Our Commitment to Action: Catholic Identity

We activate identity and mission through Catholic Social Teaching and affirming the dignity and inclusion of all.

Professional Learning and Development Day – Gippsland Lecture with Dr Amy-Jill Levine

Dr Amy-Jill (AJ) Levine is the Rabbi Stanley M. Kessler Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Jewish Studies at Hartford International University for Religion and Peace. Professor Levine has been awarded grants from the Mellon Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the American Council of Learned Societies. In addition to receiving three audiences with Pope Francis, in Spring 2019 she was the first Jew to teach New Testament at Rome’s Pontifical Biblical Institute. It was incredible spending the day with AJ and learn from her teaching of Jesus’ life and stories.

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Photo: Dr Amy-Jill (AJ) Levine before her lecture began.

Photo: Leaders from across Marist-Sion College, Lavalla Catholic College and Catholic College Sale with the Sion and Marist Formation Leaders and Dr Amy-Jill Lavine.

Photo: Marist-Sion College staff at the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre.

Photo: Marist-Sion College staff at the Gippsland Performing Arts Centre.

Bishop Greg Bennet Elected Vice-President of the Australian Bishops Conference

We send our congratulations to Bishop Greg Bennet (Bishop of Sale), for his election as Vice-President of the Australian Bishops Conference. This is an incredible honour for a great leader and dear friend of Marist-Sion College. Bishop Greg, our diocese is blessed to have you and our community’s prayers are with you for this important leadership role.

Link: https://mediablog.catholic.org.au/new-vice-president-for-australian-catholic-bishops-conference/#more-9805

Photo: Bishop Greg Bennet at our Project Compassion launch in Term 1.

Happy Mother’s Day – the Sacrament of Motherhood

“A phone call or a card, a visit if you’ve got time but please, no presents.” This seems to be my Mum’s mantra prior to Mother’s Day … or on a more practical note, she would really appreciate a new phone charger … the chord to the old charger has gone bung!

My greatest pleasure arises from the phone calls with my Mum first thing in the morning, “How’s your day looking? I hope you get to spend some time with your students.”

Even the most lowly of female creatures is gifted with those special qualities needed to nurture their young. The dedication of a little fairy wren protecting and warming precious eggs in her snug nest; a mother cat suckling her kittens; a kelpie pup crowding in for some of his mother’s milk. It is the same sense of wonder and awe that fills me when I see the love on the face of a young mother feeding her baby.

We offer prayers for all mothers

We give thanks for the love that they give every day of their lives.

We think of those mothers no longer with us.

We think of the absent mothers.

We think of adoptive mothers, step and foster mothers.

We give thanks for God-mothers.

We offer a special prayer for mothers to be.

We offer a special prayer too for the significant women and all who play a maternal role in our lives.

On Mothers’ Day this year, I spent a few moments reflecting on all the mothers who are part of who I am. Foremost, my own grandmother who had little money but an abundant vegetable patch and biscuit tin. I thought of my mother, who finally got the baby sister she prayed for ten years after my Mum was born. I thought of my birth mother and my beautiful Mum who has passed on the values of kindness, hospitality, compassion, honesty and belief in the precious bonds of family.

A Mary for today sees her as a human figure, maturing in her journey, growing in faith, moving from uncertainty to belief in the struggles of her life. “Journey of faith” was a term used frequently by St John Paul II in referring to Mary’s life and her place in the pilgrim church. He meant Mary’s own historical movement to faith as well as her place in our lives as Christians. Our own Christian life journey has a past, present, and future. Mary is at once a little-known historical person who walked the journey to faith in Christ, and the figure of the church on its Spirit-filled pilgrim journey in time.

I would like to acknowledge and say thank you to all mothers and significant women at Marist-Sion for who they are and for what they do.

On Monday morning, Brad Cavalot shared his gift of song with the staff and sang an acoustic reflective piece. It was a powerful sign of the heart of our community.

Photo: Steven Carpenter (Director of Digital Learning and Systems) with his mother.

Our Commitment to Action: Learning and Teaching

We build expert teachers, adaptive teaching teams and collaborative expertise.

Kayli Anderson (Year 9 – Joseph House) A Talented Artist

Check out Kayli’s recent submission titled “Quiet Watch” to the Pakenham Art Show. Kayli is a super talented emerging artist. Good luck with your entry, Kayli!

College Production – High School Musical

Rehearsals are well underway for the College Production, High School Musical. We are looking forward to delivering another high-quality production for the College community.

National Careers Week

This week, we celebrate National Careers Week. National Careers Week is an initiative of the Career Industry Council of Australia. It aims to celebrate careers, career development, career development services, and career development practitioners and promote career development’s economic, social and personal benefits.

Career development is a process of managing learning, work and leisure to progress through life. It includes gaining and using the skills and knowledge needed to plan and make informed decisions about education, training, and work. Everyday decisions and priorities affect career development.

Ultimately, career development is about much more than jobs – it is about how to live your life.

Our Commitment to Action: Leadership

We are impactful leaders, building capacity and driving school improvement.

Senior Leaders Workshop 2

Our Senior Leaders have participated in their second workshop with The Table Group Principal Consultant, Matt Lashbrook. This workshop focused on the 6 types of Working Genius, a new model that helps people discover their natural gifts and thrive in their work and life. When people are able to better understand the types of work that bring them more energy and fulfillment and avoid work that leads to frustration and failure, they can be more self-aware, more productive and more successful. It was a fantastic day of learning.

Our Commitment to Action: Child Safety and Student Achievement

We commit to sustaining and improving our child safe practices and culture.

Zizi Pozzebon (Year 12 – Champagnat House) – Victorian U18 Girls State Hockey Team Selection

Zizi Pozzebon was selected to play for the Victorian U18 Girls State Hockey Team at the National U18 Hockey Championships to be held on the Gold Coast 2 – 11 July this year. Hockey Victoria announced the teams here: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/VpLTJ5yMk9bhgBw4/?mibextid=WC7FNe.

We are proud of Zizi’s achievement. It is a real testament to the hard work Zizi has put in to achieve her goal of making the state team. Zizi spends about 10 hours per week in the car travelling back and forth into Melbourne to attend training and play her team’s fixtures.

To anyone who knows Zizi that she applies the same determination and drive to succeed to all aspects of her life both inside and outside of Marist-Sion. She is managing to balance Year 12, a small part time job, being College Captain, social aspects and all her hockey commitments successfully.

Congratulations, Zizi.

Photo: Zizi on the hockey field.

My Kokoda Award – Mia Malady (Year 12 – Joseph House)

Mia Malady read her poem, My Kokoda at the Warragul ANZAC Day Service.

Photo: Mia reading her poem at the recent Warragul ANZAC Day Service.

I applied for the George Collins award

to walk the Kokoda track

And when I received the call from Bernie Rowell

There’d be no turning back

For months we trained at Gentle Annie

Up and down that wretched slope

I’d heard so much about the track.

I wondered if I’d cope.

At the airport I met the trekkers

And learnt where they were from

From strangers to now best mates,

I never dreamt just how close we would all become

But all were keen to make a start

We were chomping at the bit

Let’s get this journey underway

We are ready to commit

Owers Corner was where our trek began

We headed through the Kokoda arch

There was no turning back now

We were on the track at last

The excitement soon turned to hard work.

And hard work turned to pain.

We struggled up every ridge.

Then did it all again

The days were hot and humid

The track went on and on

But evening camp was much appreciated

With a swim, a feed and the porters song

We heard the story of two brothers

Whilst climbing Brigade hill one day

One lay there mortally wounded

as his brother sang O’Danny boy as he slowly passed away

This track was turning out to be,

a very moving place

Many a time the stories, the scenery, or the feeling

Would leave me with tears rolling down my face

Gary’s reveille at 4:30 am was something I’ll never forget

Standing at Isurava in the pre-dawn light

The shadows of the four pillars: Courage, Endurance, Mateship and Sacrifice

Was a very emotional sight

The Kokoda stories and spirit

They helped push me up those hills

I’d not felt prouder to be Australian

And I doubt I never will

I soon forgot the hard days

The mind games and the pain

To walk in the footsteps of our diggers

If I had another chance I’d do it all again

Self-Regulation – The Power of the Pause

Self-Regulation – The Power of the Pause … what does this challenge us to do? Who does this challenge us to be?

Recently, one of my friends sent me this article about two teenagers who were tired of being insulted by boys and men so they created an installation for Melbourne’s Hosier Lane.

The installation documented the countless insults directed at school student Mia Murphy — “girls should be seen and not heard” which prompted the 15-year-old to call out her haters in a very public art display along Melbourne’s Hosier Lane.

On International Women’s Day on March 8, Mia and her friend Eliza Honey-Gutteridge glued a selection of unique posters to the lane’s graffitied walls. The artworks displayed a number of insults that had been directed at the girls for the public to see.

Photo: Mia Murphy and Eliza Honey-Gutteridge.

Maybe Mia and Eliza are your friends. Mia was born and raised in Warragul and said to the reporters, “A lot of my friends have actually left classes because of the comments that were being made in class, or stopped playing sport because of comments that were said to them.”

Mia’s mum said, “I’m very driven by having voices heard. People need to have a think about what these words mean, how they impact someone, and what they can turn into.”

Mia’s mum was speaking to Self-Regulation – The Power of the Pause.

As all 18 AFL clubs did last weekend, Collingwood and Carlton players, coaches and officials joined arms before Friday night’s blockbuster at the MCG to acknowledge and raise awareness of violence against women.

Photo: Collingwood and Carlton players before the game.

Why?

Because of the shocking number of women who have died violently in Australia already this year, according to a tracking project by Counting Dead Women.

Our Watch, the national leader in the primary prevention of violence against women and their children in Australia reports that:

On average, one woman is killed every nine days by a current or former partner.

In the year 2021/22, 620 women aged 15 years and over – at an average of 13 women per day – were hospitalised due to family and domestic violence

I was struck by the silence by … the power of the pause … that descended on the stadium as a mark of respect and was excited for the game to begin.

With scores level and the Magpies seemingly on track for their second draw in eight days, Nick Daicos swooped on the ball from a clearance with his pace to snap through his second goal of Friday night’s contest and secure the win for Collingwood over Carlton.

It was impressive and the reason why I am standing before you today wearing a Collingwood scarf is because of that person over there, Sharryn Marshall.

As many of you know, I am a Carlton supporter.

Riley Senini, I know you feel my pain.

Before taking questions from journalists, Collingwood coach Craig McRae looked down the barrel of the camera and delivered a passionate and powerful plea.

“I’m not here to change the world, I understand my position is to coach the footy team, but I'll do everything in my power, our power at the Collingwood football club, to make sure our men represent us well and the community well.” McRae said.

“It’s a community message, and I just want us to play our part. Enough’s enough.”

McRae was asked if the AFL’s gesture was enough and could the league be doing more to take a stand.

“All we can do at Collingwood is be a role model” the reigning premiership coach replied.

“I often talk about it — being a great father, being a great husband, giving to the community and representing us well, but also yourself.

“I'm not into politics, I am into role-modelling and making our young men proud young men.”

“Winning on the scoreboard is one thing, but winning at all levels is really important for the Collingwood football club.”

I loved the way McRae spoke so plainly about self-regulation, role modelling and representing the club and community well …

… but of course he would do that, he is a former teacher who worked at a school in Brisbane when he played at the Lions …

… and teachers have a way of explaining things so we understand …

… our teachers at Marist-Sion have a way of explaining things so we understand.

The same challenge is put forward to you as members of our club, Marist-Sion and community as well.

For our senior students, we want you to be role models for the younger students.

For our junior students, it’s about representing us well, but also yourself.

According to a report by the Australian Institute of Criminology, the number of women killed by intimate partners in Australia rose by 28 per cent in the 2022/23 financial year, with 89 per cent of intimate-partner homicide victims being women.

Gender-based violence is a problem in our community.

Perhaps you also heard about the three male students at Yarra Valley Grammar in Ringwood who were suspended after they compiled a spreadsheet of photos of their female classmates and reportedly ranked them.

Yarra Valley Grammar is a prep to Year 12 school with a similar enrolment to ours and school fees about five times as much as ours, costing $30,000 each year.

Their behaviour was condemned as “misogynist, disgraceful, disgusting and utterly unacceptable.”

I wondered how it would be different for these students if they had applied Self-Regulation – The Power of the Pause.

As Deacon Mark wrote with such conviction in our parish newsletter last week, “Whatever might have applied in the past, Jesus’ teaching compels us to courageously call out abuse of male privilege, economic abuse, coercion and threats.”

I couldn’t agree more Mark.

What was Jesus’ teaching?

“That you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:12-13)

Jesus imparts crucial insights into the nature of love, friendship, and discipleship. Jesus reveals the depth and source of his love – it mirrors the love between himself and the Father. Love is not fleeting or conditional: it’s an enduring, sacrificial, and boundless love that he offers to his disciples.

When you pause to reflect on this teaching, you realise its power.

So as you go back to class today. Consider the impact of your words and actions on your classmates, your support staff and your teachers.

Be Respectful.

Be Responsible.

Be Safe.

Our Commitment to Action: Stewardship of Resources

We provide a vibrant and sustainable future for generations to come.

Discovery Evening – Tuesday 14 May 2024

Our Discovery Evening was designed to provide prospective families with an opportunity to learn more about the opportunities afforded through our rich curriculum and the various programs we offer at the College.

It provided an opportunity for prospective families to meet with our incredible students and ask any questions. We recognise that choosing the right school for your child is an important decision, and we want you to feel confident in your choice of Marist-Sion College.

The College is now conducting Enrolment Interviews for our Year 7 student intake in 2026. Please visit the College website at mscw.vic.edu.au for more information.

Ms Lisa Harkin

Principal

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