Assistant Principal – Religious Identity & Mission

Legacy Piece

On Tuesday 10 September, our Year 12 and Prep students were led by Keith Dougall, a talented glass artist, to create a beautiful glass tile each, which will become part of a special legacy piece for our College. These individual tiles will be combined into a cross, symbolising unity and creativity across our School community. This stunning artwork will commemorate our first year as a Kindergarten to Year 12 College, and once completed, it will be displayed at the Senior School as a lasting reminder of the collaboration between the two campuses.

It was a fun day, with all the students engaged with creating something special, the Year 12 students assisting the Prep students with the cutting and designing. Watch this space for the presentation of the final piece. 

Year 10 Retreat

On Monday 16 September, all Year 10 students will be attending a retreat run by Dave Jorna of Project Hatch, at the Greek Club in North Hobart. Students are to wear sports uniform and will be bussed to the venue. They need to bring a water bottle and snacks. Lunch will be provided. Please email Mrs Kim Mooney at kmooney@stvirgils.tas.edu.au if your son has any dietary issues that need to be considered. It is an expectation that all students attend this retreat.

Students will discover, reflect on and believe in their unique worth and value so they can live life to its fullest. They will examine how to take accountability for the person they are being and becoming. We hope that the retreat will give participants time away from the ‘every day’ to reflect on significant relationships and personal experiences, build a positive self-image, and explore the presence of God in their lives.

Year 9 Panel Discussions & Service Day 

Our Year 9 students are currently doing a unit called “What it Means to be a Man of St Virgil’s”. They began the unit by examining the movie Hackshaw Ridge, looking at the values of the main character, and how his faith in God shaped his life. They have then discussed our Virgilian values and how these impact the people we become. To help with this, we invited six OVA members back to the college, who sat in a panel on Wednesday 11 September, and chatted to the students about how their time at the College defined the men they are now. The students were then given the opportunity to ask each of them questions. The answers to these and the discussions will be used in an assessment piece examining the Virgilian values.

To round out this unit, the classes will explore the concept of service and how this supports the values of our college. On Monday 23 September, all Year 9 students will be expected to undertake a day of service. Next week they will be asked to choose from a list of available service options and will be informed of their allocation so they can make appropriate transport arrangements if they don’t wish to be bussed there from the College on the day. 

Masses 

Our students, class by class, have been attending instructional masses this year, presided over by Father Suresh each fortnight in our chapel. It is important for all our students to attend these instructional masses so that they become familiar and comfortable with mass proceedings. Our College mission states - "We strive to build a Catholic learning community where we can become people of faith, generosity, excellence and integrity, connected in our desire to serve and care for each other, the marginalised and our environment." In addition to being an opportunity to celebrate and express our faith in Jesus, the Mass is a time when our faith in Jesus is shared, and we have the opportunity to grow and develop. Through listening to the Word and the Priest’s homily, we can draw closer in our faith in Jesus and develop a greater understanding of the life of Jesus.