Dear parents, friends, staff and students,

Mr Steve Lo Cascio

At the College assembly this morning, I spoke to all students about the drop-off and pick-up procedures of an afternoon. Specifically, I focused on the large numbers of students who arrive each morning and depart of an afternoon within two relatively short periods of time. As the signage near the front gates indicate, parents are asked to not enter the turning circle between the hours of 8am and 9am each morning and 3pm and 4pm of an afternoon. This is purely as a safety precaution whilst foot traffic arriving at the College is at its greatest. Parents dropping off are asked to pull into a parking space in the parent carpark before collecting or dropping off their children. I thank you for your support with regards to this safety priority.

A final reminder that the Term 3 Staff Development Day will take place this coming Friday 26 August. Staff will be focusing on opportunities to further develop our approach to pastoral care and wellbeing through a series of workshops and presentations. I thank the parents and carers within our community for the alternative supervision arrangements that are needed in order to allow staff to participate in such opportunities.

You may have noticed on our College Compass Calendar that this coming Wednesday has been scheduled to run in accordance with our Friday B timetable. This is to compensate for the number of Fridays that are lost throughout the year due to major College events, public holidays, and carnivals. Students have been asked to come to school on Wednesday prepared for classes according to a “Friday B” timetable.

Earlier this year, we were required to postpone the Year 10 Meningococcal Vaccinations to Tuesday 30 August. As this date is now approaching, I remind parents that if your child hasn’t returned their consent form, they may do so at anypoint prior to this date. There will also be an opportunity for students in Year 11 who require a catch up from last year to be vaccinated on this day.

Earlier this week, students in Year 11 were issued with their latest supply of RAT kits. Students are encouraged to use these if they are experiencing any flu-like symptoms or if they are in the same household as a positive COVID case.

Finally this week, I remind everyone of our COVID-safe reporting measures for Term 3. These 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 wear a mask indoors except when eating or exercising
• Once positive cases 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,

TWENTY-FIRST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR C

First Reading  Is 66:18-21 -The Lord will gather all people to see his glory.

Second Reading  Heb 12:5-7, 11-13 - The Lord disciplines those he loves.

Gospel  Lk 13:22-30 - It is difficult to enter the kingdom of God.

Important Days

Monday 22nd: International Day commemorating the Victims of Violence Based on Religion or Belief

Wednesday 24th: St Bartholomew - Apostle

Saturday 27th: St Monica

 

Around the College

Celebrating Mackillop Day

Year 12 Reconnector

Mrs Christine Meharg

Last week I spoke about student engagement and the critical importance of teacher enthusiasm, expertise, and empathy in the learning and teaching process. I also suggested that literature possessed the power to engage students, mobilise their abilities for deep learning, sustain their interest, and challenge their thinking. These ideas were put to the test this afternoon when I was given a Year 11 English class to cover for an absent colleague. It was the last lesson of the day, and it was evident as the students entered the classroom that they were tired – as was I. Calling upon my own ‘enthusiasm, expertise, and empathy’, I sought to engage these young people in fifty minutes of purposeful and focused work.

The class teacher had left the instructions that the students were to compose a short autobiographical piece entitled ‘Who Do I Think I Am?’ This immediately reminded me of a poem I had shared recently with my Year 12 class. Written in 1945 by the German theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, ‘Who Am I?’ explores the notion of identity and the inner conflict that is part of the human condition. The thirty-nine-year-old Lutheran pastor composed the poem while incarcerated in a German prison camp during the Second World War. Weeks later, he would be executed for his opposition to Adolf Hitler and the Nazi regime.

The students today were interested in reading Bonhoeffer’s poem and hearing his life story – a story of the victory of light, love, and sacrifice over darkness and evil. One of my favourite books is Bonhoeffer’s The Cost of Discipleship. After reading this for the first time, some years ago now, I guided a Year 12 Mount Carmel student as he composed an engaging and quite remarkable short story on Bonhoeffer as part of his HSC English Extension 2 course. I remember finishing my reading of Paolo Lingat’s final product feeling incredibly moved and somewhat altered by the experience. Bonhoeffer’s impact on this young man had resulted in the creation of an exceptional composition. Bonhoeffer’s impact today on these young people, continued to engage their intellect and their emotions, and hopefully assisted in their own reflections and subsequent written expression.

This afternoon’s encounter emphasised for me once again, as it had with Paolo all those years ago, the power of story to stimulate our minds and our hearts. Stories – both real and fictitious – will continue to survive in literature because homes, classrooms and workplaces are filled with their descendants.

Mrs Clare Murphy

English Coordinator & Literacy Instructional Coach

Art Gallery of New South Wales by Zahie Wahhab

Yesterday (18/08/22), the year 9 and 10 elective students including myself embarked on a scenic and educational excursion to the Art Gallery of New South Wales. At 9:20am, the forty-odd students boarded a bustling train at Minto Station, where the group remained for 50 minutes, before beginning a brisk picturesque walk from St James station to the gallery.

Upon arriving, the students and I were stunned to see that the building itself was a work of art, with the exterior reflecting the 19th century gothic architecture style. The spacious interior adorned with hundreds of paintings on the walls was something truly mesmerising. The trip brought incessant fun among my peers, achieved via winding through the Archibald, Wynne and Sulman Prize finalists collection for hours as well as the permanent gallery collection and the new Asian art exhibit, which opened merely 10 days prior to our visit. This environment was social but oddly eerie as the audience were stagnant and silent in reflecting and quietly critiquing every work, whilst attempting to expose its complex meaning. The enigmatic abstract contemporary art left us puzzled, with truly ardent students reading the small descriptions beside each work, divulging the secrets of the artist, their inspiration and expressive mind.

Many of the works in the gallery, in particular the permanent collection, were colossal, with 19th century paintings like Edouard Detallie’s “Vive l’Empereur!” having dimensions of 512.5 x 445 cm. The sumptuous lustre on the works was hypnotising in itself, giving an impression of professionalism and talent. The fastidious nature of the artists, whose attention to detail resulted in their unbelievable and captivating art, was something that I found truly fascinating, leaving me to contemplate on the time and years of developed skill that would be required to make a work seem truly alive. The atmosphere was subdued as the audience was quietly reflecting on the art, however, inside we were utterly ebullient in experiencing the emotional lamenting or joy of the composer, forever trapped in time through art.

The artists featured in the gallery whom I had the pleasure of experiencing yesterday was one of the most pivotal elements of the trip. To my amazement, the gallery contained works from some of the greatest artists in history, such as Paul Cezanne and Claude Monet. To be standing completely motionless in awe but ineffably energetic in the presence of the fibres and oils over hundreds of years old, crafted and utilised by some of the most famous international artists in history made my own talents seem to be non-existent. Several works of famous Australian artists such as Arthur Streeton and Tom Roberts were featured in the gallery, including the original Streeton work of “Fire’s on” (1891),  which was studied earlier in the year by the year 9 students.

Between these memorable hours engaging in the expressive works of truly gifted artists, lunch was enjoyed in a warm, mildly windy park, sitting nonchalantly on the grass or at a bench in the city. Subsequent to stepping outside the spacious, embellished gallery to proceed to catch the train at quarter to 2, the mood of the gallery seemed to linger in the air for several hours as myself and peers were still digesting the glorious nature of the New South Wales Art Gallery that the visual art students and I had the privilege of experiencing. This will truly be an excursion to remember.

Mount Carmel P&F Clothing Pool 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 5 September 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 3 2022

Monday 5 September

Term 4 2022

Monday 7 November

Monday 5 December

Cash only - no EFTPOS facilities