Photo above: Annual Dance Showcase. 

Message from the Principal

Dear Parents and Families,

Kennedy has numerous events during the year which are great opportunities for students to come together as a community and support the College values and each other. Last week’s Interhouse Athletics Carnival was a great success and a wonderful opportunity for everyone to work together and reinforce the collaborative spirit at Kennedy. I would like to congratulate our students on a fantastic day and for the way they approached this event by enthusiastically representing their Houses throughout the competition. Final results and awards will be presented at our next Assembly on Wednesday 22 September.
 

Community Open Day - Saturday 21 August at 11am – 3.00pm

A final reminder that our Community Open Day is this Saturday. We hope you can join us during the day to experience the exceptional opportunities that our students have embraced. Thank you to all our families who have made generous donations to our Parents and Friends Association for the day, your contributions are greatly appreciated.
 

2021 Awards Presentations – new format

A reminder that major changes have taken place to the structure of our end-of-year awards presentations. As communicated last year, these changes have been developed in response to feedback with all College stakeholders and include:

1. Our Senior School and Lower School Awards Nights have been removed from the Term 4 calendar.
2. Year 12 Awards will be presented at the Year 12 Last Day Assembly on Wednesday 20 October.
3. Year 11 Awards will be presented at the Year 11 final Assembly on Wednesday 3 November.
4. Year 7 - 10 Awards will be presented at their final Assembly on Wednesday 8 December. 
    

Curriculum Achievement Feedback

It is our intention that ongoing regular curriculum feedback is provided to parents through SEQTA. This strategy is designed to provide parents with the latest update regarding student achievement. We hope that you access this feedback on a regular basis and share your child’s academic journey together and therefore address any issues as promptly as possible. Should any parents have difficulty accessing this data please contact our Curriculum team for assistance.

Mr Mark Ashby
Principal

Chaplain Devotion

The last newsletter was about our Be BRIO week. Our goal was to have a week to encourage every member of our College to be a source of BRIO. BRIO is energy, life, vitality, warmth, encouragement, and everything that lifts and influences others. The Kingdom of God, our newsletter theme, has been playing out this year, BRIO week is a time to activate the design within us all. I enjoyed seeing students running a pancake breakfast and other activities, serving fellow students with energy, and telling them, “Have a great day”! It all seems so small a thing, but it all leaves a mark. Please enjoy this old story to help us all understand...

One day a man said to God, “God, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.” 
God showed the man two doors. Inside the first one, in a large room, was many people around a large, deep pot of food, enough for everyone. The food smelled delicious and made the man’s mouth water, but the people in the room looked stressed and appeared to be famished. They were all holding long-handled spoons, able to reach into the pot and take a spoonful of food, but because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their own mouths. The man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering. God said, “You have seen Hell.” Behind the second door, the room appeared the same. There were many people with a large, deep pot of wonderful food. Every person had the same long-handled spoons, but they were well nourished, at ease, laughing and talking. 
The man said, “I don’t understand.” God smiled. It is simple, he said, Love only requires one skill. Heaven is people who share and feed one another.

Year 7 Report

It has been an exciting and busy term for our Year 7s. We enjoyed our Community Service event, Interhouse Athletics Carnival, Extended Form run by House Captains and Student Councillors and this week we have a Bounce social and Community Open Day.

We had our first Community Service with the Year 7 student leaders which was a great opportunity for students to have morning tea with the Lakeside Seniors. This was such a special morning as students did not want to leave, they said they had a great time chatting with the seniors about a range of different topics. It was so great to see how engaged our students were. We will have opportunities for other Form classes to go later this year.

This week our Year 7 student leaders ran Extended Form activities. They ran a Kahoots challenge, computer game challenge, table tennis, four square and minute to win it. It was amazing to see the students running activities for their peers. I am so proud of their willingness and boldness to run these activities for their cohort. 

This term we are really focusing on eliminating rude and silly behaviour. I have spoken with all students about this, and how we will not accept these behaviours at Kennedy. I am hopeful that as the students mature and become accustomed to Kennedy life they can settle down and focus on their studies, without some of these unwanted behaviours that have crept in. 

I am looking forward to the Bounce social, and to all those students who missed out, please look out for another session happening at the end of this term. More information to come soon.

Year 8 Report

The term is passing by so quickly. Last week we had our annual Interhouse Athletics Carnival at the State Athletics Centre, and I was proud of the athletes I saw competing in the main stadium; it was great to watch our Year 8 students participating to the best of their ability. I have also heard positive reports in regard to the effort and participation levels of those students not competing in the main carnival but who had the opportunity to do tabloids and still be able to earn points for their House. I love that these students still have an opportunity to be involved and active on the day and a big congratulations on such great behaviour and participation.

On Wednesday 26 August we resume our Community Service with representatives from our Eyre Forms going to St Ives and interacting with the residents. We are all looking forward to a great time supporting our community. Each House will have the opportunity by the end of the year to participate. “My friends, you were chosen to be free. So don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do anything you want. Use it as an opportunity to serve each other with love.” Galatians 5:13-14

We are hoping to have a social towards the end of Term 3, and our Councillors are hard at work doing a survey to assess what most of the students would like to do. More information on this will be coming out in the next few weeks.

Year 9 Report

It has been wonderful returning from maternity leave to continue working with the Year 9 cohort. It is amazing how much the students have grown up in twelve months. 

Over the last two weeks, as part of our Community Service program, we have had students from two of our Form classes visit St Bartholomew’s House in East Perth, where we have had the privilege of serving others by cooking a sausage sizzle lunch. Students were encouraged to display boldness by conversing with the residents and spending some time getting to know them. Thank you to all students who participated.

A theme we have been focusing on within the year group is treating one another with respect. 1Thessalonians 5:11 tells us to “encourage one another and build one another up”. The way we speak to one another can have a big impact on the way other people perceive themselves and feel about themselves. We should continually build one another up by encouraging, championing, celebrating and supporting those around us. 

Yesterday, in our Extended Form session, we heard from Mrs Minorgan about the Year 10 Work Experience program that we will all be taking part in next year. Students completed a questionnaire to give them a better idea of the type of person they are and what type of work they may enjoy. All Year 9 students should start thinking about where they would like to do their work experience next year. 

Over the last month, we have seen some amazing talent on display in the Olympics. This is evidence of what we can achieve with determination and hard work. I encourage all students to continue to set goals and work hard to achieve them. Sometimes we may need to seek assistance or guidance and there are many people available at the College to help you on your journey should you require support. Keep dreaming big and working hard Year 9s!

Year 10 Report

Celebrating one another’s success is not just a ‘nice’ thing to do, it is an important thing to do and it is encouraged throughout the Bible. Romans 12:15 “Rejoice with those who rejoice”. The start of Term 3 saw Semester One subject award winners announced and celebrated. My sincere congratulations to all the award recipients on your dedication, efforts and perseverance in your studies so far this year, well done!

This past week the Year 10 cohort was given information on applying for College Colours (award) and for the Kennedy Peer Support program, Year 11 Mentors. The College Colours recognises positive standing and contribution to the College community in areas of leadership, academic standing, attitude, behaviour and College representation. Students are required to fill in the application outlining all areas listed. Forms are due by Thursday 23 September to Student Services. 

The Year 11 Mentors role is a great opportunity, not only for the (soon to be) Year 11s to give back to the College but also for the incoming Year 7s of 2022 to see the senior students as mentors and friends. All students are encouraged to consider what they can offer in terms of building relationships, leading by example, listening and supporting Kennedy’s future students.   The goal ultimately is to ensure their transition to Kennedy is as smooth and successful as possible, while also upskilling and challenging the Year 11s.

We discussed the differences in leaders, and how there is no ‘one size fits all’ for a great leader; whether it be the charismatic leader to the quieter, listening and encouraging leader.  Students should be reflecting on all aspects of their College life, from attitude and behaviour, attendance, uniform standards, and where necessary, making changes to improve. All of us have very different, wonderful gifts and abilities that should be recognised and developed. There are many students whom I believe have the capacity to be exceptional leaders and should consider applying. Forms are due by Friday 27 August 2021 to Student Services.

May the Lord bless you and your family this week. 

Year 11 Report

On Wednesday 19 May, back in Term 2, the Year 11 students were introduced to 800m Olympic runner and motivational speaker Peter Bol. On Wednesday 4 August, over three million Australians, including many of our students and staff members, tuned in to the 800m Olympic final to watch Peter finish fourth, after leading for much of the race. Fourth in the world! After breaking the national record twice, first in his heat and again in his semi-final. What amazed me most was that when it was clear that the bronze medal was out of reach, Peter desperately held off the runners from fifth to ninth.

After the race, Peter said, “To Australia I’m thankful, and to everyone in Australia because we’re just human at the end of the day.” Peter, who was born in Sudan and who spent four years in Egypt before migrating to Australia, went on to state, “We inspired the nation and that’s the goal.”

The reason I bring this up is because one of Kennedy’s values is Boldness, a willingness to take risks and show confidence and courage. When Peter led the field in the final, it was a risk and whilst it did not result in a medal, the whole nation was inspired, and Peter will be remembered as a winner and someone who reminds people that we are all human and we can all achieve greatness if we work hard and believe in ourselves.

This term provides our Year 11 students with many opportunities to be bold. We recently had the Interhouse Athletics Carnival, an event that may inspire some of our students to one day compete at a higher level. Our student leadership team will be involved in Community Service, helping others by doing gardening chores. There is also the Year 11 River Cruise coming up on Friday 17 September, a wonderful opportunity for students to get together and celebrate our fantastic cohort. From 6 October to 15 October, thirteen Year 11 students will visit the Pilbara and spend time at a remote indigenous school in Nullagine, building relationships with the Martu people.

I would like to encourage you to continue to be bold; take risks, be courageous and confident. You never know who you will inspire!

Year 12 Report

We are halfway through Term 3 and I realised our Year 12 students have five weeks and four days left of schooling.

During Extended Form, we are focusing on Road Safety Injury Protection. Yesterday we had a very special guest share his life story with us, students were left informed and impacted. The next exciting event on the Year 12 calendar is the Spring Fling social evening on Friday 3 September. We will all be meeting at the Barrack Street Jetty. I know students are all looking forward to an amazing evening and we hope and believe for pleasant weather. 

Act honestly and answer boldly (Danish proverb). To be bold is the opposite of being afraid. The Bible often tells us not to be afraid but to be strong and courageous. There is presently such a strong feeling of fear and the levels of anxiety among the youth is higher than it has ever been. Covid is a big factor as is the concern about coping with life after school. At times like this it is, important for the students to look after themselves really well. Routines which include regular study, exercise, sufficient sleep and a healthy diet are vital to being healthy and functioning efficiently.

I believe I have the best year group in the school and I am very proud of the Year 12s. They have been a joy to lead, and I wish to thank the parents for their support over five years. I have resigned as Head of Year and I am very glad that this has been the group I can finish with. They have been special to me and it feels like a good ending.

Kennedy News

College Notices

We are excited for Community Open Day on Saturday 21 August 2021 from 11.00am to 3.00pm. We encourage you to spread the word, bring your family and friends to Kennedy for a great day of fun, from live performances, explosive Science demonstrations to delicious gourmet treats. There's something for everyone to enjoy! Journey through the College campus and look at all the students' amazing work!

The next newsletter will be published on:
Thursday 2 September 2021.