From the Head of College

Mr Michael Newman

Power in Faith

During the holidays, I attended the Australian Council of Educational Leaders (ACEL) Conference with Bruce McPhee (Deputy Head of College) and Jen Smeed (Deputy Head of College – Learning and Teaching). This conference is always of high quality as it presents the latest educational theories, writings, ideas, successes and issues facing schools and teachers. There were 500 delegates in attendance from Australia and overseas. During this conference we listened to addresses by many educationalists including well-known figures such as John Hattie, Lyn Sharratt and Glen Savage, and to the stories of successful schools and their leadership teams, and presentations from media personalities such as Stan Grant. Each of these presenters spoke of the importance of education and with a great passion and love for education, sharing their knowledge and thoughts so as to improve the learning outcomes of all children. Each speaker spoke with a great belief and faith that their hope-filled ideas and suggestions would improve the plight of Australian children and their learning.

Sunday’s Gospel Luke 17:5-10 is a plea by the disciples to Jesus, asking him to “increase our faith”. Faith is an important and natural quality required in life and it was only natural that the disciples were asking Jesus for faith, particularly with the many radical and counter-cultural values he was expressing in his time and age. Faith and conviction in your belief can be very powerful. Faith gives you power to live, power to be resilient, power to be passionate, power to be free, power to have direction in life, power to be sustained and power to confidently speak up for what you feel is right. Similarly, each of the speakers at the ACEL Conference were speaking with conviction and faith in their beliefs, and the importance of each of their theories and ideals and the good these would espouse on children’s learning and society at large.

Different to knowledge and conviction is the faith that we are challenged to follow, that is not emanating from our own studies, experiences and reflections but derives humbly from the words and ideals of Jesus, as expressed in the Gospels. Many of the ideas and the values emulating from the Gospels are counter-cultural and challenging. Yet, from the Gospels, we are challenged to build our reflections and thinking. From the Gospels we are invited to recontextualise our response for our world today. The Gospels provide us with a reference point of reflection, prayer, study and inspiration for our passions, direction, sustenance, confidence and lives.

God of the journey, we pray that all members of the Marist College family, in faith, continue to hear your message through the Gospels and draw on this as their source of power. Amen

Marist College Ashgrove Awards Night 2022

All boys and families are welcome to attend the Inaugural Years 5-12 Awards Night to be held at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre (QPAC) this Monday 10th October. This evening will recognise boys in every year level who have excelled in the areas of academic, spiritual, leadership, cultural and sporting life at Marist College Ashgrove. The evening will also include some entertainment, highlights of the year and an address by the Head of College. The night promises to be succinct and prompt, commencing at 7:00pm sharp and concluding by 9:00pm. We hope you can join with all members of the Marist College Ashgrove family for what promises to be an enjoyable evening together. You are all encouraged to attend.

World Teachers’ Day – Wednesday 5th Oct

Marist College Ashgrove recognises the excellent teachers that grace your son’s classrooms each day. The preparation, communication, marking, planning, resource building, extra-curricular and reporting after hours, complements the challenging skill of teaching anywhere up to 30 students in a classroom, during any given day. No wonder teachers need holidays to recharge those batteries! The time of COVID-19 really highlighted the importance of teachers as many of us grappled with the education of our children at home. Many thanks teachers for all the energy, generosity, professionalism and skill you demonstrate each day for the boys in your care. You do a great job, so thank you on behalf of the whole Marist family.

Primary School Speech and Drama 2023

All Primary boys are invited to join the Marist College Ashgrove Speech and Drama program with Louise Marshall. Primary School Speech and Drama is currently taking enrolments for 2023. Drama is held each term on a Monday afternoon with a class for Year 5 from 3:20pm to 4:20pm, and a class for Year 6 from 4:30pm to 5:30pm. Students will be taught drama skills such as improvisation, characterisation, play building, movement, storytelling and stagecraft. The lessons are designed to be fun and allow children to gain confidence in public speaking as well as learning to speak and interpret texts expressively. The year culminates in Term 4, with each group performing a one-hour show in the Draney Theatre with all costumes and props provided. The children will be taught by Louise Marshall an accredited Speech and Drama teacher with qualifications from Trinity College London and Ms Angela Wood an accredited teacher with extensive musical theatre experience.

To enrol, please click the following link https://forms.gle/Seiv2ZkyC8ztq4h3A or contact Louise Marshall at drama@loulabelleproductions.com.au with any questions or to register your son for 2023. I highly recommend this program to all primary parents and their sons.

All Welcome to Drama Performance

The Year 6 Marist Drama Group cordially invite you to attend their end of year performance of ‘Larry Snuggleduff and the Hufflepuffers’. The boys have been working hard on their acting, dancing and fighting epic monsters. They would love you to come along and support them as they present their comedic take on all things Harry Potter. Tickets are $5 with all proceeds going to support the Draney Theatre. Tickets can be purchased by clicking the below link:

https://events.humanitix.com/copy-of-loulabelle-productions-end-of-year-concert-year-6-2022

AIC Athletics Championships 2022

My best wishes are extended to the Marist College Ashgrove athletes who will compete at the AIC Athletics Championships this Thursday and Friday 6th & 7th October. The boys have been training consistently, particularly throughout Term 3 and the holiday period during afternoon sessions, Sunday training and participating in lead-up carnivals. My thanks are extended to their generous and professional coaches led by Rob Martin (Head Coach), Derek Lennon (Coordinator), John Lambourne (Junior Coordinator), Des Davis (Head Throws Coach), Josh Mulligan (Shot Put Coach), Lee Martin (Shot Put Coach), Corey Anderson (Javelin Coach), Eric Brown ( Jumps Coach), Paul Kearney (High Jump Coach), Laurie Boustead (Long/Triple Jump Coach), Meagan Cook (Jumps Coach), Maddie Spann (Jumps Coach), Cam Pfeffer (200/400m Coach), David Meehan (Sprints Coach), Carl Martin (Hurdles/Junior Coach), William Burkett (Sprints/Relays Coach), Jeremy Davis (Sprints/Junior Coach), Dan Drew (Sprints/Relays Coach), Harry Hunter (Middle Distance Coach) Brendan Saunders (Middle distance Coach) and Bill Prole (Middle Distance Coach). Good luck on Thursday and Friday, gentlemen.

COVID-19 Update

National Cabinet has today decided that as from Friday 14th October 2022 mandatory COVID-19 isolation periods will end in all States and Territories, including Queensland. Until 14th October, the current isolation protocols in Queensland remain in place.

The Chief Medical Officer (CMO) stated that the advice provided to support today’s decision was time and context specific, based on current community case numbers and low hospitalisation and ICU admission rates. The CMO stated it also reflected higher rates of hybrid immunity within the community.

Marist College Ashgrove will resume normal assemblies and school gatherings going forward into Term 4. Overseas trips and overnight camps will resume with appropriate risk assessment for further outbreaks of COVID-19. I thank all parents and boys for your diligence, patience and understanding during these difficult times of COVID-19 restrictions. Let’s hope and pray that school life can resume some normality into the future to enable the best possible learning, experiences and opportunities for your son.

College Captain

It is with great pleasure that I announce our new College Captain for 2023, Joseph Lewis. Joseph and his fellow Year 11 peers are excited to be leading the College forward into the future. Good luck Joseph and all our Year 11 boys into the future. The choice of Vice-Captains will occur early in Term 4. May I take this opportunity to congratulate and thank our outgoing College Captain and Vice-Captains - Ethen Tsiamalili, Douglas Cowlishaw, Jeremy Vanderbyl, Samuel Mead and Connor Lyons. We look forward to your final addresses later in the year.

Year 12 Program

During the first three weeks of Term 4 prior to the ATAR examinations, all Year 12 boys are expected to complete either the masterclasses in preparation for these examinations or the VOC classes covering life skills required after school or school-based apprenticeships. Good luck to our Year 12 students as they either continue to prepare for their external examinations which will be held from 24th October – Tuesday 15th November. The schedule can be found on the QCAA website. My thanks are extended to the generous staff who met over the holidays with the boys in the College Library for the Study Extension Holiday Program. Best wishes and prayers are with our Year 12 boys as they either revise and study or complete extra courses or apprenticeships over the next three important weeks.

Parent–Teacher-Student Interviews and Reports

My thanks are extended to all staff for the professional manner in which they have undertaken reporting for your son at the conclusion of Term 3 and the commencement of the Term 4 – both reporting and parent-teacher-student interviews. With this feedback both in written and verbal form, all parents will have a fuller understanding of their son’s progress at present, his needs and the goals he should set to progress forward at this stage of the year. The final parent-teacher- student interviews will be held online next Tuesday 11th October from 3:40pm-7:00pm after school.

Summer Uniform

All families are reminded that Term 4 (and 1) allows the summer uniform to be worn. The more formal winter uniform may be worn with the blazer for more formal occasions. Please ensure that shoes are laced and clean, uniforms fitting and pressed, shirts tucked in, socks up and hair as per the college regulations to commence Term 4. The old hats can be worn for a final term prior to the new hats being ready for purchase from Noone at the commencement of Term 1, 2023. This is the expectation of all students at any time when wearing the formal uniform.

Tournament of the Minds Australian Final

Good luck to the Marist College Ashgrove students representing Queensland at the Tournament of Minds International Final in Canberra next week: James Allpass (Year 10), Lewis Atzeni (Year 10), Ashleigh Bishop (Year 10), George Bishop (Year 10), Aidan Briza (Year 10), Daniel Cusack (Year 10), Gian Netzler (Year 10), Henry Purcell (Year 10), Tim Bennett (Year 9), Benjamin Hartfiel (Year 9), George Pollard (Year 9), Luke Rabie (Year 9), Ben Allpass (Year 8), Matthew Alvarez (Year 7), Rafael Berkovich-Robles (Year 7), Harry Cootes (Year 7), Joshua Jones (Year 7), Sammy Plumb (Year 7), Jack-Dylan Cootes (Year 6), Kayden Kyoung (Year 6), Henry Walker (Year 6), Lucas Weigl (Year 6), Olivier Canning (Year 5) and Callum Nower (Year 5). Good luck in the Australian finals gentlemen and thank you to the teachers who will be accompanying you.

Queensland Sprint Orienteering Championships

Congratulations to Adrian Garbellini who on the 17th of September competed in the Queensland Sprint Orienteering Championships at Forest Lake State High School. Adrian achieved an excellent result with a podium finish. In the highly competitive M14A, Adrian finished second. Well done, Adrian!

May our loving God with Mary our good mother and St Marcellin Champagnat walk with all members of the Marist College Ashgrove Family.