Dear members of the Mount Lilydale Mercy College community
Welcome to the 2020 academic year, after what I hope was a restful family Christmas and an inspiring holiday period. The weather has certainly been varied and the heat has provided some challenges. The fires, the scorched earth, the loss of life and property provides each of us with much food for thought and reflection on how best we can help. Let us continue to pray for all those involved in this tragic loss and pray that we can do all that is humanly possible to prevent a repetition.
The College has been open and operating for several weeks now and much work has been completed in that time. I believe our students have returned to a College which continues to strive to provide better facilities and an environment that facilitates learning. A few minor projects are a little behind schedule and we will have to work around them, but the outcome will be worth it.
(1) Stage 2 building program — Sinnott Building
Demolition work is progressing well. The builders have set up their work sheds on Alison Crescent. This will restrict student movement in this area. The builders have allowed for a passageway behind their work sheds to allow for student movement. The stairs between the Calthorpe and Sinnott buildings have been demolished and at different times in the building schedule the stairwell between the Sinnott building and the Mercy Learning Centre building will need to be restricted to allow the building program to progress. During this time students travelling to and from the Harley and Campbell buildings will need to use the passageway along the Alison Crescent gate or go through the MLC building. Again, hopefully, this project will be completed and open for Semester 2.
(2) 2020 theme
Each year a theme is set to help us focus on a Mercy value, with the focus over the past three years having been Courage, Respect and Compassion.
The theme for 2020 is: ‘We humbly act for justice’. It was developed for us by our Student Leadership Team at their Induction program and is centred around the Mercy value of Justice. The Bible reference is from Micah 6:8, “… and what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love Mercy and to walk humbly with your God”.
Justice with humility.
In focusing on this theme, we note that Sr Veronica Lawson RSM, in writing on Justice, put it “Catherine McAuley’s advice in the face of injustice was ‘to speak as your mind directs and to act with courage’.” We look forward to exploring the ideas within these concepts together throughout the year. Justice and Mercy are truly centred in right relationships.
(3) College Opening Mass and Top Achievers’ Assembly
Yesterday, the College held the first full College assembly and Eucharist for the year. The Mass was celebrated by Fr Dean Bradbury. The Mass saw the first formal launch of our College theme. We are blessed and grateful to have Fr Dean as our College Chaplain.
The Top Achievers’ Assembly quickly followed, whereby our 2019 Dux Ethan Cornish and the Catherine McAuley Award recipient Willow Thomas were both recognised for their achievements and were given the opportunity to address the student body. Both delivered messages worthy of our attention. Read more about it HERE.
The College further acknowledges the top achieving VCE students for 2019:
Ethan Cornish
Lara Griffin-Krenn
Alana McGurgan
Tristan Mifsud
Michael Platten
Jason Rice
Jayden Santiago
Grace Staindl-Dymond
Harrison Stolzenhain
Keilani Trewavis.
The three students who completed the VCE-Baccalaureate (Lara Griffin-Krenn, Alana McGurgan and Jayden Santiago) and our top VCAL student for 2019 (Christelle Cartledge) were also recognised for their achievements.
As a College we acknowledged and gave thanks for the success and efforts of our 2019 graduating class.
(4) Mark Prest Award 2019
The Mark Prest Award is an award in honour of a past Deputy Principal of the College. It is awarded to a member of staff who most exemplifies Mark’s educational philosophy and witness as judged by the following criteria:
- a passionate respect for the dignity of each person
- sets a public example of integrity, love, commitment and awareness each day
- shows empathy and concern for the welfare of others
- fosters genuine, honest, authentic, compassionate and just relationships
- has a healthy sense of tolerance, acceptance and openness
- is filled with the excitement of teaching
- is a courageous and a committed learner
- aspires to and encourages excellence
- exhibits a quality of teaching which opens up learning to others
- encourages a love of learning in others
- is willing to take risks and learn from experience
- believes that teaching matters
- fosters a strong climate of community involving students, teachers and parents
- has a sense of civic responsibility and pride
- contributes to the social and spiritual environment of the school.
The 2019 Mark Prest Award winner is Mr Michael Dale. Congratulations again, Michael.
(5) Black Saturday 11th Anniversary
As a College, we also acknowledged it has been 11 years since the bushfires of Black Saturday and recognise that many of our community were deeply affected by the tragic events of that day. We remember that dark day in Victoria’s history and pray for the 173 souls who lost their lives. We have a deep compassion for the many lives impacted by the tragic event. This compassion is shared with those in our state and in our country who have suffered in the recent bushfires. We understand the aftermath will be felt for a long time by the many involved. We walk with empathy and sensitivity knowing that such events reignite past feelings and emotions.
(6) College Newsletter
This College Newsletter is an important source of formation and information. It is published electronically each fortnight. Parents and guardians will receive an email on the Friday it is published. Alternatively it can accessed at any stage via the College website under the News and Events menu.
(7) Parent Portal and the Parent Access Module (PAM)
The Parent Portal is also a very important access point to the College. Excursion information, medical forms and individual family letters are all published via the Parent Portal. Families should become familiar with the processes to use it. The College will send an SMS to parents when there is important information to check on the Parent Portal.
We will also continue to develop our Parent Access Module (PAM), which caters for live ongoing reporting, as well as semester reports, attendance tracking and access to the College calendar.
Both the Portal and PAM should have the same login details for each family. A user guide for our portals can be requested from our College Office if you require assistance using them.
(8) Welcome new students
This year we welcome to the College a total of 284 Year 7 students:
7 Aqua: Alex Austin, Tony Biddiscombe, Terenja Bork, Xavier Bosua, Ava Champion, Isabella Ciantar, Alyssa Condon, Blake Davey, Ava De Iulio, Gabby Donnelly, Anthony Druitt, Mitchell Foletta, Jessica Gould, Noah Goyne, Kane Harrington, Ruby Inglese, Kaitlyn Kennedy, Leonilda Parrella, Cianna Peric, Lily Rumian, Hayden Sandford, Winsome Toopchan, Andrew Tricarico, Mesha Villani, Caiden Wilson, Teneal Wilson
7 Blue: Melia Anderson, Ai Bainbridge, Kaylah Cannon, Bryce Chippendale, Alexis Di Battista, Brody Di Pietro, Angelo Enright, Darcy Geerling, Riley George, Alex Harrington, Beau Horkins, Dylan Hughes, Beau Keatch, Madison Kleverkamp, Sarah Knox, Shona Lillie, Eliza Mackenzie, Zarley McGregor, Aiden Nash, Jeremy Newsome, Alarna Orlando, Jessica Paglia, Cooper Prescott, Brigitte Rice, Lachlan Swain, Lily Vulling
7 Bronze: Zack Allamby, Mackenzie Barnes, Matilda Beard, Cara Bird, Lexi Bush, Xanda Busiko, Noumea Cannon, Sophie Clark, Curtis De Chellis, Morgan Ferguson, Summer Hathaway, Jude Hayes, Sarah Ivanovic, Olive Kercher, Lissette Lopez Garza, Jordan Maa, Charlie MacDonald, Luka Marchione, Indi Mitchell, Sienna Nanscawen, Jessica Sharp, Bailey Taylor, Baxter Tirchett, Ryleigh Van Den Essen, Patrick Van Der Linden, Mitchell Walliker
7 Gold: Casey Cameron, Joshua Dorian, Darcy Dowdle, Isaac Edwards, Sienna El-Zain, Kaitlyn Ezzat, Charlotte Hall, Max Hall, Ruby Harrap, Abby Harrison, Liam Hartigan, Scarlett Henderson, Katherine Hobson, Ava Licciardi, Alex Maffescioni, Chloe McCormick, Layla McIlfatrick, Lachlan McLaine, Khushal Naran, Zachary Oxley, Lachlan Parker, Camila Pizzuto, Charlotte Saunders, Cooper Smith, Milla Smolarczyk, Tiah Spencer
7 Green: Oliver Baxter, Joseph Biasuzzo, Hannah Biggin, Nash Coleman, Zeke Dewhurst-Sibley, Max Di Ludovico, Ethan Fawdry, Isabella Febbraro, Anthony Frankovic, Bridie Galbraith, Maya George, Toby Griffin, Holly Hinds, Kaylie Long, Sophie Manser, Roxy North, Maddison O'Connor, Keira Ramsay, Finn Ratcliff, Mitchell Rawnsley, Ethan Reynolds, Thomas Reynolds, Phoebe Riddiford, Rose Scanlon, Taylah Wade
7 Jade: Mitchel Burkitt, Emily Davies, Poppi Davies, Travis Devanny, Joshua Duane-Willcock, Jeremy Eacott, Bonnie Edwards-Tesselaar, Brooklyn Ellard, Morgan Engelbrecht, Olivia Jenkins, Brooke Lord, Amelia MacDonald, Sam Mercuri, Sophia Nielsen, Esther No Thawng, Boston O'Brien, Sienna O'Toole, Ayda Paterson, Scheraiah Perera, Lila Primiero, Callum Steinecker, Mackenzie Strachan, Kai Surman, Jadah Twomey, Noah Williams, Harry Wright
7 Orange: Brianna Beavis, Thomas Bower, Mikayla Coleman, Noah Dare, Mason Dellar, Miller Dickson, Lucy Donovan, Oliver Duke, Caitlin Fitzgerald, Sinead Francis, Genevieve Gardner, Ava Griffin, Stephanie Hebblethwaite, Noah Holt, Ruben Hurley, Somer Maddock, Ava Musilli, Patrick O'Brien, Paige Prescott, Ella Prisow, John Ram Lawt, Scarlette Rivas Vaquerano, Matilda Ryan, Shiloh Thurrowgood, Jayden Tucker, Jarrah Walpole
7 Purple: Josh Simon Aranco, Chelsea Baxter, Jasmine Brookes, Logan Cane, Chelsea Christensen, Daniel Cianciaruso, Zoe Clarkson, Lachlan Clay, Orlando Clegg, Charlee Dobbin, Jonny Doddrell, Lauren Firmin, Chelsea Gardeniers, Rory George, Sarah Goschnick, Maya Kerr, Ben Koth, Max Mercuri, Emily Spence, Jade Stafford, Anastasia Sutton, Olivia Tweedie, Ben Van Den Broek, Max Vanderkolk, Corey Wyngaard, Bella Young
7 Red: Timothy Baker, Rebecca Bambury, Darcey Barker, Antonio Besek, Isabellah Castellano, Ronan Collins, Abby Findlay, Luke Garlick, Marcus Ghali, Tahlia Godwin, James Healey, James Johnson, Myah Kennedy, Molly Lambie, Jar Lewis, Anika Lill, Daniel Lobosco, Rehan Menuwara, Seren Nelly, Keely Paterson, Elias Peters, Regan Plaucs, Lacie Podesta, Maddy Sealey, Emily Stewart, Sierra Stoppa
7 Silver: Will Ault, Riley Callanan, Max Carolan, Sam Corrone, Campbell Cumming, Aidan De Betue, Aweely Didumo, Sophie Dillon, Charlotte Donovan, Ashton Engelbrecht, Xavier Grima, Noora Hanna Shmuni, Luke Holley, Amelia Iakovidis, Hayley Isbester, Tyson Lang, Zoey Mauldon, Isabelle Noy, Miles Parlas, Asha Rohead, Brianna Scabellone, Matilda Sculthorpe, Angus Upton, Will van de Paverd, Indiana Zaviska
7 White: Amy Coffey, Remy Cole, Isla Collard, Jarem Cox, Jade Dickinson, Seb Farquett, Isabella Hanson, Olivia Horn, Eva Johnson, Kai Maloney, Jaidn Morgan, Lachlan Noy, Kaylan Parker, Reid Price, Owen Read, Riley Robjohns, Rachael Roper, Monique Ross, Cassidy Ryan, Tahlia Shaw, Cameron Thompson, James Thurgood, Grace Trinnick, Mia Vanzin, Thomas West, Kane Wilson
We also welcome a number of new students and their families to other year levels:
Year 8: Aysha Gray, Alana Lewis, Harrison Wells
Year 9: Alicia Atkins, Archer Bentley, Romanos El-Zain, Dane Kitt, Oscar Lyons, Hope Marsh, Brodie McKinnon, Lizzie Snell, Brooke Thomas
Year 10: Alexandra Kavanagh, Forum Patel, Cameron Phillips, Rebecca Simpson, Brianna Strange
Year 11: Shayla Anderson, Maelle Rentsch (exchange)
Year 12: Paige Thomas.
(9) Staffing
At our first staff meeting for 2020, we as a staff welcomed back a number of returning members:
- Hilda Cassidy (12 months leave)
- Emma Whitehouse (12 months leave)
- Nerrida Burnham (leave in Semester 2)
- Jenny Morison (leave in Semester 2)
- Cathryn Arms (maternity leave)
- Denver Carron (eight weeks leave)
- Peter Molinari (six weeks leave).
We also welcomed and commissioned a number of new staff at the Liturgy:
- Bree Burke — Teacher of English
- Beata Clark — Teacher Librarian
- Adam Dean — Teacher of Maths, Science, Geography, Sport
- Hans Dharma — Teacher of Maths, Science, IT
- Caroline Dickason — College Accompanist
- Natalie Hamment — Teacher of English, Humanities
- Lauren Innes — Teacher of Music, PE, Sport
- Anita Kay-Taylor — Deputy Principal — Learning and Teaching.
We also welcomed two new AFL Trainees for 2020:
- Darcy Hamilton — Outdoor Education
- Mikayla Byrne — Sport.
(10) Community Opening Mass
This year the Community Opening Mass will be held on Wednesday 4 March at 7.00pm in the Doyle Centre. This Eucharistic celebration is an important event in the life of the College as we come together in prayer and recognise the importance of God in our lives. At this time we will also pray for a successful year of studies for all of our students, but especially the incoming Year 7 group and the Year 12 Class of 2020. I would therefore hope and expect to see many families at this Mass.
(11) College Advisory Council
MLMC encourages community involvement within our College through the many activities, but one such way is through our College committee structure. Parents and community members are asked to participate in committees to ensure the College is consultative, but also to increase expertise and skills when making decisions that affect the short and long-term future of the College. This year we have vacancies with:
- the College Advisory Council (one place)
- the Policy and Curriculum Committee.
If you are interested in being nominated for either of these committees, or know of someone who you would recommend nominating, please contact me at the College or via email at principal@mlmc.vic.edu.au
(12) Parents and Friends’ Association
The Parents and Friends’ Association (P&F) is also vital within our College and is another avenue used for consultation. We also encourage new members to the P&F and interested parents should contact Registrar — Community Engagement Mrs Emily Cerra on ecerra@mlmc.vic.edu.au
(13) Communications Guide
Attached is the 2020 Communications Guide. Hopefully it will help you when you wish to communicate with staff at the College.
(14) Parent Code of Conduct
On 3 February 2020 I wrote to all families about the Parent Code of Conduct. A copy of the letter and Parent Code of Conduct are available from the Parent Portal. This policy provides guidelines to promote desirable and appropriate behaviour to ensure that all interactions with students and adults is respectful, honest, courteous, sensitive and considerate. If you haven’t done so already, I encourage you to read it. A copy if also available from the policiies section on the College website.
(15) Personal Pars
Members of the College community suffer with the passing of loved ones. Let us include them all in our prayers. Katharine Anderson, mother to Shayla (Year 11) and Melia (Year 7), passed away unexpectedly over the holidays. Let us pray for the repose of Katharine’s soul. May she, along with all the faithfully departed, rest in peace.
God bless
Philip A Morison
Principal
