Welcome to the promise of a new year! I am very excited to be joining the Good Shepherd community and look forward to meeting all of our new and returning families.

The staff of the College have been busy preparing for our Year 7 students and ensuring that their transition to secondary school is a smooth one. Our Year 7 Pastoral Leader is Kate Thinee, so please contact her or your child’s Homeroom Teacher, if you have concerns about their introduction to the new year. 

Our returning students will face 2020 with excitement and perhaps some trepidation, knowing that their work will be harder this year and expectations greater. Starting the year with good study habits and a regular homework routine, will stand them in good stead when the assignment load increases. All students will engage in a goal-setting activity early in the year to assist them in planning for a year of strong academic growth. Throughout the year we will keep our Year 12s close in our prayers as they navigate their final year of high school and the new QCE and ATAR system. We wish them a rewarding year.

We are pleased to welcome the following new staff to the College:

Susie Neal

Peter Fitzgerald

Peter Mulholland

Jan Luarca

Keith Stebbing

Lachlan Taol

Kate Millian

Alicia Walker (from School Officer to Teacher)

Emily Watson

Christine Strasser

Louise Wiles

Gregory Blake

Melissa Hodgetts (School Officer)

In 2020, we will focus on the theme of ‘Presence’. At Good Shepherd we are inspired by the charism of Blessed Edmund Rice who challenged us to be ‘present’ to the people in our community. This year, we are committed to extending this ‘presence’ to our families, our students and importantly to God. Throughout the year we will reflect on this theme and what it means for us here at Good Shepherd Catholic College. 

This year, we are looking forward to engaging our parents and the parish as partners in the  learning process. If you have some ideas on how we can build on these strong partnerships, I would love to hear from you. 

Please join us for a Meet and Greet Family BBQ this Friday at 5.30pm in the Lumen Christi Centre, sponsored by our P&F. This is a great opportunity to get to know your son or daughter’s teachers and to mingle with other parents. We look forward to seeing you there.

I will leave you with a prayer to begin the start of the year. May 2020 be a year filled with joy, love and blessings for all of our staff, students and families.

God,

I stand in the circle of your presence,

And am filled with the wonder of your love.

Christ,

I stand in the circle of your redemption,

And know the joy of being washed clean.

Spirit,

I stand in the circle of your guidance,

And am counselled by your wisdom.

God  One, God who is three,

You draw all life into the sacred circle of your redeeming love,

Let us stand within the circle of new life,

And walk the path of your leading.

Christine Sine

Welcome back to our returning families and a very special welcome to our new students and families, 

The beginning of a new school year is a great time to re-set and create new aspirations for the year ahead. This is your journey forward, a journey that you have full control over. I am excited to move along this path with you across the year. 

Assessment Calendars
Assessment Calendars will be distributed to students at the beginning of week 2. These will be shared electronically and are accessible via the College website under the Students tab, followed by the Studies & Assessment link. A copy will also be emailed to all parents/carers. The Assessment Calendars are designed to:

• assist students to plan their study time
• help students to prioritise
• be an organisational tool
• communicate due dates to parents/carers and students

Assessment Calendars should inform the amount of study and assignment work needed at different points in the term and the commitments students make

NB: Parents and students are encouraged to be mindful of the assessment due dates, and to arrange for specialist appointments/holidays and trips, around these dates. Wherever possible, students should also minimise paid work/casual employment, and cut back during busy weeks of the term. 

Parents & carers with any questions or concerns in regards to subject curriculum or assessment are encouraged to contact the classroom teacher first. Following this, the Curriculum Leader for each Learning Area are available to speak with you regarding any concerns you may have.

Welcome back to all families, students and teachers to the 2020 School Year. This year, we welcome a number of new staff to our College and look forward to all that they bring to our College and community. I would also like to especially welcome our Year 7 students and any new students who join our College community.

Timetable/Daily Organisation

By now, all students should have received their 2020 timetable. A reminder that the timetable works on a two week cycle (Week A & Week B) - There are five lessons each day of 1 hour in length. Morning Tea is our larger break of the day, and runs from 10:50 am to 11:30am, with Lunch beginning at 1:35pm and finishing at 1:55pm. It is important that students arrive to school by 8:25am to ensure they are ready to enter Homeroom at 8:30am. 

I would like to welcome back all our returning students and extend an extra warm welcome to our Year 7 students, and any new students joining the Good Shepherd Catholic College Community this year. I hope you have all had a restful and enjoyable festive season and are returning to school refreshed and ready to take on the new school year with positivity and enthusiasm.

 The beginning of a school year is a good time to revisit some important school policies and procedures. This week I would like to focus on our College Expectations and Uniform Policy:

 College Expectations

 As a College, we expect students to walk with us, to be a part of our community and to follow our mission and vision. I would like to remind students of our four College expectations:

1. Respect all people and things
2. Be in the right place at the right time
3. Come prepared to learn
4. Follow instructions the first time

As signed by students and parents in the enrolment agreement, Good Shepherd students must be prepared to follow these expectations. 

 Uniform Policy

 We have very clear uniform expectations at Good Shepherd which are outlined in our College diary. Students must arrive and exit school each day in the full academic uniform, which includes their hat and diary.

 If your child is unable to wear their full academic uniform, please communicate this with the Homeroom Teacher. If students are not adhering to the College Uniform Expectations the following steps will occur: (this does not apply to students who present a note from a parent or guardian).

1. Student will be issued a lunch-time uniform detention. Failure to attend the lunchtime detention will result in a Wednesday afternoon detention.
2. Three (3) uniform detentions will result in an afterschool detention (Wednesday afternoons 3pm-4pm).
3. Continued breaches of the uniform policy or failure to attend a Wednesday afternoon detention will result in the student being withdrawn from class until a meeting is able to take place between the student, parent/guardian, Pastoral Leader and myself.

2020 Pastoral Team

The 2020 Pastoral Team are a group of dedicated staff who are looking forward to working with our students and families to provide the best support to encourage student success. This year we welcome both Ms Louise Wiles and Ms Nicole Dalla Vecchia to our Pastoral Team; both of whom bring a wealth of knowledge and experience. Our Pastoral Leaders are as follows:

Year 7 - Mrs Kate Thinee

Year 8 -  Mr William Morganson

Year 9 - Ms Kylie McCarthy

Year 10 - Ms Louise Wiles

Year 11 - Ms Nicole Dalla Vecchia

Year 12 - Ms Jade Marinelli

Please feel welcome to contact your child’s Pastoral Leader at any time.   

Welcome to GSCC Meet and Greet BBQ

I would also like to extend an invitation to all families to attend our Meet and Greet BBQ being held this Friday, 31st January 2020 at 5.30pm in the Lumen Christi Centre.  Parents and families play a vital role in our College community and your engagement provides opportunities to build on relationships with staff and other families which also assists in your child’s success at school. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to the College Office by 4pm on Wednesday, 29th January 2020. I look forward to seeing you there!

Upcoming Events

Friday, 31st January - Welcome to GSCC Meet and Greet BBQ

Friday, 7th February - Year 7 Retreat

Welcome to 2020! A warm welcome to all our new Year 7 students, new families to the College as well as those returning this year. 

Over the Christmas break many people all over the country were affected by the bushfire crisis. Our thoughts are prayers go out to all those who have been impacted by this disaster. The The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference released a statement on the crisis we have shared below.

PRAYER FOR THOSE AFFECTED BY BUSHFIRE AND DROUGHT:

Eternal God,

In wisdom and love

you created our earth

to sustain us and give us life.

We turn to you now

in faith, hope and love,

asking you to look with favour

on our fire-ravaged and drought-stricken land,

on our starving and

displaced animals,

on our failing crops and burning

farms, towns and forests.

Strengthen, sustain and give new heart

to our farmers

and to all who are affected by drought;

be with those who support them.

Strengthen and comfort the victims of the fires,

those who have lost family, friends, property and stock.

Protect our volunteer firefighters and all members of essential services.

In your loving providence,

send abundant rain to quench the fires

and to restore our parched earth.

Father of all compassion,

hear our prayer

through Jesus Christ your Son,

in whom the promise of new life

has dawned, and

through the power

of the Holy Spirit,

the Lord the giver of life:

Renew your faithful people;

Renew the face of the earth.

Our Lady of the Southern Cross,

Mary, help of Christians –

Pray for us.

St Mary of the Cross MacKillop –

Pray for us.

Upcoming Events

Week 2 -Year 7 and 11 Combined Year Level Mass at Good Shepherd Parish - Wednesday 5th February 8.20am for an 8.30am start. More information will be sent to Year 7 students outlining the details of the morning. 

Week 3 - College Opening Mass at the Lumen Christi Centre- Wednesday 12th February, 9am. Followed by morning tea. All are welcome.

Tuesday saw our enthusiastic Yearr 7s arrive for their first official day of high school. 

I could not be more proud of them all as they came in, greeted each other, met their homeroom teachers and their new classmates and launched into learning about our fantastic College.

Be proud families, you have raised wonderful young people.

Hello and welcome to a very exciting 2020 school year. My name is Louise Wiles and I have the privilege of working with the Year 10 students as their Pastoral Leader. I am newish to the community of Mt Isa, having moved all the way from St Joseph’s Catholic School in Cloncurry at the end of 2019. I have worked for Townsville Catholic Education for 12 years and I am very much looking forward to being involved in the Mt Isa and Good Shepherd community. Year 10 parents will soon be receiving a more detailed welcome letter that will explain a little more about me and experience but also to introduce the wonderful team Year 10 of Homeroom teachers for 2020. 

Tomorrow we will welcome back our Year 10 students, starting with a whole school assembly, followed by a year level gathering (at the front of the library). Students will be allocated to their homerooms and given time to organise lockers, textbooks and timetables. Lessons will officially start in Period 4. 

Finally, I would also like to take this opportunity to welcome back all of the returning Year 10 students but especially to the newest member of the Year 10 cohort, Taylah Hogan. Just as I have, you will soon experience a warm sense of belonging to the Good Shepherd school community and I wish you a wonderful year ahead.

Welcome one and all to what is going to be a fantastic year in HPE. The year is looking action packed in Health and Physical Education with many events and carnivals to be held throughout the year.

Like previous years, students will  be issued with a practical and theory timetable for their class. It is imperative that students regularly check when they may have a theory or practical class, to ensure that they arrive to school and to class with the right equipment and uniform.

A reminder that all Junior School Students, and Senior students who have chosen Physical Education or Sport and Recreation must have the correct HPE uniform. This includes the correct College shirt and shorts, as well as suitable footwear for physical activity.

Welcome back to Good Shepherd Sport in 2020. There are new staff, new ideas and plenty of new opportunities for students to get involved in the various sporting endeavours that are offered by the school. We will have a busy term with sports and to ensure the students are getting the relevant information regarding their sporting interest, we will display important dates weekly in both school notices and the school newsletter. 

NORTH WEST REGIONAL TRIALS

First up are the NW regional trials individual nominations. Nominations are open to any student who thinks they might have the ability to play for the region. Forms need to be signed by both parents and coaches,  and you will need to travel to the various venues (if selected) for the trial dates. Student nomination forms will only be sent away if they have displayed relevant skills for the selected sport. 

Nomination dates for the following sports and due dates are displayed below

-‘Mount Isa’ nominations will go straight to trials, coaches will finalise trial dates and locations - Students will be notified when confirmed

-‘North West’ nominations will go through the school and then on to Linda Asburn and further details will be sent back once the nomination is accepted

-Unless stated, nomination dates involve both Boys and Girls in different sporting codes.

-All nominations are for individual trials, not team trials

North West representative sporting Information relevant for parents 

•  A new e-commerce solution will be implemented state wide by DoE (Department of Education) – this means that payments for students (for levies, uniforms, photos etc) in representative school sport teams will be made online directly by parents to the sport region. 
• Uniform orders will also be made online with parents given a code to place their order in the NW ‘Shop’.
• Essentially this means that for the most part schools will no longer be handling paperwork and payments for students in NW teams – this will all be done direct to NW. 
• In the situation where a Parent does not have a credit/debit card to pay online, the school will take cash payments, in which the school will pay online on behalf of the students 
•  NW trial levies (currently $5 and bundled in with District levies for teams) will need to be paid online upfront prior to attending NW trials.

GSCC SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Advance notice that the school Swimming Carnival will be held on Friday of Week 8 (20/03/20).

College Fee Statements will be sent out in the mail each term and it is an expectation that accounts are paid on time or you may wish to organise a payment plan. If for any reason you are unable to make a payment or if a payment will be late, please notify the College immediately so that we can make a note of your change of circumstances and work with you to ensure you do not fall too far behind in payments. 

This year there has been a slight increase in Tuition fees but in an effort to keep costs to a minimum, the College has opted not to increase charges to the levies, these will remain the same as last year. 

The College’s preferred payment option is Direct Deposit. These are payments set up by you (you can choose the date) to come directly from your bank account to the College. This may be a per term payment or regular weekly/fortnightly/monthly payments of an amount we can calculate for you if you wish, so that your account is paid in full by the end of the school year.

The College’s bank account details are as follows:

Account: Good Shepherd Catholic College

Bank: Westpac

BSB: 034-203

Account Number: 133183

NB: When making payments online please do not use your name or your students name. Please use your family code ie. SMITH05. This code can be found on the bottom of your Fee Statement as can the College’s bank account details

The College offers a Direct Debit option for payment. These are regular payments taken from your account by the College every second Wednesday (there is no flexibility with these dates)

The College offers a Credit Card option for payment. These are regular payments taken from your credit card by the College each fortnight, not including school holidays.(there is no flexibility with these dates)

The College offers a Centrelink option for payment. These are regular payments which can be deducted directly from Centrelink to the College each pay date (only if you are currently receiving centrelink payments)

The College offers over the counter payments at the front office. These can be via cash or EFTPOS.

For any additional Finance information please refer to our website, it contains a detailed breakdown of Term Fees, Tuition Fees and Levies. You will also find dates for direct debit and credit card payments, if you wish to use these options.  Please call me or email me at jdavis@goodshepherd.catholic.edu.au if you need assistance with calculating a payment plan or any other financial queries.

Centrelink Concession Card-College Discount

Good Shepherd Catholic College offers a discount on Tuition Fees for families holding a current Centrelink Concession Card. This includes Health Care Concession Cards and Pensioner Concession Cards and any other cards which are subject to an income test. If you currently have a Centrelink Card but are unsure if you qualify, please bring the card into the College and we will be able to assist you.

To ensure that you receive this discount we require you to present your card to the College office, at which time we will take a copy for our files and fill out the appropriate paperwork. When your card expires and you receive your new updated card, you must bring this card into the College so we can take a copy for our records. No discount will be applied to a term’s account if the expiry date on the card has lapsed and we do not have a copy of your new card, before the term’s fees have been generated.

Concession on Fees

If your financial situation has changed and you are finding it difficult to keep up with payments to your account, please call me to make an appointment with the Principal to discuss the possibility of a concession.

Emerging Leaders Incentive Scheme 

The Emerging Leaders Incentive Scheme is an Indigenous Advancement Strategy project funded by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and developed by Townsville Catholic Education. (TCE)

It is available to ALL Indigenous students across all year levels of the College. The Scheme provides a more holistic and equitable approach to scholarships and student development and works with TCE systemic secondary schools to improve student outcomes.

There will be an information/sign up evening at a date to be advised. Once students have signed up for the program and funding is released to the College, a fee subsidy will be applied to your account. Funding is scheduled to be released to the College by the end of Term 1.

If you have already purchased uniforms/shoes for your student this year, you must keep the receipts and you will be able to submit a reimbursement form to receive a refund for the payments. Further information on the evening will be forwarded to you from Dorothy Frew our Indigenous Liaison Officer.

Fee Schedule

Fee Schedule per Term breakdown

QRC Girls in Resources Mentoring Program

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected to participate in the Qld Resources Council Mentoring Program for 2020. 

Kelsey Verhoeven, Shannon Anderson & Sydneh Corrigan

 Each of these students will attend two events in Brisbane during the year.  The program includes Mentee training, industry visits, launch event, International Women’s Day breakfast.  Terrific way to network and learn more about the many roles within the resources sector.

GLENCORE EXCELLENCE SCHOLARSHIPS

Three 2019 Graduates have been awarded scholarships by Glencore, Mount Isa Mines.

Tara Gavan, Henry Carland and Takudzwa Tembo are the recipients of $5000 each to assist with their commencement at university.  In 2020 Tara will study Medicine at JCU, Henry and Takudzwa will study Engineering at QUT and JCU respectively.  

We wish all of our 2019 Graduates the best of luck as they embark on their futures.