Bulletin

• Fri/Sat/Sun - 02/03/04 December:  Boarders' IN-Weekend.
• Wednesday 07 December:  Boarding House Closes 9.00am.  Boarders' Travel Day.
• Tuesday 06 December:  Last day of classes for Term 4 - Students depart 12.40pm.
• Tuesday 06 December:  Years 7-10 Parent/Carers Teacher Meetings - 1.30pm-7.30pm - Google Meets.
• Thursday 15 December:  HSC results released by NESA - 6.00am.
• Thursday 26 January:  Australia Day Public Holiday.
• Friday 27 January:  Year 7 first day - 9.00am-3.00pm.
• Friday 27 January:  Year 7 Parents/Carers - Meet the Tutors 2.45pm-3.10pm.
• Sunday 29 January 2023:  Boarding House Opens from 4.00pm.
• Monday 30 January 2023:  First day of classes Term 1/2023.

Pocket Authorities have been processed today and will appear on your daughter’s Edumate history over the weekend. 

If you wish to have the lines embroidered on her blazer over the Christmas break, please ensure your daughter brings her blazer to school on Monday 05 December or Tuesday 06 December.

Instructions have been emailed to your daughter and are in the Student Admin Notices.

Dear Parents and Carers

It seems a little unbelievable that this is the last newsletter of the year (we will provide updates throughout the holiday time that relate to return to school, and other issues as they present).  My overwhelming message as the year ends is one of gratitude to each individual member of the community for making 2022 such a wonderful "come back" year.  The strong spirit that has buffered us through the Covid years was again in splendid form this week at both Speech Night at the Town Hall on Monday, and at the Swimming Carnival yesterday at Drummoyne Pool.

Speech Night lifted everybody's spirit with the inspiration of Sr Elizabeth's address, the calibre of the student performances, the generosity of spirit shared by the community to our award winners and the impeccable behaviour of the student body.  I was an exceptionally proud Principal on Monday night and although a little biased, I do think I am so blessed to be Principal of this amazing College at this amazing time in history.  Thank you to all who worked so hard to make the night such a celebration - Mr Bob Anderson, Mrs Elizabeth Brooks, Ms Belinda Peoples, Ms Lyndal Rose, Mr Joseph Hekeik, Ms Maxine Byrom, Mr Stephen Samyia, Ms Alana Santi, Mr Jim McCrudden, and the many others who encouraged the students to be and do their best throughout the year.

The Swimming Carnival was loud and colourful, and full of spirit.  The students swam their hearts out and those who were not wishing to participate in the competitive races enjoyed the fun and festival-like environment.  Our teachers design the carnival to ensure everyone has an engaging day which then causes me some bewilderment regarding the high number of students who were absent with their parents permission.  Often it is the same names that appear on the absentee list for our camps, carnivals and community days.  These are some of the most important days of the year for building up students' sense of belonging and identity.  The overwhelming majority of students turned up and had a fantastic day.  Those who didn't attend or contribute to the carnival missed a really great day.

Now we have only Monday and Tuesday left, but I again stress, these days are built around the wisdom of consolidation, closure and celebration.  To miss them will leave the year unfinished, and I encourage everyone to be part of the special occasions over our final days.

Thank you for your wonderful support this year.

Merry Christmas and ho ho ho!

Anne Fry
Principal

The College community offers its condolences to the following family who has lost a loved one recently:

Mr Sandy Dawson - husband of Ms Alex Hunter (staff member).  Sandy died after a heroic battle against cancer.  We extend our deepest sympathy to Alex and their children Jack, Freya, Holly and Henry. 

May he rest in peace.

How does one feel at the end of a week bookended by College Speech Night and our Swimming Carnival?  Apart from the obvious physical urge of looking forward to some much-needed slumber this weekend, I am filled with so much pride.  Our students and staff certainly know how to end the year with a bang as each occasion celebrated so much of what it means to be part of the St Vincent’s College community.

Sydney Town Hall provided a beautiful setting to offer tribute to the many achievements that have emerged from the phenomenal commitment and diligent work of students and staff this year.  Across all domains of academia, co-curricular, service and leadership, the intention to give one’s best efforts to grow one’s abilities whilst generously contributing to the learning or success of a team is what generates the culture of a positive learning community.  I was struck by the genuine applause endorsing the attributes of prize recipients on the evening.  It is when student peers affirm the values of service and generosity in a spirit of hope and possibility that we grow together.  Like any family celebration, when we take the time to gather, to remember and to express appreciation for all that has been enjoyed throughout the year, we are able to end the year on a well-deserved lift.

Yesterday’s carnival was a burst of colour and song competing against the talent and good efforts of students in the pool.  Whilst our girls certainly do not lack a spirit of competition, it was great to see the readiness of all to give a good go through participation.  Of course it is even more rewarding for the students when they accomplish a win against the staff in the relay - which all student teams of day girls, leaders and Boarders managed to do this year.  We staff may just have to make 2023 our year to shine.  I look forward to next week’s series of finishings and, for some, farewells - with the hope gratitude will be the prevailing sentiment of our last week. 

Mrs Elizabeth Brooks
Deputy Principal

“The more that you read, the more things you will know.
The more that you learn, the more places you'll go.” -  Dr Seuss 

The return of Speech Night at the Sydney Town Hall has proven to be  a joyful celebration of so many aspects of our St Vincent's College community.  As a rule, speech night ceremonies can have a reputation of being long drawn-out affairs filled with only long speeches and a procession of students receiving certificates.  On the contrary, the overwhelming buzz and feedback of our return to a whole College Speech Night was that of a community who has so much to celebrate and be proud of.  This was enhanced by the iconic Sydney Town Hall in all of its grandeur and historical elegance, as well as the thunderous, world-famous grand organ that provided a unique atmosphere to proceedings. 

A review of the awards and prizes presented on the night highlights the depth and breadth of student achievement in 2022 in the College.  The awards reflected the range of pursuits beyond academic excellence and sporting prowess into outstanding leadership in service, faith and character.  All present were privileged indeed to hear from, and be inspired by, Sr Elizabeth Dodds RSC as our guest speaker, as she provided inspiration to all students as a former Vinnies' girl herself.  The standard of performances in choir, music, singing and dance were outstanding and provided these students the opportunity to showcase the tremendous effort and time they have invested to reach such a high standard.

After the two years of interruption to such whole community gatherings, there was an authentic atmosphere of joy and celebration in coming together as our Principal noted in her address.  The night was filled with performances of the highest standard with students from every Year group involved.  Year 7 especially shone under the leadership of our College Music teachers, Mr Jim McCrudden and Mr Stephen Samyia, and having spent many hours practising and learning the art of choral singing in performing the song ‘Unwritten’, our two Matilda's, Rosie Robinson and Molly Barwick, fresh from last week’s successful College Production of the same name, showed their amazing talent with a duet of the song ‘Quiet’.  The ambiance of the Town Hall was the perfect setting for our dancers Elise Babbage, Abbie Burnell, Mary Crotty, Amy Hetherington, Iyla Maguire and Amber Murphy, to enchant us with their performance of ‘Women With a Parasol’.

Covid isolation is not the environment to develop an orchestra or a choir, so the end of lockdowns was the start of a significant rebuilding phase for both these groups in the College.  Our College orchestra and choir demonstrated how hard they have worked to hone their skills in their outstanding performances.  Both are heavily represented by Year 7 students with the orchestra performing ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ under the baton of Mr McCrudden and the choir performing the moving piece ‘One Voice’ conducted by Mr James Paul.

In our College Year of Hope, our Speech Night demonstrated a successful year of hope-filled learning both in and out of the classroom.  This year our emphasis in learning has been centred on the three R's:  Responsibility, Resilience and Rigour, to provide the realisation of such hope into action and accomplishment.  Engagement by all in our community, parents/carers, students and staff was on display at Speech Night, as we saw the significant success that has come from the pursuit of rigour and the resilience to achieve one’s very best.  Dr Seuss’s observation that “the more you learn the more places you will go” is a succinct summation of what our year of hope-filled learning has demonstrated. 

Mr Bob Anderson
Director of Teaching and Learning and Education Administration

We are wrapping it up for 2022.  We are wrapping up our outreach programs, and focussing on our prayer in the lead up to Christmas, so here are a few quick words on where we are up to, what we’ve achieved and something about our plans for 2023.

Hampers, hampers, hampers.

The Family Spirit Hampers that EVERYONE has contributed to are in and will be shipped out on Tuesday.  Family Spirit hampers focus on individuals. The hampers are for one young person who has recently moved out of the foster care program and is getting into their own accommodation.  You will have read or seen that recently the terminal age for government funding of young people through the foster care system changed from 18 years to 21 years.  It used to be that once a young person turned 18, they were on their own and had to vacate their foster care placement.  I live with three people who are between 21 and 18, and there is no way known that they could possibly find their own place, pay for it, set it up and remember to take out their own garbage.  They can’t remember to take out the garbage now, and they have two parents nagging them to do it.  I’m so glad this change in funding has happened.  Imagine it… these young vulnerable people would have barely finished school and would then have to find and fund their own accommodation, and be adults.  It’s hard enough when you’re 57.   

The Family Spirit hampers help these young people to make a home.  I’m pretty confident that the Vinnies' contribution will have made a real difference to 40+ young people.  So, thank you.  Thanks to Ms Natalie Fletcher who organised it all, Ms Tina De Souza, who got Year 8’s enthusiastic and found the link between faith, scripture, Catholic social teaching and ACTION, and then found a way to make it matter and make it fun, and of course thanks to Year 8 who made wonderful infomercials, and got their Tutor Groups going on the project. 

Here are some photos of our girls packing the hampers.  Thanks, girls.  

Our other hampers, or Festive Food Bags for St Vincent de Paul are ready to go. 

Here’s our sleigh on its first day in Student Services.  People have been loading their Festive Food Bags into our sleigh, but of course the sleigh is way too small.  If we had Santa’s actual sleigh we could bridge the space time continuum and space wouldn’t be a problem, but as you can see we are not Elves.  The Festive Food Bags will be delivered to St Vincent de Paul next Tuesday - but I might need to make a couple of trips.  Thank you, you extraordinary families, for taking on the challenge of finding tinned ham and adding those extra things to make Christmas Day something special for a family on the edge.

I delivered the last cupcakes for 2023 this morning.  That makes over 2,500 cupcakes have been baked by the angels at St Vincent's, to be enjoyed by the angels at St Canice’s.  I snapped this photo of Danny this morning as he claimed his cupcake.  He’s lovely friend who helps me unpack the cupcakes.  He greets me with a smile every time.  It’s good to see him there - and of course he always looks fairly pleased to see me and my stack of cake boxes.  We swapped caps a couple of weeks ago - he really liked my SVC cap and I was admiring his Uluru Statement for the Heart cap.  It made sense to swap.  

Since my last Bulletin article about the School of St Jude in Tanzania, a group of parents have joined forces to fund a scholarship for a student. I’m so grateful that we can share this…privilege.  I wanted to say ‘share this job’, but it’s not a job.  It’s a joy.  What a gift to be able to hope with so much possibility!  We hope we can make a difference in the life of this one St Jude’s student, we hope it all works out.  We hope that this sponsorship changes the world somehow and we hope that the change is infectious.  It’s a privilege to be able to do it; to love without any guarantees.  Thank you, Vinnies' parents!  You know who you are.

We had a ZooperDooper sale at lunchtime to support the Jesuit Refugee Service.  Sales were down but spirits were up because we had some great music happening in Caritas Christi thanks to Hannah Singh, Tess McGrath and a host of singers.  There were some Christmas songs and some ballads.  It was very relaxing and rather lovely.

Year 7's have been gorgeous this week.  They have been giving us a live Nativity Scene every day.  We started with Aikenhead, who were very brave, then Cahill, then Cater and today was De Lacy.  Now I know that I am biased, but my Year 7 Tutor girls were fantastic.  Eliza Mudford was our narrator and a couple of very talented people played the donkey.  We even had a sheep, played by a particularly tall Imogen Mitchell which was very funny, who managed to talk to us about the special strengths that sheep have.  It was thought-provoking and hilarious.  And then our Ruby Waterlow-Heuston sang for us.  Even the three wise hens were struck silent while Ruby sang Silent Night.  What a gift to the world.  On Monday Year 7 O’Brien will rise to the challenge.  They will need to organise their costumes and be ready in position by 8.15am on Monday morning.  Everyone has a part to play.  The live Nativity is a hoot.  It’s a little bit mad and flawed and wonderful.  Now, a photo would be good here…and I forgot to take one...but Mrs Doran did!

We will have our Advent liturgies in the Chapel on Monday.  The students will lead us in prayer and contemplation.  There will be some challenges for us as we contemplate what it means to wait for something vital - for healing, for a home, for a friend, for a welcome, for peace, for a Messiah.  While we are waiting for the world to change, we will have a go at changing ourselves, and see if that moves things in the right direction.

I have so much more I could tell you about the demands and the joys of the week, but my greatest poverty is time.  And anyway, it’s better to write less and do more.

“Trees are people.”

Mrs Jo Kenderes
Director of Faith and Mission  

The end of year is so bittersweet for Boarders, their families and staff.  It is always sad to say goodbye for such a long period of time but the Boarders are desperate to return home and spend quality time with their families, their land and their communities.

The SVC Swimming Carnival is always a highlight in the Boarding calendar where we get to be a group cheering each other on and this year was no exception.  With the College’s Junior Sportswoman of the Year, Ali, anchoring the team and accepting all the pressure we put on her, we may not have won this year, but we held our own against some poor sportsmanship from the teachers!!! A huge thank you to our swimmers - Alaqua (Year 7), Ali and Millie (Year 8), Chloe (Year 10) and Ninah and Amy (Year 11).

This year our new Boarders have grown so much in their independence and resilience in living away from home and learning new skills, but also learning so much about themselves.  To the parents/carers who have entrusted us - thank you.  We know it is difficult not seeing your daughters every day and sending them many hours away, but you have trusted us to be a part of the journey of the family, and again, we thank you for that.  Our existing Boarders continue to grow (both literally and figuratively!) and 2023 will bring a fresh new exciting year.

I take this opportunity to thank the Boarding staff who have been so supportive throughout this year, including all of our casual staff who have filled in as needed; and to our study support staff for keeping the Boarders on task each night.  Tomorrow sees the beginning of the official farewells for Ms Linda McCabe, a much loved and revered Boarding staff member of 28 years.  Unfortunately, Linda has been unwell over the last few weeks, so we hope that she rations her energy to be given the opportunity to feel the love we want to express.

To all the Boarding families and communities, be safe over the Christmas break, have lots of fun during the holidays and we look forward to seeing you all on Sunday 29 January 2023.

For Boarder families a reminder of some important dates:

• In Weekend - 2-4 December.
• Boarders’ Travel Day - Wednesday 7 December.
• Boarding House closes - Wednesday 7 December 9.00am.
• Boarding House opens - Sunday 29 January 2023 from 4.00pm.

Yours in Boarding

Maryanne O’Donoghue
Director of Boarding

It is hard to believe that we are at the end of the year. In what has been another very busy and productive term, we celebrate the achievements of all our English students this year who have achieved their personal bests, acquired new knowledge and skills, and applied themselves better than the year before.

Congratulations to all our English students who received subject prizes and awards for their exemplary academic performance, and to those who were recipients of special awards in specific literary competitions and fields.

St Vincent’s College Oratory Competition Winners

In September we celebrated the finals of the annual St Vincent’s Oratory Competition.

Congratulations to the winner of the Junior Oratory, Taylor Hyde.

Here is a link to Taylor’s speech

Congratulations to the winner of the Senior Multimodal Oratory, Francesca Oaten.

Here is a link to Francesca’s piece

2022 St Vincent’s College Writing Awards

The Winner of the St Vincent’s College Junior Writing Award is Christina Dudding, Year 9, for her piece ‘Waiting’.  Here is a link to Christina’s piece

The Winner of the St Vincent’s College Senior Writing Award is Indiana Whitford, Year 10, for her piece ‘Through My Window’.  Here is a link to Indiana’s piece

The 2022 Christopher Brennan Award for Poetry:

The Winner of the Junior Award for Poetry is Stella Hunyor, Year 7, for her composition ‘An Odd Thing'.  Here is a link to Stella’s piece

The Winner of the Senior Award for Poetry is Eliza Doyle, Year 10, for her composition ‘Broken Glass’.  Here is a link to Eliza’s piece

The Patricia Rolfe Award - Cate McGregor, Year 10.  Here is a link to one of Cate’s journalistic pieces

Following on from her mother, Patricia Rolfe and her sister Mollie became students at St Vincent’s College in the 1930’s. Patricia achieved honours in English for her Leaving Certificate and went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts degree at Sydney University in 1943. Patricia worked for Australian Consolidated Press in the 1950’s and was posted to London in 1953 becoming one of Australia’s first female foreign correspondents. The Patricia Rolfe Award goes to a Year 10 student who has excelled in English and who is a keen writer with an interest in journalism.

Cate student has been a dedicated and passionate student of English in Year 10 who has not only excelled academically in Year 10 but throughout high school. She has demonstrated her commitment to English through her interest and participation in a range of literary activities, including Festival of Speech, the SVC College Poetry competition, her journalistic contributions to the College Bulletin, her ongoing willingness to encourage class discussion every lesson every day and to use her voice and writing to be an advocate for justice and truth.

Wilga Wilschefski Wide Reading Award - Satine Gallardo-Walker, Year 8.

Here is a link to a video book review that Satine has made which highlights her passion for reading.

This new award acknowledges the important role that reading and literature plays in our College community.  Wilga Wilschefski, a past student of SVC - Class of 1947 who sadly passed away last year, took the extraordinary step for a young woman of her era in the 1950's to move to Canada where she worked as a librarian at McGill University in Montreal. In 1964 she moved to America and completed her Masters in Library Science. Upon her return to Australia, she spent her professional career working in the education sector as a Senior Librarian at Macquarie University and UTS where she authored academic works on librarianship. This award recognises a student from Years 7 to 11 who has embraced the spirit of wide reading in our College community throughout the year.  This student has borrowed and read 65 books from the College library.  She has read widely this year across a variety of different genres - including young adult fiction and challenged herself to read the classics. She has applied this love for reading through her participation in various College competitions including the Winter Reading Challenge and Book Week Competition.

Learning in Mr Grace’s Year 7 English class (by Julia Sandham)

In English class, the last few weeks have been spent making our productions, stemming off from our unit of anime. Our productions were made in groups and included a theatrical performance, manga readings, explanations of book covers and theatre posters, as well as many more elements which were varied by the group.

We started this project by choosing our favourite scene from Spirited Away, which we made five key pinpoints in which we transferred into freeze frames. These freeze frames have developed very much by including soliloquies, chorus work, transitions, rapid movement and slow motion as well as mirroring. Then we added in all the other elements and tried to develop the best pitch to the ‘investors’ and convince them to invest in our performance.

I have learnt many theatre techniques and how to incorporate many different aspects of the text into a live performance. As well as making a manga book, and evaluating many different aspects through a short speech. Many of our groups performed their full production and it was amazing to see each different interpretation of the same basis.

Here are some samples:

Student Reflections of their Learning in English this Year

Elees Hilder - Year 7

What have I learnt in English this year?  
In English this year, especially term 4,  I have loved learning about poetry and its different forms. The ballads we have studied include the Highwayman, Ballad of the Totems and Clancy of the Overflow. Exploring the deeper meanings and cryptic wording has been so much fun!  The deep emotions and thoughts the ballads contain are so great to learn about and delve into as they create such beautiful stories. Learning to write analytical PETAL paragraphs has helped me in many areas outside of English and the growth I have made with these this year is really great to look back at.

What am I looking forward to learning more about in English next year?
I am really looking forward to the dystopian and gothic style text studies. I also think it will be great to look at Midsummer Night's Murder and continue to learn and improve my analytical paragraphs.

Luce Carnevale - Year 8

What have I learnt in English this year?
This year in English, I have thoroughly enjoyed every unit we have looked at but I especially enjoyed our units on Dystopian texts and Australian humour. I feel as if this year I have felt more connected to the topics we have been studying, especially because the english department chose really interesting and fun materials to look at like the Hunger Games, Kath and Kim, Strictly Ballroom and found really exciting ways for us to learn about them like creating scripts and plays, watching film clips and answering creative questions. I also feel as having Miss Devaney for English this year was extremely amusing and I am very grateful that I got to be one of her students as it made English in 2022 so fun and interesting.

What am I looking forward to learning  more about in English next year?
Next year I am looking forward to further exploring English topics in creative ways through films, plays, scripts etc and to create new memories through English.

Eva Gardiner - Year 9

What have I learnt in English this year?
Throughout this year in English, we have explored various topics including, Identity, Film techniques, Romeo and Juliet as well as the Gothic genre. I have also learnt how to create a discursive and persuasive speech, as well as being able to craft a detailed orientation to a Gothic story and complete a reflection on it. I enjoyed studying identity and this is due to us watching a variety of films including Bend it like Beckham and breaking down the different identities included in the film. I specifically enjoyed annotating the script of Romeo and Juliet, as it broadened my understanding of different themes. 

Amelia Papworth - Year 12 (2023)

What have I learnt in English this year?
In English this year I have not only learnt to look for an infinite number of meanings in texts and consider how the author’s voice is shaped by context, but also to take lessons that can be gleaned through literature and apply them to real life. My mind has been opened to so many new worldviews and I have been challenged to interrogate societal constructs or rules rather than taking what I am told at surface level. My favourite text I studied this year would have to be Good Bones, Margaret Atwood’s postmodern revisionist anthology which kickstarted my love of and confidence in my ability to write creatively and introduced me to the way literature can set the stage for important discussions about humanity. The class discussions conducted throughout the year about all of our texts (Othello, Pride & Prejudice, Bridget Jones’s Diary) gave us all an enjoyable opportunity to learn from each other as independently thinking young women putting our amazing education to use. Advanced English was my absolute favourite class this year!

Mrs Anita Playoust
Head of Department English

Celebrations with 9S Science on Wednesday as they enjoyed their win in an Education Perfect Competition, finally.  All students in 9S took part in a eco-system/sustainability competition in Term 2 and won a pack containing a pizza party voucher and an adoption pack for a manta ray.  The students between them placed:  

15th overall globally out of 85 schools.
15th overall in Australia out of 85 schools.
8th overall in the 501-1000 students category out of 35 schools.
10th overall in NSW out of 26 schools.
8th in Australia for the 501-1000 students category out of 35 schools.
4th in NSW for the 501-1000 students category out of 10 schools.

Eleven of the class earned a Gold Merit in the competition and were rewarded this week.  They also had an opportunity to take part in their mindful colouring of immunology and diseases, created by Ellie Kopczynski, Leila Spies and Alannah Damian.  The last double of the year for this cohort, who have worked really hard to keep up with all their studies, discussions and creativity in Stage 5. 

Mrs Edelle McCrudden
Head of Cater House (Acting), Duke of Edinburgh Award Coordinator & Science Teacher

In the Digital Technology unit this semester the students have worked collaboratively on designing and producing a themed robotic obstacle course. Students used mixed materials to create a range of challenges for the robot to undertake.  They coded the EV3 Robot to navigate through the obstacle course effectively and efficiently.

Here is an insight from the students on their learning journey:

“This semester we have been learning about digital technologies and the way computers work.  We have built and coded a Lego EV3 Robot, painted a course and made matching obstacles for the robot to run the code on.  This task offered us the experience of block coding and learning about computers and their ever-growing part of today's society.  It was great to learn how computers, robots and artificial intelligence work as they are becoming more common in technology and there are many jobs in coding and computer sciences.

To build the EV3 Robot, we used lego technic parts.  We could add different sensors depending on our obstacle course needs and learnt how they worked on the track.  Once we had the robot fully built and the track painted, we began coding the robot using Mindstorms block programming.  We learnt the different movement options and how they work on a track (at first it was very confusing and not what we thought at all!).  Over the weeks of coding we could do sharp turns, straight movements, sensing objects, a pick up and release and more!

Despite the few, fresh paint stains on our uniforms, I think we can agree that this topic has been a lot of fun and we have learnt a lot this term!”

Written by Stella Hunyor and Elees Hilder, Year 7 Technology 

Ms Sana Issa
Technology Teacher

Gelato Day

Year 8 Italian students created a mini gelateria at the College this week.  They did a wonderful job serving gelato to everyone in the big line up.  The gelato was buonissimo and enjoyed by all, and money raised was for our sponsor students at the School of St Jude.  We look forward to more gelato days next year.

On behalf of the Languages Department, I would like to wish you all a safe and happy holiday.  Buon Natale and Joyeux Noël.

French Crepes

Ms Maria Manitta
Head of Department Languages

University News

UNSW

UNSW has produced an exciting series of information videos on a range of topics that should appeal to a very wide audience. To find out more about the What comes Next? series, read on.

Making Living Cities

Mankind has made momentous advances in technology, transport and architecture, but society’s blueprint for a city has not changed since the Second World War.  So what could our urban hubs of the future look like? Use the link here for more information.

The Future of Social Gaming

In 2022 Twitch streamers have watched 6.13 billion hours of video game content… so where is this massive industry heading?  And what does the future of gaming look like?  For the answer to these questions and more about the future of gaming use the link found here

University of Notre Dame

A Day in the Life of a Uni Student

15 December.  Interested students can take part in a variety of taster lectures, workshops and activities at either of UND’s two Sydney campuses.  There will also be plenty of time to chat one-on-one with academics, staff and current students, take a guided campus tour and enjoy tasty treats.  For more information use the link found here

Degree Costs

Fee Structure and Loans:  In the same way as it is helpful to understand the structure of your program and its graduate opportunities, it also helps to know exactly where you stand on the costs front.  The cost of your education and how you pay for it vary depending on a few factors, which will be explained in the link found here.

CSIRO

Undergraduate Traineeships

Complete your undergraduate student placement in a discipline relevant to CSIRO’s work eg an environmental science degree to further your learning and build long-lasting professional networks.  Complete your compulsory work placement with CSIRO and work alongside leading scientists in an area of interest, and learn from the best while building long-lasting professional networks.

Undergraduate traineeships provide an opportunity for undergraduate students to immerse themselves in an innovative environment to gain valuable skills and experience that they won't find anywhere else.  Students are required to complete a placement as a compulsory or elective component of their undergraduate tertiary study which may include their Honours project supervision.  Traineeship placements are usually for 3-12 months and are available across a range of research and non-research functions.  The number of placement opportunities varies each year and is based on projects on offer at the time of inquiry.  If a career in science interests you then use the link here to find out more about this great opportunity with CSIRO.

How to Find a Job

Six handy steps to make it happen for you.  Use the link here for some handy tips on how to secure your dream career.

Ms Helen Marshall
Careers Adviser

Fourteen lucky students (and three lucky teachers!) had a sneak peek behind the velvet curtain at the Capitol Theatre on Thursday.  Entertainment and Drama students were treated to the opening number "Lady Marmalade" before the cast left the stage and the backstage crew were in the spotlight!  We heard from the stage manager, who explained how everything was controlled from the "cockpit" off stage, then met the lighting operator who flooded the theatre with hundreds of lights - including the eponymous Red Windmill off stage-right.  The musicians were connected through video link and they broke down the different layers of sound that go into making the hot songs on stage.  We learned about "WHAM" - Wigs, Hair and Makeup - and marvelled at the incredibly quick changes from one costume to another. 

The afternoon was packed with insights about the different jobs and career pathways straight from the practitioners themselves, and it was clear they loved their craft and being part of something so magical.  The audience of future technicians and performers responded enthusiastically.  After hearing from the mechanists and prop makers, we got to meet the impressario who brings it all together - the producer - who gave our Vinnies' girls a special shout out from the stage!  Coming out of COVID, many shows are depleted backstage, but with events like this, the next generation of theatre makers is assured! 

Many thanks to Mrs Brooks who made it all happen...and on with the show!

Congratulations to our Ethics Olympiad teams who both received honourable mentions in this year's middle school competition.  The two teams needed to master eight ethical cases and then compete in a socratic discussion against other schools over the day.  International judges provided scores and feedback on each team's insight into the cases, as well as their ability to think and collaborate on unseen questions.

Congratulations to all team members: 

Lily O'Loghlin, Christina Dudding, Charlotte Ballinger, Annabelle Davey, Matilda Foster, Ava McDonnell-Zammit, Sophie Mocsari, Zara McCormack, Willow Griffin, Zoe Tolhurst, and also to all Ethics and Philosophy Club members who helped the teams prepare for the competition.

Student voices about the experience:

It was a great experience and also really good to get outside of your comfort zone and think in different ways to delve deeper into topics.  As a team, we really bonded over this experience getting to know each other's moral and ethical views.  Charlotte Ballinger, Year 9

Ms Donna Ginzburg
Gifted and Talented Co-Ordinator

Co-ordinator of Sport:  Ms Jacinta Jacobs:  0418 416 663 jacobsj@stvincents.nsw.edu.au

Head of Volleyball and Touch:  Ms Elyse Harmanis - 0434 610 870 elyse.harmanis@stvincents.nsw.edu.au 
Head of Water Polo:  Mr Mark Bradley - 0412 979 599
Head of Tennis:  Ms Tonya Hetreles - 0411 984 352

Website:   www.stvincents.nsw.edu.au/learning/sport

For all draw and venue information go to:   www.stvincents.nsw.edu.au/sport/weekly-sports-draw/

IGSA Spawtz:  https://igsasport.spawtz.com/  

TERM 4 SPORT

What a week to be an Aussie and what a week to be a Vinnies’ girl!  The Socceroos dared to dream against all the odds and showed true grit and determination to progress to the next round of the Football World Cup.  In true Aussie spirit they fought hard till the very end in all three of their games and have reaped the rewards. 

Vinnies’ spirit was also alive and well at the final rounds of sport last weekend.  The touch Grand Finals had some remarkable games with the junior firsts winning in a ‘drop off’ to KRB that gave many of us heart palpitations!  But it was SVC 5 that were the real winners for me even though they didn’t win the title.  They showed the same grit and determination as the Socceroos and fought hard until the very end when they were short of players.  Well done to Brooklyn Skuthorpe-Gordon, Rosie Malone, Astrid Groser, Piper Catley and Evie Lord, all in Year 10!  So proud! 

Below:  Junior Firsts

Inter-House Swimming Carnival

The highlight of the term was definitely the inter-House Swimming Carnival held at Drummoyne Pool on Thursday.  It was a great day of competition and fun!  Well done to all those who swam on the day and especially our staff! 

Congratulations to CATER for winning the overall point score and to AIKENHEAD for winning House spirit! 

The IGSA Carnival is being held on 17 March 2023 at Homebush, and this squad will be picked from our carnival this term so that students can train over the holidays.  Any questions please email - jacobsj@stvincents.nsw.edu.au .

IGSA Tennis

Congratulations to all tennis teams on the improvements you have made this year!  With final rounds played last weekend.  Well done to SVC 3 on being undefeated, you will definitely be going up a grade next term!  The final placings are as follows:

SVC 1 - 6th
SVC 2 - 2nd
SVC 3 - 1st
SVC 4 - 3rd
SVC 5 - 7th

Everyone should be so proud with their achievements this term - Matija and I have loved watching the improvements from week to week of each of you!

Tildesley team training continues on Monday afternoons and Wednesday mornings next term - anyone interested is invited to come along to either session.  The last one for the term is this Monday!  The final team selections will be held at the start of Term 1 2023.

Ms Tonya Herteles
Head Tennis Coach   tonyahetreles910@outlook.com  Mobile: 0411 984 352

IGSA Water Polo

With the last round of water polo played last Saturday, our teams finished in the following positions:

SVC 1 - 8th  (in the highest IGSA grade S01)
SVC 2 - 7th
SVC 3 - 1st  (Congratulations on being undefeated - you will definitely go up a grade next term!)
SVC 4 - 2nd
SVC 5 - 4th
SVC 6 - 7th

Keep up the swimming over the holidays and we will see you back in the pool next term!

Mr Mark Bradley
Head Water Polo Coach   bradleym@svincents.nsw.edu.au   Mobile: 0412 979 599

Easts Touch

We have done very well and ended up winning the Overall Schools Trophy by one point from SCEGGS.  Five of our eight teams won their Grand Finals last Saturday.  Well done to SVC 4, SVC 6, SVC 9, SVC 11 and SVC 15.  All games were so close and great to watch! A special mention must go to SVC 5 who played with only five players and showed such great team spirit and attitude - true Vinnies' style!  Well done, ladies.

Below:  Touch Winners

Below:  SVC 4 Winners

Santa Sabina Volleyball

Congratulations to all six teams on a great season.  You have all improved dramatically since the start of the year.  Well done to SVC 1 who won their division.  The other teams placed as follows:

SVC 2 - 7th
SVC 3 - 4th
SVC 4 - 5th
SVC 5 - 5th
SVC 6 - 6th 

I look forward to seeing you all again next term. Training will be on the same days but please check, as teams have changed slightly.  

Ms Elyse Harmanis
Head Touch and Volleyball Coach   elyse.harmanis@stvincents.nsw.edu.au  Mobile: 0434 610 870 

SPORTS STARS OF THE WEEK

This section is to make the College community aware of some of the exceptional athletes we have in the College.  If your daughter has represented her state or country recently in her chosen Sport, please send us any results, photos or blurbs on her performance to jacobsj@stvincents.nsw.edu.au

Congratulations to our 2022 Swimming Age Champions:

13 years - Jade Deguara

14 years - Sybella Daly

15 years - Jana Kowalski

16 years - Zahli Daly

17 years - Charlie Bennett

18 years - Lexie (Alexandra) Tait 

Congratulations to our Major Sports Award Winners for 2022 - these were presented at Speech Night on Monday.

Junior Sportswoman of the Year

This year’s winner is a very talented young sportswoman who displays exceptional ability in several sports, with her dominate one being swimming.  She was an integral member of the College Swim Team and made the IGSA, CIS and NSW Representative teams where she won several medals at each tournament.  She is also the College Swimmer of the Year, in the Junior Water Polo Team and was a valuable member of the  Junior Soccer Team.  She is very dedicated to her training and trains every day, sometimes twice a day, starting as early as 5.00am!  

Congratulations to our Junior Sportswoman of the Year, Ali Green, Year 8.

The Running Bare Senior Sports Woman of the Year 

This year’s winner has represented the College at several sports throughout her five years at the College, including water polo, netball, cross country, athletics and swimming.  She was an integral member of the College Swimming Team making the finals at the IGSA Championships and has won several medals in the Open Water swims at local and State level.  She was in the Senior First’s Water Polo Team and was the College Age Champion for Swimming, Athletics and Cross Country.  She always gives maximum effort to all that she does and we know she has a wonderful future ahead in sport.

Congratulations to the Running Bare Sponsored 2022 Sportswoman of the Year - our new College Sport and Health Captain - Alexandra Tait, Year 11.

Team of the Year for 2022

This year the prestigious prize was awarded to two teams as it was too hard to separate them.  Both won the highest IGSA division of SO1 in Term 3 after very successful seasons.  Both teams were composed of a wide range of Year groups from Year 7 to Year 12.  The senior students in particular are to be commended for their dedication to their teams throughout the Trial HSC exams and Formal preparations.  The two teams were the College Senior First's Basketball Team, coached by Jackson Rath and the Senior First’s Soccer Team coached by ex-student Liz Grey.  The girls are to be commended on the level of effort and teamwork they put into both the training and the competition.  Well done to all players.  The awards were collected by Vice Captains Katie Morrissey and Sophia Laing, so all players must collect their prize from them please.

Ms Jacinta Jacobs
Co-ordinator of Sport

TERM 4 Student Card Information  

Please Note:   Students MUST bring their Student Card with them when purchasing from the canteen.  NO CARD/NO PURCHASE. 

• You need to refill money onto your card AT LEAST ONE HOUR BEFORE you intend to use the card (as it takes one hour to generate funds onto the card).
• ONLINE ORDERING is also available.
• GLUTEN FREE products are available - only when purchased through online ordering. 

TO ORDER A NEW STUDENT ID CARD please click the link HERE .  Please note that students MUST use their College login to sign into the form.

View CANTEEN MENU SPECIALS for Monday 05 December ONLY .

Dear Class of 2023 Parents and Carers

You are invited to the incoming Year 12 Parent and Carers to a social night organised by Class of 2023 parents.  It will be a relaxed evening, where you purchase your own food and drinks at the bar at your leisure.

Details:

• Monday 5 December - from 7.00pm
• The New Hampton Hotel - 9/15 Bayswater Road, Potts Point 
• Please RSVP:  HERE

Please note:  This is arranged by parents and not the College.  

Thank you to fellow parent, Peter Tate (Georgia’s dad) for providing us with an amazing local venue.

As this is not an official College event - for more info please contact:

Nora - 0407 101 715  (Sienna Fernandez) 
Camille - 0412 006 475  (Madi Gosbell)