This week we are celebrating National Reconciliation Week - it marks the twentieth anniversary of the Reconciliation walks by Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Australians across bridges and roads to promote justice, equity and respect for all cultures. We will be devoting two of our Pastoral Care lessons to understanding the significance of this week for all Australians. Reconciliation begins with each one of us and this year’s theme of In This Together reminds us that we all play a part in fostering positive relationships with those around us and understanding the history of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of our country.

Next week I will attend Safe Persons’ training with Mrs Pelly Morganson (Assistant Principal Pastoral) and Ms Jade Marinelli (Year 12 Pastoral Leader). This training is conducted by the Student Protection team at the Townsville Catholic Education Office. This training complements the mandatory Student Protection training that all staff in Catholic Education must complete each year. The role of the Safe Person in a school is to:

• Support students during school interviews -When police and/or Child Safety assess that they need to undertake an interview with a student at school, a Safe Person may assist by providing support to the child during the interview;
• Educate students and staff on the role of the School Safe Person;
• Promote and organize Child Protection initiatives in your school such as Child Protection week, R U Okay day etc;
• Advise staff on student protection processes and support them through this process;
• Keep connected with other safe persons and the Student Protection Team to share ideas, activities and events in your school.
• Follow up with staff/students regarding student protection worries, this includes information you may have accidentally come across.

The Safe Persons at Good Shepherd Catholic College are:

Pelly Morganson (Assistant Principal - Pastoral)

Jade Marinelli (Year 12 Pastoral Leader)

Kathleen McCarthy (College Principal)

It is wonderful to have all of our students back and participating in face to face learning. If you have any concerns about how your son or daughter may be readjusting to this, please do not hesitate to contact their Year Level Pastoral Leader who can assist.

Each week we will profile a section of our Annual School Improvement Plan for 2020. This is the document that guides our plans and priorities for the year. We prepare this document based on initiatives set by the Townsville Catholic Education Office and through consultation with our school stakeholders: parents, staff and students.

Scholars Awards - Term 3 2020

In Term 3 there will be a Scholars Awards Assembly held to recognise the academic achievement of students in the first Semester of the year. I strongly encourage students to engage in their classwork, establish regular study habits, submit drafts, and put their best effort into assessment tasks leading up to this event. 

To be awarded a Certificate of Excellence, students are required to achieve an A standard in 50% (or more) of their subjects.

Below are some photos from our last Scholars assembly:

Thank you to our students, parents, families and community members for your ongoing partnership

At Good Shepherd we pride ourselves on the connections that we have with our parents and families. This partnership is vital in the growth and development of students both within and outside of the schooling environment. Studies show that parent expectations are a powerful predictor of student success and wellbeing. As students were required to spend more time at home this term, your expectations about your children’s behaviour and performance were more critical than ever. The success of this has been seen by the students' smooth transition back into the classroom this week. 

Students are still required to complete assessment this term and will be coming up to drafting submission time in most of their subjects. Please check in with your children’s progress on their drafts as this is a mandatory process that they are required to take part in. It is also a very important tool to assist students in developing their knowledge and skills within subjects. 

College Expectation Focus:  Respect all people and things.

This week I wanted to focus on our first College Expectation: Respect all people and things.

We can show respect in many ways, particularly by considering and taking seriously other people's’ feelings, thoughts, behaviours, and needs. We also show respect by listening to others, being truthful with them, acknowledging them, and accepting their uniqueness. By showing respect to others, we show that we value them and their thoughts.

There are three areas of respect: self-respect; respect for others; and other people’s respect for you.

 Self Respect

To know how to respect others we first must respect ourselves, to do this we must:

• Be honest
• Learn to listen
• Understand the value of good manners/proper conduct
• Learn to accept personal responsibility for your own conduct
• Learn when and how to apologise
• Learn to understand which of your friends are good influences and spend your time with them
• Have important goals and plans to reach them
• Understand the impact of proper nutrition/exercise

Showing Respect to Others

You can show respect to others in many different ways, these include:

• The way we speak to people using tone, words and body language
• Accepting others rights, needs and differences as okay and legitimate
• Giving others their own personal space 
• Allowing others privacy
• Attentive listening when other are speaking
• Responding to the concerns of others
• Avoiding gossiping or putting others down
• Showing interest in others about how they feel and what they think
• Ensuring everyone is included rather than excluded
• Being empathetic to the thoughts and feelings of others
• Working constructively to resolve problems and differences
• Listening to and accepting feedback
• Making changes to our behaviour if we fail to respect others
• Looking after the property of others
• Keeping the environment clean for everyone to enjoy

Gaining the Respect of Others

Respect is earned, and there are a number of ways to achieve this:

• Show respect for those around you
• Show that you can make good choices
• Speak up for what is right
• Show that you believe your life is important

Respect is such an important part of life, and we expect all members of our Good Shepherd Community to show respect for themselves and to each other.

Senior Blazers

Please note that for students in Years 10 to 12, the senior blazer is a mandatory uniform requirement.

There have been a number of Year 10 students opting to purchase a jumper which is optional, instead of the blazer which is mandatory.  The blazer is not only for winter wear but is also worn for more formal occasions throughout the senior years.

If you feel that you may not be able to afford to purchase the jumper and blazer, please ensure that the blazer is the first choice for your purchase.

Year 11 Progress Meetings

A reminder to book your Year 11 Progress Meeting (using Compass). Bookings will close on Friday 29 May at 9am. All meetings must take place before Friday 5 June.

The meetings are booked using the Conferences section in the COMPASS Parent Portal, accessed by using either the COMPASS School Manager App on your smartphone or by using your computer to access, the website is: https://goodshepherd-qld.compass.education/. You can refer to this 'how to' guide if you are unsure how to book your meeting: How to book a parent conference using Compass.

New Design & Technologies Centre

The opening of our new Design & Technologies Centre is upon us! The team are busily moving equipment and machinery into the new space, and we are looking forward to the handover in the near future! Thank you to all involved in this process - it is going to be a wonderful space for our students to learn new skills and create amazing projects.

Below: The old workshops packed up and the moving well underway!

What a wonderful welcome I have received from the Good Shepherd community – thank you!  I am beginning to settle in and get used to life in Mt Isa.

Last Sunday was the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. After Jesus had risen from the dead at Easter, he appeared to his disciples many times and then 40 days after His resurrection, he ascended to his Father in Heaven.  Scripture tells us that the disciples were worried and concerned about how they would manage after he was gone, the time ahead was very uncertain.  Jesus told them several times that they were not alone.

In these uncertain times remember the words of Jesus:

“I am with you always to the end of the age.” (Matt 28:20)

“I am not alone because the Father is with me…… in me you may have peace. (John 16: 33)

It has been wonderful to see our Year 12’s back in the classroom these last two weeks engaging in face-to-face learning. As we have now reached the halfway point of the term, it is important for students to keep motivation up during this time and continue to make positive choices, ensuring they are following the expectations of the College around uniform and being on time for classes. As the weather gets cooler, a reminder that Year 12’s are only permitted to wear their senior jerseys on Friday’s. 

Year 12 Events Update

Last week, students were provided with a range of information regarding the significant Year 12 events which are taking place later this year. It was also advised that tickets for both the Year 12 Formal and Graduation Dinner are now available for purchase through the College office.

Please take note of the following important dates: 

Farewell Assembly

Friday 23rd October

2pm - 3pm at Good Shepherd Catholic College LCC

Senior Formal

Wednesday 18th November

Arrivals from 5:30pm - 7pm. Formal proceedings to commence at 7:30pm. Mount Isa Civic Centre

Graduation Mass & Dinner

Friday 20th November

Graduation Mass 6pm, Good Shepherd Parish

Graduation Dinner, 7:30pm Good Shepherd Catholic College LCC 

Should you have any questions please don’t hesitate to contact me at the College.

It has been a busy and hectic start to Term 2 for our Year 8’s with COVID-19 restrictions in place and completing their online learning from home. Obviously the first five weeks have seen student’s adapt to a new learning style in the form of Zoom check ins and meetings with their teachers and class mates as well as tackling various new content in their subjects. Students are now back into their daily routines with all of their classes and are following all College expectations. 

A downside to the COVID-19 restrictions was the cancellation of the Year 8 Retreat which was due to be held on the 8th May. Dates have been confirmed for our Year 8 retreat which will take place in Term 3, as restrictions are still in place various venues have been sought for activities and will be confirmed once restrictions have eased.  Your student will be bringing home a new form to be signed for this event which will clearly outline what they will be doing for their retreat. Keep an eye out for that form and have it returned to their Homeroom teacher.

This term the Year 8 Cohort welcomed Miss Gemma Kyle as their homeroom teacher for 8.03. Below is a statement from Miss Kyle:

"I have come from Townsville to begin my teaching career at Good Shepherd. I grew up in Charters Towers and graduated at Columba, and have worked at Southern Cross in Townsville for the past three years. I love and appreciate the values and missions of Catholic schools which has been truly emphasized at Good Shepherd. I have been blessed to be welcomed into such a warm and helpful community and school. I am thoroughly enjoying working in the HASS department here. I look forward to continuing teaching my students, bonding with my homeroom class and being involved within the school community."

Can you believe we’re almost halfway through the year? Our Year 10s are starting to consider their subject selections for next year and will trial these subjects in the new term. 

Please take a moment to have a look at the Maths on offer in Year 12.  There will be plenty of opportunity to still discuss these options at school, but it’s good to get these conversations started at home.  It is also worth investing some time in researching the direction in which your child would like to study, to see what the requirements are, because, in the words of Jamie Allen- “The world stands aside for a man who knows where he is going”.

Our Hospitality journey started this term with online learning, as Hospitality is a combination of theory and practicals however more practical than theory. I would  like to congratulate students for their efforts in completing the heavily based theory workload set for them in the past weeks.

With their return back to school, the students and I are busy in the kitchen and cafe putting the theory to practice.

Students are currently completing Units of Competency:

Year 12 - SITXCCS001 Interact with Customers and SITHCCC002 Prepare and present Simple dishes.

Year 11 - SITXFSA001 Use Hygienic practices for food safety, SITXWHS001 Participate in safe work practices  and SITHCCC002 Prepare and present Simple dishes.

Year 10 -  SITXWHS001 Participate in safe work practices  and SITHIND001 Use Hygienic practices for a hospitality service

Studying a Certificate in Hospitality at GSCC provides students with the knowledge and practical skills to work within the industry locally, nationally and internationally. This course will prepare them for a career as a food and beverage attendant, barista or a chef.

I hope Hospitality students are showcasing their skills at home for you.

I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. My name is James Coghlan and my role here at GSCC is Chaplain.

While my hours at school are Monday, Tuesday and half day Wednesday, I am available anytime you need.

The role involves providing support in social, emotional, educational and spiritual areas. That means if you are struggling come and have a chat; whether it is just at the moment, today or life in general.

If I see you and you look a bit off I will always ask if you are okay, however you don’t have to tell me anything as it is your choice.

Outside of school I run the Parish Youth Group which, while part of the Parish, includes and invites people from any (or no) faith.

My aim is to help you be a good person, regardless of your faith or beliefs. If you want to talk about your faith I am happy to do so but I won’t unless you initiate the conversation.

I am here to help you so if you need support let me know; if you don’t just say g’day because my goal is to get to know you all. 

Term 2 College Fees were sent out in the mail last week, please contact the College if you have not received your statement. For those families paying their accounts per term, payment is due before the 17th of June, 2020 and prompt payment of your account is appreciated.

It is an expectation that accounts are paid by the due date or via a regular payment plan that has been mutually agreed to by yourself and the College. I am available to calculate payment amounts, with anyone who wishes to set up a payment plan.

If you are experiencing difficulties meeting payments and would like to discuss the possibility of a concession on your fees, please contact me at the College and I can organise an appointment for you to meet with the Principal. Please note that it is a CEO directive that any accounts that fall 2 terms in rears, without any contact being made by yourself to the College to advise of a change of circumstance, be forwarded onto our Collection agency for management. This is something that we do not do lightly, however, if we have made several attempts to contact you to discuss your account without any success, it is our only option.

Thank you to those families who have managed to keep fee payments up to date. I know this has been a difficult time for many of you. If you have any questions regarding your account please email me jdavis@goodshepherd.catholic.edu.au, I’m happy to help.

We are excited to announce that Instrumental Rehearsals are commencing back at the College this week! Social distancing measures will be put in place at all rehearsals to ensure the safety of your child. Our ensemble directors are looking forward to seeing our musicians at rehearsals again!

University Information Sessions

We are in the process of organising University Zoom sessions for our Year 12 students.  Next week we have JCU and CQU speaking to students to answer all of their questions.  Please also read our attached letter regarding more specific information about the various universities and their offers.

SAVE THE DATE - QTAC Information Session

On the 11th August at 5.30pm we will host a QTAC information session for students and parents.  This will talk about how to apply to the university of your choice, preferences, accepting/declining offers and more.  A reminder will be sent closer to the time.

School Based Apprenticeship - LOCKSMITH

Shaine Hunter Locksmith is offering a school based apprenticeship to a student currently in Year 10/11/12.  Students are asked to contact Mrs Coghlan in Careers to express their interest.  

Take a look at this link to find out what a locksmith job involves.

https://www.careerexplorer.com/careers/locksmith/