Photo above: Kennedy Baptist College students are thrilled to get a visit from the Army’s 10th Light Horse Regiment

Dear Parents and Families

Kennedy endeavours to develop and foster strong relationships with our community members and two highly successful events have recently reinforced this. Firstly College Sunday was a great event highlighting the talents of our students and our keynote speakers, Brett from “How Ridiculous” and Peter Christofides were very well received. Thank you to all of our families who attended on the day.

Secondly, our Year 10/12 and Year 8/11 parent afternoons were a great opportunity for parents to discuss student progress with our staff. These were extremely well attended. The same structure and process will take place early Term 2 for Year 7/9 students on Thursday 28 April. We look forward to a similar response from families.

Our planning for Term 2 is now complete and our focus will be on preparing Year 10 families for the selection of courses and units for 2017. Throughout Term 2 a comprehensive program of parent evenings and individual counselling is planned to help families make the best informed decisions. This is particularly important as the structure for Year 11 and the WACE is very different to the Lower School curriculum. I encourage all Year 10 families to attend all information nights and be proactive during this important phase of schooling for students.

Swimming Success

Congratulations to our interschool swimming team who performed wonderfully as a team to provide worthy competition in the ACC Division B swimming carnival last week. It was fantastic to see Kennedy students support each other so well and produce outstanding results.

Mark Ashby
Principal

Boldness is the willingness to get things done in spite of the risks.

In the early Church boldness was a necessary qualification for those who were followers of Jesus, those who were not only subject to persecution but also to ridicule and contempt (Acts 4). But boldness is a characteristic that has seen so much good done, from the work of the Royal Flying Doctor service through to the service of the Salvation Army. It is boldness which in 1898 saw the namesake of our College, William Kennedy, leave the comfort of Melbourne for the pioneer life of the Great Southern region of W.A. Along with his wife Irene, William Kennedy pioneered churches from Katanning through to Midland Junction. 

It is easy to look back and see only the successes, not taking into account that it took the Reverend John Flynn ten years of campaigning before he saw his vision to provide a ‘mantle of safety’ for those in the Australian bush or that William Booth, (the founder of the Salvation Army) was banned from a number of churches and William and Irene Kennedy lost their only son 17 months after he was born. 

Yet boldness is not limited to those who do amazing things. The symbol of the Cross and all that it represents, such as, forgiveness, salvation, redemption reconciliation,  is central to all that Believers treasure because  the outcome is that  with boldness we can approach Almighty God and call Him our Heavenly Father (Eph. 3:8-13).

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus and all in Him, is mine;
Alive in Him, my living Head,
And clothed in righteousness divine,
Bold I approach the eternal throne,
And claim the crown, through Christ my own.
-Charles Wesley-

College Sunday was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who attended. Our choir and band presented the music piece 'Beautiful Things'. 

Mr Mark Ashby presented our strategic development plan for the next three years to the College community and updated us with the building progress in which our new Sports Centre will commence shortly from Term 2 onwards. 

Mr Brett Stanford from 'How Ridiculous' shared how they are driven by a desire to push the boundaries, to break records and to be better human beings. He reiterated the importance of knowing who we are and what we do and that we understand why we exist and what drives us. He challenged the students to make a difference in the lives of others and to live a selfless life.

This year the College Sunday theme was "Freedom" and our keynote speaker, Mr Peter Christofides shared about how we can be bound by legalism in our identity, our ability and our security and that Christ has set us free through God's grace.

Ms Linda Ang
Public Relations Officer
 

Mr Mark Ashby highlighted the huge opportunities and responsibilities ahead, including camps, excursions, overseas trips and exchanges, both sporting and academic. We took time to acknowledge students achievements and contributions to the College Community.

Year 11/7s Peer Student Mentors

Seventy Year 11 students were acknowledged for their important contribution and impact on the lives of the new Year 7 students. The benefits of having the Year 11 mentors were quantified through feedback from students, parents and the speed at which the Year 7 cohort cemented itself as an integral part of the College community.  We would love to encourage current Year 10 students to consider the possibility of becoming an 11/7 mentor in 2017.

Interhouse and Interschool Swimming Carnivals
We recognized all the individual achievements and everyone who participated in the recent swimming carnivals. This year’s King and Queen of the pool were Benjamin Wai and Hannah Butler.

Click here for the top five swimmers in each year group. 

House Point draw
Before we commenced with the Term 1 House Point draw, we announced the overall Year 7 House Week Event held in Week 5 goes to King.

The following students from each of the four houses received a Garden City gift card:

Forrest Winner: Madison Lun (Year 12)
Stirling Winner: Anja Kostadinovic (Year 12)
King Winner: Catelyn Smillie (Year 9)
Eyre Winner: Dylan Donjerkovich (Year 12)

Out of the above winners, Anja who managed to get the ball into the bucket won the Fitbit Charge HD grand prize and managed to get another house point draw for her House.  Jacinta Flynn (Year 7) won the fifth Garden City gift card. 

The final take away message for students from the assembly was: Who would you follow? We can choose to follow the top singer and entertainment figure on social media or be like Peter and Andrew from the bible message in Matthew 4:18-22 who decided to follow Jesus who have changed history and lives of people till this day.

Click here for more photos.

Two Easter Bunnies made a surprise visit to the College last Thursday at recess!

Students swamped the bunnies for chocolate eggs and hugs.

Photo above: The team representing Kennedy. Click here for more photos.

Congratulations to our 2016 Interschool swim team on their effort in the “B” division - a significant test of both quality swimmers and depth. With a solid training base under the coaching of Mr Ray Utting, many of our squad improved their sprinting speed by 10% - ensuring that we gave our best effort despite finishing in 8th position.

Our champion swimmers Benjamin Wai and Lachlan Belke again led by example. 

Benjamin Wai came first in the following U15 events, 100m Freestyle, 50m Breaststroke, 50m Butterfly, 50m Backstroke.

Lachlan Belke came first in the U16 100m Freestyle.

Thanks to my fellow staff swim committee members Mrs Kym Scanlan and Mr Simon Haydock and a big special mention to Miss Jessica Kennedy on her amazing administration skills, making sure our large squad were ready in time.

Mr Richard Main
Interschool Swimming Co-ordinator

Click here for the results.

Term 1 Summer Southern Associated Schools (SAS) has finished, and what a season we had! All students who competed should be extremely proud not only of their achievement on the courts and fields but also the way they held themselves throughout the season with their excellent display of sportsmanship. Results have not been finalised for winning schools but it is safe to say, it’s a close one!

Congratulations to Mr Ben Pether and the Girls Basketball team, and Miss Katie Hair with the Girls Volleyball teams who finished on top of their respective SAS divisions. These teams will now compete in the Inter zone final against the winning Northern Associated Schools (NAS) teamson  6 Aprill at 4-5pm. Good luck to both teams.

Miss Jessica Kennedy
SAS Co-ordinator

During Term 1 Kennedy Baptist College competed in the metro pool of the Kim Hughes Shield for an opportunity to progress through to finals. Although we did not win any games, the boys performed admirably and represented the College to the best of their ability.

The standout performer was captain Josh Chojnowski who scored 136 runs at 45.33 with a top score of 57.

The following players made their debut for the College 1st XI
Selleck Darch, Lachlan Kay, Bailey Kentish, Jacob Liebeck, Brayden Moore, Jack Wegner, Tom Weston,  Abraham Doss, Nathan Hitch, Dane Johnston, Jordan Middleton, Travis Parker and Jason Jones.

Mr Ross Macauley
Cricket Co-ordinator

Congratulations to all students and staff who competed in the Fremantle Corporate Triathlon on 20 March 2016.The triathlon is based on the Fremantle Esplanade and includes a swim at Bathers Beach, cycle along Marine Parade and a run alongside the railway. We had almost 30 students represent Kennedy in the race, and the results were fantastic. A huge congratulations to all competitors and special mention goes to the following students who placed in the top three amongst the Kennedy team:

MALE
1st: Rhys Holmes (Year 10)
2nd: Campbell Payne (Year 11)
3rd: Daniel Raus (Year 12)

FEMALE
1st: Ashleigh Black (Year 11)
2nd: Skye Prentice (Year 9)
3rd: Syrah Hawtree (Year 9)

Miss Katie Hair
Corporate Triathlon Co-ordinator
 

Students were treated to a visit by two Bushmasters – Protected Mobility Vehicle (PMV) Troop variant and the army squadron from the 10th Light Horse Regiment.

The two PMVs created excitement among the students when they pulled into the College grounds.

Students were given a tour and hands on opportunity of the vehicles after CPL Shane Tuffin shared a brief history on the 10th Light Horse plus the predecessor units’ work during the Second Boer War, First World War and their current role in the army.

With Anzac Day coming up, Principal Mark Ashby said: “It was great to be able to offer our students the opportunity of not only seeing and examining the army vehicle up close and personal but also the history of the fleet and their contribution during the First World War and their recent activity.”

Kayleigh Hawke, Kathryn Hill and Sally Foster said: “It was a great opportunity to speak to a real life solider and find out more about their role in the Army Reserve.” – which is to them a very rare experience.

Ms Linda Ang
Public Relations Officer

Reminder that the Year 7 Foundation Camp, Year 9 Adventure Camp and Year 11 Challenge Camp will be held next week. These are compulsory events not to be missed by students except for medical reasons. A medical certificate will be required in the occurrence of an absent student.

These camps will be a wonderful experience for students and we look forward to getting to know your son/daughter at camp. 

If you would like any further information, please contact your child's Head of Year. 

As we will be having a staff professional development day on Tuesday 26 April,  all students commence Term 2 on Wednesday 27 April 2016 at 8.15am.

Students are to wear full winter uniform for Terms 2 and 3. It is advisable to have your child try on their uniforms during the break so purchases can be made at the uniform shop if necessary.

The uniform shop will be open during the 2nd week of the school holidays
Monday 18 to Thursday 21 April from 8.30am to 3.30pm.

The administration office will re-open again on Monday 18 April.

Please note that the Year 7 and 9 Parent Teacher Interviews will be held on Thursday 28 April 2016, 2.00pm - 6.30pm. 

We hope that you have a restful and safe school holiday.

Thanks to all the families who have made arrangements in respect to the settlement of their fees for 2016.

Please Note: For those families who have not made any fee payment to date please do so immediately or contact our accounts department to advise your intention ASAP.  It is a condition of enrolment that fees be paid promptly so as not to jeopardise your child’s enrolment.

In response to Frequently Asked Questions regarding the payment of fees we provide the following responses for your benefit:

Question 1: Does my payment option selection form from previous years automatically carry forward to the current year?
Answer: No. A new Payment Option Form must be completed and forwarded to the College each year.

NOTE - A lack of response to the payment option question does not result in the previous year’s selection being carried forward, but rather will default you to the Annual payment option.

Question 2: If I select a payment option which enables the fees split by term, semester or monthly payments, will the College issue new invoices reflecting this?
Answer: No. One invoice is issued at the beginning of the year and payments must be made against the original invoice issued.

Payment by Term (Option 3) Please note:

Term 2 fees are due Friday 6 May 2016. If you selected to pay by term, reminder statements will be posted out during the second week of the school holidays.

If you have any concerns or queries please contact the College at your earliest convenience.

Kennedy Baptist College would like to invite interested parents of current Year 9 and 10 students to an information evening on the April 2017 International Study Tour to the United States of America. The session will be held in the Staff Lounge on Thursday 31 March from 5.45pm - 6.45pm.

During this time the tour coordinator, Rick Cricelli will outline destinations to be visited, activities, dates, costs and any further questions that you may have as well as hand out ‘Expression of Interest’ forms. An email has been sent to all parents/guardians of 2017 Year 10 and 11 students inviting you to attend this information session but if you would like to discuss this trip further (or are unable to attend the information session) please contact Mr Rick Cricelli at the College. rcricelli@kennedy.wa.edu.au

Thank you for your interest in this exciting opportunity.

Book club meets every Tuesday after school at the Research and Study Centre. Between 20 to 30 students in Years 7 to 12 who love reading come along. Last Tuesday we had book club outside and as it was before Easter we had Hot Cross Buns on picnic blankets while reading/talking about books/making balloon animals. Lots of fun was had, and we look forward to having book club outside again!

Mrs Virginia Yurisich
Teacher-Librarian

Once again our immersion program with the Lycee Jeanne d'Arc in Provence, France has been a success. Both students and teachers had a ball here enjoying the relaxed Aussie lifestyle and culture both at home and at school. They have been spoiled by their host families and have taken home with them not only a collection of memories but also long lasting friendships. Un grand Merci (a huge thank you) to all host families , students, and staff who have immensely contributed to the success of the exchange. This concludes the Linguistic and cultural immersion program for 2015-2016.

We are looking forward to the next one in October 2016 with a return visit scheduled in February or March 2017.

Mdm Maryleen Henri
French Teacher

Year 11 OED and VET Snorkelling Camp

After arriving on Rottnest Island at 7.30am, students snorkelled at several locations including Little Salmon Bay, The Basin, Little Parakeet Bay, Pinkies Bay, Little Armstrong Bay and The Shipwreck, where a few of us actually saw a baby wobbegong shark.

Each dive and snorkel swim was about an hour long. Afterwards we went back to camp and set up our tents and cooked on our trangia (outdoor cooking stove) and played some night games including a game called ‘fox holes’ on the beach. On the last day we did an Amazing Race where we rode all over the island completing challenges and taking photos. It was a great camp and we made such good memories with our classmates and teachers!

Izzy Cutter 
Year 11 Student

Thank you to all of those parents who have recently shown interest in being part of the wider community and logging their contact details with the P&F volunteers on College Sunday. We appreciate your support.

To all parents, new or not so new, please remember if you have any suggestions or ideas of possible community events that would bring the Kennedy wider community together, please forward it to pandfkennedybaptistcollege@gmail.com. The feedback from the Year 7 parents gathering was very encouraging and expressions of interest for a repeat have already been put forward. Talk to us, we would love to hear from you.

Thank you for the continued support of those Facebook followers, it is pleasing to see such positive interactions between parents, and the support the Facebook page offers appears to be endless.

If you would like to be included on the P&F contact list, please email pandfkennedybaptistcollege@gmail.com. You will then be able to receive information about upcoming events and other relevant items.

Order an Entertainment™ Membership and support our College. 20% of every membership sold contributes to our fundraising. Help us achieve our goal of $2600 by sharing the following link with your friends and family. Thank you for your support.

Any requests for news or events to be included in the school's newsletter, please email news@kennedy.wa.edu.au. Content is subject to approval.