Term 2, Week 3 Newsletter - 2018, 17 May

Written on the 17 May 2018 by Rostrevor College

From the Principal

Brian Schumacher
Principal

Edmund Rice Day
Having experienced Edmund Rice Day for the first time last week, I offer my congratulations and thanks to the many boys, members of staff, families and Old Scholars who contributed to the celebrations.  Sharing lunch in the Pavilion with our older Old Scholars was the perfect way for me to learn more about the Rostrevor story and why it is such a great place for educating young men.  As you can read from Mr Ranaldo's report, Edmund Rice Day has something for everyone and provides many different opportunities for our boys to shine.

Parent-Student-Teacher Interviews and Parent/Caregiver Feedback
Thank you to the many parents/caregivers who have participated in the Parent-Student-Teacher Interviews in recent weeks.  As Teachers, we find these conversations invaluable in helping us to better understand your sons and how best to support their learning.

Included in this bulletin is a letter from Dr Vin Thomas (College Board Chair) reporting on recent developments at Rostrevor that have arisen from parent/caregiver feedback in 2017.  As the incoming Principal, I was delighted to see such a strong response from the community that will help us to shape the College over the next few years.

Celebrating our 95th Birthday
There is still time to purchase your tickets to join our 95th Birthday Cocktail Party on Saturday 26 May 2018.  With many people attending from each of the Rostrevor entities, including current families and staff, it promises to be a great night.  Don't forget to contact our Development Office also to purchase some tickets in our major raffle to be drawn on the night.

The Place of Educational Research at Rostrevor
One of the most rewarding aspects of modern teaching is having access to an incredible body of research to draw upon when we are designing our educational and pastoral programs.  Occasionally, we are invited to participate in the research process that will ultimately lead to better outcomes for young people both here at Rostrevor and far beyond.  Thus, we are looking forward to having some of our students participate in the following project.

Ms Celina Feleppa and Ms Elizabeth Osborn, from the School of Psychology at Flinders University, are currently undertaking a research project entitled, 'Investigating whether excessive worry and family factors contribute to school refusal'.  This study will lead to the production of an Honours thesis about school refusal behaviour.  More specifically, this study will explore the relationship between worry (as a factor across anxiety and depression) and school refusal behaviour, while also exploring the relationship between parental worry, child rearing style, emotion regulation and child worry, which may, in turn, impact on school refusal behaviours.  It is hoped that the results will serve as the first step towards developing a more effective and efficient treatment program to tackle school refusal behaviours.

While their contribution as participants in the research will contribute to our broader understanding of the factors influencing school refusal, our periodic involvement in research projects offers much in terms of broadening the boys' perspective of future career opportunities.

Brian Schumacher
Principal


From the College Board

Dr Vin Thomas
Board Chair

Dear Parents/Caregivers and members of the Rostrevor College Community

A number of you responded to the Board Survey last year, for which we were very grateful.  As you would imagine, we received many informative and significant comments that will assist with the College's planning to continue to make Rostrevor College a great school for your sons and families.

We are still in the early stages of the process for the development of the next College Strategic Plan, during which there will be further consultation with the College community.  In the meantime, the Board thought that it should provide some feedback on developments which are a response to several of the comments made by respondents.  In this connection, below is a list of matters raised in the Board Survey that have been progressed or resolved since we received the survey responses.

  • The appointment of experienced Principal, Mr Brian Schumacher, has settled the leadership of the College and Mr Schumacher is enjoying life with us at Rostrevor
  • The College has employed Mr Tim Baccanello as a dedicated PE teacher for the Middle and Junior Years.  Mr Baccanello is a proud old scholar who brings considerable expertise to our teaching team
  • The Junior Years toilets were upgraded early in Term One
  • The College has completed its energy audit and installed an upgraded solar system, as well as a range of energy-efficiency measures across the school.  The benefits of the solar have already started to flow by providing cheaper power bills for the whole College.  More recently, the College Leadership Team has begun preparing for the development of a 10 Year sustainability plan that will provide for greater harvesting of storm water across the site
  • The Junior Years have been enjoying the benefits of the virtual classroom.  Our recent installation of the Virtual Reality Pod is also being enjoyed by a variety of students
  • We were pleased to finally distribute the 2015 and 2016 School Annuals with the 2017 Annual only weeks away from completion and being sent to the College community

The Board and College Administration will continue to work through the responses from the survey as we undertake our current round of strategic planning.  There will also be fresh opportunities (in the middle of 2018) for all families to contribute to the formulation of the College's strategic intent.

Thank you for your ongoing support for Rostrevor and to the many families whose contributions to the 2017 Survey have already resulted in significant improvements to the College.

Yours sincerely

Dr Vin Thomas
Board Chair

 


From the Deputy Principal

Frank Ranaldo
Deputy Principal

 

Edmund Rice Day & 95 Anniversary Celebrations
One of the main traditional celebrations is the Feast Day of Blessed Edmund Rice which we celebrated on Friday 11 May. This is a celebration of the life of the founder of our schools, Irishman Edmund Rice, who became a holy man through the great work of providing schooling to uneducated boys and young men, particularly the poor and disadvantaged. Through the order he founded, the Christian Brother schools were started all over the world, including many in Australia. Thirty-four of these schools, along with 18 flexible learning centres, continue under the banner of Edmund Rice Education Australia, the body that now carries on the founder's work, and of which we are all a part.

Edmund Rice Day is a time when we come together to rejoice; central to this is our fundraising. The College community celebrated Edmund Rice Day with Mass in Purton Hall followed by what we refer to as Unfair Day activities organised by our House groups.

On the same day we celebrated our 95th Anniversary as a school community with activities in the morning, including a whole school photograph. Students then moved to an area of our oval to form the 95 shape which was photographed by a drone. It was wonderful to hear the entire student cohort sing Happy Birthday with great energy, enthusiasm and enjoyment, after which they were rewarded with a piece of birthday cake. Just prior to our Unfair Day activities, students gathered in their Houses and heard from some old scholars who had joined us for the Mass followed by our Elders' Lunch held in the Pavilion. The boys thoroughly enjoyed hearing about old scholars' experiences and their recollections of teachers, coaches, and what the campus looked like in their time.

Uniform & Grooming 
We pride ourselves on the wonderful relationships we have between families, students and staff.  We are overwhelmingly pleased with the way the majority of our students present themselves in terms of uniform and grooming and the way they behave.

From time to time, however, there can be some scenarios where young men make decisions that go against our standards. We take opportunities to explain to students that "Rules Create Freedom" and that just like driving on the road, our uniform and grooming 'rules' allow everyone to be who they truly are 'from the inside' and not to worry about external appearances.

Our expectations are set on what we believe are appropriate standards. We cannot, and will not attempt to, keep up with society's ever-changing fashions. When we ask a student to alter a hairstyle or to have a shave, we hope parents appreciate that that is all it is a simple request to abide by our standards.

We thank you in anticipation for your support in this matter.

Frank Ranaldo
Deputy Principal


Junior Years

Mr Geoff Aufderheide
Director - Junior Campus

Dear Rostrevor Community,


NAPLAN Testing 2018

This week our Year 3 and 5 students have been sitting the annual NAPLAN testing. For our Year 3 boys, this is likely their first 'formal' test, under strict test conditions and feedback has been that, due to the preparation staff have provided, they have done the testing with minimal fuss and interruption. We are hopeful that, when results are published later this year, the boys' efforts will be affirmed. Staff also look forward each year to receiving the feedback from testing as it allows us to plan appropriately for the learning of all boys in our care and ensure that our programs are rigorous and engaging.

Academic Awards Term 1, 2018
At our Academic Assembly next Tuesday afternoon (from 2:30pm in Callan Hall) we will be privileged to present academic awards for the Term 1 Learning Period in 2018.

Palma Merenti Award (Awarded to students who have received a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 90% or above)
Damon Tatarelli (5BL)

Principal's Award (Awarded to students who receive a GPA of between 85-89.99%)
Oscar Crafter (3BL)
Tom Braunack (6RE)
Ignatius Crafter (6RE)
Oseremen Oyugbo (6RE)
Osose Oyugbo (6RE)

Christian Brother Award (Where a student receives 7 or more 'A' grades for Effort out of a total possible 8 areas)
Alessio Maiorano (4BL)
Matteo Maiorano (4BL)
Domenico Zappia (6RE)

Congratulations to these young men. These awards are the result of hard work and consistent application to their studies. In particular, we acknowledge Damon Tatarelli, the only student in the Junior Campus who gained a GPA of above 90%. Well done Damon!

Student Representative Council
My memories of chairing Student Representative Committees go way back to the beginning of my teaching career. In those days the most common 'request' seemed to be for flavoured milk vending machines and 'student free' days also the inevitable discussion around whether homework should be done each night or not!

For our Junior SRC, our discussions and meetings have all been incredibly productive and thoughtful this year. Boys are currently;

  • Engaging with all students to plan for replacing our existing sandpit with a new, more accessible one
  • Seeking advice as to what piece of equipment we will replace our flying fox with on the playground
  • Asking for refrigerated drink fountain the big boys have one so why can't we?
  • Repainting the handball courts

The SRC meet as a group each fortnight, prior to our regular Assemblies. We will meet again next week in order to progress some of the ideas mentioned above.

Best wishes,

Mr Geoff Aufderheide
Director - Junior Campus


Generations in Jazz

Peter Waterman
Head of Arts

Generations in Jazz is the biggest and the best School Band competition in Australia. Schools from every state and territory descend on Mt Gambier for a weekend of polished performances and fun. Over 5,000 students attended last weekend, and right in amongst it were the Rossi boys from the Senior Band, Senior Vocal, Senior Jazz, Big Band Black, Big Band Red and Small Jazz. We had a touring party of over 70, with many hours of focussed rehearsals, attention to detail and musical wizardry behind us. We were ready to match it with the best and give it everything we had.

The Senior Band was our first performance of the weekend, so we were up very early for a quick run through of our performance. Alarms went off and we were into the rehearsal area for a 6:30am run through, which probably doubled as a wake-up call for all the other boys and anyone else within 2 km of the accommodation. We then all headed out to the venue for our performance.

The standard of Rostrevor performances throughout the weekend was truly outstanding! All ensembles were well prepared, and all 5 bands and the vocal ensemble were able to perform their pieces with incredible professionalism, based on a foundation of hard work. The added pressure of an audience and adjudicators for some may have prompted cause for concern, however the lads were able to rise to the occasion and produce their finest work.

Across the weekend, 5,000 students performed in over 350 ensembles. The Senior Band was recognised nationally as the 1st placed Catholic School in the Instrumental Divisions.

The Senior Band was awarded 3rd place in Division 2, Senior Jazz was awarded 3rd place in Division 4, Senior Vocal placed 7th in Division 4, Big Band Red and Big Band Black tied for 3rd in Division 5 .

The weekend was a wonderful success, and full credit to both staff and students. To be able to compete on a national stage and to rate so highly is an outstanding achievement! Congratulations to all involved, with special mention of Michael Marino, Luca Mazzeo and Archer Newton for being selected in the division 2 Super Band, and to Alex Circelli for being voted "Man of Gambos" for his exemplary contribution.

Many thanks go to Mrs Tiggemann and Mr Osman for their organisation, dedication and hard work in preparing their ensembles for the competition and to Mrs Robinson and Mr Walker for their assistance in supervising the students and driving the bus.

 


Senior Years Co-Curricular News

Mr Jeff Fischer
Head of Co-Curricular

Winter Co-Curricular:
The fixtures for the winter co-curricular season have been uploaded to the Rostrevor website at https://www.rostrevor.sa.edu.au/fixtures.html with most matches commencing on May 12 and only Open Football being played this coming Saturday.

Schools do not always play on their actual grounds; therefore, it is important to check where the match is being played. Maps are usually available by Wednesday of the upcoming weekend at the latest but I am reliant upon the opposing school to forward this information.


1st XVIII Match Report


Best: J Shute, X Tranfa, A Doyle, T Matsis, K Kenny
Goal Kickers: T Matsis 5, T Tacono, J Shute, A Lochowiak , X Tranfa 4, K Scott, C Elefsen 1

 

With 6 changes needed due to State U18s commitments, injury or illness from the group that played Sacred Heart the week before, we were a little unsure of what would happen against St. Michael's.

St. Michael's had been soundly beaten by PAC but word was that they were very spirited in defeat.

We thought they would react and as it turned out they put a lot of physical pressure on us early.

However, as the first quarter continued we played some quality football into the breeze, scoring 3.9 to no score.

St. Michael's continued to play with aggression and it was reassuring that we could match that, as well as play good attacking football to eventually win by around 150 points.

Our accuracy in front of goal did get a lot better with 8 goals 2 during the third quarter, and in a solid result like this we also had many fine efforts.

We maintained a strong presence in the ruck and around the ground from Amos Doyle and Wyatt Fraser, while Year 10 debutant Xavier Tranfa and acting Captain Josh Shute both controlled play through the middle, peppering the goals to hit the scoreboard with 4 majors each.

Up forward, Anzac Lochowiak and Tom Tacono slotted 4 each, topped only by a dangerous and creative Thomas Matsis who took his opportunities to pile on 5.

Exciting rebounding defender Kynan Kenny again impressed by way of his ability to read the play across half back and use the ball well to rebound from defence. Kaya Scott and Cale Elefsen contributed plenty of run and carry, while second gamer Nathan McCarthy and Jacob Scutella provided some in and under hardness and tackle pressure.

Congratulations must go to other debutants this week in Daniel Carbone, Stefan Lanzoni, Sam Hearn and James Warton.

When a side dominates, it can be easy for the game to get sloppy due to everyone wanting a piece of the action, but generally our discipline to stay with structure was good. We can keep getting better of course and the one goal that St. Michael's did get was due to a break down in a back 50 set up.

Ron Fuller
First XVIII Coach

First XI Match Report

Round 1 Rostrevor 1st XI def Mercedes 2-1

Goals: A Rapetti 2
Best: N McNamara, A Leombruno, N Blazeka

A good start in this year's competition saw the Red and Black get away to a solid, if frustrating win over a committed Mercedes side. On a blustery day, the rain just staying away enough, the lads made a solid start with old hands Tyson Linsenmeier, Christopher Mercorella and Alessandro Bucco, making some incisive passing moves early. The composure of new players Noah Blazeka and Noah McNamara at centre back gave a much need sense of stability and long balls were cleared and attacks repulsed. A mistake in the middle led to a speculative, long range effort beating the keeper, and against the run of play we were one nil down. Try as they might the lads struggled to get shots away in the danger area and we went in to the break down. A few changes in personnel, with Adam Leombruno and Lachie Barr bossing the midfield released others to threaten the Camel's goal. A tight scramble ended with Alessio Rapetti smashing the ball high in to the net from close range to level the scores. Mercedes now scented the wind of change and tried valiantly to break the defence to no avail. Jamie Signorello saving with a reflex, strong right hand from close range to deny the opposition. As time ran down a corner expertly delivered again caused havoc in the Camel's box and up popped Rapetti to seal the deal. With barely time left to kick off, a win was assured. A great team effort on a difficult pitch against committed opponents. Well done.

John Coop
First XI Coach

3rd XI Soccer Report

The 3rd XIs had a fantastic start to the soccer season against Pembroke 3rd XI in an effortless 9-1 victory at home on the Bungalow oval. Despite limited preparation, the boys meshed like a team that had been together for decades as the scoring frenzy was opened up early from an impressive through-ball by A Villano to J Reginato whose unstoppable pace overwhelmed Pembroke's defence. The floodgates were opened, and the goals came pouring through one after the other. A Villano followed up with a brilliant strike from outside the box and skipper A Beltrame continued the trend with an off-foot shot from 18 yards out. The first half was finished off with two brilliant goals in 5 minutes from C Simile to end it at 5-0. The second half was just as fruitful as the first with an additional four goals from A Villano (2), A Calabrese (1) and J Reginato (1), along with an outstanding goal-line clearance on Pembroke's behalf which would have ensured a double-digit victory for Rostrevor.


In other Co-Curricular News:

  • Year 10 Matthew Dnistriansky has been selected to represent SA in this year's National under 15 Football Championship to be hosted this year in Adelaide towards the end of July.
  • Well done to the Year 10 boys who filled in to play 3rd XVIII football on the weekend as many boarders headed home for Mother's Day, leaving the team short of players but not talent in the end, as they recorded a comprehensive victory against PAC.

Jeff Fischer
Head of Co-curricular Activities

 

Primary SAPSASA Cross Country

Year 4 Soccer

Week 2 Results 

 


 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Author:Rostrevor College

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

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