Principal

Overcrowding on School Specials 580 (Belfield) and 581 (Earlwood)

Since the beginning of this year, the College has been indefatigable in complaining about the overcrowding on the 580s and 581s school specials.

Mr Byrne has had the bus inspectors out several times to witness the overcrowding first-hand however, when senior boys have Winter sports training, the problem is exacerbated.

In addition to contacting Burwood Depot directly, Mr Byrne has contacted Mr Jason Yat-Sen Li (MP) and even the Transport Minister’s office. Still, no action has been taken.

We really need our parents/carers to assist in heightening the awareness of this safety issue by complaining to Transport NSW directly. Here are the steps we would like you to take:

1. Go to the Feedback, questions and complaints page.
2. In Type of Feedback, choose Complaint.
3. In Your feedback is about, choose School bus operation.
4. In Relating to choose School service request.
5. In Date, choose a weekday and approximately 15:15.
6. In Bus route, choose School route.
7. In the route menu, choose either 580s (Transport Systems West) or 581s (Transport Systems West).
8. In Direction of Travel, type in St Patrick’s College, Strathfield to Belfield (580s) or St Patrick’s College, Strathfield to Earlwood (581s).
9. Enter Unknown when you are asked to enter the Bus Driver Identification and Bus Number.
10. In Where did this occur? type As alighting the bus at school in the afternoon (St Patrick’s College Stand E).
11. In Description of Feedback, please describe the concerns you have about overcrowding and how anxious this is making your son/s feel.

I thank you in advance for your contribution to trying to resolve the issue. 

Fund-Raising for Br Berg LCD Scoreboard on Breen Oval

You will recall that we started our fundraising initiative for our new screen on Breen Oval. It will not only be used for sports but also so we can have functions on Breen Oval such as Assemblies, Movie Nights, and watching exciting fixtures together. Thank you to those parents who contributed to date. We have only raised $19,000 and we need to do much more if we want to finish off our Breen Oval precinct.

It is so hard for us to complete such a large capital project as we do not attract government funding AND we are committed to keeping our fees as low as possible in comparison to the independent schools around us. 

If every family could contribute $100 (which is tax-deductible), we would reach our target before the end of the year. We will acknowledge all benefactors by perpetually making a list of donors available from a QR code on the plaque that we install.

If you can, please donate $100 today. We would gratefully receive more! The link to the Australian Sports Foundation website is Br Berg LCD Scoreboard Breen Oval.

Help us to achieve our Dream for Breen, a precinct that your son/s can truly enjoy and be proud of!

Parenting Prodigal Sons: Tough And Tender Love

Raising children is a journey filled with joy and challenges. For some parents/carers, the challenge includes dealing with a rebellious child who seems determined to make destructive choices. This can be a parent’s worst nightmare, leading to stress and worry over every action their teen takes.

One of the toughest parts of being a school leader is being in a meeting where a student’s poor choices are outlined in front of his parents. The meetings are highly emotional, tense, embarrassing but part of the consequences for some very poor choices. 

Some parents react by becoming overly strict, interpreting normal teenage behaviour as signs of impending disaster. 

Others take the opposite approach, ignoring warning signs and hoping their child will grow out of it. These are the parents constantly at loggerheads with their school, justifying poor behaviour in their children by blaming teachers or even the other students around them. Rather than supporting discipline measures, schools are expected to compromise their principles, make allowances and deal with parents advocating and negotiating down the consequences that are issued.

Unfortunately, this can lead to missing critical red flags, such as aggressive behaviour that can influence all their relationships, substance abuse or involvement in criminal activities.

No parent wants to live through something like this. But more and more are being forced to these days. They’re finding that no matter what they did to raise their children right, it’s possible that one or more will rebel.

Don’t give up! We ask that you work with us to create clear limits and consequences for your teenage son.

When dealing with teenage boys, we need to create clear limits and effective consequences. Hence, when navigating teenage boy problems, we take a direct approach. Here are five positive parenting principles for how to deal with your teenage son when things go wrong.

Set limits. First, parents and teen boys agree to set boundaries and rules that both agree on. The rules are based on shared values about staying safe and keeping harmony in the family.

Write it down. Furthermore, families might consider drafting a written agreement. Therefore, the guidelines and boundaries are clear to everyone.

Agree on consequences. Next, parents and sons agree on age-appropriate consequences that will go into effect if the rules are broken. For example, a consequence might be loss of car privileges or an earlier curfew. Moreover, the consequence should be age-appropriate.

Invoke restitution. In addition, parents and teen boys can use a consequence known as restitution or restoration. Hence, teens help make a situation better after violating the shared contract. For example, if they get a parking ticket, they pay it on their own. Or they take steps to repair a relationship with a sibling after a fight. As a result, a teen can earn back parents’ trust.

Avoid severe punishment. However, severe punishment is not the best approach for dealing with your teenage son. In fact, punishment can make things worse. Teenage boys may feel rejected and resentful. Hence, they may withdraw further from their parents.

Research shows that teenage sons do better when their parents remain warm, open, and supportive, while also setting firm boundaries.

What do the scriptures tell us in the story of the prodigal son? The central character of this story is not the prodigal son, but the father, and the central message of the text is his over-generous mercy. He is a father who is trying to get his two sons into his house (his house being an image for heaven). But the younger son is, for a long time, out of the house through weakness, while the older son is just as effectively outside the house through a bitterness and an anger that have soured his fidelity. Unlike the father who is grateful and joyous because his wayward son has come home, the older brother is angry and bitter that the father has not withheld his mercy and that his errant brother was not first punished and made to meet certain conditions before he was welcomed back home. There’s an older brother of this sort in all of us. 

The story of the Prodigal Son ends, not with the father’s joy at the return of his sinful son, but with the father at the door of the house, gently pleading with his older son to give up his bitterness and enter the dance. We don’t know how that story ends, but, given God’s jealous love and infinite patience, there’s little reason to doubt that eventually the older brother entered the house and sat down at table with his prodigal brother. 

In Memoriam

We pray for Mrs Maria Iannitelli maternal grandmother of Isaac (Year 10) and Marcus (Year 7) after a courageous battle with a serious illness. She was one of our proud supporters and turned up to as many school events as she could that Isaac and Marcus were involved in.  

Dr Vittoria Lavorato

Principal

SPC boys can do anything! 

**except divide by zero