Term 1, Week 7 - 2018, 15 March

Written on the 15 March 2018

From the Principal

Brian Schumacher
Principal

Taking time out
It is well known that as we get older time seems to fly by more quickly than when we were young. Thus, we find ourselves in March, Autumn and Week 7 of Term 1. In our busy lives we are often left wondering, "Where did that time go?" With this in mind, I find that as I get older the familiar routine of our Christian calendar has much to offer in terms of providing some space for me to pause and reflect in the midst of my everyday world. In our journey towards Easter in a few weeks' time, Lent provides us with both the reminder and the space to reflect upon some of the deepest aspects of our lives. Changing our circumstance by committing to doing without, to taking some extra time for prayer and reflection provides us with the opportunity to orient ourselves towards that which is most fulfilling, to declutter and escape from those aspects of modern life that can entrap us in a constant cycle of busy activity that may not meet our deepest needs.

It is for similar reasons that we provide our boys with the opportunity to participate in retreats during their time at Rostrevor. As you can see from the report that follows, the Year 10 Retreat and Stepping Up Days were, once again, very successful in meeting the needs of our boys. Thank you to everyone involved in the days and especially all of the dads, uncles and male mentors who took time out to make the day so worthwhile.

New Student leaders
Congratulations and thank you to each of the boys who have accepted leadership roles as Junior House Captains, Middle and Senior Vice-Captains. At this week's prefects meeting we reflected on the notion that the role of student leaders is to help others come to know what we cherish or value about our college. I am confident that you will be great ambassadors in this regard and I trust that you will find your experience of leadership very rewarding.

State Election
As we head towards a State Election, parents are encouraged to consider how each political party is promising to support our Catholic schools.

Catholic Education South Australia has asked Political Parties to respond to a number of issues that are important to ensure that every child receives the best education possible.
All six of the major parties have acknowledged the significant contribution of Catholic Education SA and respect the right of parents to choose the school that best meets the needs of their child. 

Please go to the Catholic Education South Australia website to:

  • Compare what each party is offering
  • Read the full statement supplied by each of the six major parties
  • Explore other resources

For more information go to: www.cesa.catholic.edu.au/news/fair-funding-campaign

Best wishes for the two weeks ahead.

Brian Schumacher
Principal


From the Deputy Principal

Frank Ranaldo
Deputy Principal

Year 10 Stepping Up & Retreats
The Year 10 Retreat day facilitated by our Religious Education team is an integral part of the spirituality dimension of the College. Boys spend time reflecting on their life, their relationship with significant males in their lives and experience the opportunity to mix with different people outside of their usual circle of friends. They are challenged to accept the increased demands of the senior years, especially in terms of taking responsibility for their actions.

Alongside the Retreats, we also hold the Year 10 Stepping Up Program for fathers or male mentors and students. This program has followed years of research into boys' education, adolescent male development and the needs of 21st century students. The activities have been very successful and the positive responses we receive are not only significant but encourage us to continue and develop the concept of such activities.

Contemporary educational thinking is consistent in its opinion that young men need, perhaps more than ever, strong male role models in their lives.  In many cases, this is the boy's father, but when this is not possible, another male who fits the mentoring and role model 'criteria' is very welcome.  This may be an uncle, big brother, family friend, etc, but it is important that every student has a male mentor accompany them for the day.

This event was again a great success and we were delighted with the attendance and wonderful feedback.
One father wrote:

I just wanted to personally thank you for the father and son day last week. It was a fantastic opportunity for both the fathers/mentors and the boys to better understand each other. It is not often that we get an opportunity to really share our inner most thoughts and experiences with our sons.

And from another:

We were very fortunate to attend the recent well organised and run Stepping Up Day held at the College last Friday. We had a fantastic time together and I observed that all other Fathers/Mentors, Sons/Students thoroughly enjoyed the day as well.

The reflection times at the beginning and end of the day were well respected and important for the overall message and outcome for all participants.

My son and I finished the day agreeing that it was one of the most rewarding days we have shared together.

Well done to all involved.

Thank you to all the staff, students and families who embraced these activities. They were very successful and we believe have added positively to the relationship between family and school.

R-12 Principal's Student Leadership Assembly
Tomorrow at the Principal's Assembly we will be presenting over 60 leadership badges to students from Years 7 to 12. The badges carry the title of House Vice-Captain and with that comes the responsibility of being a visible leader within the community. A number of other leadership positions will also be announced. As an R-12 community we will congratulate the Junior Years Captain, Ignatius Crafter and Vice-Captain, Henry Knight, as well as our Year 6 House Captains. Head Boarder, Max McKay also announced our Boarding leadership positions.

The full list of Middle and Senior Years House Vice-Captains and Junior Years House Captains are listed below.

Frank Ranaldo
Deputy Principal


Junior Years

Mr Geoff Aufderheide
Director - Junior Campus

Junior Swimming Carnival
On Friday 2 March, our Year 3-6 students gathered at the Brother Bourke Pool to compete in our annual swimming carnival. The swimming carnival is the culmination of our Junior Swimming Program each year in Term 1 and it provides a platform for the boys to compete in House groups and for Age Championships in various year levels.

We were delighted with the turnout of parents and family members who cheered and supported us throughout. The winning team for 2018 was Gurr House and, indeed, they were deserving winners.

We also acknowledged on the day, the various Age Champions and it is my pleasure to list these fine young swimmers:

2018 AGE CHAMPIONS:
Under 9's
Gold: Miles Fotheringham
Silver: Archah Parisi
Bronze: Oscar Crafter

Under 10's
Gold: James Hosking
Silver: Max Hawes
Bronze: Finn McNamara

Under 11's
Gold: Damon Tatarelli
Silver: Alessio Fantasia
Bronze: Connor Grant

Under 12's
Gold: Tom Braunack
Silver: Tom Fotheringham
Bronze: Carlen Becker 

Perhaps a highlight (?) for the carnival was the parent/teacher/student race as the last event for the day. Without a hint of gloating, I report that the staff team were victorious this year which serves them well as they go into training immediately for the 2019 event! Thanks to those parents who braved the 'warmish' pool to support a fun day for all!

Student Collection and Safety
Each afternoon, we ensure that all the Junior Campus boys connect with a family member to ensure safe travel home. It is a busy period in the collection/pick-up area and there are a few things we can all do to ensure everyone is safe.

I remind all parents/caregivers/family members that Reception - Year 2 students are dismissed at 3:00pm. People collecting boys in those year levels are invited to come into the school and wait for the boys to be dismissed and to locate a car-park either adjacent to the Womma Oval or in one of the parking bays on Kintyre Road. If you are collecting a student from the pick-up area (adjacent to the shelter), then please note that parking is only available for a maximum of 2 minutes in this area between 3-4pm.

Our Year 3-6 students are dismissed at 3:15pm to allow the safe exit of the younger boys and to avoid a build-up of traffic in the area. If your son is not where he should be, rather than parking in the collection zone and holding up traffic, we advise all drivers to do a loop of the College to improve traffic flow.

Please also spare a thought for our Year 6 Crossing Monitors who do an excellent job of negotiating traffic and ensuring our boys get across the road safely. Parking on or near the yellow lines close to the Crossing (a No Parking area) limits their view of oncoming traffic so please avoid these areas (the local Council also does occasional observations and do issue fines for parking here). Similarly, their view of traffic is also obstructed when cars do illegal U Turns on either side of the Crossing area.

Thank you all in anticipation of your support. I'm sure you'll all agree the safety of the boys is our collective responsibility.

Mr Geoff Aufderheide
Director - Junior Campus

 


 

 

 

 

 


A CATHOLIC BOYS' DAY AND BOARDING COLLEGE IN THE EDMUND RICE TRADITION RECEPTION TO YEAR 12

Glen Stuart Rd Woodforde Sa 5072 Australia