May we respond through loving sacrifice to all creation.

We ask this through Jesus, our Brother who is Risen.

Amen.

Tanya Appleby,

College Principal

Primary Matters

Second Sunday of Easter

Gospel Acclamation: 

Jn 20:29 “You believe in me Thomas, because you have seen me; happy are those who have not seen me but still believe.”

Dear Parents and Carers,

Message from the Principal

The Empty Tomb is a symbol for Christians that Jesus is Risen! The apostle to the Apostles is Mary Magdalene, a friend and disciple of Jesus. It is she - along with Mary, the mother of James - who sees Jesus first in his resurrected form.  When a name is written in the Bible, it has enormous significance, and given the role of women in the first century, this elevation of women in the Early Church is even greater.  Mary is entrusted to tell the disciples to go and meet Him in Galilee. Father Philip, in his Easter Homily, spoke about the importance of the place Galilee to Jesus. It was the place He started His ministry; it was where He performed many miracles of healing and abundance, and it is where He gathered His original disciples. In this Easter Season, our Galilee is where we are! It is in our family and workplace, our sportsclubs and celebrations, it is in our daily encounters. Every day, we have an opportunity to live our faith with the hope and joy it provides and share it openly with those around us.

We are Easter people!

Wellbeing Projects

Late in 2023, MCC was the recipient of a Commonwealth grant to support Wellbeing and pastoral initiatives across the College. The National Student Wellbeing Program provides financial support for the implementation of programs, resources and strategies that enhance the wellbeing of the students in our care. Seasons for Growth, Second Steps, Rock & Water, the Resilience Project, 3-2-1 Magic and PALs are some of the programs that are currently delivered at MacKillop.  Some of these programs target students in specific ways, such as overcoming grief and trauma, and social skills that enable improved socialisation and engagement. Some programs bring parents and children together to tackle family and parenting strategies. Other programs are beneficial for all students and highlight skills for self-regulation, stress management and the acknowledgement of gratitude.

The Resilience Project is a program developed by Hugh Cuylenburgh using the GEM model to reflect on acts of Gratitude, Empathy, and Mindfulness. This highly successful program has been used with a variety of groups, from elite sports to big business, to bring about change in group culture. At the beginning of 2024, I invested in a Resilience Project, ‘Six Month Journal,’ to allow myself to fully engage with the program, and it has become part of my daily practice to end each day.  Our Year 6 to Year 12 students have also engaged with lessons and a reflection journal.  We recently collected some initial data and will collect more later in the program to assess the success of the program.

I am reminded that as Catholics, through the Awareness Examen, we are called to contemplate similar acts of Gratitude, Compassion and Prayer.  I hope that our young people and staff may begin to see the benefits of regular practices of daily reflection to bring about clarity, self-regulation and peace as a way to tackle the challenges of daily life.

If you would like more information about the programs offered at MCC, please contact Mrs Kath Ardern, Mrs Kellie Dennemann or Mrs Christine Newell through the MacKillop email.

Enrolments for Year 7 2025

The transition from Primary to Secondary school is relatively smooth for MacKillop people, but I would like to remind parents of children currently in Year 6 to book their interview time promptly. As the recent Open Day and soon the Taster Day occur, we are well aware of the increasing number of students we need to accommodate in our Year 7 cohort. Please make these arrangements through schoolinterviews.com.au. See the PDFs and Letter from Mrs Appleby below for more information.

Year 6 Camp

This Term, our Year 6 Students will soon be undertaking an education tour of the national capital. Students will be given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia’s history, culture, heritage and democracy. 

The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education. To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion the Australian Government is contributing funding of $30 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion

Harmony Day

Harmony Day is scheduled to be celebrated in Week 9 this term. Harmony Week will culminate with the entire College celebrating our inclusive and diverse community on Friday, 5 April. The theme for Harmony Week is “Everyone Belongs”.

On Friday, 5 April, students can come to school in either their cultural/traditional dress or wear orange (the official colour of Harmony Week). During Break time students in cultural dress are invited to parade in the Primary shade area and will be joined by secondary students. Please remember to bring a gold coin donation to go toward our Project Compassion Pledge.

If you have ordered a sausage sizzle, these will be prepared and delivered to your child's classroom.

Uniform

As the weather begins to change to the cooler seasons, it is time to begin planning your child’s Winter Uniform.  The changeover officially begins Term 2, Week 3, on Monday, 13 May. Please refer to the Uniform Policy (link below) for accurate information.  We ask that students wear one uniform completely rather than elements of both.

The uniform shop is open and is ready to receive orders for Term 2.

Good Friday at St. Mary of the Cross MacKillop

It was wonderful to see so many of our MacKillop students join in the Parish Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. Youth Ministry students assumed responsibility for Station 5; Simon of Cyrene helped Jesus to carry His Cross.  In station 6, Veronica wipes the face of Jesus, and in Station 7, Jesus Falls for the second time. These young people displayed maturity and reverence, which made me so proud. Other students created and presented Stations with their families, and I was again so proud of the faith and community connection exhibited by our young people. I feel we are in very safe hands with the emerging leadership of these good MacKillop people.

Blessings for the Easter Season

Kerry Power

Acting Primary Principal

Primary Events

Secondary News

Dear Community,

Weekly Structure in Secondary School

We are introducing some simple structural changes to the weekly timetable in Secondary School to ensure we are maximising learning time for the students but also to provide greater consistency day to day.  The new structure will allow for the same bell times four days per week, with the only variation being Thursday, when Sport occurs.  There is also five minutes travel time factored in after Pastoral and Breaks to ensure students have enough time to get to class, this will allow both staff and students the full hour of teaching and learning during each period.  Please see the weekly timetable below.

You will also note that the Pastoral time has moved from 30 minutes to 20 minutes.  This still provides us with scope to deliver our Pastoral Care Program as well as the opportunity to meet as a Year Group or House to deliver relevant communication.

Please also note that students in Years 11 and 12 will not leave early on Tuesdays under this new timetable. It is important that they get the most out of every minute in the classroom as they head towards their HSC.

These changes are just one small part of the College’s overall strategic plan to continue our push to improve the levels of student achievement.

Easter Vigil Baptism

Congratulations to Georgia and Keisha of Year 8 and to Keanu of Year 10 who were baptised and received fully into the Catholic Church during the Easter Vigil last Saturday night. These students have been staying back every Thursday afternoon and have been preparing since Term 4, 2023. The students have now completed the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, First Holy Communion and Confirmation) and Mrs Tenev is now the proud godmother and sponsor to these three students.

A number of students also attended the Vigil to support their friends, and they represented their College well throughout the two-hour service. Thank you to those students and to Mrs Chrystal Price for attending and supporting our students. I also want to express my heartfelt gratitude and thanks to Sr Jiji, who has assisted in the formation of our young Catholics.

If there are any students who might be interested in being baptised into the Catholic Church, please contact Mrs Tenev for more information. 

ANZAC Ceremony

The theme of this year’s service is 'The impact of conflict and overcoming adversity'. Our service special guest speaker is a former NSW Australian of the Year representative who is a refugee from Sudan. He will very generously share his story and describe how he overcame the challenges presented by conflict in his life. We are fortunate to have members from the Toukley RSL joining us once again. We would like to extend an invitation to our MCC community to attend from 12 pm on Monday, 8 April, in the Hall. 

Students are also invited to attend the Anzac Day March. Students wishing to take part are to wear their full Summer uniform and Meet at the Toukley Coles Carpark at 9 am.

Thursday Sports Selections for Term 2

Thursday, 28 March, is the time to check your student email account for information regarding Term 2, Thursday Sports Selections. Please ensure selections are completed by 9:00 am Tuesday, 2 April.

God bless,

Paul Lynch 

Acting Principal Secondary

College Photo Days 2024

A Word from the Office

Central Coast Family Support Services Term 2 Parenting Courses

Go4Fun Term 2

April Vacation Care

Siblings enrol now

Australian Stem Video Game Challenge

The Premier's Reading Challenge 2024

Mary's Faithful Wardrobe and Mary's Formal Closet

Term 1 Dates

COMPASS Sign-in Update

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