Term 1 Week 6 - 10th March 2023
- Principal's Message
- Child Protection Policy
- Assistant Principal - Pastoral Care
- Assistant Principal - Mission
- Project Compassion
- Assistant Principal - Learning & Teaching
- Learning Enrichment
- NAPLAN 2023
- Immunisation
- 2023 Diocesan Winter Sport Teams Announced
- 2023 SJRC Cross Country Information
- 2023 Diocesan Swimming Carnival Report
- Creative Arts Nest
- Library News
- Careers News
- Alumni
- Canteen News
- SJRC Social Media
- Kindergarten 2024 Enrolment
- St Agnes' Uniform Store
- Community News
Year 7 Meet & Greet & Year 11 -12 Parent Teacher Interviews
The evening was a huge success with our new Year 7 families getting to know their child's teachers & Year 11 & 12 families meeting with their child's teachers for an update on their progress to date.
It is an honour to work with the dedicated and professional staff of St Joseph's Regional College. I thank all teachers who met with families and to the staff who assisted with the BBQ for families on arrival.
Families of students in Years 8 to 10 will have the opportunity to connect with teachers on Monday, 15th May 2023.
Mrs Tanya Daley
Principal
Child Protection Policy for Staff, Volunteers and Tutors
Our College's Child Protection Policy is located on the College Website: https://www.pmreglism.catholic.edu.au/policies-procedures.
Please be assured that all tutors, volunteers and staff members hold a current Working with Children’s Check and are regularly in-serviced regarding Duty of Care and Mandatory Reporting requirements.
All employees of St Joseph’s Regional College, under the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998, are mandatory reporters. We are mandated to provide the following for students in our care: to provide an environment for them that is free of violence and exploitation and provide services that foster their health, development needs, spirituality, self-respect and dignity.
Principal
College Counsellor
We were delighted this week to welcome to our Student Wellbeing Team, and our school community, Mali Boller, our new full-time on-site counsellor. Mali comes to us with a wealth of experience in both counselling and teaching. A reminder of referral pathways for accessing our counselling services:
- Students over 14 May self-refer;
- Parent referrals are via the student’s Leader of Wellbeing;
- Leaders of Wellbeing, from time to time, will lodge a referral on behalf of a student.
Given that we have over 1000 students to support, our school counselling service is for short-term counselling and group programs. Our counsellors can provide assistance with external referrals for students who may benefit from longer-term therapeutic support and may also work with external service providers to arrange school-based support recommended by these external providers.
Have you flicked through your child’s diary this week?
Research indicates that intentionally and routinely practising gratitude results in improved mental health and supports a positive world-view. There are many great apps available that can assist us as adults to intentionally interrupt the business of our daily lives to engage with gratitude routines. A simple, free app such as “Three Good Things” can boost our wellbeing and also models to our young people the importance of practising gratitude and investing in their wellbeing.
This week at our assembly, students were challenged not only to acknowledge the many things they have to be grateful for but also to translate this gratitude into actions such as acts of kindness or grateful words. We would love our parents to pick up this discussion with our students at home!
Council of Catholic Parents NSW/ACT
HeadSpace
Work and Study is a free online service delivered over the phone, webchat or via video chat to support 15–25-year-olds who are finding their mental health makes it harder to engage in work or study, or whose work and study situation is impacting their mental health.
We can help young people with:
- Further education planning, course selection and enrolment
- Career, industry, and labour market research
- Job-seeking skills and tools
- Resume and job application support to find work
- Support starting work or further study
- Balancing mental health and wellbeing with work or study
- Navigating Centrelink and other government support options
- Headspace Centre staff can access all our most up-to-date referral forms on our space here.
Did you know?
Young people don’t need to be already receiving support from your local headspace centre to be referred to Work and Study Online? Work and study online support | headspace
Access via our website:
https://headspace.org.au/
Mrs Jennifer Furney
Assistant Principal- Pastoral Care
Year 10 Retreat
We pray for our Year 10 students this week that their experience at next week's Retreat will be a fruitful time of reflection and community-building as they come to understand their innate dignity and worth as precious creations made in the image and likeness of God.
Thank you to all the staff who have generously given their time to help facilitate the retreat. A special thanks to Mr Shane Hyland, Mrs Sophie Woods, Emily Burg and Mrs Lisa Bulley for their hard work and planning to ensure the week can be as successful as possible.
REFLECTION from Caritas’ Project Compassion
3RD Sunday of Lent Weekend of 11-12 March 2023
Every summer seems to get a little longer and a little hotter. We have all become conscious of issues surrounding water. Either there seems to be too much, as during last year’s summer floods or when the sea levels rise in the Pacific. Other times, there seems to be too little water, as when the rivers in our country run low or members of God’s family around the world experience drought.
Caritas Australia, through Project Compassion, has been responding to the dire needs of places such as Ethiopia and Somalia where a cruel drought, compounded by a shortage of grain from Ukraine, has led to dire consequences. Today’s readings may well cause us to reflect on the current state of God’s creation. In the book of Exodus, we hear that people are complaining to Moses because they are dying of thirst. In the Gospel, Jesus meets a woman in a Samaritan town. She has come to draw water from the well in the hottest part of the day. In both cases, access to water is precarious. Yet God responds not only to a thirst for water but to a deeper thirst as well. Moses’ people are thirsty for direction, leadership and hope. The woman in John’s Gospel has a thirst for love and acceptance which, Jesus tells her, will come from within if she is able to accept him and his message of life. As the story unfolds, we learn of her loneliness and see her reconnecting with her community.
This week, Caritas Australia shares an account of its response to a water shortage in Zimbabwe. Thanks to our support for Project Compassion, Caritas Australia is involved in providing access to water in many places. It seems such a basic thing. One we mostly take for granted. But once a community has access to water, it grows in every possible way. People have more time for health care and education. People find the energy to build their future. This week’s scripture readings have a strong sense of a hope-filled future.
May we, too, in our time, be sources of hope For All Future Generations.
We would love for you to take a moment to watch the below YouTube video about Priscilla’s from Zimbabwe
https://www.caritas.org.au/project-compassion/priscilla-story/
Prayer Intention:
To help inspire fundraising, the Sustainability team have created a Tapitas Water Wall with an image of a tap at the top and then water droplets cascading down.
Help us fill the bucket! For just a $5.00 donation, students and staff are able to assist us in filling the bucket, one droplet at a time. For each donation, a droplet will be added to the wall. Students are encouraged to add their name, and a prayer if they choose, before adding their droplet to the display wall.
Impact Uganda Raffle
Congratulations to our winners and a BIG thank you to all students and staff who purchased tickets in our raffle to raise money to send children in Uganda to school. As a College community, we were able to raise $480, a fantastic effort. The money raised will now be donated to the Emmual Community- Impact Uganda fundraising efforts.
At this week's assembly, Student Leaders of Mission, drew out the five winners of the giant 2kg chocolate blocks, donated by Hastings Co-Op IGA Sovereign Place.
Congratulations to our winners:
- Matilda Shields
- Ned McRae
- Ellyra Squires
- Ella Juric
- Mr Gobius (absent from image)
St Agnes' Church Gospel Reflections
Fr Paul Gooley is continuing to provide Gospel readings and reflections via email and online Monday to Saturday for those interested in connecting with their faith in this way.
Click to watch Fr Paul's Gospel Readings and Reflections.
St Agnes' Parish News Bulletin
Each week the Parish produces a news bulletin. In this week’s bulletin:
- Reflections on a mountain top experience
- Six month update on the Season of Renewal
- Priests - Principals Conference in Coffs Harbour
- A Project Compassion success story
- Bus service for Friday Mass from 17 March
- Update on the Lismore Flood appeal
- Kindergarten Enrolments for 2024
- Mass times
Click to read this week's Parish News Bulletin
Assistant Principal- Mission
Easter Egg Raffle
We are approaching the most egg-celent, most egg-citing day of the year.
The Easter Egg Raffle will be drawn in week 10; the last day of this school term!
All students are asked to make a donation to the raffle. Lets see how many chocolate eggs, bunnies and other easter treats we can collect to make this year's raffle the best ever.
Donations can be handed into the Hastings and Oxley Leader of Wellbeing office.
Tickets for the raffle will go on sale from Monday, outside the canteen.
Tickets are 50c each or 3 for $1.
Please support Project Compassion and our fundraising efforts for Caritas Australia by donating eggs and buying tickets.
Please support Project Compassion: www.caritas.org.au/project-compassion.
This week during assembly Ms Anne Marchment, our Leader of Curriculum gave a presentation to the College around the importance of assessment and the practices we have in the College. As part of this presentation, Ms Marchment identified a number of key reasons regarding why we assess in the College. These included:- Assessment informs us about what we know and what we don’t, and lets us know what we do not fully understand.
- Assessments informs what we can do in key aspects of literacy and numeracy.
- The key goal of assessment is to allow us to continue to focus on our skills and understandings, enabling us to continue to improve over time.
As we start the second half of the term, students commence an assessment cycle.
To help students through this period, a number of procedures are put in place to help support students:
- Assessment Planners: Students are provided with an assessment planner each term which indicates when an assessment is due and what type of assessment it is - either an in-class task or a hand-in task. These planners are also available on Moodle, should hard copies be misplaced.
- Assessment notifications: These provide specific details about the assessment and are an invaluable tool to help students understand what is required and the standard expected. Students access these via hard copies and on Moodle and/or Google Classroom.
- Classroom teachers: If your daughter or son has any questions around aspects of the assessment then their teacher is able to help clarify any misunderstandings in relation to what the task is asking and the standard expected.
- Library after school: each afternoon Monday to Thursday the Library is open for students to have a quiet space to stay on top of their school work. Each afternoon we regularly have junior and senior students take advantage of this facility.
Finally, Ms Marchment reminded students about our expectations regarding assessment rules and procedures. One new procedure is emailing parents to let them know when a student has missed a task that day or has failed to submit a task on the day it is due. The aim of this procedure is to keep you informed about your child’s assessments throughout the term.
The overall aim of our assessment in the College is to ensure all students have the opportunity to continue to improve over the course of their schooling and provide as much choice as possible in their academic and work pathways as they leave the College and move into the next phase of their life.
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Food for Thought
This week, Leader of Sport, Mr Kelly and the Leader of PDPHE, Mr Rossington, ran a study session for senior students. We encourage senior students to take advantage of the sessions where information, tips and hints are shared about exam techniques and assessment preparation under exam conditions.
Food for Thought sessions run on a Tuesday afternoon in the Library- Don't forget about 'Hot Food Tuesday'!
Student Achievement
Congratulations to Year 11 student, Zoe Copeland, who was presented with a certificate and a $50 reading voucher at this week's assembly. Zoe was awarded third place in the Little Stories Big Ideas National Creative Writing Competition held in Term 4, 2022, with the theme of 'Fear'.
Zoe is to be commended on entering this competition independent of her College studies. Click here if you would like further information about the competition.
Ian Lutton
Assistant Principal - Learning and Teaching
SJRC Podcast
With much excitement, we launch the first episode of the SJRC Podcast, designed to keep students and families informed, connected and engaged in our College community.
The Student Podcast Committee has been hard at work planning, interviewing, recording and editing the first-ever episode. Our dynamic hosts, Jack Kirk in Year 10 and Summer Tilston in Year 8, anchor the program with fabulous humour and poise as they entertain us through the episode.
You will be delighted as you listen to our new Year 7 students recounting their first weeks of high school, regaled by the swimming carnival recap, enlightened by our mystery former professional athlete, challenged by the music guessing competition, and impressed by the NRL footy tipping panel’s intricate knowledge of the game.
How do I listen to the SJRC Episode One podcast
Guess This Song
Click on the link below to enter the 'Guess this Song' be the first student to head over to Moodle and correctly guess what the song is, and you win a Canteen voucher.
Leader of High Potential Learners
The National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) is a point-in-time assessment of literacy and numeracy skills. Each year students in Years 3, 5, 7 and 9 participate in tests for writing, reading, conventions of language (spelling, grammar and punctuation) and numeracy.
From 2023, NAPLAN is moving to Term 1 and will take place from Wednesday, 15 March to Monday, 27 March. The reason for this change is so that results can be returned to schools earlier in the year which will support teachers to understand the learning needs of their students and plan accordingly.
Our school will be participating in NAPLAN between Thursday, 16 March to Tuesday, 21 March 2023 and the following tests will occur on the dates indicated:
- Thursday 16 March – Writing
- Friday 17 March – Reading
- Monday 20 March – Conventions of Language
- Tuesday 21 March – Numeracy
Additionally, students who miss a NAPLAN test will sit a catch-up exam during the testing period from Thursday 16 March until Monday 27th March 2023.
All students require a working set of headphones and a fully charged laptop for each test.
NAPLAN tests are just one part of our school learning assessment program and questions are primarily based on knowledge, understanding and skills gained from the prior year of schooling.
Students and parents can access the public demonstration site https://www.nap.edu.au/online-assessment/public-demonstration-site to familiarise themselves with NAPLAN and the types of questions and tools available. Excessive preparation for NAPLAN is not required nor recommended.
If you have any questions about NAPLAN, please contact our NAPLAN Coordinators.
Anne Marchment, Lisa Freeman and Sarah McLeod
Each year, our College provides the venue for NSW Health to conduct the NSW Schools Vaccination Program. We are writing to advise that NSW Health has a new process for collecting consent for your child to receive their vaccination at school. I refer you to the information below provided by NSW Health;
Year 7 and Year 10 Vaccination Program Dates
Term 1 – Friday 31 March 2023
• Year 7 HPV dose 1 of a 2-dose course – (HPV dose 1 & 2 are given six months apart)
• Year 7 Boostrix – 1 dose only
• Year 8 HPV dose 2 - catch up
• Year 11 Nimenrix (meningococcal ACWY) – catch up
Term 2 – Friday 16 June 2023
• Year 10 Nimenrix (meningococcal ACWY)
• Year 7 catch ups for HPV dose 1 & Boostrix
• Year 8 HPV dose 2 - catch up
• Year 11 Nimenrix (Meningococcal ACWY) – catch up
Term 4 – Friday 13 October 2023
• Year 7 HPV dose 2
• Year 7 HPV dose 1 & Boostrix - catch up
• Year 8 HPV dose 2 - catch up
• Year 10 & 11 Nimenrix (meningococcal ACWY) catch up
Online consent for school vaccinations
If your child is in Year 7 or Year 10 this year, you can now provide online consent for their routine school vaccinations.
• Year 7, students are offered free vaccines for diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (dTpa) and human papillomavirus (HPV).
• Year 10, students are offered the meningococcal ACWY vaccine.
Vaccination will only be provided at school if consent has been received.
How to provide consent:
- To complete online consent for your child’s school vaccinations, visit:https://nswhealth.service-now.com/school
- Click the login with ‘Service NSW Account’ button and log in using your Service NSW details. This is the same account you may already use to renew your driver’s licence. If you don’t have a Service NSW account, refer to Service NSW to create one.
- Update or confirm your personal details in Service NSW as required.
- Complete the School Vaccination Consent Form for your child/ren.
- Enter your child’s personal details
- Provide the Medicare card details for you and your child
- Read the linked Parent Information Sheet and privacy statement
- Provide consent
If you or your child do not have a Medicare card, consent can still be provided by requesting a paper-based consent form directly from your child’s school.
Read a step-by-step guide on how to provide consent online. Translated guides are available in Arabic, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Vietnamese.
For more information on routine school vaccinations, please visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/schoolvaccination.
Translated information about school vaccination is available in 27 languages, please visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/immunisation/Pages/school_vaccination_language.aspx
10th March 2021
Congratulations to the following students who were selected into Diocesan teams after trials held this week at St. John’s College Woodlawn and Thistles Park East Lismore. They now go onto play in Northern Country trials in South West Rocks (League) and CCC trials in Glenwood, Sydney (Soccer).
Open Girls Football Team
Emilee Franklin, Evie Gill
Open Boys Football Team
Chester Wade
15 Boys Rugby League Team
Bodhi Kennedy
Open Boys Rugby League Team
Sam Fox and Jett Hanson (Shadow)
16s Girls Rugby League Team
Sharni Graham and Grace Smith
Thank you to Mr Timo Gobius, Miss Lydia Toms and Miss Amahli Kennedy for accompanying the students to Lismore to trial.
Damien Kelly
SJRC Leader of Sport
10th March 2023
11th March 2021
The annual SJRC Cross Country will be held on Friday 31st March (Term 1 Week 9) at Rainbow Beach, Bonny Hills. It is an optional event for year 7 – 12 students who wish to qualify for the next level. The top five runners in each age group are eligible to attend the Diocesan Cross Country Carnival held at Grafton on the 19th of May (Term 2 Week 4). It is a house competition with bonus points awarded for 1st to 10th and everyone else receiving a participation point towards the tally.
Students can nominate by completing the form online.
All students may wear their sports uniform all day.
The program for the day is as follows:
- 3km course 12s, 13s Boys and Girls
- 4km course 14s, 15s Boys and Girls, 16s & 17+ Girls
- 6km course 16 and 17+ Boys
2023 SJRC Cross Country Program
Damien Kelly
SJRC Leader of Sport
10th March 2023
10th March 2021
Last week the SJRC Swimming Squad traveled to Kempsey to compete at the Lismore Diocesan Swimming Carnival. Congratulations to all students on your efforts. In particular to Blake Higgins and Hannah Thompson who qualified for the Diocesan Team to compete at Homebush on Friday the 31st March.
There were stand out performances from:
- Blake Higgins - 12s Boys Age Champion
- Hannah Thompson - 16s Girls Runner Up Age Champion
Thank you to our staff members who traveled with the team – Miss Mahni Lewis, Mr Michael Cannon and Mrs Jacqui Crilley and Miss Amahli Kennedy.
Damien Kelly
SJRC Leader of Sport
10th March 2023
ONLY 2 WEEKS LEFT UNTIL A4ART PRIZE ENTRIES CLOSE!
Have you started your A4Art?
Bigger and better than last year, our 2023 A4Art Prize features more categories and more prizes, over $5000 in cash and prizes.
So what do you need to do? Create an artwork, using ONE A4 size piece of paper in any way you choose. Draw, paint, scribble, fold, sculpt, cut, mould, shred, or even write on your paper – use it in any way you, the artist envisions!
The A4ART Prize is now officially open. More information can be found at artsnest.com.au, including terms and conditions.
All Artworks are to be handed in before Friday, 24th March, 3:00pm. Late entries can not be accepted.
In case you missed it, some incredible statistics to share from our humble 2022 A4Art Prize:
- More than 240 Artworks submitted.
- 6291 voting tokens placed in jars where students and staff voted for the People’s Choice Award when the finalists artworks toured all six of our Parish Schools in our A4Art Pop-Up Exhibition.
- 1768 voting tokens placed in jars at the 2022 Port Macquarie ArtWalk, where an estimated 3000 community members visited our A4Art Room
- 1572 Online votes cast for the Community Choice Award
- All entries are to be done online at artsnest.com.au - lets get creative!
A4ART CHAT with Heo
Meet artist and winner of the ‘People’s Choice’ category for 2022 A4Art Prize, Heo from St Joseph's Regional College.
There was plenty of robust discussion surrounding Heo’s incredibly lifelike artwork, questioning if his creation was actually a photo or art. Listen to Heo explain how it was made. We love the purpose behind Heo’s artwork.
ADF Visit
Members from Defence Jobs Australia Careers Promotion Team visited the College on Wednesday, 8th March, to present an information session to interested students in Years 10, 11 and 12.
The Defence Force representatives discussed different avenues of entry, opportunities for careers and advancement in those careers, study and training options ad facilities, and the benefits that go hand-in-hand with a career in the military. In a very appropriate gesture (seeing as it is International Women's Day), females attending were given access to information specific to them regarding fitness requirements, and life during deployment.
If any student missed the information session, please see Mrs Tinsey or Mrs Bale in the Study Centre.
Mrs Tinsey (Mon-Fri) & Mrs Bale
Leader of Future Pathways
This week's Alumni is: Ella Abi-Saab- Class of 2018
Volunteers Wanted
We cannot run the canteen without you; as the saying goes:
"Many Hands Make Light Work".
If you are able to spare an hour or so of your time, we would
love for you to join us.
Please contact Breeanna Stone through the College Office on 5525 4100.
| Term 1 Week 7 Lunch Specials | |
| Monday | Vege Ravioli & Pesto |
| Tuesday | Hawaiian Chicken Burger |
| Wednesday | Chicken BLT Salad Bowls |
| Thursday | Beef Burrito |
| Friday | Pizza - Meatlovers or Cheese |
| Term 1 Week 8 Lunch Specials | |
| Monday | Chicken Bacon Carbonara |
| Tuesday | Chicken, Sweet Potato, Onion & Almond Salad |
| Wednesday | Beef & Bacon Burgers |
| Thursday | Tandoori Chicken & Rice |
| Friday | Gourmet Sausage Dogs |
The Canteen opens at 8.00 am every school day.
Breeanna Stone
Food Services Manager
St Joseph's Regional College has a number of different social media platforms. We would love for you to follow us.
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St Joseph's Regional College
Website - https://www.pmreglism.catholic.edu.au/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SJRCPort
Instagram - @sjrcport
St Joseph's Regional College - 50 year Celebrations
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/SJRC50years
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sjr50years/
Digital Ministry
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sjrcdigitalministry
Library
Website - https://pmreglism.libguides.com/home
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/sjrcexchange
Instagram - Instagram - @sjrcexchange
Careers
Website - https://www.sjrcportcareers.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/sjrcportcareers
Give your child the best start to their learning life with St Agnes' Education. Register for a Kindergarten 2024 Enrolment Information Session to find out all you need to know about sending your child to a St Agnes' Education Primary School in 2024.
At our schools, your child will:
- learn from professional, highly skilled and dedicated teachers that know how to help them reach their full potential,
- be embraced by a community that cares for them and teaches them to care for others and their world,
- grow spiritually, socially, physically, morally and intellectually.
Please check your zoning before registering to ensure you attend the information session aligned to the school zoned for where you live. You can view the zoning map on our website www.enrolinexcellence.org.au
Information session details:
- St Agnes' Primary School – Tuesday, 21 March 2023 – 5.30 pm
- St Joseph's Primary School – Thursday, 23 March 2023 – 5.30 pm
- St Peter's Primary School – Monday, 20 March 2023 – 5.30 pm
For questions regarding school zoning, please contact the Education Enrolment Team on (02) 6588 7444.
St Agnes' Parish Uniform Shop
Normal Trading Hours resume on 6th February 2023 as below
Monday to Friday: 12 noon - 5.00pm
Saturday: 9.00am - 12 noon
6 Boronia Street, Port Macquarie
College Uniform
