From the Principal

The excitement of the Olympics finished 2 weeks ago and the highlight for me was Saya Sakakibara winning Australia's first-ever Olympic gold medal in BMX Racing. For those who do not know her story, winning and even competing in Paris was an achievement attributed to her talent and skills but more importantly her mental strength and determination. Saya contemplated giving up the sport after her older brother Kai suffered a horrific accident while competing just before the Tokyo Olympics and suffered a serious brain injury. Saya herself also crashed out of the semi-finals in Tokyo resulting in a concussion.  She nearly gave up the sport for fear that she would also end up with a serious injury like her brother Kai. Saya’s courage and determination, driven by her motivation to ride for Kai resulted in her winning Gold at the Paris Olympics. The family were present to witness her relief, joy and strength. She reported post race that she had been battling Covid during the week but never gave up. 

"I just wanted to leave here having enjoyed the experience and having put everything out there, and that I did absolutely everything that I could, no matter what the result is," she said.

What lessons can we all learn from Saya and the Sakakibara family?  I hope that students can see a similarity between their schooling and final assessments. Commitment over a long period of time is needed for success, whether it is a topic test or final ATAR exams. Saya trained from a young age, experienced extreme lows and disappointments all for a 34 second race. Her resilience and hard work would never guarantee her ultimate goal but she would be satisfied if she had enjoyed the journey and given it her all. That’s all I ask of students at St Norbert College.

We had a colourful and fun day on Tuesday when we held the annual Book Week Year 12 dress up assembly. The theme for 2024 was “Reading is magic”. I thank Mrs Byfield, Miss McKenna and Miss Bridges for promoting the day and for the many activities organised for staff and students.  There will be some magic happening in the Library space in the coming months as we reconfigure the library into a Learning Hub.

I take the opportunity to welcome new staff members to the College:

• Miss Jade Davies- English
• Mr Matthew Sligar - Maths
• Mrs Simona Arcieri - Italian
• Miss Chelsea Gray -Reception

The College value of ADAPTABILITY was certainly present at our recent Athletics Carnival where we were required to relocate to our College oval with short notice when we lost our booking at Ern Clark.  Our students showed strength while competing during the challenging weather. I thank both staff and students for creating such a fun community event and congratulations to all champions and to the winning House - Tongerlo!

I hope to see many dads and father figures at the Father’s Day breakfast next Thursday. I trust that you are preparing your dad jokes too.

I ask all families to ‘save the date’ for our annual Presentation Night on Thursday 24 October. It promises to be a wonderful celebration of awards, leadership and a showcase of entertainment. 

Please pray for our Year 11 students who are currently preparing for selection into leadership positions for 2025.

God bless.

Ms S Rainford

(Principal)