From the Principal

Congratulations to our 2023 HSC class of graduates! Yesterday their HSC and ATAR results were released. The college Staff and I were delighted with their performance across almost every subject. It is immensely pleasing to see their persistent hard work and energetic commitment rewarded so richly, especially following the disruptive challenges of their 2019/20 COVID years. They should feel very satisfied and fulfilled by these outstanding HSC results. Congratulations!

The HSC highlights at this time are:

Stage 4 & 5 Awards Assemblies

Congratulations to all the students who were acknowledged last week for their successes in academic subjects and co-curricular activities, each receiving Academic Excellence, Academic Achievement, Merit Certificates or special College Awards. As Principal, it is extremely satisfying to present these awards to students who discovered that the pathway to success can be littered with distracting challenges. In spite of this, to apply themselves to studies with consistent discipline, often topped up by some intense effort and discussion time with others, the girls personified the Marist spirit. 

The highlight of each of the Award Ceremonies is our Marian Award. The Marian Award is awarded to a student in each year group for their commitment to living in the “way of Mary”. This has been witnessed by many staff, each noting how the girls have been living each day with a joy and thankfulness for all that she has been given; who commits to prayerfulness; who shows steadfastness in faith; and who has committed to the service of God and others. 

Congratulations to the 2023 recipients:

Year 7
	Annabelle Piggott Silver
Year 8
	Katelyn Rookes
Year 9
	Amelia Joseph
Year 10
	Hannah Khoury

Stage 4 and 5 Marian Awards

On Tuesday, the College community celebrated GALA DAY with enormous enthusiasm. The excitement and House spirit was just so evident on the day as well as the lively competition between each of the Houses. I congratulate Year 11 who prepared the other Year levels, demonstrating both their leadership and their persuasive ability to set House goals in preparation for a successful GALA DAY. It was a grand community example of ‘Evolve, Endeavour & Exceed”. 

Congratulations to the following Houses: 

Gratitude for the 2023 year

As College Principal, it is with much pride and gratitude that I acknowledge our student achievements and their consistent application throughout this 2023 year. I especially thank all those who have contributed to our vibrant MSCW community. As confident young women our girls have helped develop their ‘Marist Compass’ through their conspicuous love of learning and contribution to the wider community through Marist service, social justice activities, sport, creative and performing arts and more. Many of the achievements of students will appear in the 2023 Year Book – The Tower.

To our wonderful Teaching and Support staff, thank you for your proven flexibility to continue to navigate our changing educational environment. Your classroom and coaching guidance, often unseen, as well as your professional dedication and enthusiasm is greatly appreciated. The positive impacts of such caring, instruction and guidance is not always immediately evident, often emerging decades later. You have also played a role in nurturing and supporting our Marist girls’ families to ensure their learning and wellbeing needs have been well supported. Without such efforts by our staff, the wonderful opportunities, given to our students would not be possible. 

I acknowledge the following staff who are leaving MSCW and thank them for their contributions to the College: 

• those who have given significant service to the College through their roles as permanent staff members: Claudia Calvi, Deborah Crombie, Joanne George, David Greenwell, Gemma Muller, Laura Peacock, Ellie Phillips and Kate Sinclair.

• those who have been with us on a short-term contracts as well as staff who have completed casual blocks: Marisa Incognito, Janet Rennie and Evan Tancred.

I would also like to wish those staff who are taking 12 months leave in 2024, a time of relaxation and renewal: Carly La Rossa and Nick Muller. 

As the year closes, I thank Fr Brian Wilson sm, Fr Aliki Langi sm, Fr Greg Morgan, Fr Sacha Burmudez-Goldman and the Parish Priests of our feeder schools, for their support and care throughout 2023 and the time they commit to supporting the faith life of our students and staff. Their readiness to join our college community on special church feasts and events has been mush appreciated. 

To our parents, ‘Thank you’ for your consistent support and trust. It has been wonderful to see parents back on-site for our showcase evenings, Parent Engagement meetings, Information Nights and Social Nights. I especially say thank you for your emails of support and gratitude as we navigated the year. 

And finally, as we journey through the Advent season and prepare our homes for the coming of Jesus, I wish every student, staff member and family at Marist Sisters’ College the blessings of Christmas and look forward to a successful and rewarding 2024. May your family enjoy any planned gatherings and remain safe throughout the vacation period. I’m looking forward to doing the same with family, armed with a selection of good books in between.