Columba Catholic College Newsletter Volume 26 No. 6 - 28th April 2023
A MESSAGE FROM THE PRINCIPAL
Dear Columba Families,
Welcome back to Term 2. A special welcome to new students, staff and families joining Columba for the first time.
Our students have settled back into classes and to residential life smoothly and the Easter season has provided a sense of hope and growth. Our core work as a College is centered around providing a high quality Catholic education for our students. Reflections on the academic, behaviour and work attitudes of our students indicate continued positive growth and we encourage our students to do their best, and to be their best. Thank you to the many families who attended Parent Teacher Interviews last week. We appreciate your commitment to your child’s learning journey. The staff at Columba want to work in partnership with you to enable our students to be life-long learners who continue to grow and thrive. As we commence a new term you are encouraged to make contact with your child’s teacher or relevant members of staff to enable this support to continue.
Updates and Upgrades: Over the holidays a new pool liner for the Mt Carmel Campus pool was installed and we took ownership of a second new mini-bus to add to our fleet of College vehicles. The Stage 1 upgrade of Comerford Residence commenced and work on trenching for the solar farm continued. We also received some new classroom furniture for some of our Primary and Secondary classrooms to ensure high standards and the provision of contemporary learning spaces across the College.
This term we are launching the use of Flexischools which is a new online ordering system for Tuckshop. Please find attached to this newsletter information provided to our families. This is a great new tool for ordering and we hope that this makes tuckshop ordering easier for everyone and we encourage you to take advantage of its functionality.
Staffing Updates: This term we formally welcome a number of new staff to the College. We extend a warm welcome to Donna Maxsted who joins us in the role of Assistant Principal Religious Education at St Mary’s Campus. We also welcome Maggie Georgopoulos to the role of Middle Leader for Science and Lucinda Gibson joined our Mathematics teaching team at the Mt Carmel Campus. Clare Stead commences in the role of Acting Deputy Principal Pastoral and Residential in Week 3 and we wish Clare both personal and professional success in the role.
On Wednesday afternoon we convened the first of our NAIDOC Planning committee meetings. Thank you to the staff, students and families in attendance for your contribution to our planning. If you were unable to attend and would like to share some ideas, please contact our Emerging Leaders Coordinator Natalie Grant at the College on 47871 744.
Reflections on ANZAC Day: I could not help but feel an overwhelming sense of pride as I marched alongside our students and staff to pay our respects and give thanks for the contributions of those men and women who have served in times of war and peace as members of the armed forces. Special thanks to the students, families and staff who attended the Dawn Service and the ANZAC Day March. United as one, Columba continues to be a place of hope, peace and strength. May we use this time to continue to pray for those communities around the world who do not experience the same freedoms as we do.
On Tuesday 9th May, we will celebrate Mother’s day with a special liturgy at St Mary’s Campus led by our Prep students. We look forward to seeing you there.
As we head into the Charters Towers Country Music Festival weekend I encourage each of you to join us to support this great community event. On Friday Columba will be joining the Festival Parade and our float will reflect this year’s theme All that Glitters is Gold. We kicked off the day with the St Mary’s Campus Parade supported by members of the Country Music Festival Committee. Today students and staff also participated in our school based Country Music Concerts at both St Mary’s Campus and Mt Carmel Campus. We look forward to a great weekend of entertainment and community spirit.
All the best for the week ahead.
Many blessings,
Melissa Turner
PRINCIPAL
2023 COLOUR FUN RUN
If you haven't created a profile page for your child/children yet, please go schoolfundraising.
Christine O'Sullivan
ASSISTANT TO THE PRINCIPAL - RELIGIOUS EDUCATION - MC CAMPUS
CURRICULUM NEWS - MT CARMEL CAMPUS
DATE CLAIMER: YEAR 10 STUDENTS AND PARENTS
YEAR 11 2024 SUBJECT SELECTION PARENT AND STUDENT INFORMATION EVENING
All Year 10 parents and students are invited to attend the Year 11 2024 Subject Selection Parent and Student information Evening at 7:00pm in the Mount Carmel Campus Dining Room on Tuesday 6th June 2023. It is important that all Year 10 students and Parents attend this evening as information about the Queensland Certificate of Education, senior pathways available, and subjects / certificates on offer will be shared. The information shared with parents and students will assist you in making an informed decision about what to study in Year 11. Curriculum Leaders and teaching staff will be available to provide information and answer questions.
YEAR 12 ESSENTIAL ENGLISH AND ESSENTIAL MATHEMATICS COMMON INTERNAL ASSESSMENT INSTRUMENT
Year 12 students enrolled in Essential English and Essential Mathematics will complete their Common Internal Assessment during Phase 2 which will be held between Thursday 20th April to Friday 12th May. It is crucial that students attend school during this period as they will be preparing to complete the Common Internal Assessment Instruments. Students will compete their Essential Mathematics Assessment on Tuesday 9th May and Essential English on Wednesday 10th May 2023. It is essential that students attend school on these days and complete these assessments. Students who have School Based Apprenticeships or attend the Dalrymple Trade Training Centre on these days must complete the assessments at the scheduled time and therefore will not attend work or the Dalrymple Trade Training Centre on these days.
Maria Peck
DEPUTY PRINCIPAL - ADMINISTRATION
REGISTER YOUR INTEREST: YEAR 12 EXAM INVIGILATORS
The Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) welcomes early registrations of interest from community members who would like to work as invigilators at Year 12 exams being held in schools throughout Queensland in October and November. These are paid positions. Invigilators must be over 18 years old, eligible to work in Australia and hold a current paid blue card, or exemption card, or a Queensland College of Teachers registration.
Register your interest now and get notified when applications open in early June. By organising your documentation early, you'll be ready to apply straight away. Visit the QCAA website to find out more and register your interest.
FROM THE SPORTS DEPARTMENT
As we gear up for another exciting term, there's a lot happening in the world of sports at our College. This term, we have some major events to look forward to, including the Inter-School Cross Country and the Inter-House Athletics carnival. More specific information about these events will be coming in the following weeks.
Inter-School Netball / Rugby League
Inter-School Rugby League and Netball are our major sports this term with Rugby League seeing representation in 13 yrs, 15yrs and Firsts , and Netball in 13yrs, 15yrs, Seconds and Firsts.
NQISSRL Competition
This year our First XIII boys will compete in the inaugural North Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Rugby League competition, which promises to be an exciting opportunity for our players to showcase their skills against schools from our own and Townsville districts. This will also give our players some quality gametime ahead of the Confraternity Carnival in the June/July holidays.
CT Netball Association
Club/Town netball will still continue on Wednesday evenings at the CTNA courts. Thank you to all of the coaches, staff and parents that have attended and supported our teams so far in Term One. If you haven’t already, I would encourage all staff to head down and check out the amazing talents of our 12YRS, 13YRS, 14YRS, 15YRS, Seconds and Firsts teams! To find out when our girls are playing, head over to the Charters Towers Netball Association - CTNA facebook group and click on the draw for that week.
CT Touch Football
Touch football will also continue as well this term. Teams have been playing in Term One to secure their places in their respective divisions. These games are played on Thursday nights at the Friemann oval. Just like our other teams, if you haven’t already, I would strongly encourage you to head down and check out our teams in action. Head over to the Charters Towers Touch Football Facebook page to check out the draw each week.
Key Dates
CCC v CTSHS - Netball and Rugby League - 24 April
CCC v SCCC (TSV) - First XIII RL - 26 April
CCC v BTC - Netball and Rugby League - 2 May
CCC v Ryan Catholic College (TSV) - First XIII RL - 3 May
Interschool Cross Country - 5 May
NQ Cluster 4 Trials - 10 May
NQ Cross Country - 30 May
Interhouse Athletics Carnival - 15/16 June
Term One Wrap
In term one we had a number of Inter-House, Inter-School and representative events. The inter-house events were the Swimming Carnival and Cross Country. Benjamin House were victorious at the Interhouse Swimming Carnival and Rice House were the winners of the Cross Country. We also had the Inter-School Swimming Carnival where we can proudly say that we made a splash when bringing home the majority of the carnival’s trophies. The Inter-School tennis competition was also held during the term and what a day it was. Everyone participated in good spirits and although not coming away with the win, all participants enjoyed the day. During the term we also held our annual Catholic Schools' Carnival. It was a fantastic event with schools from around the diocese coming together to participate in good spirits for the Mt Carmel Shield and St Mary’s Shield. Columba shone bright in being the winners of the Mt Carmel Shield, and St Margaret Mary’s were the winners of the St Mary’s Shield. We also had a number of students attend Northern Region trials throughout the term in basketball, netball, rugby league, rugby union, volleyball, swimming and golf. We congratulate those that made Northern teams throughout term one.
We would also like to thank all of our staff members and volunteers that contributed to our successes in term one! Whether you assisted in the facilitation of events, printed programs, setting up fields/tents, clearing spaces, planning competitions, coaching teams, assisting teams, supporting teams, or anything else; we cannot thank you enough.
We hope you all have an awesome start to the term!
Yours in Sport,
Callan Newman & Jaymi Evans
SPORTS DEPARTMENT
YEAR THREE NEWS
Year 3 have made a great start to Term 2. We have been busy celebrating birthdays, practising our marching for ANZAC Day, and starting our new learning.
In English, we are learning how to write a persuasive text. To begin the term, we have explored the text ‘Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!’ by Mo Willems. We read the story and then gave reasons why we would or would not let the pigeon drive the bus.
We have also been very busy practising our dance for the country music concert on Friday. Year 3 is full of funky cowboys!
Shae-Kia Carroll
YEAR THREE TEACHER
My New Gallery
In this edition of SchoolTV - Understanding Adolescence
Adolescence is the transitional stage of development that is usually associated with the teenage years. In 2018, the Australian Curriculum Assessment Authority, redefined adolescence as affecting young people aged between 10-24 years. During this time, they experience rapid physical, cognitive and psychosocial growth which affects how teenagers feel, think, make decisions and interact with the world around them.
During adolescence, a child's brain can be considered as being “under-construction”. The rate at which this progresses will vary depending on the individual and also their gender. As a result, some parents may view adolescence as stressful or difficult. However, it does not need to be.
In this edition of SchoolTV, adult carers can learn how to guide and best support their young person as they transition through adolescence.
We hope you take time to reflect on the information offered in this edition of SchoolTV and we always welcome your feedback. If you have any concerns about your child, please contact the Guidance Counsellor for further information or seek medical or professional help.
Here is the link to the Understanding Adolescence edition of SchoolTV.
Aleesha Watson & Sarah Smith
GUIDANCE COUNSELLORS
RESIDENTIAL NEWS
Dear Residential Families,
Welcome back to a new term. Our residential students have returned with enthusiasm and energy and are ready for the new opportunities that a new term brings.
On Monday evening we hosted our Boarder Parents Council Meeting. A number of key agenda items were discussed including upgrades to facilities, our upcoming western tour, wellbeing support and general residential matters. Thanks to those in attendance for your feedback and support.
Next week Clare Stead commences in the role of Acting Deputy Principal Pastoral and Residential. Clare is well known to our students and staff and has a good working knowledge of our community. I look forward to working alongside Clare and members of the residential team as we commence a new term.
This term there are a number of wonderful experiences tabled for our students including the Country Music Festival and our celebrations for National Boarding Week. Weekly sporting and extra curricular activities including football, netball and Cattle Club are keeping everyone busy and opportunities for those students who are looking for other alternatives are being sought. Thanks to Mrs Michelle Burns and to Mrs Caroline Jarmey for providing a range of experiences via our Weekend Programs. Our students enjoy shopping trips to Townsville, camping at Marybank and experiencing the Cowboys Games when opportunities arise. Communication for the weekend programs will continue to be sent out each week by the Head's of Boarding for your information as well as any upcoming events.
As we begin a fresh term and continue the journey of developing life skills among our boarding students, we would like to share some reminders to ensure we are promoting healthy living and college expectations.
- The following items are not permitted at the college or in boarding: aerosols (roll-on deodorant only), Nutella, or items that include nuts, and energy drinks.
- Jewellery is limited to the following items only: girls may wear plain gold or silver earrings studs/sleepers, (two small, plain studs or sleepers per ear only – must be a matching pair worn in the ear lobe), one signet, gold or silver band ring, one watch, one simple gold or silver chain with a Christian religious medallion may be worn. Please note that pearl earrings are not worn with the college uniform.
- Gentlemen must maintain a clean-shaven face each school day and their hair must be a short back and side hairstyle to comply with college uniform and grooming expectations.
- During Terms 2 and 3 full tracksuits may be worn with the sports uniform but are not compulsory. Tracksuit tops are not part of the day uniform or formal uniform therefore, the college knit jumper is to be worn if needed.
- Boarding students have the opportunity to go on town leave each Saturday morning to purchase any toiletries required. The purchase of snacks is permitted in small quantities but not necessary as all residences are stocked with plenty of food and snacks for our boarding students. It is also preferable to refrain from buying excessive junk food, poppers, and soft drinks. Deliveries from external providers such as Woolworths are not endorsed by the college.
Communication is central to a positive school-residential-family relationship. We strongly encourage families to make contact with members of the residential team if there is anything you wish to discuss to support and enhance the residential and learning experiences of your child.
This term we are setting off on our annual Western Tour. This year we are changing our schedule with the aim of engaging more authentically with as many current and prospective families as possible. The ICPA Conference in Julia Creek and the Richmond Field Days will be incorporated into our travels and we look forward to catching up with families along the way. Our schedule will be communicated in the coming weeks.
Thank you for continuing to support Boarding at Columba. We look forward to a great term ahead as we work together to ensure the personal success and well-being of our boarding students.
Many blessings,
Melissa Turner
PRINCIPAL
FLEXISCHOOLS
