Latest news
Feast of the Assumption
On Tuesday 15 August our College celebrated the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary; a holy day when Mary was assumed body and soul into Heaven.
As the most important of all Marian feasts, this day signifies the Blessed Virgin's passing into eternal life and her role as the mother of Christ. At St Mary's, we recognise that this story is a key part of our history, as a school founded by the Presentation Sisters and named after Mary.
To commemorate the day, students and staff in the Junior School attended a Mass in the Cathedral, led by Fr Leonard Caldera, together with members of the St Virgil's College Junior School. Following Mass, the Presentation Sisters were invited to enjoy a lovely morning tea together in the College Staff Room.
A special prayer service held in Homerooms on Monday 14 August invited our Senior School students to reflect on the significance of the Feast of Assumption. Students were also reminded look to Mary as an example on which to model themselves.
Science Week launches at SMC
The Kinder classroom was a hive of activity on Monday 14 August for the launch of Science Week, with our milangkani families delighting in the opportunity to discover, explore and engage in the fun science and STEM activities on offer.
Children learned about force through play with hands-on physics experiments using cars and ramps; they put their problem-solving skills to the test as they designed and built bridges, and they mixed primary colours using ear buds to create new colours.
Meanwhile, a fascinating taxidermy display produced many excited squeals as curious minds got up close and personal with a taxidermy mounted owl and bat.
National Science Week is Australia's annual celebration of science and technology, running from 12-20 August.
Our Science Week program at SMC is packed to the brim with exciting demonstrations and activities for all students—watch this space as we share more of what we get up to as the week unfolds!
Staff achievements
We have some high achieving educators in our midst! The College is delighted to acknowledge the following Senior School teachers for their outstanding accomplishments. Please congratulate them if you see them!
Jacinda Wuersching has been selected to travel to Israel in January with the Gandel Holocaust Studies Program. Jacinda is one of 32 to earn a spot in the professional development program, which is aimed at training expert Holocaust educators who are active throughout Australia.
Angela Fraser has recently been published in book called Teacher, Teacher: Stories of Inspirational Educators—a compilation of fantastic short stories about teachers and the education system. Angela's piece is well worth a read! The book is available to purchase online and in all good bookstores.
Official opening of SMC Parliament
The below summary was written by Lucy Kearney and Eliza McCullough on behalf of the Year 6 Press Gallery.
On Thursday 3 August, Year 6 students participated in the opening ceremony of SMC Parliament. It began with prayers from the Deputy Prime Minister, Annie Wuersching (Year 6), and an Acknowledgement of Country. The Executive branch commented on how much they were looking forward to the session.
This group of Year 6 students was the 20th class to participate in parliament at St Mary’s College. Year 6 is running parliament to learn about the Australian Government and to help improve confidence and leadership qualities.
During the opening ceremony, the Director of the Junior School, Mrs Knight, presented parliament pins to all members of SMC Parliament. These pins are now displayed proudly on the lapels of students.
Year 6 is looking forward to helping improve our school environment and learning about how our country is governed.