Principal's Report
Dear Parents and Carers,
House Captains 2020/21 and House Cup
Our House Captains for 2020/2021 were announced last week. I would like to acknowledge and congratulate the following office bearers:
Benilde - Eliza Boland and Ehan Boshoff
LaSalle - Josh Fergusson and Erin Porter
Merici - Jock Sweeney and Makaala Dodd
Ursula - Anastasia Martin and Felix Martin.
PHOTO: (L to R) Eliza Boland, Ehan Boshoff, Anastasia Martin, Felix Martin, Erin Porter, Josh Fergusson, Makaala Dood and Jock Sweeney.
Again I was impressed with the number of students who nominated for positions. It was a highly competitive list of nominees.I look forward to working with this team over the next year and know they will be excellent ambassadors for their House.
The House Cup Competition is much more than just sport. It encompasses a whole range of activities including
- Founders Day competitions and concert
- Sports Carnivals - Athletics, Swimming and Cross Country
- Commendations and Awards for Academic pursuits
- Service and participation in activities that help others
- Fundraising activities like Mission Week
Our House Captains joined our Student Leadership team last week to look at how we can expand the House Cup to look at different activities including debating and quiz competitions.
The House Cup builds a sense of community and belonging. Students’ sense of belonging is linked to many long-term educational benefits including school completion. When students feel a sense of belonging, students’ engagement in their learning is enhanced. This is especially true for important transition times in a student’s education, when they start secondary school, when they change school or when they move into senior school. If students have a strong sense of belonging, they will see the benefit of school even when they find the work hard. Encourage your son or daughter to make the most of the opportunities available at O’Connor to participate in extracurricular activities and the House Cup to build their sense of belonging.
Year 2021
I have had the pleasure of interviewing many of our Year 7 2021 students and their families over the past few weeks. These interviews normally happen in Term 2 but were disrupted with the COVID lockdown. Year 6 students in 2020 have had a very different final year of primary school missing key excursions like the traditional Canberra trip as well as a very different looking end of year graduation. What has impressed me most about these students is how articulate they are about their learning. They have shown great resilience throughout this year.
We are very pleased to be able to have an orientation day for these students to get to know our community. This will occur on Thursday 19th November and we look forward to welcoming Year 7 2021 to our College.
HSC
Our HSC students continue to complete their HSC exams and some are finished or almost finished. Congratulations to all our students who have managed these final exams with resilience and determination. I know that their hard work will pay off in results they are proud of. A big thank you to Mrs Kerry Steller, Presiding Officer for the exams and her team of people who have run the exams so professionally.
We will celebrate the culmination of their schooling with a COVID safe Year 12 Formal on Thursday 15th November at St Albert’s College.
School Advisory Council (SAC)
The AGM for the School Advisory Council will be held this term. If you feel you might be interested in becoming a member of the SAC, either Vernon (vernoncrew@gmail.com) or I would be happy to talk to you about what’s involved.
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Mr Dale Wicks for his substantial contribution to the School Advisory Council. Dale has been on the School Board and School Advisory Council for many years advising the council in particular on financial matters. He has been a great supporter of our College and I thank him for his contributions.
What new learning will you undertake this week?
Regina Menz
