The Catholic Schools Cultural Festival and Recognition Awards were held on Thursday, 29 August. The event commenced with Mass at 4.00pm in St Christopher’s Cathedral, Manuka, led by His Grace, Archbishop Christopher Prowse.

Mass was followed by the Awards ceremony and then guests were offered refreshments in Haydon Hall at St Christopher’s Parish Centre.

The Catholic Schools Recognition Awards pay tribute to exemplary practice, dedication and innovation and showcase extraordinary commitment and talent in Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn. 

This year the Recognition Awards were expanded to include the inaugural Catholic Schools Cultural Festival, which highlights student achievement across the curriculum. This includes Boundless - Untying Religion through Art; Affinity - the study of STEM within our classrooms; Wangirrali (Listen) - exploring Reconciliation through literacy and; Film Fest 2019 - capturing the 2019 Catholic Schools Week theme, 'Engaging Faith, Minds and Community'.

During the service, guests enjoyed moving performances by the St Clare’s College Chorale. Miah Moggridge, a Year 6 student from Good Shepherd Primary School Amaroo, gave the Welcome to Country in Ngunnawal language.

At the conclusion of Mass, each of the recipients was invited to accept their award.

The St Mary MacKillop choir performed for guests as they enjoyed refreshments after the service.

Congratulations to all of the 2019 Award recipients:

Catholic Schools Cultural Festival Awards

Affinity
Clare Rosin, Year 7, St Clare’s College Griffith

Boundless
Kathryn MacDonald, Teacher Librarian, St John the Apostle Primary School, Florey
Ellie Anlezark, Year 6, Mother Teresa School, Harrison

Film Fest 2019
Tristan Santiago, Kyle Orchard, Mikah Ramirez, Maddison Warren, Gabrielle Ticehurst and Tanishqa Robinson
Year 6, St Clare of Assisi Primary School, Conder

Wangirrali (Listen)
Aliza Vagg, Year 6, St Bernard’s Primary School, Batehaven

Recognition Awards

Mission
George Nulley, Classroom Teacher, St Mary MacKillop College, Tuggeranong
The K-12 Pathway Schools on the Coast
Yuin Banaan Organisation Committee:
Rebecca Brady, Aboriginal Contact Teacher, St Bernard’s Primary School, Batehaven
Patricia Ellis, Aboriginal Education Leader, St Bernard’s Primary School, Batehaven
Karen Hadley, Aboriginal Contact Teacher and Assistant Principal, St Bernard’s Primary School, Batehaven
Catherine Davis, Aboriginal Education Assistant, Carroll College, Broulee
Michelle Katuke, Aboriginal Contact Teacher, Carroll College, Broulee
Margaret Croese, Aboriginal Contact Teacher and Assistant Principal, St Mary’s Primary School, Moruya

Performance
Anna Williams, Coordinator, Mother Teresa School, Harrison
Antoinette Woods, Religious Education Coordinator, Lumen Christi Catholic College, Pambula Beach

Service
Laura Frogley, Classroom Teacher, St Michael’s Primary School, Kaleen
Jane King, Clerical Officer, St Gregory’s Primary School, Queanbeyan

Director’s Award
Trazel Scott, Principal, Hennessey Catholic College, Young

Archbishop’s Award
Luke Maher, Religious Education Coordinator, St Vincent’s Primary School, Aranda

‘We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become.’ – St Clare of Assisi

Students and staff at St Clare of Assisi Primary School, Conder have celebrated 25 years of excellence in Catholic education.

From the day that classes commenced on Tuesday, 1 February 1994, through its 25 year history, thousands of children, parents and staff have benefited from and contributed towards the St Clare of Assisi school community and legacy.

On Friday, 9 August, students and staff celebrated the 25th Feast Day of St Clare of Assisi with a whole of school mass.

“Celebrating our patron Saint and 25 years of our wonderful school, gave us all a chance to give thanks for the blessings of our community,'' said Principal Matt Egan-Richards.

“I am very proud of the community that we have built.”

On Friday evening, the school community, as well as a significant number of former staff and parents gathered together for the Jubilee Dinner.

“It was great to catch up with such a range of people,” said Mary Mathias, former St Clare of Assisi Principal.

“It was a true testament to the community that so many people have returned to celebrate such a wonderful school.”

On Friday, 9 and Saturday, 10 August, staff, students and alumni came together to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Merici College with sellout concerts. Both evenings were a resounding success with crowds showing their support for the various acts and performances. The concerts were designed to showcase Merici’s history over the past 60 years, including its journey from Canberra Catholic Girls’ School through to Merici College today.

When Merici College was officially opened by His Grace Archbishop O’Brien on Sunday, 22 March, 1959, the school was the first Catholic secondary college for girls in Canberra. Merici was, and still is, unique as it broke with the custom of the time, with founding staff from six Orders of nuns and drawing from the Charisms of each when establishing itself as an Archdiocesan school.

Guests immensely enjoyed the walk down memory lane of Merici College’s history, revisiting each decade through dance, music, drama performances, alumni reflections and current students highlighting life at Merici College.

Students also gained valuable lessons from the experience. “It was such a great night, so much history in one place. I really enjoyed the dance performances and the fashion parade”, Merici student Christine said.

Chloe, another Merici student said, “The reflections from ex-students that covered each decade were really good. I learned a lot about Merici and what it was like many years ago.”

‘For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that
whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ – John 3:16

Students from across the Archdiocese have come together at Marist College in Canberra for the third annual SHINE gathering run by Catholic Schools Youth Ministry Australia (CSYMA).

This year's event saw 520 students from across 12 Archdiocesan schools attend, which was a significant increase on previous years. Catholic Identity Officer, Nathan Galea, said he was excited by the continued growth of SHINE.

“We’ve got people from Pambula and the South Coast, people from around Canberra and from places like Temora and Cootamundra,” Nathan said.

“We are excited about the things that are taking place within the Archdiocese as we begin to seek new ways for our schools to become centres of the New Evangelisation.”

The event was open to Year 9 and 10 students who had chosen an elective within the Religious Education Program which focused on the CSYMA Youth Ministry Program. The program seeks to establish a Formation pathway that introduces young people to a personal relationship with Jesus, the Church and the Catholic Faith.

The theme of this year’s gathering was ‘The Truth: Life = Love’.

Archbishop Christopher Prowse, one of the guest speakers, was equally thrilled about the growth of the event and the popularity of the Youth Ministry Program.

“I am really happy that it has been organised by youth, for youth and for the evangelisation of youth in the Archdiocese,” said the Archbishop.

“We’re well placed to be what Christ wants us to be, to be his presence in the world today as missionary disciples.”

Throughout the day, students participated in a number of activities including icebreakers, drama, live music, games, testimony presentations and practical workshops. These were designed to encourage students to be open to developing their own personal relationship with Christ.

At the conclusion of the event students were offered an opportunity to respond and come and receive a blessing. The response was overwhelming.

“I loved this conference so much,” said one student.“It is lovely to know that there are more people across the Archdiocese that are on their Faith journey just like me. I am learning so much about my Faith, and it is helping me discover the person I want to be.”

Students, staff, parishioners and special guests of St Joseph’s Primary School, Bombala gathered on Thursday, 8 August to celebrate the blessing and opening of the new Mary MacKillop administration building.

The celebration began with mass at St Mary’s Parish, led by Archbishop Christopher Prowse, who with the assistance of Acting Director Angus Tulley, officially opened the building.

Guests were then invited to tour the new facilities as the Archbishop blessed each room with prayer and holy water.

The new administration building was a long-term project in the making for St Joseph’s, beginning in 2014. The former structure had been a temporary demountable placed on site in the 1970’s and was deemed in need of replacement.

The new Mary MacKillop administration building now boasts a welcoming reception, two meeting rooms, Principal’s office, storage room, toilets and canteen and kitchen facilities. The new modern design also enables a space for private support services for students.

Principal, Susan Tighe, expressed her gratitude to those who contributed to the project.

“It is my privilege to pass a vote of thanks on behalf of the St Joseph’s community,” she said.

“This memorable occasion has provided an opportunity for the St Joseph’s community to look back on its past achievements and at the same time look forward to the School’s continuing success in the future.”

Twenty five years ago, the Parishes of Holy Trinity, Curtin, and Sts Peter and Paul, Garran amalgamated to create the Transfiguration Parish, North Woden. On Tuesday, 6 August, students and staff from both primary schools gathered together to celebrate 25 years united as one community.

Mass was led by Monsignor John Woods, with many families and parishioners in attendance. Each school created a banner reflecting their understanding of the Transfiguration and these hung in the church for the duration of the mass.

After mass, students and staff enjoyed cake, in commemoration of the special occasion.

Acting Religious Education Coordinator, Stephanie Burns reflected on the success of the special occasion.

“It was brilliant to see students from both schools getting to know each other and engaging in activities centred around the 25th anniversary of the amalgamation,” she said.

“The Feast Day of Transfiguration is such a memorable celebration for our schools and Parish.”

On Wednesday, 21 August, Lumen Christi Catholic College celebrated Aboriginal culture at their ‘Voice. Treaty. Truth’ Cultural Day Festival. The school welcomed Elders, community members and representatives from the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME), Campbell Page, Eden Marine High School and Bega High School.

The College community participated in a smoking ceremony as well as other cultural activities including boomerang painting, tasting traditional damper such as johnnycake, dance and didgeridoo demonstrations.

Guest speakers addressed the community at a whole of school gathering where a large school mural was revealed. The mural was designed by Year 12 student, Hayleigh Lonesborough and represented the four school houses. It was painted by the College’s Aboriginal students and two student representatives from each Pastoral Care class.

Award recipients of the Lumen Christi Cultural Competition were also announced at the gathering, with nominations including artworks, films, songs and interviews. The three winners received an award of $250 for their creativity in promoting Reconciliation.

The Junior Prize was awarded to Skyla Roberts and Lilly Mannell, for their film called Reconciliation. George Schweitzer, Finley Cooke and Rory Munt won the Senior Prize for their song The Chordroys and Anna Spoljaric received an award for her artwork, Uniting Paths, that incorporated symbolism from both Western and Aboriginal cultures.

This term, 11 teachers from across four Archdiocese schools commenced a pilot writing project.

The project, ‘Writing Teachers, Teachers of Writing’ for K-6 aims to explore and evaluate the effects of implementing and supporting an innovative, comprehensive writing project. Its purpose is to improve the quality of students’ writing performance and increase capabilities of writing teachers.

Teachers from St Clare of Assisi Primary School, Calwell; St Anthony’s Primary School, Wanniassa; St John Vianney’s Primary School Waramanga; and St Joseph’s Primary School, Grenfell have been selected to monitor and guide project implementation.

The project will support class teachers to focus on student data, the Australian and NSW Curriculum, ACARA’s Literacy Learning Progressions and evidence-based professional literature. Student data and data on teachers' practices, beliefs and skills will be collected, tracked and analysed over the period of the project.

On Friday, 9 August, the committee gathered for their first professional day. Catholic Education Senior Officer Literacy Specialist Colleen Caddy was impressed by the dedication of the team.

“The commitment, enthusiasm and delight expressed in being part of the project from teachers and school leaders has been inspiring,” she said.

“There is an obvious commitment from all the teachers to be readers and writers themselves as well as being teachers of reading and writing.”

Catholic Schools across the Archdiocese have celebrated Book Week in style with a variety of activities, including author visits, costume parades and book swaps. It was fantastic to see students share their love of reading and the creative ways in which they brought their favourite book characters to life.

This year’s theme was ‘Reading is my Secret Power’. Here are some highlights from Book Week across the Archdiocese.

Year 12 Merici College student, Rosemary Zielinski, travelled to Israel to compete in the 2019 International Physics Olympiad as a member of the Australian team. The Catholic Education Office, Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn provided support for Rosemary’s journey to Israel.

“This was undoubtedly a life-changing experience,'' said Rosemary.

“Whilst scientific knowledge was what brought me to the science Olympiads, the breadth of cultural experience I gained from the many people I met is equally important.”

The Olympiad consisted of two five hour exams, one theoretical and one experimental and was designed to test knowledge of a broad range of physical phenomena. When she wasn’t sitting exams, Rosemary was out exploring the sights that Israel has to offer.

“I had the opportunity to float in the Dead Sea, see the Western Wall, ride camels around a Bedouin camp and raft on the Jordan River,” she said.

“Learning about Israel’s rich history was fascinating, as I was learning about the culture of modern day Israel.”

Rosemary returned to Australia with a Bronze medal and credits her teachers at Merici for fostering her sense of curiosity about the world. She encourages everyone to sit the Australian Science Olympiad exams.

“You never know where science can take you,” she said.

In August, Archdiocesan schools celebrated National Science Week by participating in a number of activities designed to foster an interest in scientific pursuits and a fascination for the world and its surrounds.

Mother Teresa Primary School, Harrison was one of the many schools that got into the spirit of National Science Week. Dr Tory Clarke from the ANU College of Science visited Year 2 and 3 students to discuss the importance of plants and food sustainability. The students completed experiments to determine what plants needed to grow and flourish.

At Trinity Catholic Primary School, Murrumburrah, students designed and launched straw rockets. They were encouraged to consider the weight of the rocket and pressure needed to determine its flight path.

Students at St Michael’s Primary School, Kaleen participated in an interactive science show performed by the JollyBops. The show included a number of engaging experiments from exploding balloons to shattering tennis balls.

Year 10 students at St Clare’s College, Griffith played host to students from St Benedict’s Primary School, Narrabundah for an enriching science extravaganza. Students participated in hands-on activities including the classification of arthropods, testing magnetic forces, separating coloured chemicals in black markers and creating an acid-base reaction with sherbert.

St Joseph’s Primary School, Bombala students simulated an investigation into a mysterious incident in the playground acting as experts from NASA, the Australian Space Agency, the CSIRO and local police. Students determined the nature of the incident to see if it was caused by space junk.

At St Francis Xavier College, Florey, Year 11 students enjoyed ice cream made with liquid nitrogen.