From the Head of College

Mr Michael Newman

A Voice

As a Principal of a Catholic School, one of the elements of my leadership that I try not to get directly involved with is giving my opinion on politically divisive issues. For this reason, I have not been publicly expressing my views on the debate about an Indigenous voice to parliament. I was privileged to hear an address last week by Fr Frank Brennan, a well-known Catholic Priest, Lawyer and a member of the Jesuit Order. I believe that his address made sense to me as a Catholic educator, so I thought I would share some of his thoughts.

In essence, Fr Brennan believes that we, as educators, have a responsibility to provide a platform for civil discussion around a voice to parliament. To do this, it is our responsibility to present both sides of the argument – the ‘yes’ and ‘no’ cases. Our role is not to discuss how one should vote, but to educate Year 12 voting 18 year olds and our entire community on the arguments, so that each individual can inform their own conscience and vote accordingly.

He referenced an evening at St Aloysius College in Sydney recently, where the Principal invited both Fr Frank Brennan representing the ‘yes’ case and Mr Warren Mundine, the ‘no’ case to address the audience and answer questions. He said that the night was informative, positive and respectful, with many in the audience grateful to have been provided with a civil opportunity to understand and form their own opinions. The Head of College stated – “If something is true and just, it deserves to be discussed and debated, that’s where it generates its value, it’s sacred. My role as an educator is not to teach you what to think but how to think.”

Fr Frank Brennan believes that this referendum was always going to cause a great deal of angst in the Australian community because at the heart of this debate is disagreement around the term equality. He believes that the true ‘yes’ voters will vote yes regardless of the arguments presented and the true ‘no’ voters the same, based on their opinions on equality. On the other hand, it is the undecided voters that are wishing and waiting to hear both sides of the debate. These undecided voters don’t want to be spoken down to and certainly want to be respected as they grapple with the concept of equality in a contemporary society. It is our duty as educators to assist in this education.

In this spirit, I include the arguments for the ‘yes’ and ‘no’ votes (chapters 7 & 8) from Fr Frank Brennan’s latest book “An Indigenous Voice to Parliament.” I recommend the book in full.

An Indigenous Voice to Parliament - The Yes Case - Chapter 7.pdf

An Indigenous Voice to Parliament - The No Case - Chapter 8.pdf

For the record, Fr Frank believes that good Catholics can vote either ‘yes’ and ‘no’, but as a Catholic, he will be voting an unequivocal ‘yes’. He believes that the words of the referendum are not perfect but is unsure how we are going to get true recognition and dialogue with Indigenous people if we don’t choose a ‘yes’ path forward. Central to his opinion is the words of Pope Francis from his encyclical letter, Laudato Si - “It is essential to show special care for Indigenous communities and their cultural traditions. They’re not merely one minority among others but should be the principal dialogue partners especially when larger projects affecting their land are proposed.“ Further to this, the Australian Catholic Bishops - “This is an important moment in the history of the nation, and it can help us to move towards a deep and just reconciliation. It also offers a mechanism to improve the lives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. We urge all Australians to engage in the debate productively, respecting each other and accepting that people may, in good faith, have differing concerns and perspectives. We are an open democracy, and this is a moment to use our democratic institutions to produce a high-quality debate shaped by a genuine concern to do justice and bring healing to First Nations Peoples”. Fr Frank Brennan reiterates the need to listen to Indigenous voices and dialogue. With such listening and open dialogue, he says, the prospects for our society will improve.

Let us pray for all young men and members of the Marist family, that together, with consciences that are fully informed, we can enhance the lives of our Indigenous sisters and brothers. Amen.

Marist College ‘Giving Day’

Marist College Ashgrove will be conducting its inaugural giving day, this Thursday 10th August, 8:00am-8:00pm. This is an opportunity to support the College’s ambitious Master Plan for the future. We are presently building Primary classrooms, which will be followed by the refurbishments to the Carrick Wing, courtyard and Cyprian Pavilion and will conclude with an assembly area to seat all boys and their families and a STEM Learning Centre. This masterplan is aimed to further enhance the opportunities and learning experiences for the boys into their exciting and ever-changing world. With funding arrangements changed as a result of recommendations made by the Gonski Report, and greater learning and teaching expectations and time demands on all families, giving through a financial contribution can build on the benefactors of the past, providing our boys with many more positive educational opportunities into the future. We are so lucky to have Old Boy donors matching all your contributions on the day fourfold, so there couldn’t be a better time to financially support our building masterplan (for example $100 becomes $400! etc). Another Old Boy is generously buying Red Rooster for all the young men of any particular House who achieve the largest number of donations on the day. All contributions will be tax deductible, as money will be collected, overseen, and managed by the College Foundation. In anticipation of your generosity this Thursday 10th August – thank you!

Feast of the Assumption Mass and Opening

Marist College Ashgrove will celebrate the feast of the Assumption, this Friday 11th August. This Mass will be celebrated in the Champagnat Centre from 10:00am by newly ordained Old Boy, Fr Isaac Falzon. The Feast of the Assumption celebrates Mary our good mother assumed into heaven. This is a Holy Day of Obligation in the Church and the traditional feast day of the Marist Brothers.

At the conclusion of this liturgy, Marist will officially bless and open the new recording studio extension of the Music Centre. This is a wonderful addition to the creative music aspect of each boy’s education. I thank Mrs Anna Nasr (Assistant Head of College, Mission) and her team who have organised and prepared this liturgy.

Year 12 Examination Block

Best wishes to all our Year 12 students who commence their examination block today on Tuesday 8th - Thursday 10th August. These examinations are the final internal piece of assessment (IA3) and may count for up to 25% of the boys’ ATAR result. We wish all Year 12 boys the best of luck with these examinations and thanks to their professional teachers who have prepared them. If you have any questions or needs, please contact Adam Knight on knighta@ marash.qld.edu.au.

Boarding - Night on the Green

This Saturday night, 12th August, our senior boarders will be taking part in our annual Night on the Green. This is an event hosted each year on the grass bank adjacent to the Cyprian Pavilion. It is an opportunity for our senior boarders to come together with boarders from Stuartholme School and showcase their musical talent.

This event, held exclusively for Year 11 and 12 boarders each year, is always much anticipated and enjoyed. The Night on the Green is a wonderful event celebrating the diversity of our boarders and enjoyed together with the girls from Stuartholme. My thanks is extended to Assistant Head of College – Boarding, Mr Jim Noble, Mr Mal Grealy, Mr Jack Johnson, Mr Denver Jensen and the entire Technical Crew.

Debating

The Marist Senior A team had a convincing win against Ambrose Tracey College in the Queensland Debating Union (QDU) Secondary Schools Competition. The topic involved an understanding of the political, economic and social underpinnings of gender in sport. The boys crafted a solid model implemented through practical mechanisms. In the summary points, it was clear Marist won both the principled and practical points. The boys now progress to the Quarter Finals against Brisbane State High School. Congratulations boys and good luck in the quarterfinals.

Year 7 and 8 Social

Marist College Ashgrove will host a social dance for girls from five Brisbane schools this Tuesday evening from 6:00pm-9:00pm in the Champagnat Centre. We welcome to the college, girls from Mt St Michael’s College, All Hallows, Stuartholme, Loreto and St Rita’s College. We trust that it is an enjoyable evening. Our thanks are extended to our generous staff who will be assisting and supervising on the evening. My special thanks to Anna Nasr and Peter Serone, for their overall co-ordination and to Kelly Byrnes for the administration of the event. Each attendee receives a bottle of water and a packet of chips with their ticket. Water, chips, soft drink and lollies can be purchased with cash, EFTPOS or Monitor on the night. Phones will be collected upon entry and returned after the event. Monies raised will go towards our fundraising for Australian Marist Solidarity. Enjoy!

Math’s Competition

Last Thursday, August 3rd, Marist College Ashgrove had some 160 students competing from Years 5-10 in the Australian Mathematics Competition. This competition was conducted in the Champagnat Centre as pictured below. My thanks are extended to Colleen Robertson for organising this competition for the boys. We look forward to celebrating some excellent results for the boys’ hard work.

Fare Share Kitchen

Best wishes to our environmental group who will be volunteering at the Fare Share Kitchen this Wednesday 9th August between 6:00pm-9:00pm. FareShare’s Brisbane Kitchen has been designed to cook meals at scale with quality ingredients supplied by Foodbank Queensland. This huge kitchen – approximately the size of a basketball court – is equipped with industrial-scale food processing tools including 300-litre electric saucepans which cook 750 meals at a time. Powered by volunteers, this facility aims to cook 1.25 million meals for vulnerable Queenslanders in its first year of operation and scale up to five million meals a year. My thanks are extended to Ms Kathryn Badini, Ms Ellie Kenny, Ms Andrea Williams and Mr Adam Knight for their supervision and organisation of this event. Well done boys on your generous involvement in this program.

Year 10 Parent Function

My thanks are extended to the Parents and Friends Association who has organised the Year 10 Parent function to be held this Friday evening in the Tower Function Room from 6.30-9.00pm. This is always an enjoyable social occasion, where parents have the opportunity to catch up with their peers and enjoy each other’s company over a drink and a light meal together. The evening will also include a short address from the Parents and Friends President and myself. We look forward to welcoming many parents this Friday evening to this much-anticipated parent event.

City-Country Game

This Tuesday afternoon 15th August, Marist College Ashgrove will be holding its annual City vs Country Rugby League Game, on McMahon Oval. This much-anticipated event sees many of our boarders representing the country coming up against their city counterparts. Last year was our first of such events with the country team coming away with a victory. My thanks are extended to Jim Noble, Dallas Williams, Ryan Apps, Paddy Conn and Mal Grealy who have organised and will facilitate this enjoyable event on Tuesday.

Volleyball – Queensland Volleyball Schools Cup

Marist College Ashgrove competed in the Queensland Volleyball Senior Schools Cup over the weekend in Year 11 Division 1. They finished 2nd bringing back to Marist the silver medal. The boys narrowly lost an epic final game 2-1 against Villanova which went down to the wire. An amazing result considering the limited preparation of the boys. My thanks are extended to their Marist coach, Scarlett Rudder for preparing the team for this competition.

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