Category: Secondary

“Without Mary we are nothing and with Mary we have everything, because Mary always has her adorable Son within her arms or in her heart”. – St Marcellin Champagnat  

The Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is a significant Feast Day in the life of the Church and in the life of our Marist Community. This day was chosen by St Marcellin Champagnat to be the Patronal Feast Day of the Little Brothers of Mary, now known as the Marist Brothers. It is celebrated annually on the 15 August. In reflecting on the Assumption of Mary I am drawn to the understanding of Mary as a young woman who said ‘yes’ to bring Christ into the world with a complete trust in God and God’s plan for her. St Marcellin Champagnat, in constantly looking to Mary, sought to bring about the same attitude of ‘yes’ in the first Marists and we at Newman College hope we can continue to live this dream with our young people, staff and the wider community. To our Marist Brothers and all who connect to our Marist charism, Happy Feast of the Assumption. 

As a community, we celebrated this day with Mass for the College, followed by our Lapathon. This linked with our Wellbeing Week theme of connect, where all our students from K-12 connect with one another as they walk around the ovals and connect to their faith through the sacraments. Students from K-6 have been encouraged to find sponsorship for the number of laps they will complete, and 7-12 asked to consider bringing in a donation, all for LifeLink who support a number of Catholic outreach agencies across our local community. Families can learn more about this organisation online by clicking: Lifelink or watch our students explain Lifelink here. 

Families who prefer can make a donation to LifeLink via our College website here 

St Vincent De Paul Winter Solidarity 

On July 29, a range of Marcellin students gathered after school together with Year 6 Mini Marists and cooked close to 200 meals for St Vincent de Paul. On such a cold and blustery night, the Bolognese was very well received by Tom’s House in the city.  

Other students created well wishes cards to present later this term to the Nyoongar Outreach Services Inc, along with gift bags of sanitary items to be donated by our Year 12 cohort in their student-led fundraiser.  

Following this, the group participated in a workshop about poverty in Australia.  The night was very successful with its fun and educational activities.  Students felt motivated to create positive changes in their own contexts and brainstormed ideas to improve awareness in our College of the daily plight of thousands of Australians living in poverty. 

Game Changers 

Our Marist Youth Ministry Program Game Changers, continues to bring together our students in Year 7 – 12 and our Mini-Marists in Year 5 and 6. The purpose of the program is to help our students build a sense of belonging, developing their knowledge and skills in leadership, create opportunities for service and explore their faith story. Students gather with their teachers either at lunch time or on a Tuesday afternoon. Our Year 11 Game Changers group are preparing to head to Mullewa on their Solidarity Immersion, where they will spend a week working with the Mullewa community. This is a fantastic opportunity for our Year 11 students to step outside their comfort zone and learn more about regional WA. 

Any parents who would like their child to become involved please contact Aleisha Bryson.  

Marist Connect Night 

Being part of a Marist connection offers unique opportunities for our students. On Tuesday 23 August, Year 11 and 12 students are invited to join a Marist Connect Night with students from Bunbury Catholic College and St Joseph’s Northam. Any Year 11 or 12 student who wishes to attend must contact Aleisha Bryson via email Aleisha.Bryson@newman.wa.edu.au or complete this form https://forms.office.com/r/N94FPj3dv9. This is a great opportunity to build connection with other young Marists and grow as young leaders in our community. 

Sacramental Celebrations 

Our Year 7 students had the opportunity to participate in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Fr Mark from the Redemptorist Monastery in North Perth led the celebration with students, reminding them of the importance of reflecting on our behaviour and the decisions we make that can damage our relationships with God, self and others. Students were encouraged to think about ways they can maintain positive relationships and seek forgiveness when necessary. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is an important sacrament because it allows us to acknowledge our failings and seek to restore those relationships we may damage due to our actions/choices. Year 8 and Year 9 students will have the opportunity to participate in the sacrament later this term. 

Thursday Morning Mass 

Our Thursday morning Mass returns in Week 5. Hosted by students in Mackillop Guild and Year 3 Red. Week 6 Community Mass is hosted by Camara Guild and Year 3 Blue. We look forward to seeing students and families in attendance. Mass is from 8.10am – 8.40am. All are welcome. 

On 23 July Marists across the world celebrated the birth of the Marist dream which started with twelve seminarians in 1816, when they climbed the steep steps to the to the Fourvière chapel in Lyon to pledge themselves “as soon as possible, establish a most holy congregation of Marists.” This foundational event in began the Marist story for Marist Fathers, Marist Sisters, Marist Missionary Sisters, Marist Laity and Marist Brothers. We continue to ask for Mary’s guidance and support of our Marist Mission as we like our founder St Marcellin Champagnat, to make Jesus Christ known and loved.  

This term our Ministry team continue to work with students in Game Changers, our Living Marist Christian Service-Learning Program, Mini-Marists and liturgies and Masses across the PK-12 community. This term our students will participate in the Mullewa Solidarity trip, Lifelink Fundraiser on Assumption Day and many exciting liturgies and Masses that will encourage them to reflect on their relationships with each other, creation, self and God. We wish everyone a fantastic Term 3 and like Mary, that we say ‘yes’ to the many opportunities that come our way. 

Staff Faith Formation 

As part of our commitment to formation for staff in 2022, Br Tony Leon visited the College on July 18 to facilitate an excellent Faith Formation Day for both teaching and non-teaching staff. Based around this year’s Marist theme of “Known and Loved – Dignity for All” the day included large and small group discussions and offered staff the opportunity to consider a range of issues such as poverty, displaced people, mental health and the experience of First Nation peoples. Ongoing opportunities for staff faith formation is aligned to our Strategic Directions ‘A Catholic School in the Marist Tradition’  

Assumption Day Celebrations 

The Feast Day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Feast Day chosen for the Patronal Feast of the Marist Brothers is Monday 15 August. To mark the significance of these events, our K-12 Community will come together in celebration on Thursday 11 August.  As one of 54 Marist schools across Australia, the Feast Day of the Assumption is an opportunity to gather, give thanks to the Marist Brothers, and celebrate our shared Marist identity.  

Information about this important event was emailed to parents on Monday July 25. Please see a copy here 

Students from K-6 will be fundraising through a commitment to walking laps in the annual lapathon.  

Secondary students are encouraged to bring in a minimum of $5 to assist with our fundraising initiative as they also join the primary students walking around our ovals. 

Families who wish to contribute online can do so by clicking here.  

Year 10 Retreat 28 July 

Yesterday the Year 10 students came together to participate in a Retreat facilitated by the Youth Ministry Team. The Retreat Day follows our Vision for Mission to form “Good Christians and Good Citizens” as we offer students an opportunity away from the normal school routine to pause and reflect on their relationship with others, themselves and God. These experiences have shown to be positive and rewarding for our students.  

 
The Year 10 Retreat focused on recognising and developing leadership capacity with the following aims; 

• For students to appreciate their own worth, as a starting point of their leadership journey. 
• For students to understand what leadership looks like and the relationship between Leadership and Service. 
• That students would encounter the core Gospel values that drive true servant leadership. 
• That students would recognize that it is both possible and desirable to develop a personal relationship with Jesus, to help them serve as He served.

St Vincent de Paul Winter Solidarity event 29 July 

This afternoon, 29 July, students on the Marcellin Campus and our Year 6 Mini Marists will have the opportunity to participate in the St Vincent de Paul Winter Solidarity event.  The Australian Bishops’ Catholic Social Justice Statement on Social Justice 2022 – 2023 is Respect: Confronting Violence and Abuse.  

In this Social Justice Statement, the Bishops’ assert Our relationships should be “marked by equality and reciprocity rather than domination and violence, respect and freedom rather than coercion and control”. The Statement affirms the work being done by faith communities and organisations to support those who experience domestic and family violence and abuse, and to address the drivers and enablers of violence. This includes the issue of spiritual and discusses how religious teachings – including our own – may be manipulated by perpetrators to excuse violence or to exert control over others. It points to further ways in which we can all respond to spiritual violence. Finally, it calls for faith communities to support and believe those going through domestic and family violence and abuse, to hold perpetrators to account and work towards individual and social transformation. 

“We believe that respect, dignity and justice, transformation and hope are possible.” 
~ Social Justice Statement on Social Justice 2022 – 2023 

Students participating in the Winter Solidarity event will explore and learn about homelessness in Australia, Catholic Social Teaching, and what they can do as individuals and as a community to help address the issue.  

Students will also conduct a cook-up with food being donated to those suffering from homelessness. 

St Vincent de Paul Blanket Appeal 

This winter many families will be forced to spend the night without adequate warmth, or in some cases without adequate shelter.  

The Newman College Community endeavours to imitate Mary’s tenderness and concern for others, particularly the way she lived out her faith with courage in the face of great pain and adversity. Donating a blanket is a simple way to follow Mary’s example and to live the Gospel Message to “Love your neighbour” (Mark 12:31).  

For the beginning of Term 3 families are invited to donate blankets for the St Vincent de Paul Winter Blanket Appeal. Blankets should be in good condition, recently cleaned and free from pet hair. When donating a blanket to the Winter Appeal, please consider “Would I give this blanket to a friend?”.  Ensuring the blankets are in a good condition upholds the dignity of those who are receiving the goods.  

Donations can be made at all three College Campuses: 
Marcellin: Champagnat Chapel 
Lavalla: Administration Office 
Marian: Administration Office 

The final day to donate is Friday 19th August 2021. By actively engaging in this appeal, we continue to support community engagement to the marginalised. Your kind donation of blankets will help to keep families safe and warm this winter season.  

Thank you in advance for your generous donations.  

Thursday Morning Community Mass  

All students, families, friends and community members are warmly invited to join us for this peaceful and restorative start to the day. Taking place in the Champagnat Chapel on a Thursday morning, Mass begins at 8.10am and concludes at 8.40am. It is celebrated by a Priest from one of our local parishes and is hosted by both primary and secondary school students. 

There will be a 2 week break due to the Athletics Carnival and Assumption Day celebrations with Mass commencing again on the following dates; 

Week 5, Thursday August 18; Fr Emmanuel-tv Dimobi, MacKillop and Y3 Red 

Week 6, Thursday 25 August 25; Monsignor Kevin Long, Camara and Y3 Blue 

Council for Catholic Women

The Committee for the Council for Catholic Women Perth warmly invites you to 3 talks by Dr Cristina Lledo Gomez at James Nestor Hall Catholic Education Office 60 Ruislip St West Leederville. Cristina is the Presentation Sisters Lecturer at BBI-The Australian Institute of Theological Education where she promotes women’s spiritualities, feminist theologies and eco-theologies. Cristina is inspired by Karl Rahner SJ and has lectured at Boston and Berkeley Universities USA. She is the author of The Church as Woman and Mother and has published many articles covering her stated interests. Married with 2 children Cristina is proud of her Filipina heritage. 

 Friday 5 August: 5.30pm – 8.30pm (Light refreshments served 5.30pm – 6pm) Colonisation, Church and the Migrant Australian.  Saturday 6 August: 10am -12pm -Integral Ecology and Our Shared Existence  (light lunch provided) Saturday 6 August: 1pm – 3pm – Reclaiming Mary: Empowered versus Patriarchal Motherhood.                                                                                                                                                                             

RSVP Wednesday 3 August by email kerrymacfarlane2@gmail.com or mobile 0400 886 835. All welcome. Please feel free to attend any of the talks.

Welcome Back 

A warm welcome back to school for all our Newman families. I hope you found some time over the holidays to relax and enjoy being together away from the busyness of the normal school routine.  

On day one of the term, our staff engaged in Faith Formation Professional Learning. We spent time together learning about aspects of inclusion relevant to our theme for 2022, ‘Known and Loved dignity for all’. This learning included an examination with Marist Brother, Br Tony Leon of what love actually is, and how it manifests as a choice or commitment to the wellbeing of the other, in line with the wellbeing of self. Staff engaged in workshop style high impact learning sessions that explored topics such as first nations people, gender and gender diversity, mental health, cry of the earth, living in poverty, displaced people and invisible in a digital age.  

The start of this term was particularly challenging due to the technical difficulties we experienced during the first couple of days. I would like to express our gratitude to parents and students for the patience and understanding that was shown during this time, especially with regard to the Parent Teacher interviews. It was fortunate that these difficulties did not significantly impact the student learning.  

New Staff 

We welcome the following new staff to the College Community and Marist family 

Secondary Science Teacher: Gina Thornberry 

Secondary Science Teacher: Helen Williamson 

College Events Coordinator: Karla Nessfield-Thomas  

Part-time Pre-Kindy Teacher: Delia Kretzmann  

Digital Innovation Coordinator: Joel Kandiah  

Italian Teacher: Maria Famiano  

Leader of People and Culture: Nicole Luckman  

Food Science and Technology Secondary Teacher: Emily Mincherton 

Ongoing Leader of Wellbeing: Scott Smith 

Staff Concluding 

Primary School Music Teacher Annette Grayden has resigned this term. We thank Annette for her contribution and wish her well in her future endeavours. 

Wellbeing Week 

During Week 4, teachers and students will come together to engage in activities, lessons and professional learning designed to support the wellbeing of the College community.  

We recognise the importance of education, raising awareness and providing opportunities for students to develop their own wellbeing and to contribute to and participate in our flourishing community. We look forward to working together to enhance our individual and collective wellbeing. We are calling for parents or students to submit appreciation or gratitude messages to our staff to be delivered on our Staff Wellbeing Day. To enter a message please complete this online form.  

College Production 

The Charlie and the Chocolate Factory company are excited to have begun rehearsals and preparation for five fabulous performances this September. Our cast of students from Years 4 to 12, will treat you to a wonderful night of entertainment, with something for the whole family!  

The world-famous Willy Wonka is opening the gates to his mysterious factory…but only to a lucky few. Young Charlie Bucket and four other golden ticket winners will embark on a life-changing journey through Wonka’s world of pure imagination, including chocolate waterfalls, nutty squirrels and the great glass elevator, all to be revealed by Wonka’s army of curious Oompa-Loompas. 

Based on the famous novel by Roald Dahl, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory features an original score composed by Marc Shaiman with lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman (Hairspray) and a book by David Greig. The score also pays homage to the Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley score from the 1971 film with songs from the motion picture including “Candy Man,” “I’ve Got a Golden Ticket,” “Oompa Loompa Song,” and “Pure Imagination.” 

Tickets are going fast, with over 50% sold. So be sure to secure your tickets to a night of pure imagination! Click here to purchase your tickets 

 15/09/22 Opening night: 6.30pm  

16/09/22 Performance 2: 6.30pm  

17/05/22 Performance 3: 11.00am  

17/09/22 Performance 4: 6.30pm  

18/09/22 Performance 5: 11.00am

Catholic Performing Arts Festival  

Last week I had the pleasure of attending the Opening Mass of the Catholic Performing Arts Festival. The Festival offers both primary and secondary school students the opportunity to perform in front of a public audience and receive some very useful feedback from experienced adjudicators. Categories include choral, instrumental, drama, musical, vocal and dance. Newman College supports this event to ensure our students have a platform where they can demonstrate the fruits of their hard work and showcase their talents. We wish all the performers well for their upcoming events. 

Christmas in July Evening 

On July 22 over 100 parents joined us for our Christmas in July gathering held in the transformed winter wonderland of the St John Henry Newman Learning Hub. It was a very enjoyable evening and gave parents the opportunity to socialise with each other and staff members in a relaxed setting. 

Assumption Day Activities 11 August  

The Feast Day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Feast Day chosen for the Patronal Feast of the Marist Brothers is Monday 15 August. To mark the significance of these events, our K-12 Community will come together in celebration on Thursday 11 August.  As one of 54 Marist schools across Australia, the Feast Day of the Assumption is an opportunity to gather, give thanks to the Marist Brothers, and celebrate our shared Marist identity.  

Information about this important event was emailed to parents on Monday July 25. Please see a copy here. 

PISA is coming to our school! 

Our school is participating in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), which is taking place in Australian between 18 July and 9 September 2022. Our PISA will occur on Thursday 25 August and will include a collection of Year 10 and 11 students.  

PISA is an important part of the National Assessment Program in Australia, which is the measure through which governments, education authorities and schools can determine whether young Australians are meeting important educational outcomes. All Australian Education Ministers have agreed to Australian schools’ participation in PISA, which is reflected in the Australian Education Act 2013. 

Students Who Have Participated in State and National Representation

The College would like to recognise and celebrate the achievements of those students who have represented their team, sport, or activity at a state or national level. If your child has participated in an activity that falls within that category, we would love to hear from you. Please complete this form to let us know of your child’s achievement.  

Newman Parents Committee (NPC) 

All parents are invited to our next NPC meeting on Wednesday August 10 from 5.45pm – 7pm in the Marcellin St John Henry Newman Learning Hub. We will be finalising our Executive Parent Committee in the coming weeks, and we thank all those parents who submitted an expression of interest. The Executive Committee will be announced at the next NPC. 

Parent Teacher Communication Protocols

Parents are reminded that the most efficient and effective method for contacting teachers and support staff is through the staff member’s email address. In most cases, our staff will respond to the communication as appropriate, within 48 hours.   

Nationally Consistent Collection of Data

Every year, all schools in Australia participate in the Nationally Consistent Collection of Data on School Students with Disability (NCCD). The NCCD process requires schools to identify information already available in the school about supports provided to students with disability. These relate to legislative requirements under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 and the Disability Standards for Education 2005, in line with the NCCD guidelines (2019).

Information provided about students to the Australian Government for the NCCD includes:

• year of schooling
• category of disability: physical, cognitive, sensory or social/emotional
• level of adjustment provided: support provided within quality differentiated teaching practice, supplementary, substantial or extensive.

This information assists schools to:

• formally recognise the supports and adjustments provided to students with disability in schools
• consider how they can strengthen the support of students with disability in schools
• develop shared practices so that they can review their learning programs in order to improve educational outcomes for students with disability.

The NCCD provides state and federal governments with the information they need to plan more broadly for the support of students with disability.

The NCCD will have no direct impact on your child and your child will not be involved in any testing process. The school will provide data to the Australian Government in such a way that no individual student will be able to be identified – the privacy and confidentiality of all students is ensured. All information is protected by privacy laws that regulate the collection, storage and disclosure of personal information. To find out more about these matters, please refer to the Australian Government’s Privacy Policy (https://www.dese.gov.au/about-us/resources/department-education-skills-and-employment-complete-privacy-policy-0).   Further information about the NCCD can be found on the NCCD Portal (https://www.nccd.edu.au). If you have any questions about the NCCD at Newman, please contact the Vice Principal, Dr Lucie McCrory on lucie.mccrory@newman.wa.edu.au

Key Dates 

Y7-12 Guild Athletics Carnival: Thursday August 4 

Bishop’s Religious Literacy Assessments: Monday August 1 to Thursday August 4 

Wellbeing Week: Monday August 8 to Thursday August 11 

Winter Music Night: Monday August 8 

Newman Parents Committee Meeting: Wednesday August 8  

Assumption/Buddy Day: Thursday August 11 

Pupil Free Days: Friday August 12 and Monday August 15 

Code of Conduct

Dear Parents and Guardians

Welcome to Term 3.  Our first couple of days this term presented the challenge of having no internet or phones.  I take this opportunity to thank those parents who attended our parent teacher interviews and for your patience with the break in technology, which also affected surrounding suburbs.  Fortunately, services resumed on the first day of school and our start to the term has been relatively smooth.

I hope families enjoyed some time together over the recent break and that everyone has returned refreshed and ready for a new term.

Newman College Principal 2023

Congratulations to Mr Andrew Watson who has been appointed to lead Newman College from Term 2 2023.  Andrew is currently the Principal of Mazenod College in Lesmurdie.  Andrew visited the College at the commencement of this term to meet with staff and was reconnected with some of those who were at Newman when he was Head of Society and Environment in the late 1990s.

Andrew is a well-known and highly regarded leader in Catholic education and we look forward to him continuing Newman’s exciting development and evolution.  For anyone who missed the announcement, please click here to view.

An Acting Principal for Term 1 2023 will be announced by Marist Schools Australia Ltd in the coming weeks.

Year 11 Dinner Dance

Congratulations to our Year 11 students for their highly enthusiastic participation in the Dinner Dance which was held in Week 1.  The students conducted themselves superbly on the night and obviously had much fun celebrating with their cohort.

Parent Engagement

Newman Parent Committee (NPC):  Our next NPC meeting is to be held on Wednesday 10 August 5.45pm. I warmly invite all interested parents to attend.  Further information will be circulated closer to the time.

Christmas in July:  We celebrated Christmas in July at Newman College with around 100 parents. It was wonderful to see so many brave the chilly conditions and connect with friends in a relaxed and festive setting. 

Marist Schools Australia Conference

I will be accompanied by three members of our College Executive to attend the Marist Schools Australia National Conference in Brisbane next Sunday through to Wednesday.  Marists from around Australia and beyond will gather together for a series of symposiums and workshops.  Newman College will be presenting two symposiums:

• Learning Strand – To Live is to Change; to be Perfect is to have Changed often
• Formation Strand – Vision for Mission: To Form “Good Christians and Good Citizens”

We look forward to sharing our journey with colleagues.

My best wishes to all for an enjoyable and productive Term 3.