Dear Mary MacKillop Community

Thank you for your support over the past two weeks.

There was a time when butter could not be eaten during Lent.  Of course, if you were in southern Europe you had a ready supply of olive oil to cook with or to season bread with.  In northern Europe though, where olive trees did not grow and there was a healthy dairy industry, representation had to be made to the Pope that eventually meant butter was deemed an essential requirement.  In the same way, in the 1960s Catholics could again in good faith eat meat on Fridays, and at the same time the functions of the Mass changed to reflect the renewing Church.  The priest spoke in English, faced the congregation.  Before long, lay people, men and women, were taking part in the liturgy where only twenty years earlier it was a place of sanctuary and mystery.

I mention these changes because there are of course some constants in the Church.  Even though the way the Mass is said has changed, the Mass itself has not – it remains the pinnacle of our liturgical expression.  And, even though what we may give up for Lent has changed, it remains a time of renewal, of recognition of self, and of supporting all around us.  St John Chrysostom says it best,  “No act of virtue can be great if it is not followed by advantage for others. So, no matter how much time you spend fasting, no matter how much you sleep on a hard floor and eat ashes and sigh continually, if you do no good to others, you do nothing great.”  He wrote that in the 4th century – and it is just as relevant today.

In communicating this ideal to the Junior and Senior College, I have asked them to reflect on themselves.  I have asked them to give up unkind words, selfishness and apathy.  I have asked Senior College students to give up feeling negative about their abilities, appearance or friendship groups.  This morning, I asked the Junior College to give up saying “I can’t”.  Through little acts like this we can bring ourselves a greater community.

Yours sincerely
 
Chris Gabbett

The safety and wellbeing of students is very important in all of our schools and is a shared responsibility of parents, staff and students. There are a number of ways we promote safety and wellbeing. Through our Child and Youth Risk Management Strategy, we proactively set up safe systems and practices for recruitment, supervision, conduct and responding to risks, in order to protect students. We also inform our school communities about respectful relationships, expectations for conduct and how to avoid dangers. 

Our schools implement the Daniel Morcombe Child Safety Curriculum into classes during the year. This program teaches students about ways to stay safe and what to do if they do not feel safe. We have a formal process for taking action and reporting situations where there is a reasonable suspicion that a child has been abused or harmed, or a staff member has behaved inappropriately. All of these processes come under the banner of ‘student protection’.
 
Our School Student Protection Contacts (SSPCs) play an important role in all aspects of student protection. Students may speak with any staff member if they have concerns, however our SSPCs have more in-depth training to manage student protection situations. The SSPCs for Mary MacKillop Catholic College for 2019 are Sean Albion - AP Wellbeing Senior; Bridget Rillie - AP Wellbeing Junior; Wendy Collins – Middle Leader Wellbeing; Stephen Coren – Middle Leader Wellbeing; Amanda Roll - College Counsellor and Charmaine Cridland – Deputy Principal.
 
Their names and photographs are on the “Feeling Safe” posters around the school. Please talk to your child about who they could speak to if they have any concerns and remind them who our SSPCs are this year.
 
If you would like any further information about what we have in place for student protection, you can view the Toowoomba Catholic Schools website at www.twb.catholic.edu.au; speak to someone at the school office; or contact the Student Protection Officer at the Toowoomba Catholic Schools Office on 4637 1400.

2019 Student Protection Poster

Penola 2 PC Class have been facilitating a clothing charity drive in support of a community in Bouganville Papua New Guinea. The shipment will go to PNG in about 3 weeks, with the local Rotary Club collecting and providing shipment of items.

On Friday 1 March, on Sohano Island, Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, 4 houses were burnt completely to the ground, and another 30 were irreparably damaged, as well as looted prior to the fire. As a result, many families have now been left homeless, with only the shirts on their backs. Priceless items, heirlooms, memories and of course household items disappeared in an instant due to the unfortunate actions of a few youth on a wrong and misguided life path.  

At present, the affected are staying with any family close by, and getting help from the local church in relation to shelter and food. However, these options are not viable in the long term as the houses they are currently sharing with family do not accommodate a large amount of people due to their size. Many of those affected are nurses who work at the hospital, and so it is not just imperative for all the families to be helped as soon as possible, but also these women who are trying to aid others at the same time, get back to some sort of normalcy. We have collaborated with Noosa Rotary and Toowoomba Rotary to aid us at this time.

Thank you to all of the families and members of the community who made generous donations towards this worthy cause.

Over the coming fortnight, all students at Mary MacKillop Catholic College will be involved in classroom lessons and discussions regarding the topic of Bullying. This awareness ties in with the National Day of Action Against Bullying on Friday March 15, 2019.

 
Our College has three key messages: Be Safe, Be Respectful, Be a Learner. Educators and parents together, play a key role in preventing and responding to bullying.

Further information for families can be located at www.bullyingnoway.gov.au webpage. Here you will find information around definitions of bullying, discussion ideas, age appropriate problem-solving skills, warning signs and strategies to support your child. To support you in working with you own child/ren, each family will receive a Mary MacKillop fridge magnet, outlining the approach taught at school to respond to bullying. Please talk this through with your own family members.

1. Ignore
2. Talk friendly
3. Walk away
4. Talk firmly
5. Report

Students in both primary and secondary school are strongly encouraged to report concerns to an adult. The secondary students can also report any incidences through the Student Intranet Home Page on the bullying reporting tab. 

The Bullying No Way! Resource provides a parent guide to talk to your child about bullying. This resource has been attached to this letter for your reference.

If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact your child/s class and or PC teacher.

Tuesday, 19 March celebrates International Read to Me Day. This day was established by the Child Writes Foundation to encourage the growth and spread of adult literacy. So where does the foundation for literacy begin? Being read to as a child helps to model the skills of reading and encourage literacy and a love of reading in adults. 

While reading to young children is crucial for the development of literacy, shared reading should not stop once children become independent readers.  We should continue reading with our children until they no longer wish to share reading with us, ensuring that these experiences are enjoyable, as they can influence children’s future attitudes toward reading, as well as building their confidence and competence as readers.  (Merga, 2017)

Celebrate International Read to Me Day by sharing a story with your child or loved one. Whether sharing a bedtime story or reading together at any time of the day, reading expands vocabulary, encourages creativity and fosters a sense of togetherness. Happy Reading.

Click here to read more information on the International Read to Me Day Facebook page.

The following table notes all the College Ensembles rehearsal times as well as the Ensemble Director. These times are for the entire year.

A reminder that regular attendance is required for all College Ensembles. Please ensure that apologies are given if students are unable to attend a rehearsal. This is important as we prepare for performances at the College Open Day as well as Eisteddfods and Concerts later in the year.

A sincere thank you goes to all the students and parents who are involved in the ensembles each week. 

Open Day

The College Open Day is fast approaching and the Music Department is busy preparing performances for this event.

Ensembles:
All ensembles with the exception of both Junior and Senior String Ensemble will be performing on the day. Please note that all students involved in ensembles are expected to attend. Information with exact times of performance will be made available shortly along with a permission slip through Edsmart.

Solo Performances:
Students have had the opportunity to sign up to audition to perform at Open Day. The audition process is mainly to ensure students are able to perform a piece of work competently under and have correct performance etiquette. All ability levels are welcome! If your child missed out on signing up please contact me to make arrangements. 

Practice
This week at the College many of the Ensembles have been working hard to practice their pieces for Open Day. Here are a few photos of their hard work! Notice the looks of concentration!

The name ‘Lent’ comes from an old English word meaning ‘to lengthen’. Traditionally, in our catholic faith tradition it has been used to describe the 6-week period leading to Easter because in the northern hemisphere it coincided with the time when the short winter days were gradually growing longer.

Lent is a time for strengthening our faith, a time to reflect on who we are and where we are going. It is a time of quietness and prayer, a time of penance and meditation, a time to become aware of our strengths and weaknesses.

The ashes that are marked on our foreheads on the first day of Lent are a symbol of humility, purification and sorrow and remind us of the need to repent our failings. But we remember also that we are Easter people – that good can come out of evil, that death gives way to new life and that there is hope in the midst of despair.

During Lent we try to make a conscious effort to prepare ourselves for Easter. We can do this by increasing our prayer, helping others, fasting, giving up things we particularly like, and supporting Project Compassion.

In the spirit of renewal and conversion we observe Lent by reflecting on the central events of Jesus’ life and welcoming the opportunity to grow through changing our lives.


Caritas Just Leadership

12 of our junior and senior leaders attended Just Leadership training days last week lead by the Caritas team from Brisbane and Toowoomba. The leaders are inspired after this training to break open the Caritas message of Hope this Lent through the stories and people in focus around the world. Each week they will present a school focus at assembly in prayer time.

This group of leaders also have some projects in the planning phase which will support not only Caritas, but other Catholic church agencies throughout the year and we look forward to seeing these projects come to fruition.

Our Project Compassion boxes have been distributed to classes last week so students and families are asked to “give a little” by placing coins in their collection box. At the end of the term and before we go on our Easter holidays, we will count all the money raised and pass it along to Caritas Australia.

This year the theme is “100% Hope.”

As Pope Francis said, “Cultivate with love the seeds of goodness, beauty and truth that God sows in every new generation.”

School lead Mass this Saturday 16 March at 6pm.
Please note this is the first Saturday evening Vigil held at Highfields and we would love to see our students and their families support this Mass. The second group of our Year 4 Confirmation students will be making a commitment pledge during this Mass.

Thank you to those families from Years 6, 10 and 11 who have responded to the invite to be part of the Mass ministries. A list of roles assigned for the Mass was distributed on Thursday to those students who responded to the note sent out last week.

Caritas Guest Speaker

Our College is privileged to host a visit from Baskoro, an international visitor for Caritas Australia.  He is here to share his story and that of Tati’s from Indonesia (Project Compassion story – Week 2).

Baskoro will speak to the Junior and Senior school students in sessions on Tuesday 19 March. 

Prayer for the week:

God of Love, 
through this Lenten journey,
purify my desires to serve you.
Free me from any temptations to judge others,
to place myself above others.
Please let me surrender even my impatience
with others,
that with your love and your grace,
I might be less and less absorbed with myself,
and more and more full of the desire
to follow you, in laying down my life
according to your example.

Amen

Rosie Harrison

Assistant Principal Religious Education

Last week our Year 7 cohort attended a camp Emu Gully. While at Emu Gully the student’s were challenged physically and mentally to come together as a group and see what they could achieve when all working towards a common goal. Every activity used an ANZAC theme to get them to step up and show characteristics like Integrity, Respect, Self-Sacrifice and Perseverance. 

The camp was a great success and numerous student’s who aren’t generally the leaders of the group while at school stepped up and showed the cohort another side to them. Some of the many highlights were the night activity, Templeton’s Crossing, and cooking their own meals.

Thanks to all staff who attended the camp: Mr Brunner, Mrs Koch, Mrs Niemeyer, Mrs Holman, Mrs Langerak, Mr Baines. Without your support the camp would not have happened. Also a special thanks to Mr Naiker, Mrs Harrison, Mr Coren, Ms Cridland and Mr Gabbett who came down to run activities with the students in the evening sessions.

 
Sean Albion Assistant Principal Wellbeing Senior.

For the past two terms (Term 4, 2018 – Term 1, 2019), the under 12 boys Mary MacKillop Touch Football team has competed in the Friday Night Touch Competition. We played many games throughout the two terms, losing only two games all season! Our team gelled together well to produce some exciting touch footy.  We unfortunately lost in the semi final to very good opposition. 

Congratulations to all boys for their participation in training and games. The hard work has started to show reward. A big thank you to Ben Hackwood and Josh Roach for being assistant coaches. All the boys benefited from their wisdom and were great role models demonstrating the importance of teamwork, respect for the opposition and ourselves and most importantly, how to have fun. A big congratulations to Darby Richardson for scoring his first ever try in competition!

Swimming Carnival 

Last Friday in assembly, the Senior School Age Champions and overall Champion House were announced.  Congratulations to the following students who are our Senior Age Champions for 2019:

The overall Champion House was awarded to Tenison House.  There were some excellent performances throughout all age groups with a number of records broken.  Congratulations to the following students who have broken or set new records:  Alara Williams, Bella Scrivens, Lucas Ward, Hannah Rosenthal, Anastasia Topalov, Elly Close, Elijah Logan, Nathan Haddow, Jack Files, Lucas Paynter, Elise Scrivens, Henry Sheath, Cassandra Lawson, Ky Brunner, Dylan Schmaling and Gretel Worner.

Many thanks to the staff, students and parents who all contributed to make this year’s swimming event a success.

AFL & Touch Football
Congratulations to Henry Sheath who has been selected in the 13-15 years Darling Downs School Boys Australian Rules Team.  Best of luck at the State Championships on the Gold Coast in May.  Congratulations also to Josh Dalziell who has been selected for the Darling Downs 13-15 years boys Touch Football team.  

Trials – Week 8
Good luck to students who will be trialling at the DD 10-12 Years Schools Regional Boys and Girls Touch Football Trials, Soccer DD trials for 13-16 years boys and 13-15 years girls, and Inner Downs Rugby League Trials U11's & U12’s boys.

Inner Downs and Darling Downs trials – Nomination Due Dates

The following trials will be held in March. If you have not already nominated your child could you please contact our College so that we can organise nomination forms to be sent to you through Edsmart?

Just a reminder that parents will have their school account billed for nomination fees. There will be no need to send cash to school or paper forms.

Cross Country Carnival Schedule and Information

CLICK HERE to access the Cross Country Schedule and Information

Week 6 and 7 Stars of the Week and WESTIE Awardees.

College Leader and Year 11 student, Connor McKerrow, recently represented the College at the Toowoomba Regional Council Youth Leader Presentation along with leaders from other Towooomba schools.

Undergoing a rigorous application process in 2018, Connor McKerrow was selected as one of 25 Toowoomba Regional Council Youth Leaders, saying of the achievement, “I like helping people and being active in the community. I want to help not only in the Highfields area, but the wider Toowoomba community and expand on my area of influence to make improvements for youth”. To keep himself on track, Connor believes two mantras ring true, “what goes around, comes around” and “don’t expect anyone to do anything you wouldn’t expect of yourself”. These are values Connor believes tie in with what he has learned at Mary MacKillop.