Around the College

Literature Festival

This week our Library staff have organised a host of activities for students and parents to engage them in a celebration of reading and writing.

On Tuesday, we were lucky to be joined by James Phelan, bestselling and award-winning author of many novels, including the Jed Walker and Lachlan Fox thrillers, who provided an insightful breakfast presentation before conducting writing workshops for students. We were also joined by author and illustrator, Marc McBride, and author Mark Smith, on Wednesday and Thursday.

If that wasn't enough, students also enjoyed a Harry Potter-themed escape room to test their wizarding knowledge and problem-solving skills, and reading awards were given to well-deserved students.

Character Strength: Gratitude

“I am grateful for many things and I express that thankfulness to others.”

Gratitude, the final Character Strength of the week for 2023, involves feeling and expressing a deep sense of thankfulness in life, and more specifically, taking the time to genuinely express thankfulness to others. 

This thankfulness can be for specific gifts or thoughtful acts. It could also more generally reflect recognition of what that person contributes to your life. We invited some of our students to share something they're grateful for from this year with our community.

We'd also like to express our gratitude to all students for continuing to embrace the teachings of St Eugene de Mazenod, who emphasised love, compassion, and service to others.

Monash Education Mentor Awards

Mazenod has a proud tradition of mentoring Pre-Service Teachers from a range of high-quality partner universities. This important work ensures the next generation of teachers benefit from the expertise of our educators. This year Cindy Mao, our amazing Senior Chinese Language teacher, was nominated by her Pre-Service Teacher, Yvonne Liu, as an outstanding mentor, and was awarded at Monash Education's Mentor Awards evening.

Yvonne stated, "Cindy has been so supportive of my teaching experience, she gave me plenty of feedback to help me improve."

We also congratulate Steve Emmett, one of our talented Visual Arts teachers, who was also nominated.

Oblate Cricket

On Wednesday, October 11, the 2023 Oblate Cricket training squad played a T20 cricket match against Victoria Police for the Steven Tynan Blue Ribbon Memorial Shield. 

Blessed with perfect conditions for cricket, Mazenod won the toss and elected to bowl. Despite a few untidy errors with the ball, the energy and enthusiasm in the field was excellent. Victoria Police finished on 3/114 after 20 overs. Liam Grima was the pick of the bowlers, conceding just 11 runs from his 4 overs. 

Marcus Fernandes and Liam Grima put on a solid opening partnership. However, due to disciplined line and length bowling, Mazenod struggled to keep up with the required run rate. Aaron D’Souza, Henry McCracken-Matthews, and Aiden French also had valuable time in the middle. We finished on 5/100, making Victoria Police inaugural winners of the Steven Tynan Blue Ribbon Memorial Shield.

Thank you to Senior Constable Steve Fernando for organising this great initiative. Also, to the many generous staff at Mazenod for making the day possible. 

The match was an invaluable experience for our squad in preparation for the 2023 Oblate Cup in Brisbane, starting December 3. Congratulations to the following students on making the final squad. Finally, well done to Liam Grima on being awarded the Blue Ribbon medal for best player.

Year 12 Drama Solo Performance Examinations

On Tuesday October 17th the Year 12 Drama class travelled to Kinston City Hall to undertake their performance Solo examination. The students developed their pieces from a list of 10 choices set by VCAA back in April. The months spent on devising and rehearsing the performances paid off and they all came out of the examination rooms with big smiles on their faces. This may be joy at how they felt they went or simply relief it was done but either way the day ended on a positive note. I want to wish the students well for the rest of their exams in the coming weeks.

ACC Year 7-10 Golf

The 2023 ACC Year 7-10 Golf Championship was held on Monday October 9. Seven students from Mazenod College were selected to compete in glorious conditions at Northern Golf Club. The boys demonstrated a great attitude, arriving promptly at 6.45am for a bus trip to Glenroy. 

The students gave their best, ultimately finishing 6th in Division 2. Well done to Luke Collins on shooting the lowest score for the Mazenod team. The game was played in the right spirit with all being better for the experience. Students interested to represent the College in ACC Golf next year will have opportunities during Term 1 2024.