This Friday we will hold a special assembly to farewell our Year 12 students. Next week they commence their external exams and we know that this is a daunting time for them. Please keep them in your prayers over this time.

We are looking forward to gathering this evening to celebrate the many sporting achievements of our students in 2023. Congratulations to all of the award winners and a special thank you to the coaches, managers, teachers and parents who have supported our students all year. In particular I would like to thank Mr Jericho Young our Sports Coordinator for his leadership, enthusiasm and dedication to promoting excellence in sports at Good Shepherd Catholic College.

Tomorrow night we will attend the annual Bishop’s Dinner at the Irish Club. This is an opportunity to present the Mark Mappas Award to one of our Parents, in recognition of their outstanding service to a school community. This year the Mark Mappas Award is being presented to past-President of the P&F Association, Tarrene Frost. Tarrene’s dedication to GSCC has been evidenced by her passion and enthusiasm for parent engagement. She has volunteered her time to assist with the running of many events for the College. In particular, Tarrene has fostered a high level of Parent support and sponsorship for the many varied activities of our students. Tarrene has worked tirelessly with the Executive to promote a parent engagement body that is focused on celebrating community and fostering student participation. 

We congratulate Tarrene Frost on her award and thank her for her continued commitment to serving on our P&F.

We wish our Year 11s good luck with their Exam block next week. It can be hard to stay focused in Term 4 but with hard work and commitment, we know you will be successful.

We sadly say farewell to our Chaplain James Coghlan this week. James has accepted a Manager position at the soon to be established Mount Isa Country University Centre (CUC).  James’ passion for working with young people and his experience in training make him an asset to the Centre. The College will form a strong partnership with CUC to support our students to continue their tertiary study but being able to do that in their home of Mount Isa. 

Have a blessed week,

Kathleen McCarthy

PAT tests

As part of the College's ongoing commitment to helping students continue to improve in both Maths and Literacy skills, all students in Years 7 - 10 will sit PAT tests during a Maths and two English lessons in the next fortnight.

Find about more about the Progressive Achievement Approach and Tests at this site: https://www.acer.org/au/pat

The tests are not meant to be stressful for students- we don't count the results towards their report mark, but it is great diagnostic data for teachers if the students do the tests properly.  Please encourage your child when you talk to them in preparation for the tests.

If you have any questions or concerns, please contact our child's Maths/English teacher.

Year 12 Good Luck

Our Year 12 students officially finish school this week!

To those students who are still writing General Subject exams over the next 3 weeks, the college community wishes you all the best!

Remember that the myQCE website has many resources available for students, including information to help them prepare for EA, as well as tips to look after their health and wellbeing. Their new series of videos presented by clinical psychologist Dr Judith Locke will provide practical advice for students that they can use every day, tackling topics such as sleep, procrastination, coping with exam preparation and more. The first video is available now on the myQCE website, with the rest to be released throughout the term.

Good luck Year 12 students!

As Year 12 students finish their final week of school and move into their final exam block, I want to wish them all the best for their final month in secondary school. The upcoming external exams for General Subjects are a culmination of two years of hard work and dedication. We are so proud of everything our Year 12 students have achieved this year, and know that they are going to do amazing work over these coming weeks.

Please be sure to familiarize yourself with the exam timetable for this block to ensure you are prepared for this important phase of your senior learning journey.

Loving God be with the Year 12 students as they prepare for external exams.

Thank you for the many talents and gifts you have, 

given students and for the opportunity of education.

Calm their nerves and anxiety, and help them to remember all that they have studied, 

to express it clearly and to answer the questions the very best they can.

Holy Spirit, sit with the students in their exam - and always.

Amen.

Year 11 Exam Block

A reminder that Year 11 students will sit their next Exam Block next week (Monday 23 – Friday 27 October 2023).

Student Expectations for Exam Block:

All students should be studying/completing assessment at home; studying quietly in the Study Rooms (F1/F2), or completing an exam during exam block. Exam block is not free time.

During exam block, students should:

• Be on time
• Follow all regular College Expectations
• Sign in at the front office when you arrive and then sign out before you leave
• Be prepared! Don’t leave your study until the last minute.
• Get a medical certificate if you are unwell and unable to attend an exam - CONTACT SCHOOL IMMEDIATELY IF YOU ARE SICK AND CAN’T ATTEND YOUR EXAM
• Only come to school if you have exams to sit, or assessment to complete.
• Come to school in your FULL Academic Uniform (your PL can send you home to change if you don’t adhere to this).
• Use the study room appropriately (quietly & productively).
• Only bring approved snacks (takeaway food, soft drink, energy drinks etc are not permitted).
• Adhere to the mobile phone policy (phones not permitted for use on the grounds between 8:30am - 3pm)

ALL ASSESSMENT MUST BE COMPLETED IN ALL SUBJECTS IN ORDER TO HAVE EXAM BLOCK PRIVILEGES.

If you are absent for an exam in exam block you must:

1. Contact the College office ASAP, or your parent can contact the College office on your behalf.
2. Have a medical certificate.

These requirements are in accordance with the GSCC Assessment Policy “If a student is absent from a Senior Exam Block exam, the student will complete an alternate paper in the next available session and a medical certificate must be provided upon their return. If a medical certificate is not provided the student October not be allocated a result for that internal assessment piece, resulting in no credit for the piece / unit studied."

2024 Immunisation Program (Year 10 Students)

Please see below information sent by the Queensland Chief Health Officer regarding the 2024 Immunisation Program:

Meningococcal disease is a rare but serious infection caused by bacteria that can enter the body through the nose or throat. Around one-third of children and adolescents who survive meningococcal disease develop permanent complications.

Students in Year 10 are routinely offered free vaccination to protect against meningococcal strains A, C, W, and Y through the Queensland School Immunisation Program (SIP). This vaccine is given in a single dose.

Starting in the 2024 school year, the Queensland SIP will also provide Year 10 students vaccination against meningococcal B (menB). The menB vaccine will be delivered in two doses with a minimum of eight weeks between doses to ensure effective protection. This change is in response to the emergence of menB as the most common cause of illness and death from meningococcal disease in Queensland.

The Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation (ATAGI) recommends menB vaccination for several at-risk groups, including adolescents aged 15-19 years. Previously, funded menB vaccine was only available for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and individuals with specific medical risk factors.

The Queensland Meningococcal B (MenB) Vaccination Program will now make the menB vaccine available free of charge to all eligible infants, children, and adolescents in Queensland. This change signifies an important step in safeguarding the health of young people against this serious infection.

Please note:

• Parents of each Year 10 student will receive a pack containing an information sheet about both meningococcal vaccines and a consent form. Students will not be vaccinated unless a signed consent form has been returned to the school.

• Parents who did not receive, or misplaced the vaccination consent form, can download it at https://www.publications.qld.gov.au/dataset/school-based-vaccination-program

Parents can be reassured that both meningococcal vaccines are safe and effective at preventing meningococcal disease. People with certain conditions may require extra doses of meningococcal vaccines; they should talk to their doctor about their individual circumstances.

Adolescents aged 15-19 years who are not vaccinated through the school program can get catch-up vaccines free of charge through a network of more than 2,000 Queensland Health registered vaccine service providers, including GPs, community vaccination clinics, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Services. Questions about this change can be directed to our School Immunisation Program provider or the Queensland Health Immunisation Program at immunisation@health.qld.gov.au. More information can be found at:

• https://www.health.qld.gov.au/clinical-practice/guidelines-procedures/diseases-infection/immunisation/meningococcal-b 
• The flyer below

The GSCC Immunisation Program for Year 7 & 10 students is booked for Monday March 11, 2024. Specific details will be provided next year.

School TV: Managing Screen Time

Many parents have reported excessive screen time as the number one health concern affecting kids, especially now in the hyperconnected world we live in. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends that there should be no screen time at all for children under two, less than an hour a day for children aged from two to five, and less than two hours for five to 17 year olds. However, these guidelines have been disputed by experts and often ignored by families. Parents must play an important role in modelling a positive approach to using screens, and assisting children to navigate the content they access.

Please see the link below with more information around how to address these issues and help support our youth in managing their screen time and productivity: https://goodshepherd.catholic.schooltv.me/newsletter/managing-screen-time

If you are concerned about any issues arising for your son or daughter please feel free to contact a member of our pastoral team. 

Week 10 of last term saw a number of students attend work experience.  

A big thank you to the following host employers for supporting our students' work experience placements last term:

Bam Auto Electrical 

Sanctum Medi Spa 

Isa Kit Terrace Gardens Function Centre

Pharmacy First 

St Josephs Terrace Gardens Function Centre

Mount Isa Base Hospital 

sos auto electrics 

Mount Isa Vet Surgery Malouf Ford

WWATS 

Mount Isa City Council 

JCU Allied Health - Murtupuni Centre for Rural & Remote Health

Glencore Mount Isa Mines 

Cumming Airconditioning & Sheetmetal 

Kretschmann Engineering

Mount Isa Courthouse 

RCT 

Allied Health Mount Isa Base Hospital

Sandvik 

FVS Air Conditioning 

Isa Sheet Metals 

Bam Auto Electrical

Work experience opportunities this Term commence during the School Holidays, end of this term. The Cutoff date to apply is the 3rd of November. Please feel free to discuss this or any other career queries with me.

JCU Heros in Health

Last week 10 of our Year 11/12 students completed a two day workshop at JCU called Heroes for Health.  It was a way to allow students to explore the various roles in the medical field at JCU and the Mount Isa Base Hospital.  Our students had an AMAZING experience, which shows by their smiles in the pics below.

YEAR 12 MOCK INTERVIEWS

During week 2 our Year 12’s attended Mock/Practice Job Interviews to help prepare them for when they leave school.  Understandably, most were nervous and a bit hesitant to participate.  However, the feedback from our panel of Interviewers was excellent. A big thank you to the following Interview volunteersfor their support:

Lee Pang & Margaret Munns, Department of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Program

Clynton Munns, Glencore

Simon Wilcox, Glencore

Justin Armstrong, Glencore

Father Emene,  Good Shepherd Parish

James Coghlan, College Chaplain

Congratulations to Savannah Balbi!

Congratulations to Savannah Balbi on being awarded a Scholarship for school students who are aspiring teachers! This is a wonderful achievement you can be proud of!

Last Week our Year 12 Hospitality students teamed up with a teacher for the annual GSCC Cook Off Challenge.

Students were given a budget, half hour to shop for their ingredients, 2 hours to prepare, cook and serve 75 portions of one Canape to 75 hungry Judges ( staff and students).

Team Cuisine - Olivia Greenhalgh and Father Emene cooked Pizza Scrolls

Team Macho Nacho - Renee Cameron and Kat ethinee cooked Taco Cups

Team Yin & Yang - Jamaron Mothe and Kylie McCarthy cooked Pulled Pork Sliders

Team Fasta Pasta - Lianna Woodsbey and Jordan Harries cooked Spaghetti Bolognese Cups

Team Shake ‘n’ Bake - Mikaya Wills and Leigh Harding cooked Caramel Tarts 

Team Bad Biddys - Zoe Ryder and Col Ryder cooked Honey soy Chicken Wings

Team Kitchen Queens - Donna Cole and Amy Webb cooked Buttermilk Fried Chicken.

The standard of food was amazing and it was wonderful to see the students showcase what they have learnt in Hospitality in the past 2 Years. Every team should be very proud of their efforts.

The winner of the challenge was Macho Nacho - Congratulations Renee Cameron and Kate Thinee.

Cheers Mrs Cole