Monday 28 November - Year 9 and 10 Commonwalth Bank Workshops

Tuesday 29 November - Term 4 Drama Showcase

Wednesday 30 November - Year 10 Mass and Certification

Friday 9 December - Term 4 Ends

The end of the school year is always busy but it is also an opportunity to reflect upon the successes and areas for improvement from the year. As I near the end of my first year at JPC, I consider myself fortunate to have been involved in all of the wonderful things that we, and particularly our students, do here. I have been impressed by their willingness to try new things, to challenge themselves and to move outside their comfort zones. I have watched the way they welcome new members to our community with real care. I have welcomed their enthusiasm when participating in house and school events. There have been challenges too but it is encouraging to see students working together and with staff to rebuild relationships that have broken down so that they can move forward with a positive attitude. I firmly believe that the experiences our students have here at JPC, both in and out of the classroom, are an excellent foundation for their journey through life and I am looking forward to working with them as they take those steps.

Have a great weekend!

Madeleine Harley
Drexel House Coordinator

Friday 25th November is International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women. As part of making efforts to change aggressive behaviour, creating enduring respectful relationships in our College community is also a focus this term.

On Wednesday, the White Ribbon Leaders from Years 8 and 9 led the College in a short assembly connecting the principals of each House patron with the White Ribbon Australia Oath. Students also shared shocking statistics about the frequency of domestic violence experienced by young people. Following this, the College created the word ‘respect’ on the oval to demonstrate their commitment.

On Friday, to celebrate with the community and White Ribbon Australia, students wore white shoes and accessories. White chocolate muffins were also for sale at lunch and House teams competed in a Touch Football competition. The mixed teams played with great enthusiasm, demonstrating great respect towards each other when representing their House. The victor of the day was Van Thuan House, congratulations! Thank you to Mr Nic Whatman who organised the White Ribbon Charity Shield to be presented to the winners.

This week’s Respect Awards have been presented to the following recipients:

Drexel:  Kial Huender, Year 10
Ferre:  Cameron Cortes, Year 7
Kennedy: Hugh Dawson, Year 10
Maathai: Jacob Foster, Year 10
Vanier: Georgia Wallace, Year 8
Van Thuan: Mia D’Ambrosio, Year 7

These students have proven themselves to be respectful role models among their peers. Well done to these students who are more than worthy recipients of these awards. 

On Wednesday, 30th November, the College will be holding the Year 10 Mass and Certification Ceremony. We will begin with Mass at 5.30pm in the College Hall, followed immediately by the Presentation of Year 10 Certificates and Awards Ceremony.  We will adjourn to the Terrace for light refreshments at about 7.00pm. The Social will begin at 7.30pm and conclude at 10.30pm.

Parents are invited to attend the Mass and Presentation. Parents can still RSVP for the event via our website.

This week marked the beginning of the transition of responsibility for leadership from our current Year 10 House leaders, to our Year 9 students. For our Year 10 leaders, the end of their commission as leaders was marked by their Leadership Reflection Day on Monday. This was an opportunity for the team to come together to look back on their journey this year. The morning session was spent considering their own experiences in their leadership roles in 2016, and evaluating the challenges and successes of their own work. They discussed and evaluated the work of the team in building these special roles for the first time. In addition to this, the leaders developed role descriptions for next year’s leaders to follow, recognising the breadth of responsibilities that we entrust our House leaders with here at JPC. A quiet afternoon of affirmation and prayer allowed us to consider the unique gifts and talents that each leader has brought to the team this year, and to thank God for the blessings that enabled us to work together to forge a new path for others to follow. It was a great privilege to share this day with our Year 10 leaders; their maturity, ability to be self-evaluative, and to identify areas for improvement, was most impressive.

On Tuesday, 43 Year 9 students opted to take part in a Leadership Discernment Session. This was an afternoon of activities designed to encourage students to identify the qualities and attributes of leaders, to discuss with our current leaders the reality of wearing a badge in our community, and to discern their own ability to step into these roles. Once again, our Year 9 students showed an exceptional capacity for reflection and collaboration, responding to each task with enthusiasm and sincerity.

The next step for these Year 9 students is to complete their nomination forms and have them signed by their parents and House Coordinators. Forms are due back to school next Monday, 28 November. Students who have completed each step in the nomination process will then be placed on House ballots and we will hold our House elections on Tuesday morning. But don’t expect results next week - we are saving the big announcement for the last day at the conclusion of our Christmas liturgy!

I would like to extend my thanks to all of our leaders and leaders-in-waiting for the way they have embraced our model at JPC. I am also indebted to the House Coordinators for their assistance and encouragement of these young people, and especially to Mrs. Colleen Marriott and Mrs. Jennifer Tually for their collaboration and support in running these significant events this week.

Mrs. Nicola Edghill
Coordinator

Today we met with representatives from Lowes who have given us an update on the progress of the Senior Uniform.

• The boy’s Senior shirts have arrived and are now in store.

• The girl’s shirts and Senior navy jumper should be available at the end of January.

• The Blazer and Senior boy’s ties will be available later in Term 1 and we will let parents know when these arrive. The Blazer will not be required for Term 1 and ties will only need to be worn during the winter months. Seniors are not expected to wear the spray jacket as this will be replaced by the Blazer.

• The Blazer is a compulsory part of the uniform. Lowes have very kindly offered a $50 discount on the Blazer. Vouchers for the Blazer will be distributed to Year 10 students who are returning next week. The school has also decided that we will subsidise the cost of the blazers $50. The school's subsidies will be arranged through the school fees. Further information will be sent about this process next year, once the Blazers are available.

• Lowes have recommended that, in order to take account of their 15% discount, parents should order the Senior uniform in December. Students will be able to use the current junior uniform for sizing purposes. Please see the 15% voucher below.

• Lowes will send us a price list of the new Senior uniform early next week and we will distribute these to Year 10 on Tuesday.