Last Sunday’s reading was taken from Matthew’s Gospel and recounts the Beatitudes as declared by Jesus during the Sermon on the Mount. Not only do each of the Beatitudes remind us of the blessings that are bestowed upon those who choose to follow them, they also act as a reminder that in living them, we are building God’s kingdom here on Earth. 

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

As the first week of the school year draws to a close, it is my pleasure to once again welcome our community back to Magdalene for what I am sure will be another successful, challenging and ultimately rewarding year. It was fantastic to welcome over 200 new members to the Magdalene community on Monday as our new Year 7 cohort commenced at the College, joined by our HSC class of 2023 who returned ready to face the final leg of their high school journey over the next three terms. On Tuesday, these cohorts were joined by students from 8-11 and classes for the year were soon underway. 

Earlier this morning, our College also celebrated our first major liturgical event of the year, our Opening School Mass. I thank the family and friends of the College who were able to join us and extend that thanks specifically to Father Michael for leading the celebration, and to Mr O’ Neil and the many staff members who coordinated such a fitting celebration to commence our school year. 

As with any new year, we welcome a number of new staff to Magdalene in 2023. 

Mrs Jessica Cimino (Religious Education & English)

Ms Riley Dickson (Maths)

Mrs Bre Jones (Sport Coordinator & PDHPE)

Mrs Ashlee Marino (Drama, Visual Arts, Photography)

Ms Sarah Neasy (Religious Education)

Miss Sophia Patino Jimenez (HSIE)

Mrs Jessica Provenzale (Languages)

Ms Micaela Rixon (Religious Education & HSIE)

Mrs Nuala Wilson (Visual Arts)

As most members of our community would be aware by now, the excitement that normally surrounds the return to school and the commencement of a new school year has been tempered somewhat, with the news of the passing of Mr Michael Mäe, a teacher at Magdalene for the past 21 years. Mr Mäe’s influence extends well beyond Magdalene and into many other local school and parish communities courtesy of his passion and commitment to the performing arts. I would ask that your ongoing thoughts and prayers are extended to Mr Mäe’s family and friends at this difficult time. 

Finally, as mentioned in my previous letter to the school community, I reiterate my pleasure in being able to join the Magdalene community this year. I extend my appreciation for the support and kind welcome that I have received in recent weeks, and I emphasise my eagerness to work with you all to ensure that 2023 is an enjoyable, rewarding and successful year for the students at this College. 

David Cloran

Acting Principal

The next Parents & Friends meeting will be the Annual General Meeting and is scheduled for Tuesday 21 February at 7pm. It will be held in the College Library.

A compulsory Preliminary HSC Information evening will be held on Wednesday, 15 February in the Alan McManus Hall.

This is a compulsary information session and we ask parents to arrive at 5:45pm for a 6pm start.  Students are to wear full summer academic uniform.  The eveing will conclude approximately 7.15pm.

School fees for 2023 have now been invoiced and can be viewed in the COMPASS Parent Portal. Fee statements will be emailed out by the end of Week Two with annual or first instalment payment due on 28 February 2023. Fee Statements will show your Instalment breakdown and Bpay payment details. 

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING: 

• The invoicing of school fees and the distribution of school fee statements each month, is now a function carried out by the Catholic Education Office.   
• Payment of fees, whether as an annual payment or payment by instalments is due on the date/s provided on your school fee statement.  
• If an amendment is made to your school fee account eg your child changes subjects in a secondary school, etc. you will be emailed a statement which will provide a new schedule of payments and due dates.  Please review this schedule to make any changes to your payments that are necessary. 

REMINDERS FOR LATE PAYMENTS 

SMS and email reminders are automatically generated by our accounting software based on the number of days a payment is overdue and are distributed by the Catholic Education Office.  For those families that may have difficulty in paying their school fees, these reminders may cause some distress. This is not our intention.  Our intention is to support the collection of school fee accounts centrally and in so doing, alleviate some of the administrative work of our schools. 

SCHOOL FEE ACCOUNT ENQUIRIES 

Please note, despite the centralisation of various functions, your school/s will always be your point of contact for matters pertaining to fees.  If you wish to discuss your school fee account, please contact your school finance office.  The role of the Catholic Education Office is to action centralised tasks on behalf of schools. 

IF YOU WISH TO PAY BY INSTALMENTS 

Many families have already elected to pay their school fees by instalments.  If you wish to avail yourself to this option please complete a Request to Pay by Instalment Form which is available on your school’s website.  On completion, email Form to instalments@dow.catholic.edu.au or submit at your school’s office.  Following receipt of the request, instalments will be generated on your account and a schedule of payments and due dates will be provided on your next school fee statement.  Please note it is only necessary to complete this form once during the period of child/children’s enrolment unless you wish to amend your payment frequency. 

DIFFICULTY WITH PAYMENT 

If you are experiencing genuine financial difficulty, we encourage you to contact the school in which your child/children are enrolled to discuss an arrangement that will assist you meet your commitments.  This may include the completion of a Diocesan Application for Fee Concession which is available from the finance office.  Be reassured that your situation will be treated with strict confidentiality and respect for your circumstances.  If you wish to submit an application, please do so at your child’s school.  Please note, if you have children in more than one school, it will only be necessary to submit one application. 

For those families that received a Fee Concession in 2022, you will receive an email prior to your annual review date attaching a further Application for Fee Concession.    You may also initiate an earlier review if you wish to do so by contacting your school office. 

For further information regarding school fees, please access the Diocesan School Fee Management Policy and Frequently Asked Questions which is available on your school’s website. 

Financially, Parents/Carers need to be aware that all Year 12 School Fee Accounts or the Year 12 portion of the School Fee Account (if you have additional siblings attending Magdalene Catholic College) will need to be finalised by the end of Term 3, Friday, 22 September 2023, (this includes any Outstanding Fees for that student from previous years), unless alternate arrangements are made with the Principal, Mr Cloran. If you feel that you will have difficulty in paying this account and require an extension of the due date, please make contact with the Finance Office to make alternative arrangements during Term 1 in 2023.

If you have an existing Pay by Instalment in place, continue payments as per normal. However, if you don’t have this in place, please ensure that your payment amounts will cover the total amount of Year 12 school fees owing by the due date of Friday, 22 September 2023. This is the end of Term 3

While we want students to finish the year as well as possible, we do like to provide the reminder that students will not be permitted to collect Formal tickets or receive College documentation until all financial matters and clearance forms have been settled.

For any further enquiries, please contact the Finance Office, Monday to Friday 7.30am-2.30pm.

Mrs Denise Phillips, the Year 12 Coordinator for 2023 will be in regular contact with you about matters pertaining to Pastoral Care and Critical HSC Information.

Louise Mckenna

Bursar - Finance Office

Hello and welcome to 2023. 

Our College saw the return of both Year 7 and Year 12 on Monday. It was so wonderful to hear them talking about their experiences of reading during the holidays, their reflections prompted curiosity about the very literate process of reading within and across high school years.  Even though our students were 5 years apart, common to their understanding is that reading is enjoyable and integral to their life.

Recently, a colleague suggested reading This is happiness, by Niall Williams, an historical fiction set in County of Kerry in Ireland. I won’t spoil this read for curious readers but the author’s use of words in describing the setting of Kerry are incredible. 

Some of our Year 12’s were invited to comment on reading and here is what they voiced: 

Indiana Weastell read Mrs Dalloway by Virginia Woolf for her Advanced English Course and The Perks of Being a Wallflower for enjoyment. She said, ‘Mrs Dalloway, for me, was a bit difficult to understand but it really challenged my reading and prepared me for the year ahead.’ 

Claudia Nelson said, ‘Throughout the school holidays I found myself engaging in reading poetry, ‘the caged bird. It was a beautiful poem to read as it provided a stress free ambiance which was what makes reading so significant to a high school student.’

Marcus read The Enigma of Room 622 ‘a thrilling tale of love and murder by Joel Dicher. Originally written in French, this text was translated into English and loves to confuse its reader with dual storylines and the appearance of the author as a character. All in all it was a terrific novel, simultaneously exciting and thought provoking.’

Charlie Roberts said ‘Reading is my way of expanding the world beyond its confines. The worlds created within books often reflect ourselves back at us and I believe this is a wonderful thing. I am a better person because of the stories that I have read and consumed.’ 

Charlie quoted Sarah J. Maas, in Empire of Storms “the world will be saved and remade by dreamers’We look forward to sharing more of our College’s reading journey into 2023. And welcome all to participate in the Premier’s Reader Challenge (PRC) which opens February 23. Our PRC Coordinator, Mrs Allina Gallagher resides in the library. Be sure to continue to share your reading experiences and views with others. As we are a reading College, we’ve included the Premier’s Reading Challenge as it’s a great way to keep everybody reading and sharing.

Mrs Joanne McMahon

Literacy Instructional Coach

MacBook Management & IT Support

Magdalene Catholic College operates a B.Y.O.D.D (Bring Your Own Designated Device) 1:1 Laptop program for years 7 - 12; this program requires every student to supply and manage his or her own Apple MacBook.  

Detailed information about the Colleges BYODD MacBook program can be found on our website. https://mccbyodd.dow.catholic.edu.au/home

Minimum Equipment Requirements

- The Apple 13-inch MacBook Air (256GB with M1 or M2 Chipset)

- A hard-sided sturdy carry case is highly recommended and is compulsory; soft sleeve cases and neoprene jackets are thin and do not provide any protection if the MacBook is dropped.

- MacBooks MUST always be carried in a case.

- NO CHARGERS are allowed at the College. There are multiple charging stations where students can charge their MacBooks if needed.

- Optional Portable USB Hard Drive minimum size 500GB (for backing up) or use College-issued Google File Stream to backup online.

- The Managed Software Centre MUST be installed on the MacBook

Managed Software Centre: MUST be installed on all MacBook.

To assist with the management of the MacBook, the College operates its own version of an App Store to install school-issued Apps safely and to keep applications up to date. This Application is called the "Managed Software Centre.”

The MSC MUST be installed on all MacBooks to access the College's secure WIFI network and install the software. 

To install the MSC on a new MacBook, follow the instructions on the College’s BYODD website.        https://mccbyodd.dow.catholic.edu.au/macbook-setup

If you have any problems installing the MSC at home, please take your MacBook to the Library or IT office and we will install it for you. 

Loan MacBooks

If you are experiencing any problems with your MacBook or the machine has been damaged and you require a loan, please complete the Digital Loan Request Form by clicking on the link below. Loans are strictly restricted to 2 weeks

https://mccbyodd.dow.catholic.edu.au/loan-request

Mr. Avalos

Leader of Learning: Educational Technologies

In recent VET News for 2023, I am very pleased to announce that our Year 12 student Ashley Olegario has been nominated twice for the Award of Work Placement Student of the Year for work placements undertaken during 2022 for VET studies in Business Services and Hospitality –Kitchen Operations. The nomination came from both employers impressed with her overall commitment and involvement during the work placements. 

A Nomination Certificate has been issued by MWLP in recognition of the great work Ashley has undertaken. In particular highlighting VET as a real opportunity for young people to shine.

 Well done Ashley, we are so very proud!

Miss Di-Filippo

Please find below some flyers for upcoming workshops with CatholicCare, and also the following program with Uniting SWS.

Tuning into Teens Program

This program is for Parents and Carers of nine to 18-year-olds learning to manage their own and their teen’s emotions in ways that support healthy communication and emotional intelligence.

The sessions will run on the following dates:

Wednesday 22nd February 2023 - Session One

Wednesday 1st March 2023- Session Two

Wednesday 8th March 2023- Session Three

Wednesday 15th March 2023- Session Four

Wednesday 22nd March 2023 - Session Five

Wednesday 29th March 2023 - Session Six

Session times will be from 6pm to 8pm. We ask that participants please arrive ten minutes prior to commencement so we are able to start on time to ensure we are able to deliver all the content. If you are unable to attend sessions, we ask also that you let either of the facilitators know.

Contact details for Natalie Roach is 0408689979 or natalie.roach@mfys.org.au and Larissa Emslie 0408 282421 or lemslie@uniting.org.

Uniting office Youth Services Conference room is where the sessions will be run and address is 6-8 Iolanthe Street Campbelltown (runs off Queen Street with The Cake Merchant and Avis Car and Truck rental on each corner of the street)

 As a participant you will be provided with all the required materials so no need to bring anything. Unfortunately, for the duration of this course we are unable to provide any child-minding facilities so respectfully ask that you do not bring children to these sessions.

We will be providing a light supper and tea and coffee during the sessions. Please let us know if you have any specific dietary requirements or allergies. If you have any mobility issues, please also make contact to let us know.

Please feel free to contact either of us if you have any questions.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

Upcoming Roster

Careers News

After working at Magdalene for over two decades Ms Carol Dobbie, who was both a Mathematics teacher and Careers Advisor has decided to leave Magdalene to take on other adventures. From 2023 I will take on this role. I will be located in the same Careers office in the library and I’m looking forward to supporting students in the area of Careers.

Mrs Dallene Jones

Thinking of doing Work Experience?

If you’ve been looking for work experience, you might be having some trouble knowing whether or not a placement is right for you. We’ve got some tips that can help you narrow down your options and make the right choice.

Think outside the box

You might already know exactly where you want to do your work experience. But sometimes it’s not always possible to get exactly what you want.

Say you’d like to work at a zoo one day, so you look for work experience at a zoo nearby, but their placements are all taken – or there are no zoos where you live. What next?

Well, you could always do a placement somewhere similar, where you’ll be doing similar tasks and gaining valuable skills. Think about other places you might be able to work with animals – at a local shelter, at a vet’s office, or even with animal management at the local council. Just because your dream option won’t work doesn’t mean there aren’t tons of other valuable opportunities out there.

In-person vs virtual

One thing you should consider when looking for work experience is whether you want to do your placement in-person or virtually. Both sides have their pros and cons, so here are some things to think about when making this choice:

• What’s available near me, and does this interest me?
• What do I want to get out of this work experience placement?
• Do I have a reliable way to get to and from an in-person placement?
• Do I have the appropriate hardware and software to do a virtual placement?

If you want to know more about virtual work experience, check out this blog we wrote! 

Do some research

Before you commit to a work experience placement, it’s always good if you can have a chat with your potential employer to get a feel for the place and what to expect.

Make sure you know exactly what is expected of you, such as what time you need to show up and what you need to wear or bring with you.

If a placement runs over a set date, make sure you can fully commit to it.

As a work experience student, you should never be expected to do work that a paid employee would be doing. Most of your day will involve shadowing, asking questions, or working on mock projects or exercises. If you have concerns, speak with a senior employee or manager, or get in touch with your school, and if you need to you can also contact the Fair Work Ombudsman by following the link below.

Mater Dei School is a coeducational setting in Camden for students from Kindergarten to Year 12 with a Mild to Moderate Intellectual Disability. The Mater Dei School Enrolment Open Day is coming up on Saturday 25^th February, and all are welcome to attend.

The Enrolment Open Day is a wonderful chance for families to visit Mater Dei School, tour the facilities including the Mater Dei Mini Woolworths store, and experience the broad range of opportunities that our Evidence and Research-based practices provide.

For more information, please visit https://www.materdei.org.au/enrolment/

All are welcome and no pre-registration is required. We hope to see you there!