Principal's Report

The cycle begins again as is the case with most things. I speak of the next group of students who will graduate as they begin their final year in earnest. This week is the second of the Step Up weeks designed to ensure our Class of 2019 have every opportunity to succeed in their final year of secondary schooling. Soon the Class of 2018 will receive their results if they have undertaken a scored VCE program. This news will see course offers for most occur soon after. This time next year, the Class of 2019 will be in this space and the Class of 2020 will be commencing Step Up.

The work involved in guiding young people to this point involves so many people and many organisations. First and foremost are parents and families. Education is a partnership and parents trust in staff and this College that we will provide the very best we are able so that their children will have every opportunity for their future.  Parents are the primary educators in a young person’s journey, it is never an easy role but one that is critical for young people to achieve their hopes, dreams and aspirations.

When students graduate from Catholic Regional College Sydenham, they receive a stole with a number of symbolic images that summarise their journey through education. The crests of Emmaus, Sacred Heart and Cana Catholic Primary Schools are three of the images. Secondary Schools do not educate in isolation, the foundations for Year 12 are developed in Primary School. I am in awe of what Primary School teachers do each and every day. Their patience, hard work and planning underpins the literacy and numeracy skills developed in children that are required for a successful Year 12. The crests of Catholic Regional Colleges St Albans, Caroline Springs and North Keilor also appear as this is where our students traditionally come from to study at Sydenham.  While we are the senior secondary campus for the Federation of Catholic Regional College, by no means can we claim that ours is the end result. This is shared. It is shared with parents, families, Primary Schools and the 7-10 Colleges our students attended before coming to Catholic Regional College Sydenham. We have included Catholic Regional College Melton’s crest as a member of our family and in recognition that when Catholic Regional College Melton introduced senior secondary to their provision there is and remains the opportunity for Melton students to undertake study at Catholic Regional College Sydenham for specialist courses that many other schools simply do not offer.

The simple piece of material that goes around the back of the neck and hangs down the front on the left and right side of each student at graduation is blue. In Renaissance the colour blue is associated with Mary, the Mother of God as it does in the Corpus Christi sculpture at the College. The sculpture located on the Village Green outide Student Services has two large steel arms extended to the sky in a similar angle that a person’s arms would be extended if they were extended to God . The blue of the material placed around our students at Graduation represents the care of not only their mother’s but their parents and family in recognition of the important role they play in education. The gold is the colour used in art to represent God, the burgundy is the Blood of Christ and the sacrifice of the lamb of God, Jesus. The white is symbolic of the Holy Spirit and the mystery of the Holy Spirit who works with and within our hearts to create the community of education that each of our students has grown to know and be a part of on their journey to graduation.

The theme for the year at Catholic Regional College Sydenham is one that each student grows to understand through their final year at the College. It becomes the theme of their final year and as such is often the one that stands out. The iconography used for the theme for that year appears on the stole. The theme is always taken from scripture and has a call to action associated with it. This year we had Faith= Word + Actions reminding us that what we do and how we put our Faith into action in our everyday lives is just as important as our attendance at Mass where we listen to God’s word and share in the Eucharist. To truly be a Eucharistic community we must go out from Mass to proclaim the Good News in our words to others and demonstrate the Word in our deeds. The Mass must be lived!

The College theme for 2019 is “Go do the good works” and it comes from Ephesians 2:10 that reads

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago

This is the image that the Class of 2019 will see on graduation as they conclude their Catholic Education, going into the world with a piece of material that will be placed across the back of their necks and hand down their front over a graduation gown. A simple piece of material that speaks of the good work, the masterpiece that each young person is. The masterpiece that God created with parents. The Masterpiece that Primary Schools and their staff, Secondary Schools and their staff including Catholic Regional College Sydenham and the Parishes have all contributed to and helped form. The Masterpiece that is each young person who goes out into the world with our prayerful support as they embark on the next part of their journey to do the good works that God planned for them long before that moment in time we are all a part of. 

The cycle begins again and it is exciting, hope filled and full of promise. The Class of 2019 has commenced their journey to graduation as we conclude Step Up for 2018 and look to next week welcome our new Year 11 students to their school – the Class of 2020. 

Brendan J Watson OAM

Principal