Newsletter on our website

www.mackillopleongatha.catholic.edu.au/newsletter

also available on the College Parent Portal - PAM

Mary MacKillop College

Newsletter Term 4

8 December 2017 “Find happiness in

making others happy.”

Mary MacKillop

20 November 1870

The Wisdom

of the Lord Teaches us

“Find happiness in making others happy” Mary MacKillop 20 November 1870

MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL

This Weeks Prayer

This is our last Newsletter for 2017. We are currently in the season of Advent – the time of preparation for the great Feast of Christmas. During Advent, we are called to make an effort to recollect ourselves and remember the true meaning of Christmas. I pray that the real peace and joy for the coming of our Saviour touches all our hearts this Christmas. A group of students participated in the Australian Catholic Youth Festival in Sydney. All reports back suggest they are having a great time. It is becoming an annual event for our students to attend and participate, we look forward to being able to send students in coming years to this important event in the life of our Church.

We have ended the year with our closing Mass and Presentations of Awards, it was great to see so many of our Parents and Friends attend to support the students. Congratulations to all the students who received awards, a full list of recipients is published in this Newsletter.

David Leslie

Principal

All end of year reports will be available on PAM on Tuesday 12 December 2017. If you need any assistance with accessing PAM please contact Sibby at the Office. The reports represent a huge effort by students and teachers summarizing a whole semesters work. There is an enormous amount of work to prepare, assess, collate and describe results, please read them carefully and act on any advice given. There are a number of teaching changes for 2018: Mr Matthew van der Veldon, Mr Michael Dillon and Ms Leonie Gilbert are moving on and Mr Alan Vaughan is retiring. Taking leave for the year are Ms Merrin-Jane Viljoen, Mr Patrick McCarthy, Ms Rebecca Rostolis and Ms Jo Callister. We also have a number of non-teaching staff leaving, our Business Manager Mr Rod Bowman is retiring and Mr Sam Alwis, Ms Katherine Cousins are leaving to pursue other opportunities. We thank everyone for their contribution to the College over the years.

New teaching staff joining us next year will be: Ms Allison Mondous (RE and Maths), Mrs Melanie Grimshaw (RE and Maths), Mr John Poole (English, RE, Health and Fitness and History), Ms Maydia Parry (English and Humanities), Ms Kate Lafferty (Humanities, Money and Markets, Business Management). Returning from leave we have Ms Tara Cox (English) and Mr Cade Maskell (PE and Health & Human Development). We will also welcome our new Business Manager, Mr Shane Stiles. We look forward to them all joining to our Mary MacKillop Community. Our College has great staff and I will look forward to each of them making an excellent contribution.

We have our biggest intake of Year 7’s starting next year, 127 in 6 classes, with most of them attending their Orientation Day this week. We have a number of new students coming into other year levels as well and we look forward to welcoming them all to our College. School resumes on Wednesday 31 January 2018 for our Year 7 and Year 12 Students, and Year 8, 9, 10 and 11’s commence on Thursday 1 February 2018.

I hope all our families, staff and students have a happy, safe and restful holiday. Wishing you every blessing for Christmas.

FROM THE DEPUTY PRINCIPAL—LEARNING AND TEACHING

At this time of year especially, we take time to reflect on all the achievements to date and the growth from the experiences in and out of the classroom. The college report will be available to upload shortly and contained with this is also a list of the co-curricular achievements and special commendations for students. Below you will find details on how to access reports. I have also provided some wise words from Michael Grosse, one of Australia’s leading Child Psychologist and Family Therapists on what to look out for in your child’s report. End of year reports “The most powerful single modification that enhances achievement is feedback.” John Hattie Mary MacKillop College launched the Parental Access Module (PAM) via the College intranet, SIMON, at the start of 2016. In 2017 parents and students are now able to see live assessment tasks, due dates, criteria for marking and the achieved results. The feedback on PAM is ongoing and in ‘real time’. It forms the cornerstone of our progressive reporting to parents at Mary MacKillop College. Our Progressive Online Reporting also helps our students improve in all areas of learning by providing:

Greater accountability of students’ work habits

Students and parents the ability to see results and feedback online

An opportunity to contribute to the review and reflection of the tasks

Timely feedback – the feedback is issued when the task is completed and assessed

The ability of the teacher and the parent to identify, intervene and improve

Parents are able to access results and feedback throughout the semester rather than waiting for the ‘End of Semester Report’ for indications on how their child is progressing. Progressive Reporting will allow the parent and the student to see:

What they have achieved

What they need to improve and

Suggested paths for improvement so action can be taken to allow this to happen in preparation for the upcoming task. Semester 2 reports will be uploaded to SIMON (and accessed through PAM) this week and be available to download by Wednesday 13th December. This will provide judgments across a range of work habits, values for Victorian Curriculum levels (For Year 7-10 Classes), VCE Outcomes and Unit Results (For VCE Classes) as well as summarising the grades for major assessment tasks completed during the semester. These reports will not include class teacher comments as such information has already been provided with each assessment task. A step by step guide on accessing these reports is included below. Accessing Reports Step 1 – Log in to PAM

Step 2 – Click on any student Step 4 – Click on any of the available report to download and view the report PAM (Parental Access Module) can be accessed via the following: www.pam.mmcrc.catholic.edu.au Or www.pam.mackillopleongatha.catholic.edu.au Or via the College website Parents can choose to either download a copy of the report and save it to the home computer or print a copy. If accessing these reports causes some difficulties then please contact the school to discuss options. If you have misplaced or have forgotten your PAM Code please email Sibby at the Office swilson@mmcrc.catholic.edu.au

What’s important in a report?

Your kids will appreciate the right focus at report time.

Could try harder… always does her best... lacks concentration…

easily distracted...a pleasure to teach…

School reports can mean anxious times for children too. ‘Will my

parents be disappointed or proud?’ is the main concern of most

children. Kids of all ages take their cues from their parents, so

your reaction to their school report can affect the way they see

themselves as learners and as people.

Focus your attention on these aspects to make sense of

children’s reports:

Expectations

Expectations are tricky. If they are too high, then kids can be turned off learning. Too low and there is nothing to strive for.

Pitch your expectations in line with a child’s abilities. A quick check of your child’s last report cards may give you a good yardstick.

Different rates of learning

Remember there are slow bloomers, late developers and steady-as-you-go kids in every classroom, so avoid comparing your

child to siblings, your friends’ children and even yourself when you were young. Instead, look for individual progress.

Safeguard confidence

Self-confidence is a pre-requisite for learning, so be prepared to be as positive and encouraging as possible.

Here are 5 of Michael Grosse’s ideas to think about before reading your child’s report:

1) Look for strengths first - Focus on strengths even if they are not in the traditional 3Rs or core subjects.

2) Take into account your child’s effort and attitude to learning. If the report indicates that effort is below standard, then you have something to work on. If your child is putting in the required effort, then you can’t ask for any more than that. 3) Broaden your focus away from academic performance to form a picture of your child’s progress as a member of a social setting. How your child gets along with his or her peers will influence his happiness and well-being, as well as give an indicator to his future. 4) Take note of student’s self-assessment. Kids are generally very honest and will give a realistic assessment of their

progress. They are generally very perceptive so take note of their opinions. Discuss the report with your child talking about strengths first before looking at areas that need improvement. Ask your child how they performed and discuss their concerns. Be mindful that no matter how good, bad or indifferent your child’s report may be, he or she can wipe the slate clean and make

a brand new start next year. And it’s amazing the difference a summer holiday can make.

Edrolo:

I would also like to draw your attention to the Edrolo program we use to support our students in VCE. What is Edrolo? Edrolo is a comprehensive, premium, interactive online video and exam simulation resource for VCE, providing our students with the best opportunity to perform to their potential throughout the year. We have extensively assessed the resource and are confident it is an extremely valuable investment for our teaching and learning culture. You can see Edrolo in action by visiting this link: edrolo.com.au/parents/ How do students use Edrolo? Edrolo is currently used by over 500 schools and 60,000 students. Crafted by outstanding VCE teachers (including exam assessors and textbook authors) and built in accordance with VCAA Study Designs, its curriculum-specific and engaging content will provide our students with a differentiated and targeted level of support as they prepare for their most important examinations. How will our students and teachers use Edrolo? We will use Edrolo as a tool to further enhance what our teachers are doing day-to-day. Our teachers are provided with training on how to best utilise the resource, and you should expect them to guide students to make full use of Edrolo in a range of ways across the year, including:

holiday homework;

pre-class work;

post-class consolidation;

assessment preparation; and exam revision.

We are actively communicating with students regarding how to access Edrolo. Edrolo has been deemed an outstanding VCE Resource, providing our students with the best opportunity to perform to their best with the support of our fantastic teachers.

Sam Wright

Deputy Principal

Learning and

Teaching

FROM THE DEPUTY PRINCIPAL - LEARNING AND TEACHING

As the Christmas season approaches and 2017 draws to a close, it is important to reflect on the year we have had.

Our End of Year Mass and awards ceremony was a fantastic opportunity to reflect on and celebrate the determination and

achievements of our students and staff.

Reflection critically calls us to value the little things that have added meaning to our lives. It enables us to recognise the

contributions we make to others particularly to things bigger than ourselves, which validates our sense of purpose. Giving to

the ‘common good’ lifts our lives, as it lifts the lives of others and our community as a whole.

Friends and family give much to us and this reflection opens our hearts to others and helps us appreciate others. Importantly,

family and friends recognise how each can add to our wellbeing and the wellbeing of others. Reflection gives us the

opportunity to identify our moral strengths, the traits that add considerably and deeply to each of us and that help us build our

relationships. Please take that opportunity.

Gifts are given and received, and relationships honoured as we each reach out with a deep sense of gratitude to those who

have made our lives that little bit more pleasant, peaceful and meaningful. Gratitude consolidates our contributions and the

contributions of others, big or small, and enables us to appreciate life. At the awards ceremony it was fantastic to see the

students celebrate their success with the teachers that have challenged them through the year.

Each of us will look back, will rethink and re-imagine things. Stories will be told and uplifting and engaging conversations will

be enjoyed. Please do share your gratitude with those who, even in little ways, have made your life richer in 2017. Be kind to

yourself and to all, and assist those who may be alone or lonely. Meaning is given to our lives and the lives of others by us

giving, please look to give.

Spiritually, take time to be with yourself, be kind to yourself. Self-compassion allows us to stand straighter and to envisage

giving more. Be gracious and reverent in all you do, for this too will add meaning to your life and the lives of those you love,

those you share your life with and especially those who need you.

It is with great pleasure that I announce the 2018 Wellbeing Team. The following people can be contacted to discuss your child’s academic or wellbeing development.

Junior School

Director – Richard Muranty

Wellbeing Coordinator – Nicole Dudman

Transition Coordinator – Jacinta Johnston

Middle School

Director – Gerard Gordon

Wellbeing Coordinator – Kate Lafferty

Senior School

Director – Courtney Blair

Wellbeing Coordinator – Bron Kalos

Deputy Principal Wellbeing and Organisation – Kieran O’Dwyer

Wishing you, and those around you, a safe and holy Christmas.

FROM THE DEPUTY PRINCIPAL—WELLBEING AND ORGANISATION

Kieran O’Dwyer

Deputy Principal Wellbeing

and Organisation

END OF YEAR MASS AND AWARD PRESENTATIONS

House Leaders 2018 - Olivia Winchcombe, James Rowley,

Ellie Holmes, Jennifer Bals, Ciara Ryan and Alex Cecil

Australian Defence Force

and SSV Award - Lachlan

Thomas

Australian Defence Force

Award - Simone Dekker

Year 7 Dux - Jaime Findlay Year 8 Dux - Merrin Giles

Year 9 Dux and Panther Family Award - Hannah

Perry

Year 11 Dux - Emma

Carlisle

Year 10 Dux and Peter

Noonan Award - Tomei Dal

Pozzo

Catholic Education

Office Award - Ellie

Holmes

Saint Cecilia Music

Medallion - Michael

Brandon

Campion Award and

Federation Uni- Megan Thorn

Kwong Lee Dow Scholars Program Award -

Annabelle Williams and Aaron Farrell

END OF YEAR MASS AND AWARD PRESENTATIONS

Leongatha RSL Award Year 7

- Benjamin Hanrahan

Leongatha RSL Award

Year 8 - MacKenzie

Mills

Leongatha RSL Award

Year 9 - Estelle Rosse

Leongatha RSL Award

Year 10 - Aaron Farrell

GIS Award for Performing

Arts - Jaive McEwan

GIS Award for Music -

Reuben Strentz

South Gippsland Local Learning and Employment Network Award

Fraser Austin and Mary Gobel

Year 11 Federation

University Award - Bianca

Phillips

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END OF YEAR MASS AND AWARD PRESENTATIONS

CHRISTIAN LEADERSHIP AWARDS

Year 7

A - Anthony Williams B - Reuben Strentz C - Benjamin Joynes D - Harrison Garlick E - Georgia Miller Year 8 A - Nicholas Blogg B - Lily Smith C - John Denbrok D - Kisara Alwis Year 9 A - Laura Brennan B - Louise Colwill C - Daniel Biro D - Jordan Green Year 10 A - Beth McRae B - Bridget Akers C - Simone Dekker D - Kyla Green Senior School Homerooms Cameron - Jennifer Bals MacDonald - Jackson Dawson Tenison - Brooke Materia Chisholm - Hannah Charlton

CONSCIENTIOUS EFFORT AWARDS

Year 7

A - Shai Simpson and Charles Wilson B - Siobhan Cooper and Heidi Tieman C - Jessica Zubcic and Rylee McCraw D - Olivia Vuillermin and Liam Smart Year 8 A - Zoe Patterson and Robert Bennett B - Ryan Giliam and Lily Maxwell C - Sarah-Belle Joynes and Beatrix Bishop D - Alexander Duncan and Max Hosie Year 9 A - William Heenan and Zahli Butler B - Dassa Main and Kylie Smith C - Jordan Egan and Joshua Wright D - Wade Oliver and Zahli Charlton Year 10 A - Tom Vanderkolk and Hannah Hartman-Avery B - Kelly Geary and Aaron Farrell C - Benjamin McRae and Luca Riseley D - Jayden Battersby and Annabelle Williams Year 11 MacDonald - Thomas Hunter and Abagail Exelby Chisholm - Ella Findlay and Abby Forrester Cameron - Olivia Trease and James Rowley

ACADEMIC AWARDS

Year 7

Chelsea Patton - Religion Education Reuben Strentz - Mathematics/Humanities/Digital Media/Information and Communication Technology Kate Little - Physical Education/Textiles/Graphics Bhavani Harry - English Jaime Findlay - French/Science/Photography/Music Holly Belsar - Art Brady Owens - Design Technology Tiana Hutchinson - Drama Kirra Gange - Food Technology Year 8 Leisl Clarke - Religious Education Yahnika Mandemaker - English Charlotte Exelby - Humanities Archie Brewer - French/Information and Communication Technology/Mathematics Lily Caithness - Physical Education Merrin Giles - Science/Art/Drama/Photography/Textiles Alexander Duncan - Design Technology Stephan Mizza - Music Jordan Thomas - Digital Media Ella Tough - Food Technology Rachael Ramsay - Graphics Year 9 Jessica Wright - Religious Education Jessica Geary - English Hannah Perry - Mathematics/Humanities/Science/Food Technology/Photography Rory Hanks - Physical Education Natalie Sinclair - French Sharon Sabu - Digital Media/Information and Communication Technology Molly Kent - Graphics Charlie Adkins - Drama Aljon Miel - Design Technology Tahlia Jones - Art

ACADEMIC AWARDS

Year 10 Patrick Biro - Religious Education Tomei Dal Pozzo - Youth Ministry/Art/History Megan Thorn - English/Law and Finance/Money and Markets/Photography/Psychology Siobhan Beecroft - Biology/Chemistry Jemma Caithness - Mathematics/General Science Amelia Ellen - Geography Jazmin Busana - Design Technology Sage Burton - Drama Erin De Santis - Food Technology Chelsea Markley - Hospitality Chloe Maxwell - Physcial Education Alison Mancarella - Physics Jack Wilson - VET: Building and Construction (Year 1) Year 11 - Units 1 & 2 Ellie Holmes - Religion and Society Unit 1 Kate Brennan - Youth Ministry Unit 1/Specialist Mathematics Michaeleah Stephens - Literature/Theatre Studies Charlotte Perry - Art Taylah Brown - Biology/ Physical Education Emma Carlisle - English/Geography Chloe Adkins - Business Management Pia Westaway - Legal Studies/General Mathematics/Mathematics Methods Catherine Williams - Physics Ziara Condoluci - Psychology Belinda Denbrok - Chemistry Ciara Ryan - History - 20th Century Tomei Dal Pozzo - Health and Human Development Meghan Minogue - Economics Jake Waldron - VET: Music Production (Year 1) Jarvis Pryor - Product Design Billy Simpson - VET: Building and Construction (Year II) Harriett Steenholdt - VET: Applied Fashion and Design (Year II)

KARATE AUSTRALIAN

CHAMPIONSHIPS

Patrick Biro (10B) recently competed at the ISKA (International Sport Karate Association) Australian Championships in Sydney.

Patrick received Gold and the 2017 Australian Championship Title in Self-Defence Technique with the help of his brother Daniel (9C) as his competition partner. Patrick is the club’s first Australian Karate Champion and also received Silver in Clash Sparring, Sword Combat and Sumo.

Congratulations Patrick!

PROGRAMMING FOR GIRLS

COMPETITION AT MELBOURNE

UNIVERSITY

On 21 November Shae, Jessie and Amanda competed in the Programing for Girls Competition at Melbourne University. They have been attending workshops through the year to learn the coding program Alice. The girls did very well in the competition coming away with a silver medal.

Well done girls.

GIRLS LEADERSHIP FORUM

On Monday 27th November Emma Trease (Year 7), Jamillah Enbom (Year 7), Zara Littlejohn (Year 8), Kelsey Donohue (Year 8) and I attended the Girls Leadership Forum run by Cricket Victoria at Melbourne Girls College in Richmond. The students had to complete 6 leadership modules online before the forum and then participated in some workshops about leadership and a pilates and mindfulness session throughout the day. During the forum they got to hear and ask questions to a panel of esteemed guests who are all involved in leadership. These were Linley Frame, Tony Donemaide, Belinda Clark, Sonya Thompson, Rowie Webster, and Isabella Dymalovski .

The students mentioned they learnt a lot about how to be a good leader from the day. It’s great to see girls aspiring to leadership. Below is a photo of the students with some of the panel guest.

Nicole Dudman (Year 7 & 8 Wellbeing Co-ordinator)

AMEB MUSIC EXAMS

Term 4 has been an exciting time for the Instrumental Music students at Mary MacKillop College, with three students participating in the Australian Music Examinations Board country session of Exams.

Michael Brandon (Year 11), Cassie Scimonello (Year 8) and Reuben Strentz(Year 7) sat their exams and were hugely successful.

Michael Brandon – Sat his Grade 5 Saxophone Exam and received Honors – A

Cassie Scimonello – Sat her Grade 3 Baritone Exam and received Honors – A

Reuben Strentz – Sat his Grade 4 Trumpet Exam and received High Distinction – A+

Pictured Above: Michael Brandon and Reuben Strentz

I would like to congratulate my Brass and Woodwind students on their wonderful dedication and determination to improve and to take part in this exam experience. AMEB Exams encourage students to improve by giving them a sense of purpose for practicing. Students strive for improvement and success in their everyday rehearsals and are rewarded with a finished performance with Piano Accompaniment for the exam. Well done to you all on this wonderful milestone. It’s a brilliant achievement that you should be very proud of. Congratulations - Ms Winterhalter.

Congratulations to Jaive McEwan and Olivia Winchcombe who have been presented with the Gippsland Associated Theatre Awards 2017 for Most Outstanding Youth Performances (Male and Female) for their performances in Hairspray (Leongatha Lyrical Theatre). (Pictured with Ann Hemming)

GIPPSLAND ASSOCIATED THEATRE

AWARDS 2017

AJASS CAPTAINS DAY

2018 Captains attended a day at

Penola to assist their growth in

student leadership. The day’s

program was designed by Mary

MacKillop staff for all participating

AJASS College Captains for 2018

in the South Eastern Cluster. Bailey

Patterson, Meghan Minogue,

Jackson Dawson and Ziara

Condoluci attended.

Orientation Day morning tea provided by the House Leadership teams for 2018. Students Year 7 2018 enjoyed food, mingles and met their House leaders. Great merriment was enjoyed by all.

ORIENTATION DAY

VOCAL CAMP

From the 24-26 November, the vocal group stayed in Melbourne at City CYC with Miss Poletti and Mr Preston.

This camp allowed for us to retreat as a group and rehearse for our upcoming events and Christmas album. It allowed us to partake in fantastic workshops with highly skilled vocalists who each taught us valuable skills ranging from new technical warm-ups, to techniques designed to help combat performance nerves.

We also had the opportunity to hear the Melbourne Drone Orchestra play at the MPavilion, as well as attend mass at the Planetshakers Church, Melbourne City Campus.

This was an eye-opening experience and it definitely inspired us as a group to start brainstorming ways to bring the same energy we had just experienced, to our own school masses.

Spending three days together rehearsing and refining our songs outside the time constraints of the school bell was incredibly beneficial and it gave us a solid amount of time to truly knuckle down and work on what had to be done.

We would like to thank the school and all staff members involved in making this camp a reality. Your time, effort and support is greatly appreciated.

Overall, the camp was a true bonding experience that brought us closer as a team and allowed each person to step outside of their comfort zone and develop their own skills in a safe environment.

Pictured Back Row: Michaeleah Stephens, Jordan Thomas, Ella Tough, Jaive McEwan

Pictured Front Row: Olivia Winchcombe, Brooke Materia, Jessica Geary, Charlotte Perry, Molly Kent, Elly Poletti, Peter Preston

YEAR 7 GIRLS AND BOYS SSV

On Friday 24th November the Year 7 Girls and Boys SSV Tennis teams competed in the State Championships at Bundoora.

The students all played well in the balmy conditions. The Boys came 8th in the State and the Girls 5th.

A superb effort for our small country school!

Thanks to Campbell Evans for driving us there in the bus and the parents who came to support the students.

Nicole Dudman (Year 7 & 8 Well Being Co-ordinator)

Pictured Back Row: Malachi Ashley, Luke Marshman, Darcy Methven, Samuel Evans

Pictured Front Row: Charlie Hall, Olivia Vuillermin, Rachel Carlisle, Kate Little

SHAVE OUR HEADS TO FIGHT CANCER

A big thank you to these wonderful boys and our school community who came together for this wonderful cause! We started off with 6

boys going to shave their heads, and on the day we had 9 staff and 10 students who got the shave or chop! We thank Jai and his

family for attending! The Go Fund Me page will be open for another week if anyone would still like to donate!

https://www.gofundme.com/shaving-our-heads-to-fight-cancer

ORGANISERS PICTURED ABOVE

Back Row: Matthew McGannon, Lucas Ion, Sam McGannon, Harry McNeil and Jordan Hill

Front Row: Josh McGannon

MUSIC THEATRE GUILD OF VICTORIA AWARDS 2017

REPORT BY SAM WRIGHT

Earlier this year our College put on a rendition of Willy Russell’s ‘Blood Brothers’ to great acclaim. Over the last weekend we

took our cast to the Ulumbarra Theatre, Bendigo for the Music Theatre Guild of Victoria Awards. The College held nominations

for every possible category.

What is particularly impressive about this is the context for our College. We have not been a ‘musical’ or ‘arts’ school and we

have only been performing musicals for the last three years. As the Deputy Principal at the College I saw the huge community

building potential that whole school productions can have on schools and have campaigned for years for Mary MacKillop to

embark down this path.

Personally, I can’t sing, dance or act but I have always been keen on building a sense of wellbeing, engagement and

community at the College. When the opportunity presented itself at the school three years ago the production dream became a

reality. The Music Theatre Guild of Victoria Awards evening was the public recognition for what our College community has felt

since we embarked on the path of producing musicals three years ago.

We have an amazingly talented group of students that have been guided/mentored/taught ever so professionally by a team of

dedicated and passionate staff. The ‘Brick’ as they are commonly known is an award to the whole College community, including

the dedicated parents and talented ex-students who have made the last three years and last three musicals such a success.

MUSIC THEATRE GUILD OF VICTORIA AWARDS 2017

Our Director Bron Kalos role modelled excellence in the musical theatre space, also received her own Brick (Bruce Award) for her role in Wonthaggi Theatrical Group’s Chicago as well as her nomination for Director of the Year. Our Creative Director Meg Steenholdt ensured authenticity to the production with attention to every small detail so much so that the audience felt they were themselves transported to the rough backstreets of Liverpool for each scene. Elly Poletti, also nominated for her Musical Direction enabled the singing to build to the emotive heights associated with such a heart wrenching story. Our VET and VCAL students led by Ken Myors and Michael O’Keeffe were instrumental in the building and bumping in and it was amazing watching them operative like fully qualified tradesman during the process of design and construction.

What was posted from Bron Kalos – Director

“What an incredible year our little school has had in the arts. Fantastic effort by our students last night bringing home awards for our production and congratulations to the most amazing creative and generous teaching team Meg Steenholdt, Elly Poletti, Michael O'Keeffe, Sam Wright, Richard Muranty, Ken Myors who took our kids all the way to the best they can be. Very humbled to be part f our school and that team x #marymackillop #guilds #bestteamever”

What was posted on Social Media by Meg Steenholdt –

Creative Director:

To Brooke Materia, Holly Knight, Jacob Beckwith and Aidan

Clarke you were all deservedly nominated for awards and we

watched you genuinely cheer others on, congratulate

recipients, and deal with perhaps a little disappointment

(never focused on) with grace and dignity. We know the

dedication involved to achieve all that you have. Isaac

Muldoon, your focus and commitment...

We are so very proud of you all.

For ALL the cast who stood silently while having microphones

attached, waited in the wings, wore scratchy woollen jumpers

under lights, put up with ties being adjusted and performed your

very best -even though your school summer break could have

started by now, Congratulations! You gave ovations to the

other schools seated around us, went wild when Bron Kalos

won her own brick and consistently thought about others before

yourselves.

You all have every reason to celebrate. You saw the journey

though.

Now holiday and rest!

MUSIC THEATRE GUILD OF VICTORIA AWARDS 2017

Below are the cast in front of the impressive Ulumbarra Theatre in Bendigo.

Pictured Back Row: Michael O’Keeffe, Ethan Bath, Tayissa Walsh, Holly Knight, Charli Burns, Sandra Gibbins, Aidan Clark, Jacob Beckwith, Ruby Adkins, Jordan Green, Joseph McNeil, Joshua Wright, Ethan Falkingham

Pictured Middle Row: Meg Steenholdt, Breanna Ross, Harriett Steenholdt, Cassandra Scimonello, Lily Smith, Aljon Miel, Isabella Kent

Pictured Front Row: Charlotte Perry, Michaeleah Stephens, Molly Kent, Madelyn Krausz, Mitchell Scrimshaw, Pearl Hunter, Brooke Materia, Jack Cooper, Angus Moller, Charlie Adkins, Douglas Mancarella, Michael Brandon, Isaac Muldoon, Olivia Winchcombe, Jaive McEwan, Sage Burton, Sam Wright, Bron Kalos

Pictured Back Row: Bron Kalos, Elly Poletti, Brooke Materia, Holly Knight, Jacob Beckwith

Pictured Front Row: Isaac Muldoon, Aidan Clark, David Leslie, Sam Wright

OTHER NEWS

Christmas Mass Times 2017

Christmas Eve Masses Leongatha: Christmas Eve - 7.30 pm Mary MacKillop Pioneer Hall Tarwin Lower: Christmas Eve - 6.00 pm Korumburra: Christmas Eve - 7.30 pm Loch: Christmas Eve - 6.00 pm Foster: Christmas Eve - 7.30 pm

Christmas Day Masses Leongatha: Christmas Day - 10.00 am Meeniyan: Christmas Day - 10.00 am Mirboo North: Christmas Day - 8.30 am Toora: Christmas Day - 10.00 am Fish Creek: Christmas Day - 8.30 am

Advent Reconciliation Celebrations Leongatha: Wednesday 20 December 7.00 pm

There will be two priests at Leongatha

Foster: Thursday 21 December 6.00 pm Korumburra: Thursday 21 December 6.00 pm

Australian/New Zealand Exchange are looking for a Host Family for Sofie, a 16 year old Danish girl. She loves gymnastics, dancing & outdoor activities and is open minded and responsible. For further information please contact Sara Crighton at Student Exchange Ph: 02 99970709 or Local Co-ordinator Lyndall Green Ph: 0488 623636

PARENTS AND FRIENDS CHRISTMAS

RAFFLE

WINNERS

1st - J. Wilson 2nd - Darren Smith 3rd - T. Hill 4th - Merrin Giles 5th - Chris Furness 6th - Jess Wolf 7th - Robyn 8th - Josh Edden 9th - Merrin Giles

BOOK COLLECTION DAY

WILL BE HELD ON TUESDAY

23RD JANUARY

2018

AND THE

UNIFORM SHOP WILL ALSO

BE OPEN ON THIS DAY

11.00AM - 3.00 PM

PARENTS & FRIENDS NEWS

2018 SCHOOL FEES

At its recent October meeting, the College Advisory Board ratified the school fees for the 2018 school year.

The College has endeavoured to keep fee rises to a minimum whilst maintaining excellent curriculum and facilities.

The school fees for 2018 are:

One student family, $4,432 plus $435 Capital Levy Two student family, $7978 plus $435 Capital Levy

Three or more student family, $10,416 plus $435 Capital Levy

Discounts will continue to apply to the tuition fee component as per the College school fee policy. The Capital Levy is a per family compulsory fee to assist with the ongoing capital requirements of the College.

New in 2018:

In 2018, The College will invoice families on a per term basis rather than the usual yearly basis. Families who wish to pay annually at the commencement of the year may continue to do so.

A variety of payment methods are available to assist with payment of fees. Should any family need to discuss fee payment arrangements, please contact the Finance Department.

As 2017 draws to a close, the Parents and Friends would

like to thank all the volunteers who helped us out at BBQ’s,

making sandwiches and slices and generally with fundraising

activities throughout the year.

The Uniform Shop and Canteen would not run as efficiently

without the people who help Catherine and Fran out with

these College facilities. Thanks to all who donate their time

to help, whether it be once a term, or more.

Thank you to all the families who buy and sell P&F raffle

tickets to aid our fundraising efforts. It is greatly appreciated.

We have had some fantastic prizes up for grabs this year,

thank you to the companies and individuals who have

donated these great prizes. We are currently fundraising to

upgrade our Uniform Shop and Canteen facilities within the

College.

We look forward to next year and hearing from some new

parents or grandparents who would like to help our current

Committee out. All help, in whatever shape or form, is

greatly appreciated. If you think you would like to give us a

hand next year, please contact the office with your details

and P&F will be in contact.

A big thank you also goes out to the current committee, and

to the staff who help us throughout the year. Looking forward

to another successful year in 2018.

Donna Muldoon

Parents and Friends President

Returning to the College in 2018

If your child is not returning to the college in 2018 then please contact your child’s Director(Junior/Middle/

Senior) and collect a College Exit form from the office.

This will help to determine classes for next year. Thank you.

IMPORTANT DATES

Tues 19 Dec SCHOOL OFFICE CLOSES

2018

Mon 22 Jan SCHOOL OFFICE RE-OPENS

Tues 23 Jan BOOK COLLECTION DAY

TERM 1

Wed 31 Jan School Resumes for Year 7 and 12

Wed 31 Jan - Fri 2

Feb

Year 12 Retreat

Thurs 1 Feb School Resumes for Years 8 - 11

Tues 13 Feb School Swimming Sports

Wed 14 Feb Opening Mass

Mon 26 Feb - Fri 2 Mar

Year 9 OEG Camp

Wed 21 Mar School House Athletics