Welcome back for Term 3,

Our College has the honour of being named after a wonderful woman, the first Australian saint, St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. Her feast day, 8 August, is an opportunity to reflect on her remarkable qualities. The Sisters of St Joseph have a Novena to Mary MacKillop which helps us to pause and reflect on these qualities:

1. A Woman of Faith – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of faith.
2. A Woman of Conviction – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of conviction.
3. A Woman of Courage – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of courage.
4. A Woman of Action – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of action, for action requires faith in God and trust in his word to accomplish great things for the Kingdom.
5. A Woman of Compassion – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of compassion.
6. A Woman of Prayer – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of prayer.
7. A Woman of Forgiveness – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of forgiveness.
8. A Woman of Vision – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of vision.
9. A Woman of the Poor – Mary, teach me to trust in God that God will provide what is needed for me to be a person of the poor.

https://www.sosj.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Nine-Days-of-Prayer-with-Mary-MacKillop.pdf

College Values – Excellence

Our College values are Compassion, Courage, Excellence, Hope, Justice, Love, Respect and Service. At the Year Assemblies in Week 1, I spoke to the students about our value of excellence.

I defined excellence as the quality of being outstanding. Excellence simply put means to strive to be the best you can be and to do the best you can do. There are many ways to demonstrate excellence, for example, our Semester 1 award recipients modelled excellence in learning, our students who achieved “Consistently” on many of their reports modelled excellence in application and attitude, and our students who live out our College Values daily model excellence in the way they treat others and hold themselves.

I stressed to all students that the beginning of new term, especially Term 3, allows everyone an opportunity for a fresh start. Term 3 is not just a new term, it’s also a new semester. Semester 1 reports are completed, Parent-Teacher-Student Interviews have been held and Semester 1 is over. It’s a time to set new goals, create a new mindset and strive for excellence.

I challenged all students to strive for excellence in learning and to achieve awards in Semester 2. To do this they need to value learning time by attending school everyday, being punctual to school and class, coming prepared, cooperating with their teachers, collaborating with their peers and working hard both at school and in home study.

HSC Trial Examinations

Year 12 students began their exams on Monday 1 August. The exams will run until Monday 15 August. As a community we keep them in our prayers and will do our best to provide them with an environment optimal for their exams.

It was great to see so many students take up the opportunity to attend holiday masterclasses run by their teachers, to patronise the library for study with the extended hours of operation during Weeks 1 and 2 of this term and to utilise the SCS Masterclasses. Thank you to the following teachers Mrs Harding, Mrs Toohey, Miss Krasic, Mrs Flanagan, Mrs Lowe, Mr Zammit, Mr Carosi, Mr Andrejev, Mr Moore, Ms Fernandes, Mrs Cox, Mrs Wastie, Ms Gagliano, Ms L’Aiguille,  Miss Al-Gharib, Mr Shewan, Mrs Gomes, Ms Ecarma, Mr O’Brien, Mr Khem, Mrs Hornas, Mrs Ryan, Miss O’Regan, Mrs Arairo, Miss Mokdassi and Mr Reutens.

JJAMM Week

Week 5, 15-19 August is JJAMM Week. During the week we reflect on the lives, words and actions of St Joseph, Julian (Tenison-Woods) And St Mary of the Cross MacKillop. JJAMM Week is always a highlight of the school year and one we have missed during the pandemic in 2020 and 2021. It is wonderful to be able to once again celebrate this week with our staff and students.

Uniform Shop Moving

We are moving the Uniform Shop offsite so that parents have greater access to the shop. Currently the Uniform Shop is only open every Wednesday and Thursday from 8am until 9.30am. By moving our Uniform Shop to the Cowan and Lewis retail outlet at 156 Main Street, Blacktown, parents will have access 5 1/2 days per week.

Normal trading hours for Blacktown retail outlet are as follows:

• Monday to Friday from 8am – 4.30pm
• Saturday from 9am – 12pm

For the convenience of parents, orders can be done online with free delivery to the school on Wednesdays and Fridays. Alternatively orders can be picked up at the Blacktown retail shop or delivered to homes via Australia Post with a $15 delivery fee. Exchanges or refunds simply require parents to fill in an online form and leave the goods at the College Office. The exchange would then be delivered to school for collection. We hope to still sell a few items, such as the grey stockings, through the College Office.

Throughout January there are extended trading hours:

• Monday to Friday from 8am – 5pm
• Saturday from 9am – 3pm
• Sunday from 10am – 1pm

The move will happen during the September school holidays. We hope that the change will be beneficial to families.

Enrolling Now

We have limited places in Years 7-11 for 2023. Please let any prospective students know to contact the College to secure a place. We are also enrolling for 2024.

COVID-19 

Please note the following important points:

• Any student who tests positive to COVID-19 must isolate for 7 days and provide documentation which includes the start and end dates of isolation. 
• Any student who has COVID-19 symptoms should get tested and remain at home until she is well. 
• Only a positive PCR Test (not a RAT) will be accepted for Year 12 students who miss HSC Trial Examinations.
• Only a positive PCR Test (not a RAT) will be accepted for Year 11 students who miss end of year examinations in September.
• The latest advice states that students who are a household contact of someone who has COVID-19 and do not have any symptoms, can go to school and no longer need to isolate at home for 7 days. 
• Students are encouraged to wear masks, maintain physical distancing and follow safe hygiene practices.
• The College will maintain extra high touch and bathroom cleaning, and minimise large group gatherings by reducing assembly sizes and utilising Zoom.