Dear parents, friends, staff and students,

This week is the sixth Sunday of Easter. It is the weekend before we celebrate the Ascension of Jesus. The readings show that Jesus knows that He will not physically be with the apostles for long. He gives them a clear message knowing that He will soon rise to heaven. He says: “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid” (John 14: 27). This message of peace resonates throughout the ages and continues to sit with us today. For the great majority of our community, there has been a settling in to a post-COVID world and, whilst there are stressors, these are being managed with support. There are still many however, who are struggling or have not yet found their ‘rhythm’. For these, the knowledge that God stands with us is important to remember and to give us comfort.

This week we finish our meetings for the Year 7, 2023 applicants. These meetings are conducted every year to enable us to meet our prospective students but just as importantly, they give us the opportunity to explain what is important to us and to our community. Every year, I am excited to gain the feedback from people around what they value in our college. They speak of the sense of community, the reputation of success and the Catholic nature of what we do. I find myself discussing with parents, expectations around behaviour, uniform, technology use and positive relationships. In these meetings, again and again it becomes apparent to me that what makes Mount Carmel special is in the totality of what we do. We are who we are because of all that we do and expect. It is not reasonable for students, parents or staff to decide which of these things are important and which are not. All of these things combine to form who we are. If your child is challenged to raise their standards or meet our expectations, please see this as a positive and remember why you have chosen us as the place to educate your child.

Today we had the College athletics carnival. This was a great opportunity to come together as a community and enjoy each other’s company and talents. These are always enjoyable days even though they can be quite draining. I thank Mrs Turnbull and the organising staff for their efforts and experience. I would also like to thank the students who attended for their participation and efforts. A congratulations to all students who may have achieved sporting excellence today in whatever form that may take.

Next Wednesday we are holding the Yr. 11 Parent/Teacher/Student meetings. These are an opportunity for students and parents to discuss with their teachers how they might improve and develop academic skills. I encourage all Year 11 parents to book interview spots and discuss your child’s progress.

Next Friday (May 27) is our published pupil free day as our staff will be travelling to Mittagong to participate in a staff development day (SDD) focussed on their own spirituality. This SDD is a valuable opportunity for staff to discern how we continue to grow as a Christ-centred community and how this may be enhanced through our personal spiritual development. I recognise that pupil free days disrupt parents’ normal routines, but they are an essential component of a healthy community. Thank you once again for your support.

A reminder that next Tuesday (May 24), we will be holding our next Parents and Friends’ meeting at the College. Mr Simon Huntly (Pastoral and Wellbeing Coordinator) will be the guest speaker at this meeting and will be explaining some of the Pastoral Care supports available at the College. We will also be outlining some of the options we are exploring for enhancing learning from 2023 including lesson lengths and how our senior school is arranged. We are still looking for a president and treasurer for 2022. The P&F is an extremely valuable consultative and supportive body essential to the effective running of a school. I encourage all parents to attend on this evening and look forward to you joining us.

Ite in Veritate

Mr Steve Lo Cascio

Earlier this year, you may recall the images coming out of Tonga following a significant volcanic eruption that was identified earlier this week as the largest single explosion ever recorded by modern scientific instruments. The eruption and subsequent tsunamis devastated the island nation that is still trying to recover from such a significant event. 

To assist in this recovery, the College has decided to partner with Fr Feleki Tautunu and St John the Evangelist Parish in Campbelltown to collect much needed resources that will be sent to Tonga in two large shipping containers at the beginning of June. In the coming days, our own Student Representative Council and Youth Ministry Leaders will be collecting any donations of long life food items, toiletries, kitchen supplies and clothing, and storing them here at the College. As a College, we will be presenting these to Fr Feleki who will be presiding over our Champagnat Day celebrations on Friday 10th June. 

If any members of our community are in a position to donate to this very worthy cause, please send any contributions to school with your son or daughter and we will forward these to parish representatives in order for it to be added to the shipping containers. As a College community, we will continue to keep the people of Tonga, especially those with family and friends here in our local community, in our thoughts and prayers as they continue their rebuilding efforts. 

Finally this week, I remind everyone of our COVID-safe guidelines for Term 2 which stipulate that whilst household close contacts who have no symptoms may continue to attend school, they must adhere to the following requirements:

• The school is notified that they are intending to return as a close household contact
• They must must wear a mask indoors except when eating or exercising
• Once they have completed their 7-day isolation period, they should wear a mask for an additional 3 days (for days 8 to 10)

Please note that students who test positive for COVID-19, or who are unwell or showing COVID-19 symptoms, must continue to isolate at home.

All the best for the week ahead,

Mr David Cloran

SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER YEAR C

First Reading Acts 15:1-2. 22-29  The Apostles decide not to burden the Gentiles unnecessarily.

Second Reading  Rv 21:10-14, 22-23    An angel shows John the new Jerusalem.

Gospel Jn 14:23-29   Jesus leaves peace as his farewell.

• During Lent, this was a focus of our prayer intentions. So as we celebrate Pentecost this weekend, let us keep the gift of thinking about others going.
• Let us continue to pray for all those who are impacted by conflict, especially those in Ukraine;
• For those in our community who reside in Claymore, St Andrews and Kearns;
• For the students who are competing in the Diocesean Cross Country and the teachers who are supporting them.

Earlier this year, this photo showing the statue of Mary wrapped in a silver emergency blanket was shared in the newsletter. 

Emergency blankets help to provide warmth for those in the worst of all emergency situations.

This is the College's way to connect to the Marist 2022 Theme Image of the Lady of Loretto. The painting shows Mary, with the Child Jesus, given protection with a gold emergency blanket. It is a reminder to us that there are many people, today, who are fleeing the worst situations, to find themselves as refugees, and only having the warmth of an emergency blanket.

So as we go home to our places of warmth and security, let us not forget those in our world who are living as refugees.

Mrs Christine Meharg

REC Coordinator

The past two weeks have seen over one hundred Year 7 parents and caregivers attend Literacy Conversation meetings to discuss the very critical issues of literacy, language and learning with a team of very dedicated and passionate English educators. The conversations on these two evenings focused on the following areas: the importance of reading and writing, and how best to develop these two critical areas of literacy; the very strong connection between learning and wellbeing; and the wonderful opportunity we have as a community to work together to improve the learning outcomes of our young people. The vibrant and considered dialogue that resulted from the two Literacy Conversations, coupled with the substantial number of phone and email interactions, have shown what a marvellous and committed community of parents we are blessed with at Mount Carmel.

Research supports the fact that parents and caregivers are an essential component of the learning process. Parent engagement in learning is known to lead to improved outcomes for students of all ages in areas of literacy, school adjustment and attendance, motivation, self-regulatory behaviour, social skills, and school retention rates. Connecting learning at home and learning at school in the form of a partnership has been a critical part of our literacy focus over the past three years. The core principles that underpin the Mount Carmel Home-School Literacy Partnership include the belief that parents, carers and families are the first and continuing educators of their children, that learning is lifelong and occurs in multiple settings, that partnerships and school communities flourish when the diversity and strengths of families are valued and utilised, and that community engagement grows from mutual respect, trust and shared responsibility.

Whilst parent engagement in education does encompass involvement in college activities such as attending events, participating in working bees or belonging to the Parents and Friends’ Association, the key focus of this home-school partnership is learning. This focus on learning translates into parents fostering their children’s learning at home, at school and in broader community contexts. The Mount Carmel Home-School Literacy Partnership program invites and supports parent engagement in the education of their children in order to improve the learning and wellbeing outcomes for all of our young people. This rich collaboration between home and school will undoubtedly result in positive and beneficial outcomes for all – students, parents, and teachers.

Mrs Clare Murphy

English Coordinator & Literacy Instructional Coach

Good afternoon everyone,

Thanks to all members of our community for their involvement in our Athletics Carnival earlier today. This was a particularly significant event for our Year Seven students, where it was their first experience of a Mount Carmel Athletics Carnival, and to our Year 12’s, for which it was their last. A particular thanks to the House leaders who helped organise students into events and worked tirelessly to promote House spirit.

Elevate Education

How to Improve Your Child's Memory

Here's what we'll be covering for parents:

• How they can set up their child’s study space to maximise attention;
• The best techniques for improving memory;
• The 7 most common mistakes which actually reduce memory retention.

The presenter will share Elevate's key research and skills, and will conduct a live Q&A so you can ask them questions directly.

You can regiser by clicking here

Next Parent Webinar

Wednesday 1st June @ 7pm (AEDT)

• Year 11 PTS Interviews (25th May)
• Year 7 & 8 Brainstorm Productions Cyberbullying drama presentation (June 3)
• Year 10 & 12 MACE Excursion (9th June)
• Champagnat Day (10th June)
• Queen’s Birthday (13th June)
• College Photo Day (23rd June)
• Year 10 Immunisation Day (30th June)
• 7-10 PTS Interviews (27th & 30th June, 1st July)

Mr Simon Huntly

Mount Carmel Second Hand Uniform Shop sells pre-owned College uniforms at less than half the cost of new uniforms. 

You can bring your child's uniforms to the shop when they no longer fit or you no longer need them (Uniforms must be clean and in good condition. Blazers must be dry cleaned). The Second-hand Uniform shop will sell the uniforms on your behalf, and after they sell the P & F Committee will transfer the money to your nominated bank account.  The P & F will keep 10% of all sales.  You are also able to donate the uniforms and then the P & F will benefit from 100% of the sales.  

The uniform shop is open from 2.30 - 4pm on the days listed below, usually the first Monday of each month.  The shop will next be open on Monday 21 March 2022. The shop is run by parent volunteers to raise money for the P & F Committee and to help families of the school with low-cost uniforms. 

If any parent wishes to volunteer in the Second-hand Uniform Shop please contact the school office.

Term 2 2022

Monday 6 June

Term 3 2022

Monday 1 August

Monday 5 September

Term 4 2022

Monday 7 November

Monday 5 December

Cash only - no EFTPOS facilities

Results for 14/5/2022

15’s defeated by CDNA 4 - 70

Grad C’s defeated Macquarie Fields 38 - 24

Division 6 defeated by Sydney United Queens 23 - 35

Division 5 had a bye

To register, please click here

The latest school fee statements have been forwarded to families via email from the Catholic Education Office.

Families who have not re-entered into an instalment plan and have fees overdue may also have received an overdue reminder letter from CEO. If you have since paid the outstanding amount, no further action is required. If you are unable to pay the overdue amount please make contact with the Finance Team.

Please be aware that payment agreements from 2021 are not automatically rolled over to this year.

The College fully understands that in the current climate many families are under financial pressure, please remember we are here to help.  Please email the College via mccc-finance@dow.catholic.edu.au or alternatively call the College finance office on 9603 3000, all communication is confidential.