Message from the Principal
“It matters not what we are doing for God provided we are doing it in the best possible way”
Mary Aikenhead.
This quote was on the front of a card that I received from one of the Sisters of Charity in Sydney earlier this week. I have found myself reflecting on these words over the last couple of days in the context of the various activities that have been occurring around the College. I would encourage all students to give 100% effort to your activities - both classroom and co-curricular. There have been some fine examples of this commitment which I would like to share. There are also many other examples included in this newsletter.
Congratulations to our Cross Country Team who competed at Limestone Park in Ipswich on Monday. A very excited and vocal team returned to the College after securing the Percentage Trophy. These girls have been so committed to their training – we are so proud of you!
The “Spirit of The Arts” festival has not been able to proceed in the usual manner this year, but there have been some opportunities to showcase the talents of our students. Congratulations to the students who have been involved in the most recent Music Soiree, the Dance Showcase and the Year 12 Drama performance of Macbeth. We are in awe of your talents. Thank you for sharing them.
Our Year 12 students are currently preparing for their external exams which commence next term. The students are participating in mock exams where they will receive valuable feedback from their teachers.
Our teaching staff are also “doing it in the best possible way”. Last Wednesday and Thursday they participated in professional learning activities which included the “Day of Collaboration and Innovation – Writing for our Context”. Thank you to Ms O’Neill (Director of Professional Learning) for coordinating this program last Thursday. We have been fortunate to draw on the expertise of Ms Crawford (Director of Literacy) an inspirational keynote speaker who set the tone for the day. Thank you Ms Crawford. Thank you also to Mr Cooper, Mr Spanevello, Ms Bentley, Ms Statham, Ms Paterson, Mr McFadden and Ms Desailly who also presented during the day.
With only four weeks left of Term 3, let’s strive to do our best in all of our endeavours!
COVID Spot Closure Procedures
The College has been doing some planning regarding spot closure procedures.
In the event of the College being notified by Queensland Health that a student or staff member has tested positively for COVID-19 and a subsequent College spot closure the following procedures have been put in place:
- Parents/carers will be contacted by a notice via email, SMS message and the College App advising that students are to go home.
- Students will be informed to report to their Homeroom where a roll will be taken. Homeroom Teachers will record the method by which students will go home.
- Students who are not collected within 60 minutes will be directed to the Ionian Foyer where they can be collected by parents/carers.
- The College will provide further updates via email and the College App as more information becomes available.
The above procedure has been discussed with the staff. It would be of great assistance if families could have a discussion regarding how students would get home in the event of a spot closure.
In faith and love
Sharon Volp
Principal
support the businesses that so generously support our College Community.
See below to advertise your business or service.
Dressing casual to help raise money for great causes
Our second annual Casual Dress Day at MSM took place last week. The students looked resplendent, with purple being the predominant colour as we supported the work of Interact and focused on Polio Awareness.The total raised was $3590 and these funds will be donated equally to Downs & West Community Support and the Weemala Indigenous Education Unit at the Australian Catholic University.
National Science Week
Last week was National Science Week, Australia’s annual celebration of science and technology and MSM students were busy exploring, understanding and questioning our natural and technological world. The critical thinking that occurs in the Science classroom can be applied to all subjects and is a relevant skill-set for life. And, Science is fun!
Year 11 Religion and Ethics Students learn about Social Justice
Year 11 Religion & Ethic’s students have been learning about Social Justice this term. As part of their assessment, they were required to create a project which could be used to introduce incoming Year 7 students to the ways in which social justice is expressed in the work of the Community Action Network at Mt St Michael’s College. Student submissions were well thought out and creative. Hannah created a poster, Gillian a board game and Georgia an information cube.
Year 9 Semester 2 Home Room Captains
The Year 9 Home Room Captains were presented with their badges last week. We congratulate Semester 2 Captains who are already busy planning and preparing various initiatives for their peers.
Year 7 Principal's Awards
This term Year 7 assemblies have been an opportunity for recognising academic success. We have recently celebrated girls who received Principal Awards for Academic Achievement and Commitment and the Year 7 members of Mathletes. Well done Year 7 – an impressive start to your learning journey at MSM!
2020 Dance Showcase
On the evening of Tuesday 18 August, the Year 12 Dance students produced an evening of dance as part of their IA3 assessment. Invited Dance curriculum students and parents of the Year 12 performers enjoyed exceptional dance works that the students not only performed in, but also choreographed. These dance works were a culmination of their learnings in Dance curriculum, and communicated issues of youth through their personal movement style. It was a privilege to be part of the evening and celebrate their hard work and achievements.
https://www.instagram.com/mtstmichaelscollege/
2020 Senior Drama Production
Shakespeare's Macbeth
Congratulations to the Year 12 Drama students, Angelina Barbieri-Yates, Melanie Gonzalez, Annabel Hunter, Madeleine Kirby, Paris Lindner, Madeleine Martin, Elise O'Sullivan and Hayley Spring on a magnificent performance of Macbeth yesterday afternoon. Thank you also to the Yr12 parents who attended the production along with MSM staff and students. A special thanks must go to Fleur Kelly, of the Development Office, who helped the girls to bring to life their digital vision of the set and mediatised performance, as well as Adam Watson for lighting and sound.
https://www.instagram.com/mtstmichaelscollege/
Cross Country Team Day
Last Thursday, 13 August our MSM cross country team participated in a “Team Day” which provided the girls with an opportunity to work together in this very individual sport and create a strong team bond in preparation for our CASSSA Cup competition. The day started bright and early with the team coming together and running the course at Limestone Park. We shared morning tea before heading back to Dorrington Park where we were met by “Thrill Team Events” for a Survivor-style team challenge. This event brought all ages together in teams to compete for the coveted “Ultimate Survivors”! Lots of smiles, laughs and team work eventuated in the winning team being awarded… Congratulations to Team MSM! A late lunch of pizza fuelled the girls after a full day of working together and setting up what would turn out to be a very successful CASSSA Cup event for MSM.
CaSSSA Cup Cross Country Carnival
An early start, a team chat and everyone donning their “MSM Cross Country” team ribbons. We were ready. We had done the work and the girls were brimming with confidence and nerves in equal parts! We arrived to what would be a glorious day of sunshine, with just enough of a chill in the air to keep our hoodies on, but very comfortable running conditions. Every girl had the opportunity to compete, every single MSM girl finished their race with nothing left in their tanks and every single one of them cheered and supported each other – so when the competitors thought they couldn’t go on, the cheers from their team mates supported them to finish in great style! Our goal was to retain the Percentage Cup – goal achieved! Congratulations to our 12 yrs and 15 yrs age groups on winning their age group pennants. Congratulations to every single competitor for their commitment to MSM and cross country this season. It was a short but intense season and most girls didn’t miss a single training session, the outcomes were definitely a result of this hard work and effort all season. There is nothing particularly pretty about cross country. It is hard, gruelling even at times, it is often painful and requires a strong mind and a gutsy attitude. We could not be prouder of the effort and the performance of this team, brilliantly lead by our Cross Country Captain – Tess Norton – and her Year 12 allies who have all set the bar very high for senior members of our teams to emulate in future! Thanks to our coaches for their unwavering support of our cross country team.Aggregate Cup: 3rd. Percentage Cup: Champions. 12 years: Champions. 13 years: 5th. 14 years: 6th. 15 years: Champions. 16 years: 4th 17 years:4th
Year 12 Visual Arts in Practice
Year 12 Visual Arts in Practice students have completed their studies with the Module 7 ‘Critical Eye’; this task required the students to create a mosaic decorative mirror for use in a space for which they were designed.Collectively the designs demonstrate intricate detail and harmonious colour choices creating sophisticated solutions.
https://www.instagram.com/mtstmichaelscollege/
for Polio Awareness
Year 7 Religious Education News
This term in Religious Education, 7B are learning about the Old Testament and Abrahamic Religions. What better way to learn than sharing a Seder meal with friends, learning about Sukkot or playing ‘Abrahamic Celebrity Heads’!
Peace Doves
As you can see above, we have a large number of peace doves hanging under a canopy of hand-dyed silk. These doves were produced by the teachers and students of the Environment Group, and Arts School Officers Ms Bateman and Miss Smith for the 2019 Peace liturgy and now find peace in the MSM Library. These doves invite us to reflect on peace in all our relationships – at home, at school, with friends, in the workplace – but more specifically today, as we focus on a range of initiatives which the Environment Group has instigated within our community, they invite us to reflect on peace in relation to our natural environment.
Whether it is a straw, cling wrap on a sandwich, or a chip packet, nearly every person would throw way at least one piece of plastic every day. That would mean by 19 September, you alone threw away 263 pieces of plastic [or more] so far this year. That’s how many milk bottle doves are in the room. Imagine multiplying this by the 900 or so people in the school.
Something as simple as being careful to use less plastic and to recycle whenever possible makes a difference. Small things add up!
Your challenge today is – ‘Be at peace, with every little piece of plastic you use’.
Get Behind Stationery Aid
Mt St Michael’s will be supporting the Stationery Aid initiative from the end of Term 3. This project aims to support disadvantaged students by providing them with the materials they need for school. Please look out those abandoned unused exercise books, pencils (that still have life in them), pencil cases, glue sticks, scrapbooks et al, that seem to breed at the end of the year. Consider donating them to Stationery Aid so that others might benefit from their use. There will be a blue collection bin placed centrally in the College but until then, please bring the stationery to Mrs Bentley in the A Block staff room. Thank you.
Book Week 2020
Each year, schools and public libraries across Australia spend a week celebrating books, and Australian authors and illustrators. Teachers and librarians conduct activities relating to a theme to highlight the importance of reading. This year’s theme is “Curious Creatures, Wild Minds,” and the MSM College library will be holding a number of events and competitions throughout the week of August 24-28 to celebrate all things literary.
Notices
2020 Term Dates
Term 3Tuesday 14 July 2020 – Friday 18 September 2020
Term 4
Tuesday 6 October 2020 – Friday 20 November 2020 (Year 12 students)
Tuesday 6 October 2020 – Friday 27 November 2020 (Years 7 - 11)
Alumni Association AGM - Call to Arms!
Dear Mt St Michael's College Alumni,
We will be holding our Annual General Meeting at 6pm, on Monday 7 September 2020. The meeting will be at the College; venue dependant on attendance numbers.
We are seeking your assistance. All positions will be declared open:
- President/Chairperson
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Committee Members
Please return your completed nomination form by Monday 3 August 2020 by:
Email to: alumni@msm.qld.edu.au
Or post to:
Mt St Michael’s College Alumni Inc
Annual General Meeting
Mt St Michael's College Ltd
PO Box 208 Ashgrove Q 4060
*Available while stock lasts
The Secondhand Uniform Shop are low in stock, especially Junior School uniform items. If you would like to offer items for sale, they must be clean, mended and accompanied by the completed form available at the MSM Secondhand Uniform shop.
Please click here for forms.
Handtowel - $5
Both items for only $15 (saving of $2)
The standard listing fee is $165 including gst.
However, for the remainder of 2020, we offer a listing at the reduced rate of only $77 including gst. Be quick as this offer expires shortly*
To apply please email: msmnews@msm.qld.edu.au
*Please allow 7 working days after we receive your copy and logo for your listing to appear on the MSM Business Directory.
Supporting our Community -
Ministry Care Programme
Our College is aware that there are students and families within our community who, from time to time, are in need of support due to a variety of factors. As a community we respond through preparing meals for families experiencing difficult circumstances. If you would like to contribute to the Ministry Care Programme and support those who are going through difficult times, please contact Stephen Campion: scampion@msm.qld.edu.au
Cashless Payments at The Kaf
During the holiday period there has been a change in the software used to make purchases at The Kaf. This has temporarily resulted in students not being able to use their ID card to make over the counter purchases. Families will still be able to pre-order using the Flexischools app (which is the preferred method of ordering). Students will be able to use their credit and debit cards over the counter as per normal. Cash is still not accepted.We hope to get the ID cards working in the near future.
These improvements result in major changes to the below school bus services.
Services affected from 26th August 2020
- School Bus 4 – See special notice on our website
- School Bus 5 – School Bus Number Change to 65, Route & Connection Changes
- School Bus 15 – New morning service now available
- School Bus 16 – New morning service now available
- School Bus 48 – Route, Time & Connection Changes School Bus 49 – Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 70 – Route, Time, Name & Connection Changes
- School Bus 71 – Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 72 – Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 74 - Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 75 - Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 76 - Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 77 - Route, Time & Connection Changes
- School Bus 78 - Route, Time & Connection Changes
This is dangerous as it blocks other driver’s visibility and obstructs cars from moving around.
In consideration for our neighbours, where possible please avoid leaving your motor running, especially when parked outside a home.
Important Links
Mt St Michael's College - MSM News
Our mailing address is:
Mt St Michael's College
67 Elimatta Drive
Ashgrove, QLD 4060
Australia
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