St Pius X College Newsletter

From the Acting Principal

  • Prayer
  • Twilight Concert
  • Student Learning
  • NAPLAN
  • Co-curricular

I write to you from the EREA Principal’s Conference in Brisbane.  It is wonderful we are again able to travel to attend meetings in person.  It is timely to note that at this time last year, we were in the midst of slowly returning to face-to-face teaching after our extended COVID-related online learning period. COVID-19 protocols are certainly now part of our regular landscape. Thank you to all of our community for embracing these plans to ensure we maintain a safe and healthy environment.

While we are enjoying the recently lifted COVID-restrictions we still recognise that others are still facing the pain, troubles and the concerns that the pandemic brings. 

Prayer

Our week began with our Year 9 students leading Mass in our College Chapel. Father David reminded us that through the Holy Spirit, God is always with us. God guides our conscience to embrace the Gospel values that we live daily. 

This is the week of Pentecost and on Sunday we celebrate Pentecost Sunday, the Birthday of our Church. May we always continue to put our faith into action as we pray:

 

Lord of Power, just as the outpouring of Your Holy Spirit on Pentecost 

so drastically changed the lives of the disciples,

may the burning fire of Your Holy Spirit refine and renew us, 

so that we will never be the same. 

May we move in the power of the Spirit, 

and may our lives and ministries be infused with 

Your divine authority, mercy and compassion. 

May the Spirit of Wisdom and Revelation 

cause us to grow in our knowledge of You. 

Amen.

 

St Pius X ,   Pray for Us

Blessed Edmund Rice,   Pray for Us

Live Jesus in our Hearts,    Forever

 

Twilight Concert

Congratulations to our Performing Arts Department for our Twilight Concert last Thursday afternoon.  The Senior Choir sang at a concert for the first time since COVID restrictions silenced their voices.  Our Strings Groups, Guitar Ensembles, Orchestra and Primary Concert Band also performed to an appreciative on-site audience, along with those who viewed it online. It was great to have our parents able to join us on campus and witness the talents of their sons. Thank you for embracing this opportunity in a COVID-safe manner. Students were certainly happy to be able to get back on stage and display their hard work over the past months.

Thank you to Mr Anthony Timmins, Mr Nathanael Primrose-Heaney and to all our Ensemble Directors and ICT Department for their preparations of the students and computer and sound work for the event.

Student Learning

The College learning program is very settled at present, and all boys should be working solidly on their studies. I commend Year 12 on their current approach to learning and encourage them to continue this way.  Their Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews on Monday were most fruitful and certainly provided advice, direction and ongoing encouragement to our HSC students. Year 12 will hold their third Study Day at Oxford Falls this week. 

Year 11 Mid-Course Reports will be released to the Portal this afternoon and their Parent/Teacher/Student interviews will be held online on Monday 24 May.

I put a challenge to our Years 5 – 10 students as we reach the half-way mark of the term: what will their Semester 1 Report say? The reporting process is a very positive experience to provide feedback to reward, affirm, encourage and re-focus our young men. Our staff look forward to dialoguing with you further in the respective Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews, also online, at the end of the term for Years 5 – 10. 

 NAPLAN

The NAPLAN tests went through smoothly last week and without any issues. For the first time for the College, the tests were all held in an online format with students using their PLDs.  Congratulations to our Year 5, 7 and 9 students who were very well organised and completed the tasks so diligently. The results will be available around September/October.

Cocurricular

I had the joy of wandering around our superb sporting fields on a chilly but nevertheless sunny day last Saturday and witnessed the ongoing talents of our young men.  So many of our students are involved in a wide range of activities: from those attending the Twilight Concert last Thursday and Chess and Debating on Friday to Football, Tennis, Squash and Rugby on Saturday, along with our Duke of Ed students’ hike across the weekend.  Thank you to Mr Paul de Silva for his organisation and running of this hike.  

I particularly enjoyed seeing the determination of our 11A and 11B Rugby teams who kicked off the day so well with great wins. Likewise our 11’s Football played with great effort against, at times, much bigger opposition. The win/loss record was shared but the effort and commitment from all of our students was certainly the winner.

The Juniors certainly set the tone that ended with all of our Firsts' sporting and co-curricula teams victorious over the weekend.

The weekend continued on Sunday with our students in the Drama Project working at the College on Sunday to continue their filming.  This all shows us what a healthy lifestyle and holistic education we are striving to offer all our students at the College.

Congratulations also go to our 1st XI Football team who won their CIS Quarter Final last Wednesday at Oxford Falls in a nail biter where we triumphed through penalty shootouts.  We are excited to go back to Valentine Park in two weeks for the semi-final match. 

 

Mr Mark Casey - Acting Principal