Week 8 Term 4 2022

From the Principal

Dear Parents, Staff and Students,

On Wednesday night in Sydney, our Vocational Pathways Coordinator, Mr Bernie Maginnity, was the recipient of the 2023 Premier's Vocational Education in Schools Scholarship. Mr Maginnity attended the reception at the Gallery Room, State Library of New South Wales, to receive his Scholarship from the Hon. Dominic Perrottet MP, Premier of New South Wales and the Hon. Sarah Mitchell MLC, Minister for Education and Early Learning & Deputy Leader of the Government in the Legislative Council. The scholarship of $15,000 is for a study to research current issues in vocational education that impact students in schools. This is a great honour for both Mr Maginnity and the College, and suitable recognition for the excellent work he undertakes so humbly and efficiently for our students in an area that has grown exponentially in recent years. Mr Campbell joined Mr Maginnity and his wife, Jodie, in Sydney for the awards ceremony.

A final reminder that next Monday, 5 December, is a Student Free Day to allow staff to undertake training in readiness for the rollout of ‘Compass’, the new integrated Education Management System the Lismore Diocese will be moving to next year. While regular classes will not be held on the day, to assist families we have engaged a number of casual teachers to provide supervision for Years 7 – 10 students at school on Monday if families are unable to make alternative arrangements. Students who attend school will need to ensure they have sufficient work to keep themselves occupied for the day. All families will receive an email from Year Coordinators in the coming days outlining some actions required before the end of the school year.

Important Dates:
The final school day for all students (Years 7 – 11) in 2022 will be Friday, 16 December.
The 2023 academic year commences on Tuesday, 31 January for Years 7 & 12 students. Years 8, 9, 10 & 11 commence on Wednesday, 1 February.

Speech and Prize-Giving Ceremony 
The restrictions on large groups gathering over the past couple of years has meant we have not been able to conduct our annual Speech and Prize-Giving Ceremony as a full College community. I am therefore very happy to announce that this year’s ceremony will be returning to a more traditional format on Tuesday, 13 December at 9.30am in the Colin Centre. Parents/Guardians are welcome to attend. While academic success is at the forefront of this celebration, there are also a diverse range of awards that highlight other student talents as well as commitment and service in various endeavours across all dimensions of College life. 

Given the demand for places at Woodlawn post-flood/s, if there are any current students who will not be returning to the College in 2023, please notify Mrs Debbie Melino, our College Registrar, ASAP so that we can contact families on our waiting list.

To celebrate the end of the school year we will hosting a P&F Christmas Nibbles/Drinks on Monday, 12 December at 5.30pm in the College Library. All are welcome to attend and enjoy some social time with other parents before the school year concludes.

There have been no changes to the NSW Health COVID-19 advice which remains as follows:
The COVID-smart measures continue to be in place and are vital in allowing us to keep our schools operational while prioritising student and staff wellbeing. These measures include:

• staying home if unwell and/or showing any symptoms;

• mask-wearing strongly encouraged, particularly when indoors and/or when physical distancing is not possible, and on public transport;

• continued mandatory mask-wearing for anyone working with students at greater risk of serious illness whether they be in a specialist centres, support unit or mainstream classroom;

• using rapid antigen tests (RATs) when showing symptoms or exposed to COVID-19;

• encouraging all students, staff and families to keep up-to-date with their vaccinations, including COVID-19 booster shots if eligible;

• NSW Health are also encouraging everyone in the community to continue to register positive RATs with Service NSW to ensure they receive timely support and advice, including access to antivirals for those eligible;

• schools are encouraged to continue to reinforce the importance of the COVID-smart measures to students, parents, carers and staff.

A reminder that packs of Rapid Antigen Tests (RATs) are available for collection from SSO should your daughter/son require these.

As this fortnight’s reflection, and as we journey towards Christmas, I include the following thoughts on the Season of Advent:
‘The Season of Advent has arrived. If there was ever a perfect time to reflect on hope, expectations, and our readiness to receive our Saviour once more in our lives, this is the time. Are we ready to welcome Lord as he comes to us?
Advent is a four-week liturgical period when with hearts and minds renewed we anticipate the fulfilment of God’s promise to be with us always. Jesus is the Emmanuel spoken by the prophets and angels who will bring us joy and peace. He will call us out of darkness into his wonderful light.
After these years of Coronavirus, wars, natural disasters, and people who may just feel hopeless, Jesus comes with hope. We must be ready to walk in this hope which will light our way to peace. May the 4-candles of our advent wreath serve as a reminder of our journey with God.
The scriptures remind us that we must be prepared. God’s kingdom is established among us. Do we recognize it? Unlike the days of Noah, we have the stories of people who came after him to show us the way. The scriptures speak volumes about how people can become distracted and unprepared as we wait for the day of the Lord…
Advent is a time of hopeful expectation. During this season we reflect on Jesus’ birth and his second coming. This is a time to allow our hearts and minds to become focused on encountering Jesus who is God’s gift to the entire world.
We know that the Lord is coming, we pray for patience as we wait. Watchful and ready we say, “Come Lord Jesus”.
(Spiritans, USA)

Finally, Mr Campbell and I have both addressed recent student Assemblies and encouraged all students to ‘stay the course’ in terms of their conduct and level of application over this final fortnight of school, in what has been another extraordinary year. We appreciate the support of all families in ensuring our students ‘finish well’. 

With best wishes for these final weeks of the school year.

Sincerely

Aaron Beach
Principal

From the Assistant Principal - Mission

We are currently celebrating the Season of Advent in the Liturgical Year. This is the time where we think about possibilities. Pope Francis has also challenged us to 'be shaken from our torpor and let us awaken from our slumber. Let us ask ourselves: Am I aware of what I am living? Am I alert? Am I awake?' Some of these questions upon reflection are challenging as I know myself the year has called for resilience, inner strength and finding ways to traverse everything that transpired. I think back to the connections we made, the community spirit that underpinned our responses to floods, COVID and everything else and I am truly grateful that I am part of the Woodlawn community. 

Last week I was honoured to take some of our St Vincent de Paul students across to Casino to assist the Rotary Club cater for St Mary's Primary School's Christmas Pageant. As a team, it was our first opportunity to provide service in the community and we look forward to many more chances to do so. If you need assistance with anything of this nature, our team of motivated, giving and positive Vinnies members may also be able to help you. They are currently promoting our Christmas Appeal for Home Group hampers. Everyone has the capacity to help others and provide hope in this Season of Advent.

The National team of presenters from the Together for Humanity Project recently spent two days at the College. This not-for-profit organisation brought a wealth of experience and knowledge around the area of diversity and difference. Zalman Kastel, the founder of the organisation, and his team of representatives from the Islamic, Jewish and Christian communities ran a series of interactive workshops aimed at raising awareness of subconscious bias, exploring how empathy can connect people and overcome differences of faith and memories relating to harm. They shared an in-depth, experiential learning journey about interfaith connection with two leaders of interfaith and intercultural understanding work in Australia, Mohamed Dukuly and Rabbi Zalman Kastel AM. The students reflected on their identities - ways they understand themselves, represent themselves and are represented by others - their values and communities they can identify with and feel responsible for. This was the beginning of a partnership we hope to continue into 2023.

Thanks to the SRC for providing us all with the chance to have a photo with our resident legend, Mark 'Santa' Wright. The smiles say it all. Thanks to the SRC for the energy and ideas they bring forward as representatives of our student voice.

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The Christmas theme continued with our casual clothes day. This day raised funds for a Christmas lunch for our Cambodian students at La Valla Primary School. All students who attend this school have physical and mental disabilities and have lives that are reliant on the generosity of strangers.  

We are grateful for the work of our Environment Club who have been collecting and recycling cans and bottles. Their service resulted in $150 being donated to our Cambodian connections.

We are now looking forward to celebrating the successes of our students at the annual Prize-Giving in Week 10.

Annette Reen
Assistant Principal - Mission
annette.reen@lism.catholic.edu.au

Student Wellbeing

Dear Parents and Caregivers,

As we move towards the end of term, it is easy to see that some of our young people are tired. This has been a busy school year as we have participated in many events that have not been scheduled over the last two years. Can I please encourage you to speak with your young person about maintaining standards of work and behavior in the lead-up to the holidays.

As we all as our students being busy as we near the end of the year, as part of our school commitment to supporting the mental health of our students, we have had a number of staff trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid. This is a two day course where participants learn how to assist adolescents who are developing a mental health problem, experiencing worsening of a mental health problem or in a mental health crisis. Thank you to the following staff for participating: Sharon Thompson, Luke Flynn, Ruben Garcia, Toni Pacey, Tayla Tickle, Ben Taylor, Kallie Deegan, Jodie Lynch, Justine Kennedy and Luc Larcher. This brings the total number of Woodlawn staff trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid to twenty-two. 

In addition, we have also had staff attend a two day workship, ASIST (Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training) to learn an evidence-based suicide intervention model to intervene and help prevent the immediate risk of suicide. In attendance were: Justine Kennedy, Fiona Fennamore, Nicole Hetherington, Sharon Robotham, Luke Flynn, Jesse Hayden and Joel Saye. This brings the total number of staff trained in this course to twelve. Each of these courses will be available to our staff in the coming years so that we can continue to have a whole school approach to supporting the wellbeing of our students.

On Tuesday, our Year 8 students attended a presentation from our local Youth Engagement Officers titled ThinkUKnow. This program is led by the AFP and delivered nationally in partnership with law enforcement and industry to raise awareness and educate the community about preventing online child sexual exploitation. The program addresses areas such as self-produced child exploitation (sexting), privacy and inappropriate/unwanted contact, online grooming, image-based abuse, sexual extortion and importantly encourages help seeking behaviour. Please check in with your young person to see what they learned during this presentation.

If you any questions or concerns, please contact me on 66262627 or fiona.fennamore@lism.catholic.edu.au

Regards,

Fiona Fennamore
Leader of Student Welfare
fiona.fennamore@lism.catholic.edu.au

VET Worldskills Competition

On 24 November, Ryan Fahey (Year 11) competed in the Plumbing division of the Regional VET Worldskills Competition at Newman Senior Technical College in Port Macquarie. Ryan is a School-Based Apprentice working with Rod Jones of Casino Plumbing. Ryan’s parents, Jo and Tony, accompanied him to Port Macquarie where he had to undergo a series of theory and practical processes to construct a water supply and drainage system.

It was an extremely close battle with students of such high calibre competing under immense pressure. We are so proud to announce that Ryan took out the Silver Medal for the event! Ryan commented, “it was great to see what other students can do and produce something to show my boss.” 

Tanya Pearson
Leader of Vocational Education & Training (VET) 
tanya.pearson@lism.catholic.edu.au

Book Pack Ordering Guide 2023

Book Packs are now available for 2023. Please find the lists located on the side panel of the Newsletter under College Information.

Uniform Shop

The St John's College, Woodlawn Uniform Shop is proudly managed by P&C Uniforms.
To ensure you have an easy and pleasant experience while ordering uniforms, we encourage you to order online ahead of time for easy click-and-collect in store.

Opening Hours:
Time: Monday 8.00am - 9.30am & Wednesday 11.00am - 2.00pm
Where: Colin Centre
Order Online: www.sjcwuniformshop.com.au 
Book a fitting: www.sjcwuniformshop.com.au/bts-appointments

Second Hand Uniform Shop:
Time: 11am - 2pm
When: Every Wednesday
Where: Colin Centre 

Please note: The Uniform Shop will be CLOSED on Monday, 20 February.  It will reopen on Wednesday, 22 February from 11am. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

Please click on the link below to place an order or to make a booking. We encourage parents/guardians to make appointments for fittings due to time restraints. 
https://sjcwuniformshop.com.au/

Leanne Copeland
Uniform Shop Convenor
0407 739 237 

Canteen News

Term 4 Changes
Please be aware there has been a price increase on some menu items. 
Flexischools orders will have a new cut-off time of 9.00 am.

The cash free way to pay! - REGISTER NOW
Paying for lunches is now safer and hassle free. With cashless cards there's no need for students to bring cash to school.

The College has Flexischools to allow students to pay at the Canteen using their existing student ID card. Paying for lunches and items at recess or lunch is now safer and hassle free. With cashless cards there's no need for students to bring cash to school. Parents can set daily spending limits and view transactions online. Parents can also top-up funds at anytime.

The Canteen has introduced a Fast-Track line for students who have pre-ordered to collect their lunches, making it much easier and quicker for students.

We encourage all students to register. This will allow for those days when your student may have forgotten their homemade lunches.

Please follow the link below to register now:

2023 Canteen Roster 
We are in the process of preparing our Canteen Roster for 2023. We would like to invite all parents, both new and existing, to join our roster to assist with Canteen duties for the new calendar year. Please complete the form below should you be interested.