From our Principal

Dear Students, Parents and Friends,

Welcome to this edition of the Newsletter, I hope you enjoy hearing of the exciting events of this week.

Year 12 Final Celebrations

It is with a sense of pride that I reflect on the Year 12s final days at St. Peter’s College. The events, whether it be the staff morning tea, provided by the students, the final assembly, the Graduation Mass or the Valedictory Dinner all were centred around respect and gratitude. The overwhelming sense was the deep respect the students had for the college and a recognition of the role the college had played in shaping them. It was wonderful to witness so many parents attending the final assembly and sharing in their son or daughter’s achievement of the completion of 13 years of education. Below are some excerpts from the various speeches associated with the separate celebrations.

Staff-Student Morning Tea

We take great pride in the young people you have become and we wish you well for the next few weeks and the exciting future that lays ahead of you.

Graduation Assembly

So as you leave this school, our collective work here is continued through you. Whatever you have learned here is yours to use freely, whether it is knowledge and skills, attitudes or values. These are the gifts of your parents and teachers, ones which we are pleased to give. But they come with expectation that they are yours to use. You are not educated to become bystanders but to make things happen and we expect you to shoulder that responsibility. Make no mistake, responsibility is a burden but it is also the greatest privilege to have the skills to shape events in your own lives and the lives of others around you. So we wish you good luck in your endeavours. We hope you will enjoy safe travels and interesting journeys, and we hope you will come back in the years ahead to share your stories with those who share your heritage.

Valedictory Dinner

There has been much to celebrate over the past few days. I want to spend a moment giving thanks to parents. The role of parent is a tough but a rewarding one. We often say to you as Year 7 parents, it will be over in a blink of an eye and here we are. Now your child has grown into an adult ready to meet the wonders and the challenges of the adult world. It’s an exciting time and for you the parents and probably a nerve-wracking one as well as you continue to let go little by little of the control over their lives. We hope the St Peter’s College charism and ethos has supported their growth. We thank-you for entrusting your children to our care.

At the Valedictory dinner it has been the tradition to present the Valedictorian Medal to a staff member who has played a significant role during the time the Class of 2019 have been at school. For the first time this year the Valedictorian medal was presented to one staff member on each campus. I congratulate the following two staff members for their contribution over the past 6 years. On the Cranbourne campus this medal was presented to Ms Marlene Jorgensen, the current Deputy Principal – Learning and Teaching. On the Clyde North campus, the medal was presented to Ms Jodie Connell. Jodie has been the Learning and Pedagogical Coach. Prior to this she was a House Leader on the Clyde North campus. Both these women have played a significant role in shaping the College and both have contributed significantly to the vision and mission of the College and on behalf of the College I wish to thank them for their service to the St. Peter’s College Community.

A note: Jodie Connell has recently been appointed the Deputy Principal – Learning and Teaching at Mary MacKillop College, Leongatha. Jodie commences this appointment at the beginning of next week. Whilst she will still have a presence to support our Year 12 Maths students, her time with St. Peter’s College draws to a close and as such we give thanks for her work with us and wish her well on her new professional journey.

Fr Denis O’Bryan – Celebrating 40 years of Ordination

This weekend, Sunday, 27 October 2019 at the 10.45a.m. mass at the Clyde North campus, Fr Denis will be celebrating 40 years of ordination. It is a time to celebrate his ministry of serving the faith needs of not only this community but many others he has ministered to. Fr Denis has been a loyal friend, supporter and faith leader to the St. Peter’s College Community. On behalf of the St. Peter’s College Community I congratulate Fr Denis and thank him sincerely for nourishing the faith journey of many within our community.

Book in a Day

At the recent SIS Book in a Day competition a team from St. Peter’s College – Cranbourne campus competed in the Book in a Day. As the name suggests students must create a Book in a Day and present it for judging. A team of Year 10s combined with a team of Year 7s modelled collaboration, creativity and problem solving to create a wonderful final product.

Congratulations to the following students:

Year 10s -  Milly Cortese, Rubi Rose, Trinity Lee and Chloe Peipers

Year 7s -    Ruhani Kaushal, Alex Burd, Tristan Estrada and Gill Paramveer

World Teacher’s Day

“Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

-  Nelson Mandela

Friday, 25 October 2019 marks the date that Australia celebrates World Teachers’ Day. Established by UNESCO in 1994, it is a day when we consciously celebrate the teaching profession worldwide, take stock of achievements, and address some of the issues central for attracting and keeping the brightest minds and young talents in the profession. This year, the United Nations has declared the theme of World Teachers’ Day to be “Young Teachers: The future of the Profession”. Teachers can all remember their early years in the classroom, as they worked at becoming more confident in their craft. A vital factor in their development, learning and wellbeing is the more experienced teachers who mentored and guided them. St. Peter’s College celebrates the dedication and hard work of our teachers. We acknowledge the incredible contribution that educators make in our communities, and to the learning and wellbeing of the children and young people in their care.

High Achieving Students

We congratulate past student Courtney Jones who was this week selected by Carlton FC in the National Draft for AFLW.  Congratulations Courtney.

Enjoy the week ahead.

Mr Chris Black

Principal