Term 1, Week 8, 19th March

Upcoming Events

Principal's Message

PROJECT COMPASSION PRAYER 

God of all peoples and nations, 

As you accompany us on our Lenten journey, 

may our fasting strengthen our commitment to live in solidarity,

 our almsgiving be an act of justice, 

and our prayers anchor us in love and compassion. 

Through living simply and loving generously, 

may we care for our global family and our common home, 

as we “Aspire not to have more, but to be more”. 

We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen. St Oscar Romero 

YEAR 7 2022

This week I have had the pleasure of commencing visits to our Catholic primary schools to chat with Year 6 students and teachers about the upcoming enrolment process for Year 7, 2022. If you have a child currently not in a Catholic Primary school who wishes to enrol at MacKillop College for 2022, please visit or contact the college office. Enrolments will open online from Monday 22nd March via the MacKillop College website. Please head over to our Enrolment page for more information. 

PARENT PARTNERSHIP LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE YEAR 8

I wanted to ensure parents of Year 8 students were aware we have had a change to the Leader of Pastoral Care role for the remainder of Term 1 and all of Term 2. 

Mrs Bronwyn Avery has taken some extended leave from the role and Mr Daniel O’Dell will be taking her place. Daniel is an experienced leader and worked closely with our Year 8 students in 2020. He will be supporting our Year 8 Team of PC teachers and is contactable via email daniel.odell@lism.catholic.edu.au or via the college office on 6583 2632.

STUDENT SUCCESS - ABORIGINAL STUDENTS CULTURAL IMMERSION

Our Mackillop Year 8 & 9 Aboriginal students went on a cultural excursion to St Joseph's Regional College on Wednesday, 10th march. The excursion involved games of touch football with the Year 8 & 9 Aboriginal students from St Joseph’s Regional College, followed by a barbeque lunch at the new SJRC yarning circle. The circle provided a wonderful opportunity where the students from both schools got the chance to get to know each other.

Luckily we were fortunate to get a break in wet weather. The students had a great time and they gave it their all in the touch football matches with some great skill on show on the day.

At Mackillop we have a total of seven Aboriginal students in Year 9 and eleven in Year 8. The students are looking forward to the next opportunity to get together. Building community between the students from MacKillop and SJRC is one of the really great opportunities we have in our Parish school system.

MEET THE EXPERTS

Each week throughout the year, I will introduce to you some of the expert staff we are so fortunate to have working for your children here at MacKillop College. This week I would like to introduce Andrew Evans.

Name
Andrew Evans.

What subject(s) do you teach?
Geography, Business Studies, and History.

What high school did you attend?
St Edmunds College, Canberra.

What university did you attend and what course(s) did you do after finishing school?
University of New England, Armidale - Bachelor of Arts Majoring in Geography, with Minors in Economics and Maths.

What or who inspired you to become a teacher?
Brother Don Gallagher was a Christian Brother who, taught and influenced St Edmunds students for some 45 years. He taught Art and in particular Photography, both of which he had a flair and a passion for, that he passed onto his students. I was lucky enough to have him as a guide and mentor during Year 9 and 10. He passed onto me that care for students as well as passion for a subject and its teaching are precious commodities. He was loved by so many that the Old Boys Association built a dedicated art studio for his works at the school. A great man.

What would be your proudest teaching moment in your career to date?
When I see and hear students sharing my passion for the amazing world around us, and taking those lessons out of the classroom, into the amazing lives they get to lead. It brings me so much joy when my former students let me know how they are going.

What are you reading at the moment?
Eleven Bats by Anthony Moffitt. Its a story of cricket and the SAS as seen through the eyes of an Australian Veteran. Each chapter (Bat) represents a tour of duty from Afganistan to East Timor and the accompanying cricket matches.

What quote best describes your approach to teaching?
"Most people resist change, even when it promises to be for the better. But change will come, and if you acknowledge this simple but indisputable fact of life, and understand that you must adjust to all change, then you will have a head start." Arthur Ashe.

Favourite non-work related hobbie?
Family (ok so raising kids is not really a hobbie), travel, the beach and golf.

What do you love most about your work?
Amazing students who always bring me joy.

CATH EICHMANN
PRINCIPAL

Assistant Principal Learning and Teaching

TECHNOLOGY WEBINAR - RESOURCES

Two weeks ago, we advertised the latest Elevate Education Webinar that focused on the positive use of technology and how it can be a help and not a hinderance. A number of people on the webinar stream asked for access to the resources referenced throughout the session. Families are encouraged to use this link for the 'Breaking the Habit' resource or this link to the replay of the webinar for those who were unable to attend on the night. Elevate provided great resources for families who are wanting to support their children through some of the challenges that contemporary education presents.

YEAR 11 LEARNING CONVERSATIONS

Learning Conversations will be held from 4:00pm to 7:30pm on Monday, 29th March for families with students in Year 11 in the College Hall (junior campus).

If this date does not suit, I encourage you to make contact (phone or email) with your child’s teachers.

As per all conversations in relation to our students’ learning, we encourage your child to also attend the evening. These interviews are one part of the very important process of our students gaining the most from their schooling and provide an opportunity for parents and teachers to meet to ensure open and collaborative communication which assists students not only in their learning but in their growth as young men and women.

You can now book interviews at times that suit at www.schoolinterviews.com.au and follow these simple instructions:

Please ensure you provide your full name, and your child’s full name, when entering your details.

When you click finish, your interview timetable will be emailed to you automatically - check your junk mail folder if you do not receive your email immediately.

Interviews are strictly 5 minutes and spaces are limited. If you require more time, please contact teachers directly to make alternative arrangements.

Parents can change their interview bookings, any time prior to the closing date, by re-visiting the www.schoolinterviews.com.au website, and using the event code. Remember to use the same name and email address you used when you made your original booking.

Please note BOOKINGS CLOSE on the evening of Thursday, 25th March.

ADAM KELLY
ASSISTANT PRINCIPAL LEARNING AND TEACHING

NAPLAN Online 2021

The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a point in time assessment of literacy and numeracy skills that are essential for every child to progress through school and life. Students in Years 7 and 9 participate in the annual NAPLAN tests in writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.

Our school will be participating in NAPLAN Online between 11th and 21st May 2021. A more specific schedule will be provided at the beginning of Term 2.

In preparation for NAPLAN Online, our school will also be participating in practice tests on Thursday, 25th of March. The practice test is a trial-run and key preparation activity for NAPLAN Online in May. It is not an assessment of student ability and the tests will not be marked, it is just a great opportunity for students to become familiar with the online platform.

Excessive preparation for NAPLAN Online is not recommended. Students can use the public demonstration site (https://www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site) to familiarise themselves with the types of questions and tools available in the NAPLAN Online tests.

An email with further information specifically for Year 7 and 9 parents will be sent out in due course.

If you have any questions about NAPLAN Online, please contact Ms Sarah Warby, Leader of Curriculum and NAPLAN Coordinator via email sarah.warby@lism.catholic.edu.au or by phone via the college office 6583 2632.

SARAH WARBY
LEADER OF CURRICULUM

Evangelisation

SENIOR LEAD CONFERENCE

On Thursday, 11th and Friday, 12th March, seven Year 11 and 12 students travelled to Grafton to attend the annual LEAD conference, a youth event run primarily by the Youth Ministry Officers across the Lismore diocese. The conference opened with a large ‘mingle festival’ where we were able to interact with other students. It was so inspiring to see the enthusiasm that everyone contained and the excitement that comes with a jumping castle! Throughout the evening we heard from keynote speakers who presented their testimonies, enabling us to reflect on our own lives and question how we can become more involved in our communities. Through workshops, group activities and discussions with our YMOs, we were able to formulate a plan to bring back to school in order to make ministry at MacKillop the most exciting and welcoming that it can be. We would like to thank our YMOs, Jules and Ella, for enabling us to take part in this fantastic opportunity

PROJECT COMPASSION

Each Year during Lent MacKillop College commits to supporting the incredible work done by Caritas, through Project Compassion. Caritas have programs within Australia and throughout the world supporting the poor and marginalised. Each week during Lent Project Compassion focuses on the life changes offered to one person through the funds raised.

Another of our Project Compassion recipients, Halima from Bangladesh is raising two children under seven in a refugee camp in Bangladesh, while caring for her mother who has a disability. Widowed at just 21, Halima fled violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine State in 2017, arriving at the camp with nothing.

Caritas Australia, through its partner, Caritas Bangladesh, assisted Halima out with a shelter and cooking equipment so that she could feed her family. She participated in hygiene and sanitation training and took on the role of community trainer herself, organising the cleaning of washrooms, wells and toilets.

Halima’s training became all the more invaluable as the COVID-19 pandemic struck - when safe hygiene and preventative measures suddenly became lifesaving.

Halima aspired to ‘Be More’ for her family and for the community around her.

“My hope is that our children will be able to do a job, to live with pleasure, they will find their happiness - that will bring wellbeing for them,” Halima says.

We ask our students to put money into the Project Compassion boxes in their PC rooms during this Lenten Season.

MARG GOBIUS
LEADER OF EVANGELISATION

Year 7

EASTER RAFFLE FOR CARITAS – UPDATE

We ask all students, staff and families to think of others during Lent and offer help to those who may need it more than we do. At MacKillop College we mark this by sending donations to others via Project Compassion Caritas - who in turn will help many others. Our main fundraiser at the College is our Easter Raffle which raises lots of funds each year to help others in need through Caritas.

Year 7 have been asked to donate chocolate Easter eggs, bunnies or bilbies etc (to a minimum value of $5) per family. With 225 students each making generous donations, that ends up being a whole lot of chocolate! Chocolates are bundled into lots of different prizes and are raffled during the last day of term. Other year groups assist by selling raffle tickets to students during the lead up to Easter. With everyone's help, we hope to raise a lot of money for those who need it again this year.

Year 7 are encouraged to raid their piggy banks, use their pocket money, or do extra chores to earn some funds to purchase their eggs and raffle tickets. We encourage students to start bringing your Easter eggs and bunnies into PC from next week. We should have lots of yummy baskets to raffle - which means lots of money for Caritas! Tickets went on sale around Week 7.

Thank you to all families for your generous donations and support thus far in helping us to raise lots of much needed funds during this important Lenten season. We have lots of empty baskets though, so would appreciate any contributions you are able to make.

In order to organise the prizes for our raffle, would you please ensure any chocolate donations are received by the end of next week – Friday 26^th March. Your donations will help make positive changes in the lives of many others and are greatly appreciated. Thank you so much!

NAPLAN PREPARATION

Next week will see preparations for our upcoming NAPLAN testing for next term. Students in Years 7 and 9 will be involved in practice for these assessments on Thursday, 25^th March. Thank you for your assistance in supporting your child by ensuring that they are present for this day with a fully charged device; this will alleviate any concerns or anxiety they may have in readiness for the future.

CONGRATULATIONS

Congratulations to the following students who have received a Pastoral Coordinator’s Award: Luke Arnold, Cooper Beukers, Corbin Day, Jarrod Dingle, Lachlan Ford, Megan Goldie, Lenni Gosling, Olivia Green, Jasper Hall, Mikayla Haste, Chloe Kapila, Ciarran McCallum, Caoimhe Murphy, Austin Pettitt, Lacey Urquhart and Brianna Waller.

ELLEN MCKELL
YEAR 7 LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE

Year 8

I introduced myself to Year 8 again at our year meeting last week and it was a great chance for me to remind them about why we are all here at MacKillop College. I encouraged Year 8 to refocus on learning. It was disappointing to hear that some students are stopping their peers from learning in class.

I asked Year 8 to ask themselves:

• Am I prepared for class?
• Do I have my pen, books, iPad etc. ready for class?
• Have I done my homework?
• Do I raise my hand when asking a question or contributing to the class?
• Do I say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’?
• Am I in the correct uniform for the day?
• Am I ready to learn?

Leader of Pastoral Care Awards

One of the privileges of taking the role of Year 8 Leader of Pastoral Care is to hand out the Leader of Pastoral Care Awards. Please encourage your child to collect their five merits and to hand them into me or their PC teacher so they can receive their award.

DANIEL O'DELL
YEAR 8 ACTING LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE

Year 9

St. Patrick

Christ be with me,

Christ before me,

Christ behind me…

Christ in the hearts of everyone who thinks of me,                  

Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me

Christ in every eye that sees me,

Christ in every eye that sees me.

Thanks to the Irish diaspora, the Feast of St. Patrick is widely celebrated in many parts of the world. Ironically St. Patrick is better known for his apocryphal achievement – having rid the Emerald Isle of snakes – than for his actual accomplishments as a missionary. Even his greatest achievement, having established the Christian church in Ireland, tends to overshadow some of the more personal and poignant aspects of his life.

Patrick’s introduction to Ireland was involuntary. At the age of sixteen he was kidnapped by Irish raiders, stolen from his home, a village somewhere along the western coast of Roman Britain, and taken to Ireland as a slave. Previously he had lived a relatively comfortable life as the son of a petty Roman official. He found himself sold to a local king. As a slave, his life was not valued more highly than the beasts he tended. As he later wrote, ‘I was chastened exceedingly and humbled every day in hunger and nakedness.’

At the same time, far from home and with little prospect of ever seeing his family again, he remembered who he was and where he came from. In particular, he clung fast to his faith as a Christian. He dreamed of escape, and after six years of captivity, an opportunity arose and he seized it. His flight involved a risky journey of two hundred miles to the sea, where he found a boat sailing to the Continent. Eventually he made his way back to his home village. He bore the scars of the terrible ordeal, but also the zeal of a profound faith.

While living in Gaul, where he had travelled to study for the priesthood, Patrick had a series of dreams in which Irish voices, the voices of those who had stolen his youth, cried out to him, ‘We beseech you to come and walk once more among us.’ In 432, by this time a Consecrated Bishop, he returned to Ireland.

Patrick’s thirty years as a wandering bishop in Ireland are wrapped in legend, but the scope of his achievements is a matter of historical fact. Within ten years he established a network of churches and monasteries throughout the country, all in the hands of native clergy. He personally baptised tens of thousands of the faithful and ordained hundreds of priests.

In a land that has been rent asunder by the memory of ancient crimes and injustices, it should be remembered that St. Patrick was himself a victim of Irish injustice before he ever became a symbol of Irish pride. His extraordinary return to the site of his oppression - not to wreak his vengeance, but to implant the reconciling seeds of his own hard won faith – deserves appropriate commemoration. The gospel drove Patrick to return to his oppressors that he might devote his life to their peaceful conversion and the cause of their salvation. This spiritual conquest of Ireland followed the prior victory of love over the anger and bitterness in his own heart. If the memory of this dimension of St. Patrick’s life had long ago become a feature of his feast day celebration, it might truly be said that there are no serpents left in Ireland.

(Adapted from All Saints, Robert Ellsberg)

HEALING

Year 9 are currently studying the Sacraments of Healing (Penance/Reconciliation and The Sacrament of the Sick). The story of St Patrick shows, on a grand scale, the power of forgiveness and reconciliation to not only repair damage, but to create opportunities and new and better ways that might otherwise never have been possible. We might not affect a whole nation of people by our approach of forgiveness and reconciliation, but, who knows, when working with God nothing is impossible. We would all do well to, as Patrick, choosing love over anger and bitterness.

God bless. 

PETER MURPHY
YEAR 9 LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE

Year 10

RETREAT

Year 10 Retreat Week will be held from Monday, 22nd March to Friday, 26th March (Term 1, Week 9).  Retreat Week is one of the most important compulsory events in the Year 10 calendar, and is always a highlight for the cohort; where friendships are strengthened, reflection and growth occur and positive memories are made. 

Students have been split into four groups of approximately 55 students, allowing for a more personal two-day retreat experience, and will either attend the Francis Retreat or Stuarts Point Convention Centre on Monday and Tuesday OR Wednesday and Thursday during this week.

To complete the week, on Friday there will be a Mass and Community Day for Year 10.

Students have been notified when they will be attending Retreat.

It is important that students remember the required equipment for retreat and ensure they do not bring electronic devices.

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to ask your child's PC teacher, Mrs Marg Gobius or myself.

GLEN LITTLER
YEAR 10 LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE 

Year 11

ASSESSMENT TASKS

Weeks 8 and 9 are very heavy weeks in the preliminary curriculum. With five different assessment tasks this week, and a Shakespeare Festival on Thursday night Year 11 have been very busy. The fun continues next week with many more tasks from an array of subjects. 

It is now that the previous weeks of hard work and the organisational skills the students have been developing, come into play. The concept I often talk about 'have it all, do it all - within reason', really applies here. Over these two weeks it's time to seriously prioritise your time, make yourself unavailable for a shift or two, lock your phone away while you study, let your parents know what’s on for you so they can help you out where possible and fit in some daily exercise to help keep you healthy and sane! Only three weeks to go and you get a well-deserved holiday! Well done!

A HUGE congratulations to the Year 11 Drama students (Livia Bailey, Ruby Berryman, Nicholas Bridle, Sally Edmonds, Emma Highlands, Lucy Kay, Daniel Maxwell, Olivia Nichols and Isobel Pares) and their fabulous teacher Miss Phoebe Baylis, who have worked tirelessly to create the Shakespeare Festival. It is always amazing to enjoy the talents of these young people, how lucky they are, to be able to work towards their HSC in such a fun and creative way.

ANDREA HUXLEY
YEAR 11 LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE

Year 12

Just a short news item today to relay the message that I gave Year 12 an impromptu meeting this week around assessments. The message basically was 'Stop freaking out!' We are heading into a very heavy week with lots of hand ins and in class exams, some students are well prepared, some are not. Regardless of their level of preparation many of our young men and women are having periods where they are feeling completely overwhelmed. We had a practical discussion about what they need to do. I asked them to be realistic:

• If you haven't started prepping, do you have enough time to do things as thoroughly as you need to?  
• If you haven't started prepping, does that mean you cannot go well?  

I encouraged them to get real, and get organised. I did a quick demonstration on how they could do that by: 

• writing down all the assessments coming up and planning backwards from that; and 
• identifying the time that is left and allocating that time to a productive activity that will help them prepare for assessments.

We also discussed that every single person in the year group is under the same pressure - most students have at least three assessments next week, some have four and even five. So my general message on that was to be kind to each other and themselves. There is only so much time in the day and staying up to 2am or 3am in the morning is not helping them achieve better marks. They need to really dig deep and put in some hours over the next couple of days, especially over the weekend but not to the point that they are becoming emotional and mentally exhausted.

Have a lovely weekend.

LISA KABLE
YEAR 12 LEADER OF PASTORAL CARE

From the Mathematics Vault

Welcome to our weekly Maths Vault! 

We will provide a mathematics problem for solving, with the answer published the week after underneath a new problem. Good luck!

SRC Update

All students were invited to participate in a recent whole school skipping competition.   

We challenged participants to be curious as to: who could achieve the most skips in a minute individually and which PC could include the most members in a continuous skip with a long rope?

It was great to see the number of students who readily accepted the challenge and the vibe in the room was extremely positive. Interestingly, the youngest students and senior students were best represented, but it was striking how much determination, perseverance and growth mindset was demonstrated by all.

Thanks to all who joined in and supported this SRC event and earned participation points for their house for Fr Donnelly’s House Cup! Results will be published at our next assembly.

Wellbeing

Last week’s extended PC lesson saw students embrace the opportunity to build positive relationships with peers in PC with much enthusiasm and proved the research true - that being curious about others is the social glue that strengthens our relationships.

After a Year meeting with Leaders of Pastoral Care, Years 7 and 8 indulged in ‘games’ deliberately designed for students to get to know each other better, beyond merely knowing other students’ names - there was much energy in the room as students drew connections between learning what was unique about their peers and what they shared in common.

Year 9 sat the VIA character strength survey again to discover which character strengths they had developed since starting in Year 7 and then competed in a group challenge which required team members to action strengths and inquire further into the Year 9 theme: Explore.

Year 10 also had the opportunity to spot their strengths in PC challenges and experience the value of connection prior to their Retreat.

Year 11 were reminded of keys to successful transitioning to senior workload including regulating sleep and activating healthy study habits. 

Year 12 explored the best ways to manage their responsibilities that come with their growing independence.

Many thanks to the Leaders of Pastoral Care and PC teachers who continue to engage our students’ curiosity and find new ways to challenge their thinking so that the personal wellbeing of the individual and collective group is protected and enhanced.

NICOLE O'CONNELL
LEADER OF WELLBEING

Music

“Beautiful music is the art of the prophets that can calm the agitations of the soul; it is one of the most magnificent and delightful presents God has given us.”- Martin Luther

ENSEMBLE SHIRT ORDERS

All students participating in MacKillop College Ensembles are required to purchase a shirt to wear at performances. This shirt will be worn with black trousers, white socks and white shoes at various performance events on request from the respective Ensemble Director.

Students are to see the Music Trainee at rehearsal or in break times in the rehearsal rooms or staff workroom to order a size. Sample shirts will be available for you to try on. All payments are to be made to the front office. Students are encouraged to order a slightly larger shirt if in lower year groups. This performance shirt will be able to be worn across all MacKillop College and SAPSS Bands into the foreseeable future.

The term one order has just been made. All students who have missed this order run will be included in the order for Term 2.

INSTRUMENT HIRE

A wide range of band instruments are available for hire including trumpet, trombone, clarinet, flute, saxophone, violin, guitar and bass guitar. The cost for instrument hire is $70.00 a term, (instruments can be rented to own upon request. This rental period is negotiable and will vary depending on the value of the instrument). These fees are invoiced to subject & activity statements each Term. As these fees are considered ‘extra-curricular’ this amount must be paid by Week 6 of each Term and must not at any time run into arrears.  Please advise the College if your method of payment is via Bpay so that it can be matched accordingly. The first term of rental is free to allow students time to “settle” with the instrument.

UPCOMING EVENTS

COLLEGE ASSEMBLY

• Week 9 - Wednesday 24th March, Period 1, College Hall , Junior Band

ANZAC ASSEMBLY

• Week 1 - Wednesday 21st April, Period 1, College Hall , College Choir

ANZAC TOWN GREEN PERFORMANCE

• Week 2 - Wednesday 28th April, 3:30pm - 5:30pm, Town Green (Horton Street) , SAPSS Marching Band.

Please contact Mr Denham with any questions relating to the co-curricular music program at MacKillop College.

ROB DENHAM
LEADER OF MUSIC

Sport

YEAR 9 AND 10 SPORT TERM 2

Year 9 and 10 students have made their sport selections this week for Term 2. Students will be notified of the sport that they have been allocated next week. It is important to remember that this is a first in, best dressed scenario and also that some students may be placed in School Sport if there are outstanding fees.

Once selections have been allocated no changes will be made as businesses and buses have been booked based on the numbers we have provided them.

MACKILLOP COLLEGE CROSS COUNTRY

Well the weather was finally in our favour as we hosted our Annual Cross Country Carnival on Tuesday. It was so nice to see students ‘shine’ and showcase their talent and love of running. There were some notable performances from Ryan Binskin, Zayne Cloake, Alani Cockshutt, Jett Hanson, and Maddison West.

Congratulations to everyone that ran – there was a really nice atmosphere around the track and we wish the top 6 runners in each age division (and gender) all the best as they take on the track at Grafton in Term 2.

Special thanks to Mr Noel Stevenson who always ensures our students have a fun, safe track to run on. To our House Captains who stepped up and ably assisted with time keeping and marshalling, it was great to see you embrace this opportunity. To Mr Ryan Adams, Miss Brooke Higham, Mrs Amber Mann, Mrs Mandy Palin and Mrs Jan Shepherd who ensured each race got off to a smooth start and recorded all of the great results, and finally to our parent helpers Mel Cockshutt and Richard McGrath who happily stepped in and oversaw our time keepers. Thank you to our Bike Riders who did a great job leading each race Jesse Fisher, Nick Kennedy, Sam Kennedy, Sam Poulton and Fynn Slade. 
Thank you to Mr Lincoln Beddoe for capturing great photos of our students running. Your assistance was greatly appreciated.

Congratulations to Oxley who were the overall Champions on the day. That is now 2 from 3 carnivals for Oxley – let’s see if a different House can take out the Atheltics Carnival. We have never had the one House win all three carnivals.

It was nice to see many senior students contribute to the overall point score. It certainly was healthy competition with only 10 points between first, second and third.

REPRESENTATIVE SPORT

We are extremely fortunate to have over 40 Staff that have put their hand up to coach and manage our Sport teams in 2021. To be able to offer so many great sporting opportunities for our students is a great position to be in. My sincere thanks to the following staff who have recently given up their time to ensure our sports trips go ahead and to Mrs Sharee Fletcher for her dedicated clerical support.

Mrs Tracey Bewicke, Mr Rob Irving, Brooke Higham, Ms Tracy Knight, Mr Glen Littler, Mr Richard May, Miss Alison Montgomery and Mr Peter Murphy.

DIOCESAN TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS

GIRLS

The Open Girls Tennis Team travelled to Tweed Heads for the Lismore Diocesan Tennis Competition last week. The team consisted of Jade Biddle, Grace Dawson, Shayla Mitchell, and Harmony Mitchell. The competition was very competitive on the day with many experienced players taking the court. The matches consisted of a “Super Set” of first to 9 games. Both doubles pairs played 3 matches on the day with many impressive rallies and winning shots. Congratulations to all the girls on their hard work, talented tennis and good sportsmanship.

The Best and Fairest on the day was Shayla Mitchell.

Mrs Tracey Bewicke (Teacher)

BOYS

MacKillop College entered two boy’s teams in the Diocesan Tennis Championships.  Games were played at Arkinstall Park Regional Tennis Centre on 9th March. Our Opens boys team consisted of Taron Barth, Marten Coetzer, Archie Kay, and Ashtyn Walsh. Our junior team included Flynn Burrage, and Edward Coombes. All the boys can be proud of their efforts and the sportsmanship they displayed.

Our Best and Fairest player in the open team was Archie Kay and the junior Best and Fairest was Flynn Burrage. The junior team were very competitive and won 5 of their 7 matches, narrowly missing out on second place. 

DIOCESAN WINTER SPORT TRIALS

Congratulations to the 23 MacKillop students that travelled to Lismore to trial at the Diocesan Winter Sport Trials for Rugby League and Football (Soccer). It certainly was one of the most successful years with eleven students making the respective teams. Congratulations to the following students who have made the Diocesan Teams:

UNDER 15s LEAGUE

Ethan Clarke, Brayden Laing, Will Rosenbaum, Ethan Tombs, Kaden Vonbun, shadow: Rowan McIlroy

OPEN BOYS FOOTBALL

Huon Lickley, Vaughan Lickley, Jack Page, Taye Power O’Toole and Luke Townsend.

OPEN GIRLS FOOTBALL

Zora Boskovski

HOW TO REGISTER FOR A MACKILLOP COLLEGE SPORT TEAM

In the past students have signed up to trial for a sport by writing their name on a paper list at the sports notice board. As of now all Registrations for MacKillop College sport teams will be completed by students by logging into the school Moodle page. Go to the student links tab on the left hand side and click on the Representative Sports registrations link. Click on the relevant sport and fill out the google form.

Students will be notified through the morning notices of when to sign up and when trials will occur.

Sports currently open for registration/trials are:

• Bill Turner Boys and Girls Soccer
• Open Boys and Girls Soccer

Click on this link to register  http://moodle.pmaclism.catholic.edu.au/course/view.php?id=650

LISMORE DIOCESAN REGISTRATIONS

Please note that the following sports are currently open for students to be able to sign up to or register their interest to trial. These sports have been advertised to students through morning notices over the past week.

http://sport.lism.catholic.edu.au/registration

NSWCCC Sport Registrations 2021 for pathway sports open on 1 February

Registrations are via the CSNSW.sport portal. For instructions on how to register go to

Guide For Parents – Sport Registrations >>

Term One Individual Nominations Sport Registrations

Swimming and Touch Football registrations are through the Diocesan/Association pathways.

For further information, go to the CSNSW Sport Website Sport pages.

https://csnsw.sport/

UPCOMING EVENTS:

COMMUNITY SPORT

Congratulations to Sam Blain and Blake Collins who were recently selected in the Under 16 Basketball Country Squad. We wish them all the best for final selection in the team that will compete at the 2021 Under 16 Australian Junior Championships in Perth in July.

If your child has achieved outstanding sporting results in their community sport, we would love to hear about it. Please email myself, or your child’s respective Leader of Pastoral Care, so we can acknowledge these achievements.  

If you have any questions regarding sport at MacKillop College, please do not hesitate to contact me either by email or phone at the College.

ERIN DENHAM
LEADER OF SPORT

Community News

BIG BATTERY BLITZ

A big thank you to all the MacKillop students and families who participated in the Port Macquarie Hastings Council Big Battery Blitz over the last few weeks. A bounty of batteries was collected in pursuit of House Points in the Father Donnelly Cup. Even if households had no old batteries to recycle, we now have hundreds of families with a dedicated battery recycling storage box at home.
This is a great result as the underlying purpose of this exercise is to increase our local rate of battery recycling (which currently sits at only 3%). If you missed out on getting a battery recycling box, please email robert.mahon@lism.catholic.edu.au  and one will be given to your child to bring home. 

PARENTS- please consider taking a minute to complete the short Battery Recycling Survey. Your child will be doing this survey in their Science class.

ROBERT MAHON
SCIENCE TEACHER

Parish News

Come and spend time with Jesus this Easter.

Watch the personal invitation from Fr Paul where he invites you to celebrate Easter with us at St Agnes’ Catholic Parish this year.

EASTER MASS TIMES

Times for Palm Sunday and Easter Mass times across the Parish have been released and can be viewed here. 

Make sure you book into Mass and follow the COVID safe protocols. 

You can book in a number of ways: 

• Phone the Presbytery on 6583 1024 (Monday to Friday 8.30am - 4.30pm, except Public Holidays)

• Book online line via the Parish Website (go to Mass Times then follow the 'Book into Mass here' prompts

Please refer to the Parish website (www.stagnesparish.org.au) for more details.

Canteen

Monday, 22nd  March
Paul Atkins and Patrick Corr

Tuesday, 23rd March
Jane Keegan, Kristine Fallon and Elizabeth Jardine

Wednesday, 23rd March
Kaylene Monckton and Verena Grandy

Thursday, 24th March
Stuart Ward, HELP PLEASE

Friday, 25th March
Bec Eakin, Sam Harrison, Priscilla Turnbull, and Tracey Reddie

The canteen always welcomes volunteers. Please ensure if you are volunteering you have supplied your volunteer Working With Children Check to the front office. 

If you would like to help please follow the link below or ring Maxine on  0432 179 365.  Help is needed from 11:00am to 2:00pm or for service from 11:00am till 11:30am or 1:35pm until 2:00pm.

To order from the canteen:
1. Orders can be written out at the canteen (bags supplied free of charge)

2. Orders can be written out at home and put in at the canteen

3. Download the QKR! app and order on line.

ALL ORDERS TO BE IN BY 9:00AM PLEASE

Please remind your child/children if you have ordered for them, and what their order is. We are currently having our volunteers spend quite a bit of time searching for students who have not collected their lunch orders.
If your child is sick and you have ordered, please phone the canteen (6583 2632) to arrange a credit. 

Homework Hubs

Homework Hub - Senior Campus

Maths Tutorials

Tuesday's and Thursday's

7:45am - 8:30am 

Room 12 Main College with Mrs Elizabeth Robertson