Principal's Report

HSC

The HSC Examinations have begun and we wish all of our 2019 Year 12 students the best as they attempt to apply the ‘polish’ to their dedicated academic endeavours over the past 6 years. Please keep them in your prayers. I also commend the personal dedication and commitment to excellence of the McCarthy teaching staff. While they have to now sit back and pray that their pedagogical expertise and hard work over the past 21 months allows the Year 12 students to achieve to their highest personal capacity, nothing will change their collective excitement when Year 12 achieve deserved success. Like Mother Ducks proudly sending out their ducklings into the big wide world, teachers deeply care  and pray for full realisation of each students potential. 

Ireland Pilgrimage

Over the most recent holiday break I was very privileged to participate in a pilgrimage to Ireland with the support of the Catholic Schools Office and under the spiritual leadership of West Tamworth Parish Priest - Father Anthony Koppman. While pilgrimages are personal faith journeys that mean very little to anyone who was not part of the tour, the opportunity to be exposed to the origins of the founders of catholic orders such as the Christian Brothers (Blessed Edmund Rice); Sisters of Mercy (Catherine McAuley); and the Patrician Brothers (Bishop Daniel Delany) was very moving and inspiring, both on a personal level and for my faith leadership in a Catholic College. While each founder worked in different ways to actively support the poor in Ireland, the common threads lie in their unshakable devotion to their catholic faith and their intractable focus on improving the quality of life for the poor and marginalised. Despite the Penal Laws (that banned Catholics from gathering), famine and opposition from their own church, these inspirational and deeply spiritual men and women would not be dissuaded. For all intents and purposes, they should have failed miserably in their endeavours, but their deep belief in their work and the love of God helped them stay the path. In contemporary times where the numbers of homeless and marginalised in Australia continue to grow despite our alleged affluence, these men and women of the church stand as beacons of faith leadership for us to challenge our own personal and community outreach to the poor.

School Advisory Council Nominations

I encourage any interested parents who wish to be involved in supporting the governance of the College as an advisory member to attend the School Advisory Council (SAC) Information Evening on Tuesday 12 November 2019 in the Meeting Room at 5:30pm. There is currently one parent/community member vacancy. It is a requirement of all members to participate in an information session prior to nominating and potentially being elected to the SAC at the Annual General Meeting. I strongly encourage any interested parents to attend the Information Session.

Please email me to register your attendance - gmcmanus@arm.catholic.edu.au

The Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 19 November 2019 at 5:30pm.

Staffing

For personal reasons, both Mr Ryan Saban and Mrs Melissa Gamble have chosen to resign their teaching positions from McCarthy Catholic College from the beginning of this term. While both were only employed for a short period of time, their commitment to the students and the community was valued and they will be missed. We wish both Mr Saban and Mrs Gamble all the best in their future endeavours. We welcome Ms Kylie Bailey on a contract until the end of the year to support the delivery of Agriculture. 

Welcome

We welcome the following students to the McCarthy community: Jordin Ison (Year 8), Jarius Macogay (Year 10), Harrison Merrick (Year 10) and Chloe Perkins (Year 11).  As a community, we hope that their transition has been a smooth one and that they are enjoying the McCarthy community.

Mr Geoff McManus - Principal