Dear parents, students and friends of the College, 

I take the opportunity this week to wish all the fathers and father-figures within our community a very Happy Fathers Day for this coming Sunday. A day where we remember all that our fathers have done for us, and especially remember those who are no longer with us. 

God our Father, 

We give you thanks and praise for fathers young and old. 

We pray for your fathers, newly embracing their vocation. May they find courage and perseverance to balance work, family and faith in joy and sacrifice.

We pray for our own fathers around the world whose children are lost or suffering. May they know that the God of compassion walks with them in their sorrow. 

We pray for men who are not fathers but still mentor and guide us with fatherly love and advice.

We remember fathers, grandfathers and great grandfathers who are no longer with us, but who live forever in our memory and nourish us with their love. 

Amen. 

As many of you are aware, two weeks ago on the evening of August 18, Magdalene celebrated its 25th anniversary with a Student Showcase Event in the Alan McManus Hall here at the College. The guests were entertained with some outstanding performances by our students, and were left in awe at the incredible pieces of student works that were showcased around the hall and in our drama spaces throughout the night. I thank all those within our community who attended on the evening and, in the process, played such an important role in allowing us to rightfully acknowledge and celebrate the journey that the College has been on over the past 25 years. 

Today marks the final day of lessons for Year 11 as they prepare to sit their Preliminary Examinations from the start of next week. This assessment period marks the end of their Preliminary Course as they will  commence the Higher School Certificate course from the beginning of Term 4. I wish all our Year 11 students the very best as they continue to prepare for, and complete, this significant period of assessment. 

Over the past fortnight, over one hundred students from across Years 7-11 have put their names forward for nomination as a member of the Student Representative Council in 2024. On many occasions, I have had the great pleasure of listening to each of them give impassioned speeches with regards to why they would be successful and effective in such a role. With the voting process now underway, I extend my sincere appreciation and congratulations to all students for the way in which they have approached and prepared for this process and, regardless of the outcome, I am confident that the Magdalene student body will be led by an outstanding group of young men and women throughout 2024. 

Wishing you all the best for the week ahead, 

David Cloran

Acting Principal

Please be advised our 2024 College Leaders Ceremony will be held on the first day of Term 4 (Monday 9 October) at 11:30am in the Alan McManus College Hall. 

Invitations to the successful applicants will be sent out via the Compass Portal once student selections have been finalised.

Please be advised that as of the 4th of September (Week 8) the College will transition into Summer Uniform. Please take the time to take measures to ensure the Summer Uniform expectations can be met for your child by this time. 

 If items are required for purchase from the uniform shop please find the opening hours below:

Noone Uniform Shop

Mondays:  7.30am - 12.30pm

Thursdays:  10.30am - 3.30pm

We would also like to recommend that parents and carers take this opportunity to ensure their child is responsibly following the College uniform expectations in all areas of student presentation. 

Please feel free to contact the College to discuss any matters further or if support is needed in meeting the expectations.

Junior World Series - Indoor Cricket

Congratulations to Bella Stevens of Year 10 who has been selected to represent Australia in the Junior Indoor Cricket World Series to be held in Dubai in September/October. Bella gained selection after her impressive performances for the NSW Indoor Cricket team at the National Championships in Ipswich in the last school holidays. We wish Bella all the very best for this tournament and look forward to hearing the results.

Australian All Schools Hockey Championships

Congratulations to Zara Dunn of Year 10 who represented NSW at the Australian All Schools Hockey Championships in August. The NSW team had a successful tournament and were runners up in the grand final to Queensland.

Anneliese Cullen (Year 9) was recently selected to represent the NSW All Schools U16 Girls Hockey team. Her selection resulted from her representing the Combined Catholic Colleges in Bathurst on the 1st and 2nd of June. She competed against girls from the Combined Catholic Colleges, Combined Independent Schools and Combined High Schools.
The National Championships were held in Adelaide, SA from the 12th -20th August 2023. Anneliese represented her school, her faith, her state and family with great pride and gratitude. NSW finished the tournament in 2nd place with Anneliese also being selected in the 2023 All Australian Girls U16 team.

School Sport Australia 2023 Baseball Championships

Christopher Fergie (Year 12) represented NSW at the Australian Baseball Championships in April. After 6 days and 9 games of baseball NSW defeated QLD in the grand final 6-4 to win the gold medal and become School Sport Australia 2023 Baseball Champions.
At the conclusion of the preliminary games NSW and QLD both finished with 6 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss to finish equal first and then play off in the grand final.
We are so proud of Chris and his teammates the way they played and conducted themselves as players and ambassadors to the sport and their schools.

Our College canteen cannot function without the valuable help of parent/carer volunteers daily.
It would be greatly appreciated if you could assist in any way - once a week, once a month, once a term or any other time that you specify.
Each day, volunteers are required at the following times, you can do one session or two totally your
choice:
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday
9.30am to 10.30am
12.30pm to 1.30pm
Tuesday
10.30am to 11.30am
12 noon to 1.00pm
If you are able to assist, please contact the College office on (02) 4631 3300 or email us at
info@mccdow.catholic.edu.au and our Canteen Coordinators will be in touch.