Issue 1, 2 February 2024

Welcome to the 2024 school year. I extend my warmest welcome to all our students and families. Our College theme this year is 'Let Your Light Shine'. We look forward to supporting all of our students to shine brightly and illuminate all the exciting possibilities that lay ahead of us this year. All the best for 2024! 

Following the tragic accident that occurred on 31st December, we extend our thoughts and prayers to the friends and families of Mick Warren and Kevin Baker. We are particularly mindful of the impact this tragedy has had in our school community and our hearts go out to all those affected. Support is available to students and families at school through our staff and School Counsellor.   

Caritas College congratulates our Year 12 Class of 2023 on their excellent South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) results. Our school values SACE as an important secondary school qualification that equips students with the skills, knowledge, and personal capabilities needed to be successful beyond school. Therefore, it is important to us that every student achieves this qualification. Once again, we are extremely proud to have achieved 100% SACE completion rate.

Congratulations to Lilah Hill as Dux of the College who achieved an ATAR of 96.85 and Zoe Kuhn who obtained an ATAR of 96.45. 

We are very pleased that over 20% of our students achieved an ATAR of over 90, which also included eight A+ and three Merits. * These results are the students raw score and do not include the University Equity Scheme bonus points. 

Almost 50% of all the grades obtained were in the ‘A’ grade band, which is an impressive achievement. 100% of the grades awarded to our Year 12 students were ‘C’ grade or better. 

Over 40% of our Year 12 students successfully completed their SACE taking advantage of a vocational educational training (VET) pathway. We congratulate those students who have been successful in securing a traineeship, apprenticeship or employment as a result of their VET pathway. 

We acknowledge those students who have achieved great success in their learning and personal development, which is not always reflected in an ATAR score. 

We wish all our students every success and happiness with their future endeavours.  

For your benefit, I provide the below information relating to our College’s leadership structure. I am appreciative of the knowledge and skills of the staff who fulfil these roles and work to maximise the wellbeing and learning opportunities for all our students.  

We know that a new school year sometimes comes with a level of uncertainty for students (and parents!). Change can often be a bit unnerving for children, and parents are usually the first to hear about it at home. Parents have the tricky task of listening to their child’s worries and concerns, while also trying to reassure them. In those moments, a parent’s optimism or pessimism can be contagious.  

While it is important to listen to your child’s feelings, it is also helpful to support your child to build a positive connection with their new teachers and peers.  

The beginning of a new school year creates an opportunity for children to build and develop resilience by experiencing a broad range of personalities and communication styles. Ultimately, it is unrealistic to think that children will never experience any tricky moments or adversity. In fact, if everything is perfect and easy for them, they can get stuck in their comfort zone and never grow and develop new skills. To build confidence for later on in life, students need to experience a broad range of peers and situations to build their social emotional skills. If you have any questions about how we are supporting your child develop their resilience and news skills, please reach out to your child’s teacher.  

Thank you to the families who attended out Family Information Evening on Thursday. It was pleasing to see teachers share important information about how we can work together to support students spiritually, socially, emotionally and academically. We understand that parents/caregivers are often busy and it can sometimes be difficult to find time to meet with teachers. We tend to see attendance from parents/caregivers drop off in the secondary years. For this reason, we opted for teachers in Years 8-11 to create a video to share with parents/caregivers that can be watched at your convenience. Your child’s learning and wellbeing is important to us and every teacher invites regular and open communication with families to ensure everyone is on the same page with supporting student learning and wellbeing. 

Our Year 12 Student Leaders will be travelling to Adelaide this weekend to engage in a Josephite immersion experience. This opportunity will provide them with valuable leadership experience as they delve deep into the beautiful story of St Mary MacKillop, Fr Julian Woods and the Sisters of St Joseph.  

Our students will be chaperoned by Sr Helen Duke for part of their trip who will help lead them on a pilgrimage to visit significant sites detailing the life and legacy of St Mary MacKillop. We wish them all the best for this immersion experience and look forward to them sharing their learning and insights with our school community upon their return.   

Our College was pleased and fortunate to be nominated for an Australia Day Award this year in the category of Environmental Sustainability Award. The nomination was in recognition of our Nature Play Space, which has quickly become a focal point in our school for our younger students. We love giving our young students a beautiful natural place to learn and grow in while they develop an appreciation for the environment. The Port Augusta City Council held a wonderful event in Gladstone Square on Australia Day where we received a certificate for being nominated for the award.  

The 2024 Catholic Education Awards South Australia will again be presented this year as part of the celebrations of Catholic Education Week on Thursday, 16 May 2024. Nominations close strictly at 1pm on Friday 8 March. 

Our College has a proud history of being acknowledged for its work through the success and achievements of Leigh O’Shaughnessy and Alanah Rowe in 2022 and also Nathan O’Brien in 2023 who all received awards in various categories.  

We have another opportunity this year to shine a light on a teacher, support person, leader, volunteer or program that makes a positive difference in our school community. Please click here for further information.  

The beginning of the school year is an opportune time to remind everyone about the importance of road safety. Students and parents are asked to use designated crossings on Shirley Street and Woodforde Street to navigate the roads around the College. In particular, students need to always use these crossings, whether on foot or bike. It is also important for parents to adhere to designated drop-off and pick-up zones. This minimises congestion and helps maintain a safe environment for everyone in our school community when arriving and departing school each day.  Please click here for a more detailed map of the school Emu Crossings and Parking Zones.  

Our 2024 Diocesan Theme is ‘Let Your Light Shine’. Throughout this year, our College community is invited to consider the ways that they let their light shine so that they can be the light of Christ within our world. Over the next few weeks, students will explore the passage from Matthew’s gospel where Jesus tells his disciples to be the ‘salt of the earth and a light for the world’ to deepen their understanding in preparation for the Opening Liturgy. 

Jesus said to his disciples, 'You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything, but it is thrown out and trampled under foot. 

You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts its under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven'. 

As we consider the theme, we also take time to reflect on the life of our school foundress, St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, who allowed her light to shine, even in some of the darkest moments of her faith and service. Focusing on the Josephite charism, we can allow the lights of others to shine more brightly in our world through using our God-given gifts and talents. Each of us is called to serve others and consider the needs of those in our community who need us, and our students will have many opportunities to be the light for others throughout 2024. 

Our Opening School Liturgy will be held under the St Mary’s Shelter on Thursday 15 February at 9:00am. Fr Jim will be our celebrant, as we celebrate our diocesan theme of ‘Let Your Light Shine’.  

This Liturgy is a great opportunity for our school community to come together and reflect on our God-given gifts and for us to show our appreciation and gratitude for the many blessings we have received. 

At this Liturgy, we will also commission and bless our student leaders and newly-elected SRC members and present them with their badges. Parents and carers are warmly invited to attend this wonderful celebration. 

Shrove Tuesday, commonly known as Pancake Day, is a day traditionally celebrated by Christians as a way to use up rich ingredients such as sugar, eggs, milk and butter before the start of Lent. Shrove Tuesday serves as our first major fundraiser for Project Compassion. Project Compassion is a fundraising and awareness campaign run by Caritas Australia, a Catholic humanitarian aid and development organisation. This campaign is held annually during Lent and the funds raised are used to support various projects such as providing access to clean water, education and healthcare to those most in need.  

On Tuesday 13 February, students are encouraged to bring along a gold coin donation for a pancake. Students in Reception to Year 6 will come along with their class teacher before recess, with students in Years 7-12 able to purchase their pancakes at recess time. 

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the liturgical season of Lent on Wednesday, 14 February. Lent is a season that lasts 40 days and it is a time for us to think about our lives and try to make changes for the better and how closely we are walking with God. It is also a time for spiritual reflection and growth, during which Catholics are encouraged to focus on the themes of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. 

Throughout the day, students will attend a liturgy where each person will be marked with ashes on their forehead in the shape of a cross. The ashes are an outward symbol of the inward change that we will make during Lent. We believe that participating in these liturgies is a meaningful way for us to begin the Lenten season together as a community. 

The ashes used on Ash Wednesday come from Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter. We celebrate the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem on a donkey, after spending 40 days in the desert in prayer. In the Catholic tradition, we receive palm leaves, which have been blessed, to hold onto during Mass and bring home after. The leftover palms from Palm Sunday are the burned and saved for the next Lenten season.