From the Pen of the Principal
Dear Parents and Carers,
Xavier Catholic College – 20 Year Anniversary – A Year of Jubilee
As we approach the halfway mark of 2023, it is good to remember how special this year is to our College. This year we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the founding of Xavier Catholic College. To celebrate our 20th anniversary and the spirit that lies at the heart of our College I can proudly proclaim 2023 as ‘Our Year of Jubilee’.
The English term Jubilee derives from the Hebrew term yobhel, meaning ram; the Jubilee year was announced by a blast on a shofar, an instrument made from a ram's horn, as "a trumpet-blast of liberty".
A Jubilee year is much more than just a party or a time of celebration. The meaning of Jubilee and its challenge to us links strongly to the mission of our College. In the Hebrew scriptures they speak of the practice of celebrating ‘Jubilee’, a year of God’s favour. It was a year when social and environmental inequities were rectified: people were to return to their traditional land and re-join their clan; the poor were to be forgiven their debts; slaves were to be set free as most slavery had arisen out of unpayable debts; and the land was to lie fallow in order to rejuvenate and consolidate for future years. Overall, the Jubilee tradition called to mind the graciousness of God with the imperative that such graciousness should be shared out among all members of the community.
Jesus was a prophet of the Jubilee. He began his ministry proclaiming that he was sent to bring “good news to the poor, liberty to captives, new sight for the blind and freedom for prisoners. To announce a year of favour from the Lord” (Lk 4:18-19). His ministry can be understood in terms of the Kingdom of God, a Kingdom in which social inequalities were rectified.
The Jubilee is intimately bound to the Jesus tradition and the mission of his followers. As his followers, we share in the task of building the Kingdom of God. We are called to establish relationships at every level of society built on justice, fairness, love, respect and forgiveness.
This year we are called to ask some important questions:
- Who in our school community, our society and our world are ostracized and in need of belonging?
- Who is in need of forgiveness and have we the courage to offer that forgiveness or seek it for our own wrongdoings to others?
- Who is burdened by debt, be it financial or spiritual, and is in need of our generosity?
- Who is in slavery and is in need of liberation?
- Who is tired, weary and in need of rejuvenation?
- Are we a people that are thankful for God’s graciousness to us and prepared to show that same graciousness to others?
So, let us set our hearts, not just on celebrating our Jubilee Year, but living it to the full. Let this be a year of liberation where we work for justice in our land and lend our voices in advocacy for those at the margins. Let it also be a time when we liberate ourselves from our own self-imposed limitations. Let us strive individually and collectively to be all that we can be. Let the classrooms be places filled with energy and high ambitions. Let us sound the trumpet and proclaim our year of Jubilee. Let us use the gifts our gracious God has given us to their full capacity and let us spread God’s grace richly in the way we treat each other.
We have some special days coming up as part of our 20 Year celebrations.
You may wish to ‘Save the Date” on the following:
- Wednesday 26th July at 10.00am – Catholic Education Week and Blessing and Opening of the Saint Francis Xavier Chapel.
- Saturday 21st October – Our 20 Year Gala Anniversary Ball.
NAIDOC Week
As the end of the school term looms, so do the impending celebrations for NAIDOC Week. This is an important time to recognise and celebrate indigenous history and culture. This year NAIDOC celebrations will occur during the school holidays between 2-9 July. However, our community will celebrate it in our first week back next term.
This week-long event helps build positive relationships between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, enabling a deeper understanding of our differences and similarities. This Special Report serves as a reminder to all families about the importance of this event and how we can celebrate together.
NAIDOC week celebrates the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It is celebrated by all Australians and is a great opportunity to recognise and learn more about the history and culture of indigenous communities.
NAIDOC stands for National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee. Its origins can be traced back to the Aboriginal rights movement, when on Australia Day 1938, protestors marched through the streets of Sydney to highlight the status and treatment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. Today, it is a week-long celebration held in July that consists of range of traditional and contemporary activities.
NAIDOC Week is an important event that helps build positive relationships between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. It enables a deeper understanding of our differences and similarities. NAIDOC week is an opportunity for all Australians to eliminate bias and discrimination by reflecting and reconciling the wrongs of the past to facilitate hope and build a fairer future. Families are encouraged to join in and support young people in learning the significance of NAIDOC Week.
This Special Report offers suggestions on how families can celebrate NAIDOC Week together. We hope you take a moment to reflect on the information offered, and as always, we welcome your feedback. If this raises any concerns for you, a loved one or the wellbeing of your child, please seek medical or professional help.
Back Entrance to School – Changes
Ensuring the protection of people and property is crucial to running an effective school. As part of this commitment, we have already begun erecting a higher and sturdier security fence along the back boundary and will be extending this along the lake side boundary shortly.
To further increase security on the prope
rty the back gate will be locked by the cleaners around 6.00pm each evening. It will be unlocked at 6.30am each morning and locked at 9.00am. In the afternoon it will be unlocked at 2.30pm.
These changes will come into effect from Day 1 of Term 3.
To Summarise:
- LOCKED BETWEEN 6.00PM AND 6.30AM
- OPENED BETWEEN 6.30AM AND 9.00AM
- LOCKED BETWEEN 9.00AM AND 2.30PM
- OPENED BETWEEN 2.30PM AND 6.00PM
There are three main reasons for this change:
- We have had some intruders during the school day who enter the property. In some cases, they are using our school as a thoroughfare from Eli Waters to the suburbs around us. But, other intruders could present Child Safety concerns.
- We have had quite a number of overnight break-ins that have led to theft and vandalism. Our excess is so high that insurance cannot cover this. In nearly all cases they have cut through the mesh fencing.
- Furthermore, it will provide a significant disincentive for students to leave the campus during the school day.
If a student arrives late (after 9.00am) they will not have access to the back gate and will need to use the walkway around the lake to enter the College grounds. I would seek your support for this decision and the reasons for these changes.
Blessings and Peace,
Simon Dash
Principal
Acting Head of School – Primary
As the holidays approach, I have taken the time to reflect on the term that was. It has been a term of opportunities for growth, learning and coming together as community.
We have had Prep Come and Try days, showcase assemblies, our Mother’s Day liturgy, the K-2 Sports Carnival, Year level church visits and retreats, the Readers Cup competition, author visits, touch carnivals and Under 8s Day. There is also no winding down in the last week as we have the P-6 Disco on Wednesday evening and the 3-6 Athletics Carnival on Friday.
These events are only possible because of the dedicated staff that go above and beyond. We are very fortunate to have a wonderful team at Xavier Catholic College and I want to take this opportunity to wish them and our students a safe and happy holiday.
Please see below some staffing updates for the beginning of Term 3
- I am on Long Service Leave for the first two weeks of Term 3. Mrs Melanie Beety will step into the role of Acting Head of School (Primary Years) for the first two weeks.
- Mrs Mandy Brindell will step into the role of Acting Assistant Principal (Primary Years) for the two week period.
Kind regards,
Sarah Love
Head of School – Secondary
Positive Behaviour for Learning
At Xavier Catholic College, we believe in building positive relationships with all students and parents. As part of this, we as a school emphasise the use of proactive supports to prevent unproductive behaviours occurring. The science of behaviour sequences shows that teachers can change the antecedent in order to increase the likelihood of engaged behaviours being demonstrated by students. Every day we use behaviour to meet our needs. All behaviours are observable acts, and in the classroom, teachers are constantly observing the behaviours of students. We believe at Xavier that every student can learn given the right conditions and the right relationships. We believe that to increase student engagement in learning, we need to reduce the number of unproductive behaviours we are seeing in a small minority of students.
We also believe that for the holistic growth of the child, this is supported by practices of wellbeing to achieve improved learning outcomes. Effective student wellbeing practices at school can have positive impacts for life. Research suggests that there are strong links between a positive sense of wellbeing and higher levels of achievement, engagement with learning, attendance, resilience, and positive student behaviour. We also know that student wellbeing and learning are inseparable, embedded in the life of the school, and achieved with the cooperation of teachers, students, parents and guardians, and the broader school and parish community.
Positive relationships are the key to students feeling safe, valued and accepted by all members of the school community.
“Learning requires positive relationships, between learners and teachers or between learners and their peers. These positive relationships are the precursors to learning - as students need to feel trust to ask for help, try again and explore with their peers to learn” (Hattie & Zierer, 2018).
Positive, supportive relationships have been shown to improve academic performance and strengthen social connections.
With every blessing,
Ursula Witham-Young
News
Primary Disco – ‘Western / Country’ theme
Don’t forget the Primary School disco: Wednesday, 21 June 2023.
Times: 4:00pm – 5:00pm (Prep to Year 2)
5:30pm – 7:00pm (Year 3 – Year 6)
Food, drinks and glowsticks will be available on the night. Tickets: $2 via Qkr! Buying tickets in advance via Qkr! is preferred, but you can also buy on the night.
Please note: Parents are required to stay onsite. A seating area and tea / coffee will be available.
Primary Award Winners and Students of the Week
Australian Mathematics Competition
The Australian Mathematic Competition will be held at the College in Term 3 on Thursday, 3 August 2023 during lesson 1 and 2 for students from year 3-12.
This year we will be completing the competition online and the cost is $8.00 to enter. A link on QKR has been set up for both payment and permission slip.
A letter will be given to students who have shown interest in participating in the competition. If your child has missed out on a letter and wishes to participate in the competition, they can collect one from student reception.
If you have any queries please email:
- Year 3-6 mbetty@bne.catholic.edu.au
- Year 7-12 jritter@bne.catholic.edu.au
Students that have achieved 133% or higher Growth Rate or 100% Accuracy will be recognised each fortnight. To achieve 133% Growth Rate, students need to master 4 out of the 6 modules completed each cycle.
Why is 133% Growth Rate important?
Students achieving this consistently show more than a years’ worth of knowledge mastered. As students are filling in gaps in Year 6-8, this is ultimately the goal of Maths Pathway.
Each newsletter will acknowledge the achievements per cycle and the last newsletter for the Term will acknowledge the whole Terms achievements.
Congratulations to the students listed below!
Holiday Activities
Sport
3-6 Athletics Carnival
The Xavier Catholic College Primary Athletics Carnival will be held over two days this week, with a full program on Friday.
Students are to wear House shirts on Friday, don’t forget your hat and a water bottle.
The tuckshop will be open for orders as usual. Parents can purchase drinks and snacks.
Thursday, 22 June
Discus events: 8.45am – 1.30pm
800m events: 2pm – 3pm on the Secondary Oval (parents/carers welcome).
Friday 23 June
Events on the Secondary Oval (parents/carers welcome).
QISSN and Confro – Thrift Shop Thursday
Secondary school students can participate in ‘Thrift Shop Thursday’ this week to help raise funds for the College’s senior netball and rugby league teams.
Teams will participate in the QISSN (netball) and Confro (rugby league) carnivals during the upcoming school holidays.
Students are encouraged to make a donation via Qkr!
Reminder, normal non-uniform dress day rules apply.
Xavier Year 7-12 Athletics
The Years 7-12 Interhouse Athletics Carnival is scheduled for Thursday, 20 July (12pm-3pm) and Friday, 21 July (all day). Included below is the schedule of events over the two days, as well as the schedule of lunchtime events leading up to the carnival. Parents are invited to attend to watch their children. Please see important information below.
Inclusive Carnival: Our interhouse carnivals are planned to be inclusive for all students, with students choosing to compete in Age Championship events, Division (participation) events, relay events and novelty events across the two days. In addition, each house chooses a theme for students to dress up and help celebrate the life of our College whilst enjoying the social environment that the carnival offers. It is a great event for all students, with plenty to do.
12yr Old Year 7’s (born 2011): This year, 12-year-old Year 7 students will compete in a full program of events (minus high jump). These students will be able to earn points for their house and compete for an honorary Age Champion for Year 7, 12-year-olds. Please note, the official 12yr Athletics Age Champion (and subsequent representation at District Level) is decided at the Primary Athletics Carnival (Year 3-6) held on the last day of Term 3.
Compulsory Expectations for Xavier Wolves sport students: Students in Years 7-12 who signed up for Wolves Sport this year are reminded of the compulsory requirement to attend and participate in all three interhouse carnivals. In addition, all touch football and oztag students are required to participate in the 1500m and 3000m events as a training activity for these sports. Failure to meet this expectation will result in students losing their place in the teams.
Schedule of Events - Friday 21st July
Hervey Bay Athletics Season
AFL
Don’t Forget
First day back, Term 3:
Primary: Monday, 10 July 2023
Secondary: Tuesday, 11 July 2023
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