During the holidays I had the honor of representing St John Paul II College among a group of Catholic Education employees at World Youth Day.  

The pilgrimage, this year held in Panama, attracted over 750,000 Catholic people.  It was phenomenal to be part of an experience so enormous, seeing so many different nations, cultures, and expressions of Catholicism in one place.  Despite our differences, the culture of acceptance and unity was prevalent as we participated in Mass, catechesis, meal times, and transport together. 

The magnitude of the event was most evident when all participants were completely silent in prayer and reflection, and the joy of the evident was most evident when walking down the street as pilgrims and strangers greeted each other with gifts, smiles, and ‘hello’ in a hundred languages. 

The theme of World Youth Day for 2019 was ‘Dare to Say Yes’, as pilgrims were encouraged to reflect upon the life of Mary and her courage in responding to God’s call to her in mothering Jesus.  Pope Francis encouraged young pilgrims to consider how they can say yes to God in their present rather than feeling they had to wait until adulthood.  As he said “You, dear young people, are not the future but the now of God.  He invites you and calls you...to stand up and with them to speak out and realize the dream that the Lord has dreamed for you.”  I hope this message can resonate within the St John Paul II community as we encourage and empower our young people. 

I would encourage anyone with the opportunity to attend World Youth Day to accept.  It was a privilege to learn about our school’s Catholic heritage, meet such joyful people, and encounter God in new and unexpected ways on this Journey.

Jess Amos

Who am I?

My Name's Lachlan Bull and I'm St John Paul II College's new Youth Minister. I'm 19 years old and I’m really excited to kick off the year here at JPC. A little bit about me, I love music, most genres of music I listen to, I play guitar and do my best to sing, you'll also occasionally see me playing percussion. I also love sharing my faith with others, which is one of the reasons that, in 2018 I volunteered as a missionary youth minister for the Youth Mission Team in the diocese of Wollongong, running reflection days and retreats from as far up as Inner Sydney to down around Nowra and everywhere in between.

So what exactly do I do?

My role as a Youth Minister is to provide young people with an opportunity to have an experience of faith which they may not be having outside of their Catholic School. I journey alongside those who take up the opportunities presented to them through the JPC Youth Ministry team and those that attend the "Spirit Youth Group" at Holy Spirit Parish. I'm also there to be a friendly face and someone students may have an easier time relating and talking to due to my age.

What do I hope to bring to JPC?

I hope to bring new opportunities to those that want to experience the Catholic faith and I hope to give the amazingly talented Youth Ministry Team more opportunities to share the talents that they have and to give more ownership of their faith and provide more hands on experiences. I hope to bring a fun but committed atmosphere to everything we do as a Youth Ministry Team.

Where to from JPC?

As you may or may not know I work for Holy Spirit Parish as well, so my role there is running the fortnightly youth group "Spirit Youth". I highly encourage anyone to attend for faith formation, great food, fun games and an amazing opportunity to meet new friends that you might not necessarily meet. Our first night is on the 24th of February and then every fortnight following that until the end of term.

If you have any questions or just want to say hello, feel free to contact me at youth@holyspiritgungahlin.org.au or Lachlan.Bull@cg.org.au.

God Bless,
Lachlan Bull.

From the Leaders of Wellbeing Team:

After a busy start to the term, week two showed no signs of slowing down. We have an updated uniform policy, camp information and a brand-new wellbeing space fit with lounges and the infamous “wobble stool”.

Uniform Policy Update
As is the same every year, our uniform policy has been updated and can be found on the College website. Each student will be asked to read the updated version of the uniform policy and sign to their name that they have read and understood the terms set out in the document.

If you have any queries regarding the new policy, please contact your student’s mentor teacher.

Year 7 Camp information
This week year 7 camp notes went out to all year 7 families. This note outlines the details of camp, required items, dates and time, and all other information.

Camp is a very exciting time for our year 7s as it helps to further develop new friendships, independence, resilience and to have fun! Camp is compulsory for all year 7 students and any absence will need to be applied for with Mrs Chauntell McNamara.

Please return camp notes as soon as possible, with the last date being 20th Feburary. If you have lost your notes they are on Moodle under the permission notes file.

Wellbeing Space
This year we have developed a new wellbeing space that is available to all students. Our newest addition to this space is a series of furniture that creates a calm, comfortable environment. Stduents may also borrow a ball or a board game to use at recess and lunch.

This space is designed to be a calm and social space or a quiet time out space (according to the need).

Please follow the link for the lastest apps to be aware off when discussing social media with you teens!

http://www.sentinelnews.net/article/11-10-2018/10-apps-teens-are-using-parents-need-know#.XGXomq2B0cg

For families new to the JPC community, my name is Ian Pettit and I am the JPC Careers Advisor. I can provide a range of individualized career plans and support for students in areas such as: the JPC Work Experience program, Australian School Based Apprenticeships (ASBA’s), tertiary application processes, resumes and job interview techniques.

To make an appointment, please email me at ian.pettit@cg.catholic.edu.au

I also provide updates and detailed careers information via our JPC Careers Moodle site. Currently, I have posted information that outlines the huge range of scholarships available for Tertiary Package students. For example, The University of Melbourne have a new equity scholarship called the Hansen Scholarship Program, with applications opening on 1 March. Please go to the website or check with me if you would like more information.

JPC Visit to University of Wollongong

On Friday the 8th of February a group of JPC Year 12 students went to the University of Wollongong in order to experience a ‘taste’ of university life. Students had pre-selected lectures to attend, were given guided tours of the campus and enjoyed chatting with current UOW students. Annie Jenkins one of our JPC leaders from last year was able to spend some time chatting with the students about university life. Many thanks to Miss Chloe McCallum for joining us on the day and a huge congratulations to those students who attended for being excellent ambassadors for JPC.

Logan MacMahon, a Year 12 JPC student, reports:

“The University of Wollongong discovery day was a day full of unexpected shocks (the good kind). My thoughts and expectations before I went to the campus was centred around the idea that I wasn't going to get a sugar-coated understanding of how classes ran, degrees and the work needed to attended to and the cost for admission and living on campus.

The day took an unforeseen turn when the second lecture came about, Psychology. The professor had said almost everything word for word that I had been taught in the past. I wasn't sure if it was just me so I asked around to see if anyone else (from other schools) had already been taught the exact words that the professor was talking about. Turns out that other students had barely a clue about the things he was saying... I guess JPC Psychology have taken a giant step in the right direction.

The rest of the day was as I wanted it to be. The was no icing to hide the cake to hide its flavour... it wasn't sugar coated. The lecturers understood that we didn't want an understanding that begun with "look on the bright side." 

Long story short:
"I obtained a full understanding of what I intended, JPC wasn't lying when they told us that what they were teaching us is in preparation for University, and ask questions."

Trial of new Careers Service – “JobJump”

JPC will be trialing a service called JobJump over the next 3 months. This site offers a huge range of career related support services. Please consider logging in at no cost for the next three months and then providing us with some feedback (both positive and negative) via the survey at the end of the registration steps. The data from the survey will help us decide whether to engage the service.

How to register.
When you register on JobJump you will receive the News on the Careers your son/daughter likes sent to your home email address. Plus you will be able to use all parts of the JobJump website to help you plan and assist your son/daughter in achieving their Career dreams.

To register with JobJump, go to the front screen of the website at www.jobjump.com.au

Then in the top right hand side click 'I'm New'.

To begin, type the first couple of letters of your school's name in to the first white box and when the full name of your school appears in blue on the screen, simply click on it and it will enter into the first box. Then enter in the next box your School's Password exactly as you see it here with no spaces and all lower case letters: sjpllc Note: Your school password for the Roman numeral ll is lower case letters for 'L'.

There are a few more quick questions and then you are underway to access the site and utilise all of the features listed below. When Careers news does occur related to your son/daughter's interests, it will be emailed to you all the way through their high school years plus an extra year after their Year 12.

You can select as many careers as you like from the listing of 112 careers.
If you can't find the career that your son or daughter likes from the list, select a career which is in the field they like. For example, they may like the field of Tourism because they like travelling and the idea of having a career in the Tourism industry is not a bad idea. In the listing select 'Travel Agent' because all Tourism careers news will come to you. We also send each week a Careers News Bulletin with all of the current news parceled into the subject areas taught in your school. This is perfect to help your son/daughter in their career options since you know what subjects they enjoy and in which they do well. Ask your Careers Adviser for this.

Once you have registered, you can also use all parts of the website to enjoy all of the following:

• Year 10 subject selection advice across 112 careers.
• Writing letters, resumes, what to say to an employer, where to find your future employer.
• A comprehensive digital ATAR and University Course sorter that works hand in hand with the UAC Handbook making life now a breeze for you to search for your chosen courses.
• JobJump finds the relevant TAFE courses
• Job vacancies based on your area location for each of the 112 careers.
• University scholarships and their direct links
• Bonus points, Overseas Exchange, Accommodation across Universities in NSW and their direct links.
• Earnings across 300 careers.
• EAS information.
• Find my Career quizzes.
• Hobby projects across 112 careers to inspire and engage students in their career.
• Interactive yearly calendar across all news items which can be personalised to your careers of interest.
• Universities Open Days listing and links.
• Videos across 112 careers.
• Gap Year and Volunteering opportunities.
• Alternative entry to University sorter and links across NSW Universities.
• Interstate University admissions centres' links.
• How to obtain your own son/daughter's independent work experience. ....... and much more.

Please provide any feedback to Mr Pettit via the following survey.

https://goo.gl/forms/cxwhVVrVnKbOp9MQ2

.As mentioned last year in several Career News bulletins, The ANU have changed their application process significantly. Students wishing to attend The ANU will not be accepted unless they have provided evidence of community service (see link below).

Applications are now being made directly to ANU and open on the 4th of March and close on the 31st of May. See the full time-line here: http://www.anu.edu.au/study/apply/admission-scholarships-and-accommodation/application-timeline

While it is still possible to apply to ANU through the UAC process in August, the chances of being made an offer are significantly diminished.

Applications will not be accepted unless students satisfy the “Co-curricular or Service Schedule”. See the details of the conditions here: http://www.anu.edu.au/files/guidance/CCS2020_1.pdf

If you are considering attending ANU next year you must read this information very carefully. You must have met the criteria for service in at least three of the skill areas. Documentation must be provided as evidence that you have met the criteria.

Students will receive notification in early August if they have been successful. This notification will include a conditional offer (including an ANU selection rank), special conditions of that offer, information on successful scholarships and accommodation confirmations. 

All details are located here: http://www.anu.edu.au/study/apply/admission-scholarships-and-accommodation/how-to-apply

Link to - ANU Admissions Fact Sheet

I have a background in science research, plant biology, and have a passion for encouraging students to question the world around them and to look for ways to find answers. I am married with two semi-adult children, both having graduated from ACT Catholic secondary schools. I am impressed by the results of the first graduating JPC cohort and I am looking forward to working with the school community to continue to grow the success of the senior school.

Year 7 Immunisations at JPC
Next Friday, 22 February 2019

The ACT Health Immunisation team will be coming to JPC next week on Friday 22 February, for the first round of Year 7 immunisations for this year.

Consent forms were sent home last week: if not returned yet, please return the form to the front office as soon as possible even if no consent is given.

In this round, the students will be receiving the dTpa (diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis/whooping cough) vaccine and the HPC (human papillomavirus) vaccine (dose 1). The second round of immunisations is scheduled for October.

Please ensure your child has had a good breakfast and drinks plenty of water throughout the day.

For more information on the free high school immunisation program, head to www.health.act.gov.au/services-and-programs/immunisation/adolescents

Year 10 Immunisations at JPC
Term 2 2019

The ACT Health Immunisation team will be coming to JPC in Term 2 to administer the Year 10 Meningococcal ACWY vaccine

date will be confirmed by the end of Term 1).

Consent forms were sent home last week: if you have not already done so, please return the form to the front office as soon as possible, even if no consent is given.

For more information on the free high school immunisation program, head to www.health.act.gov.au/services-and-programs/immunisation/adolescents

On Wednesday, many of our JPC students assisted with the St Vincent de Paul Doorknock around the Gungahlin area. We will be door-knocking again next Wednesday afternoon so if you would like to join us, please see the ‘Permission Notes’ Moodle page for more information.

Thanks! Miss Zorzi and Miss Masterson

We would like to invite our indigenous students and their families to a welcome afternoon tea

On - Thursday 21 February

Time - 3.45pm to 4.45pm

Location - Kamberri Room

RSVP - Tuesday 19 February

email - office.jpc@cg.catholic.edu.au

Dear Parents/Guardians,

If you are interested in your child taking part in the St John Paul II College Music Program, which includes the Co-Curricular Music Groups (Rock Band, Unplugged, Concert Band, etc.) or Individual Lessons (Guitar, Bass, Piano, Vocals, Woodwind, Brass, Drums and Strings), please use the links below to enrol as soon as possible.

We are lucky to have the best tutors in the ACT working at our school and helping our students. We currently have numerous vacancies in Woodwind, Brass, Strings and Bass, so if you are interested, please get involved. If you have any further questions please contact Aron Lyon at aronlyon@hotmail.com or sharon.robinson@cg.catholic.edu.au

Instrumental Lessons Form
 

Co-Curricular Music Form