To the community of St John Paul II College,

Today (August 11) the Church celebrates the Feast Day of Saint Clare of Assisi. Clare was an Italian noblewoman who was the Foundress of the order of Poor Ladies that was later renamed ‘Poor Clares’. She was born in Assisi on July 16 1194 and died there on August 11 1253.

In 2011, after hearing Francis of Assisi (later St Francis of Assisi) preach the Lenton Sermon, Claire made the decision to explore her vacation to Holy Life and became a devout follower of Saint Francis of Assisi.

Clare’s religious life provides many examples of sanctity and a deep, unwavering faith. This was paralleled with a firm determination to lead a simple, literal gospel life as St Francis taught her and a courageous resistance to pressures to dilute her beliefs.

Prayer to St Clare of Assisi

“Saint Clare, though you came from a wealthy and noble family, God called you into poverty where your true nobility was found. You heard a call to live radically for God, responded, and never turned back. Please pray for me, that I will also respond to God’s calling in my life with radical fidelity.
May nothing stand in the way of my willing adherence to the will of God.
Saint Clare of Assisi, pray for me.”

High School Musical

This week sees the commencement of the 2023 JPC production of High School Musical. The cast and crew have been busily preparing for many months and the excitement levels have hit an all time high. Yesterday the cast finalised their preparations with a matinee performance where students from our local feeder primary schools before the Opening Night show at 6pm.

I cannot recommend the show more to the community and with tickets selling fast I would encourage you to grab them for the Friday and Saturday night shows while you can - https://www.trybooking.com/CGWFR

Inter Schools Chess Tournament

On Monday, we welcomed students from across the ACT to compete in the Inter Schools Chess Competition. The day was an exciting showcase of some of the most skilled chess players in the region and included many hard-fought victories. Congratulations to all students who participated in this great event and to the staff that ran the day. See the report below.

Book Week Activities

We are excitedly preparing for 2023 Book Week which occurs in Week 6 (commencing Monday 21 August). This year's theme is ‘Read, Grow, Inspire’ and our Justice Leaders have been working with the College Leadership Team to organise an exciting week of activities. There is more information about these later in this newsletter.

As always, there have been many other wonderful things that have occurred at JPC over the last couple of weeks and some of these are highlighted below. The success of these events can only happen through the planning, preparation and support of students, staff and the wider community. We thank all of those involved in these activities for the collective effort to make them a success.

Jacob Knowles
Assistant Principal – Development
Drexel and Mathieu House

Dear Parents and Carers,

I was privileged to attend the preview of High School Musical on Thursday afternoon. It was a triumph! The sheer talent of our students is quite mind-blowing – literally an all-singing, all-dancing cast supported by a very professional backing group. It is high energy and entertaining from start to finish. The preview was held for our feeder primary schools and the students absolutely loved it!

I enjoyed it all over again on Thursday evening – even better the second time if that is possible! There are still tickets available for Saturday’s matinee performance at 2pm and very limited seats for tonight and tomorrow night. A performance not to be missed!

I am fortunate to be taking leave from next week until the end of term. I will be travelling with my husband primarily to visit family and friends in my husband’s home country of Switzerland. With COVID, it has been five years since we have seen them.

In my absence, Kathleen Garvie will be Acting Principal for weeks 5-8 and Jacob Knowles will be Acting Principal from week 9 until my return at the start of Term 4. 

I wish you all a very productive and positive remainder of the Term and look forward to being back in the community in Term 4.

Catherine Rey

Moderation Day is an important day for teachers across the ACT to review and moderate the work of senior students. Moderation Day is a requirement for teachers to ensure grade comparability across the senior secondary sector. Moderation Day is a pupil-free day (Yr 7-10 only) and no classes will be running.

Students from Years 7-10 are encouraged to use the day productively to work on learning tasks, assignments and general study. Students are discouraged from visiting 7-10 High Schools or Primary Schools, as their presence can prove very disruptive to the learning of these students.

All Y11 and 12 students are to arrive for 8:45 am for a 9 am start. All students are required to attend and are to be in full College uniform on the day and are able to make their way home after 2.30 pm. The canteen will not be open, so students must bring in their own lunch and recess.

Year 11 and 12 Tertiary students will be working on AST familiarisation and preparation for the upcoming exam. This is a compulsory day and students are expected to attend.

Accredited Yr 11 and 12 students will be required to attend and work on their foundational skills portfolio.

Please bring lunch/ snacks for the day and a bottle of water.

Students will need to bring their laptops, pen, highlighter, calculator and a pencil.

Kind Regards,

Ms Amber Donoghue
Leader of Learning and Wellbeing: Senior Studies and Drexel House

On Monday 7th August, JPC held the North Canberra Schools Chess Competition which had over 150 participants! This was the biggest North Canberra Event the Chess Community ever had!

There were laughs, cries and worry as the games progressed (especially when someone lost a queen). Overall, it was a grand day and JPC were glad to host it!

Well done to the JPC team on the day!

Cheers

Teacher – Outdoor Education, PE
Leader of Wellbeing - Drexel House

Jack M, Year 9 Maathai will be shaving his mullet off in a few weeks – thank goodness!

He is also going to do this to raise funds to support the Leukaemia Foundation. If anyone would like to make a donation you can do so via this link http://my.leukaemiafoundation.org.au/jackm

Through 2023 Jack has been growing his magnificent mullet and it's time for it to go. I know times are tough for a lot of people and there is definitely no pressure but if you would like to help, Jack would welcome donations and support of any kind.

Jack will be shaving his head after U15s Gungahlin Jets end of season presentation.

His hair (provided it's clean) will also be donated.

Thank you for your support x

Jack M | World's Greatest Shave | Leukaemia Foundation

Daniel R, Year 9 Kennedy will be representing the ACT schools team in the individual 4km event in the u16 as well as running in either the ACT relay or the Time trial on Monday at Stromlo.

If you are interested in watching the championships, the details are:

• Friday 25 August to Monday 28 August 2023 at Stromlo(Canberra). 
• The Opening Ceremony will be held on Friday 25 August.
• The individual races will be on Saturday 26 August.
• The Relay Events and time trials as well as Closing Ceremony will be on Monday 28August.

We wish Daniel all the best for the upcoming championships.

Book Week

With book week on in Week 6 (21-25 August), we are announcing the activities as well as other events that we are hosting this year!

Book Swap

Hey everyone! Don't miss out on our upcoming book swap event! Starting week 4, you can donate as many books as you like and drop them off in Mr Knowles' office (located in the wellbeing hub). Then, on Thursday and Friday of week 5, come and grab any donated books you like for just a gold coin donation. All money raised throughout this event and in book week will go towards the Indigenous Literacy Foundation! Please see a video of their work attached. It's a great way to get some new reads and support a good cause. And don't worry if there are any leftovers – they'll be donated to the book fair. Spread the word and we hope to see you there!

Daily Activities

Week 6 is book week, and all the leaders will be hosting many activities for everyone. We have created a fitting acronym to make these easier to remember: BOOKS, with each letter corresponding to what will be happening on that day.

• On Monday, we have Year 12 Verses Teacher Basketball in the hall with those wanting to participate having to give a donation.
• On Tuesday and Wednesday, we have 2-day long orienteering. Images of book covers will be hidden in various places within school boundaries. There will be prizes for the individual who finds and names the locations of the most books to the Justice Leaders or Mr Knowles.
• On Thursday we will be doing K-rafts and arts where students are able to submit their poster either via email to Mr Knowles or to the Justice Leaders.
• On Friday we will be hosting the long-loved dress up day/competition judged by Ms Rey with, once again, prizes for the costume that best reflects the theme Read Grow Inspire. In addition to this, the short story competition closes at 3:35pm and students can email their submissions to Mr Knowles.

Book Week Poster

Attention all students! Alongside the other events for book week, there is also an opportunity to display your artistic talents around the school in the upcoming BookWeek poster-making competition! Students have until Thursday Week 6 to hand in their posters to Mr Knowles. Only the best posters will be chosen to hang around the school, so don't miss this chance to shine! This year’s global book week theme is Read, Grow, Inspire. Good luck to all participants!

Short Story Competition

Attention all aspiring writers! In light of book week coming up in week 6, JPC is thrilled to announce its upcoming short story competition! This is your chance to showcase your creativity and writing skills by crafting a fascinating tale based on the attached prompt. Don't be afraid to let your imagination run wild! The image is filled with a variety of elements that can spark your inspiration and lead you to create a unique and captivating story, feel free to use any component of the image to inspire you. Let your creativity flow and show us what you've got, there will be prizes for the winners! We're excited to read your submissions and see what you can come up with - this is open to all students, max 3500 words. Submissions are due on week 6 Friday, please hand them to Mr Knowles or email jacob.knowles@cg.catholic.edu.au.

Good luck!

Dear Parents and Carers,

We are very pleased to welcome an organisation called 'Consent Labs', who are expert educators on the topics of Respectful Relationships and Consent, to deliver a valuable wellbeing program for our Years 11 and 12 students, in addition to a complimentary session for our entire parent/carer community.

St John Paul II College is a community that promotes students to always treat others with dignity and respect across every aspect of life. The young people currently at our school are progressing towards adulthood in the coming years, and many of our Year 12 students are already adults. Unfortunately, young people in 2023 have access online, as well as via movies and TV shows to content and information which can normalise unhealthy and disrespectful ways of interacting in relationships. Access to trustworthy sources of information is essential for young people to be able to make good decisions for themselves which are aligned with their personal values.

Year 11 & 12 Student Program: Across 11^th and 12^th October 2023, Years 11 and 12 students will participate in the student program. This program comes to us highly recommended and is delivered in many senior secondary schools across Australia. The student program will occur entirely on-campus at JPC and we will communicate specific session times and classroom locations to students in due course. Please see the attached documents with more information regarding content in the student program. This program is run on an opt-out basis; If you do not wish for your child to attend, please notify Mr Nicholas Whatman via email at Nicholas.whatman@cg.catholic.edu.au

Online Session for Entire Parent/Carer Community (with student/s in all grades): This session is designed to support you to begin and continue important conversations around these topics at home. As parents and carers, the transition to adulthood can be daunting in terms of how to best support your child and safeguard them against relationships that are not characterised by dignity and respect, including when it comes to consent and sex. This session will address these key areas:

• Consent Foundations
• Digital Consent
• Consent with Alcohol & Other Drugs
• Recognising & Responding to Sexual Harassment and Assault

And will answer important questions for parents/carers, such as:

• How can I start a meaningful conversation about these topics with my children?
• What are some strategies I can use when discussing these potentially awkward topics?
• How can I keep my children safe, even if I have different views about sex and relationships?

We invite all parents and carers in our school community to attend this session online:

Wednesday 23^rd August 6:00-7:30 PM. Please register to attend here: https://www.trybooking.com/CKMFI

If you have any questions, please contact St John Paul II College.

Yours sincerely,

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