Boarding News

Dear Parents and Carers,

It has been a busy fortnight across the Boarding community. All boys have settled well into the daily routines and we are seeing some wonderful acknowledgments from teachers in relation to work and behaviour. The focus for all students is on the end of Semester 2 examination block (Years 7 to 10) and the first HSC assessment tasks for our new HSC students. Study and tutoring have been ramped up in preparation for this period and the Stage 4 and Stage 5 boys have undertaken preparatory work and participated in planning sessions with their respective Academic Coordinators.

Working with the Principal in my new role as Director of Boarding I have identified the Academic Care of our boys as an area that I will be aiming to develop moving forward. Data-driven Academic Care and analysis to get feedback on our boys, their learning needs and tracking improvement will be central to this. I look forward to communicating more about this with you in 2021.

A big part of the changes in Boarding will include the appointment of our new Boarding Coordinator, Mr Prateek Kripal. Mr Kripal will commence 2021 as our new Stage 6 Boarding Coordinator. Mr Kripal will be known to many of you, having worked in Boarding at St Gregory’s for the last 5 years. He comes to us with a wealth of experience as a Leader of Learning Mathematics and I am excited by what he will offer our community, particularly around the Academic tracking and data analysis of our students. Prateek and his wife Alison are already living onsite and will be a welcome addition permanently to the College and our Boarding program. Congratulations Prateek.

Badgally House

It is with much excitement that I can announce our renovations to Badgally House have been completed. Badgally House is our exclusive onsite accommodation for Boarding families when they are attending events or visiting their sons at the College. Due to storm damage, an extensive renovation has been completed. We have four newly renovated bathrooms and six bedrooms offering various accommodation options.

The set-up of the rooms after the renovations is as follows:

The accommodation will be managed by Brother Peter Conolly of our Marist community in partnership with me. If you are interested in booking accommodation please email badgally.house@stgregs.nsw.edu.au with your name, son’s name, dates required, number of people staying and arrival/departure time. If you have any questions in relation to this accommodation, please feel free to contact me directly.

Community Altar Servers

Sunday Community Mass is a central focus point of our week providing an opportunity for all of our community to come together and spend time in prayer and to celebrate the Eucharist. A central part of our celebration each week is the role performed by our Altar Servers who assist in the running of the Mass. A big thank you to Mr MacMaster and the thirteen boys who have volunteered for our first Altar Servers rotation. Mr MacMaster led the boys through some training to better perform their duties and the benefits of this are already starting to pay off with our first rotation of boys performing their duties perfectly last weekend. The boys involved in this program are; Matthew Canellis, Marty McGrath, Benjamin Kelly, Thomas Fletcher, Charlie Guymer, Trae Fitzpatrick, Thomas Anderson, Steven Moran-Briggs, Ben Taylor, Archie Nott, Daniel Canellis, Ryan Weston and Deklin Jarrett.

Money Confidence Program

Our Stage 5 boys spent a night last week with Mr Dominic Aarsen from Moneyvest Financial Education. Mr Aarsen spoke to the boys about financial basics, including tax file numbers, income tax (PAYG tax), tax returns and bank accounts and led the boys through a workbook to start the ‘Money Confidence Program’. The feedback from the boys was very positive with most staying long after the session ended to continue asking questions and to work with Mr Aarsen. The program was a success and we will look to expand on programs such as this in 2021 as part of the development of our Wellbeing program.

General Reminders

• November 20 – Year 12 2020 Graduation celebrations. I encourage all parents and Year 12 students to attend our Graduation Mass and Dinner to be held at the College. Accommodation is now available to be booked.
• End of Semester 2 Exam Block – Exams will be undertaken from Friday 27 November to Friday 4 December.
• Friday 4 December – last day for Year 7 to 10. Parents will be able to pick up students on Friday afternoon or on Saturday morning the 5 December. Parents are reminded that travel is not provided at the end of the year as all rooms are expected to be empty to allow the end of year cleaning to occur.
• Wednesday 9 December – last day for Year 11. Parents will be able to pick up students on Wednesday afternoon (after school) or on Thursday morning 10 December.
• Boardingware – all leave needs to go through our Boardingware system. Please ensure the notes section is complete with as many details as possible in relation to the purpose of the leave. If you are having issues with Boardingware please contact your son’s Boarding Coordinator for assistance.
• Please subscribe to our St Gregory’s Boarding Facebook page and follow us on Instagram for notices on what is happening in Boarding and for photos of Boarding life.

It will be a busy few weeks leading into the Christmas holidays and I look forward to working with and supporting your sons through this busy time. 

Kind regards,

Luke Morrissey

Acting Director of Boarding

Years 11 & 12 Boarding Report

2020 Graduates

Congratulations to our Graduating class of 2020 who, at the time of reading, should have all completed their exams and signed out of the College. Our 2020 Boarding Captain, Jeremiah Fisher, is the exception to this with his last exam on Monday 9 November in Extension English. We wish Jerry all the best for this final exam.

A massive thank you to Mr Kenny Singh who has lived in the HSC bubble with Year 12 in Alfred House the last few weeks. Mr Singh has been fantastic keeping the boys entertained, a difficult task when they have had to be socially distanced from other Boarding students and staff. The boys have been entertained with COVID-19 safe activities such as food runs (lots of them), park visits and a fishing trip. Thanks, Mr Singh, for all you have done.

We look forward to seeing as many families as possible for the Graduation Mass and Dinner on the 20 November in a few weeks.

Year 11

Our Year 11 boys have transitioned well into their roles as leaders of the College. This week we have launched our vertical team’s initiative. Each boy has been placed into one of six teams which include boys in Year 7 to 11. These boys will compete in events, meet regularly, attend outings together and generally support each other during their time at the College. These teams will not replace their Year groups or the Houses they live in on the hill. It is simply another tool to encourage our Marist Values, particularly “Family Spirit” and the “Presence” of our students with each other.

Our Year 11 students have also enjoyed this week moving into their new rooms for 2021, slightly earlier than usual due to the formation of the Year 12 HSC Bubble in Alfred House. The focus for all boys in the remaining weeks of the term will be the approaching HSC assessment tasks with tasks beginning to fall due in Week 7.

A big shout out to Lachlan McGufficke, James Sykes and Thomas Smith who all celebrated their birthday on the 4  November. One of our Senan Supervisors Mr Kmet also celebrated his birthday on the same day. Happy Birthday to all.

ISA Sport

Another week and further success for our Senior boys in the Western ISA Bubble. Last weekend we hosted Chevalier College, Bowral. The Senior Touch side won in a close contest 7 to 5. James Sykes was awarded man of the match for his efforts during the game.

The 17’s Basketball went down 26 to 29 in a tight affair, however, the 1st V won convincingly 82 to 69, with Jack Rule runner-up in the player of the match and Sam Corkhill had a great game on his Birthday. Well done boys!

Altar Servers

A big shout out to Matthew Canellis and Marty McGrath who have joined the group of Altar Servers to assist with our Community Mass on a weekly basis.

Work Placement

We wish all of our Year 11 boys who will be completing their Mandatory Work Placement the best of luck over the coming weeks. Our boys who study subjects such as Construction, Primary Industries, Retail Services or Fitness will be completing 35 hours of Work Placement in their respective disciplines. Unfortunately, the placement usually completed in the Preliminary year was cancelled due to COVID-19 so this will be the first chance the boys get to experience what they have been learning about in the classroom.

Luke Morrissey

Boarding Coordinator (Years 11 & 12)

Years 9 & 10 Boarding  Report

Years 9 and 10 boys have been working well through the past 2 weeks, completing some elective assessment tasks and starting to receive their yearly notifications. Life up on the hill is slowly getting back to normal with restrictions easing, however, some flu-like illnesses have been making their way through the Houses. This was a great reminder to have the boys focus on their hygiene and realise how easily germs can spread through the House.

Sport has been played in great spirits over the past two weeks against Blue Mountains Grammar and Chevalier College. We have competed in Basketball, Touch and Cricket with victories for all teams. The Cricket last weekend was washed out due to the rain, however, it was great to see the wet weather spread throughout NSW and hit many areas where our boys are from. We truly hope it has provided some aid for our farming families back home. 

We are fast approaching the end of the year! The boys are aware of their exams in Week 8 and that they only have 15 days of classes remaining for the year. They will need to knuckle down and ensure they are learning as much as possible in class, while also dedicating their study time to completing their homework and preparing for the Semester 2 exam block. We have moved Year 7 - 9 Boarders into the exam centre at the College where they will be completing an extra 45 minutes of study leading up to exams. Our Year 10 boys will also be completing an extra hour leading up to their exams.

We are excited for what the rest of the term has to offer in relation to activities. The boys will be watching the State of Origin series together in their Houses (Go NSW) and the warmer weather will allow us to open the pool more regularly and organise some House outings to the beach. We will also be aiming to get all of the Boarding students out on a big outing in a few weeks to Jamberoo Water Park.

Finally, a big congratulations to Charlie Guymer. Charlie was acknowledged in the NRL Schoolboy Cup Academic Team of 2020 as a Year 10 student. Charlie is an all-rounder in terms of sporting prowess and his academic application and results. He is an ‘A’ student in multiple subjects including; English, Industrial Technology – Engineering, PDHPE, Mathematics and Physical and Sport Studies. A notable achievement recently was Charlie’s 100 out of 100 result in a PASS assessment. Keep up the good work Charlie.

Mr Michael Bullock

Boarding Coordinator (Years 9 & 10)

Years 7 & 8 Boarding Report

Finish strong! This has been the message for the Year 7 & 8 Boarders. Finish strong includes the following:

• being kind and respectful to self and others
• completing tasks in a timely manner
• study and read
• meeting uniform expectations
• contributing to the Boarding House, for example, completing jobs around the House.

The Year 7 & Boarders are encouraged to work hard, be respectful and this will earn them a reputation and results to be proud of. The following boys are to be commended for their effort in the classroom: Marcus McGuiness, Charlie Fuller, Benjamin Taylor, Oliver Brennan, Samual Luppino and Lamontae Banderson. These boys have been acknowledged for their participation and effort in class. Reading comprehension is an area of improvement for our boys and there has been much emphasis on this. Archie Nott and Charlie Fuller are to be acknowledged for their positive reading habits. Both Archie and Charlie have been busy reading during study or before bed – well done!

In the sporting arena, the boys competed against Chevalier College, Bowral last week. Gene Wighton bagged himself 2 tries in Touch Football and overall he made an impressive debut. Further, Ben Taylor added another try to his tally to bring his total to 10 tries in 3 games. Victor Simon, Lindon Monck and Lamontae Banderson played a solid game on the field and it was great to have Tyler Salis on the team. This week we have a few boys who will be competing against Patrician Brothers’ College in an U15 Rugby League fixture and I wish Daniel Canellis, Mason Rope and Jack McDonald the very best. These boys have been training hard the past few weeks and I am confident that this will be reflected in their performance.

Mr Morrissey held a meeting with the boys to reiterate the significance of Mass and being reverent when we come together to celebrate the Eucharist. The boys are to be congratulated for responding positively by actively participating in a sincere and respectful manner.

Pax tecum

Tevita Halifonua

Boarding Coordinator (Years 7 & 8)