As we start Catholic Care Family Week, having just celebrated Mother’s Day and in the spirit of our Franciscan value of fraternity - we recognise that our First Nations people fell in love on this land.
They had babies, and their babies learned to walk, talk, and play on these lands. They loved their families and mourned their loved ones. They were our first families. St Francis Catholic College commits itself to forming family-like, Franciscan communities, embracing our value of fraternity - just as the Wurundjeri people did in kinship.
St Francis believed the Holy Family of Nazareth was the model for Franciscan communities. Therefore, we draw from Mary, the soul of the family of Nazareth, as our inspiration for families.
Mary pondered things in her heart, spoke prophetically with words chosen wisely, and was receptive at every moment of her life.
At the wedding feast at Cana, she noticed an embarrassing lack of wine. She boldly approached Jesus and then engaged the servants to “do whatever he tells you.”
Modelling Mary’s solidarity with those in need, we, as teachers in a Franciscan school, give and receive freely each day with gratitude and openness to God's action, just like a family would.
Our welcoming Franciscan spirit signifies our trust in other people and our faith in God’s loving acceptance of us.
Franciscan fraternity is a way of life that should animate every word, thought, expression, and gesture.
So, God, we pray that our students feel a strong sense of family at this school.
A family made up of staff who are just what our students need.
If the students need someone to trust, let us be trustworthy.
If the students need sympathy, let us be sympathetic.
If the students need love, let us love in full measure.
When we stand before our students, God, may we look strong, good, honest and loving.
Help us to inspire the students so that learning will not cease at the classroom door.
Let the lessons they learn make their lives fruitful and happy.
And, God, let us bring the students to You as we work together to build a more fraternal world.
Amen
Rachel Prince
Director of Faith and Mission
From the Principal
Last Thursday evening, several of our staff attended the 2024 Women in Leadership Dinner. This year's speaker was Laura John. Laura is a human rights lawyer and advocate with experience in government, community legal centres, and the United Nations system. She currently defends the rights of migrants and refugees at the Human Rights Law Centre.
Notably, Laura credits her commitment to social justice and human rights to her Catholic education at Kilbreda College in Mentone.
Laura spoke about being a child of migrant families who grew up experiencing racism and stereotyping. Her key message to the dinner participants focused on using one's voice to advocate for justice and to speak up for those who do not have a voice. The opportunity to listen to such an inspiring young person motivates us as educators and instils great hope for the future.
Laura's commitment to social justice, which has extended far beyond her college days, reminds us as educators that it is often the hidden curriculum that students remember—not so much the theory of Pythagoras or the conjugated verbs but rather the values and attitudes learnt through the modelling of staff, the opportunities to undertake social justice activities, and the lessons taught in our religious education curriculum.
Mother’s Day Prayer Reflections and Breakfasts
Thank you to all the mothers, grandmothers and carers who attended our Mother’s Day Reflections and Breakfasts last week.
The event was very well attended at each campus and provided a wonderful opportunity to connect with fellow parents and guardians. Our students seemed very proud to have their families at school and enjoyed the delicious breakfast!
Thank you to our Director of Community Relations, Amy Rowley, and Director of Faith and Mission, Rachel Prince, for organising this special event.
Mother’s Day celebration at Cobblebank Campus
Mother’s Day celebration at Melton Campus
Marlene Jorgensen
Principal
Looking Ahead - Melton Campus Students
Dates to remember
Tuesday 14 May
Parents and Friends meeting (at Cobblebank Campus, 7pm)
Friday 24 May
Student Study at Home Day - Staff Professional Learning Day
Thursday 30 May
Year 12 and VCE Unit 3/4 Parent Student Teacher Interviews
From the Deputy Principal Student Wellbeing – Melton Campus
The Western Bulldogs Community Foundation delivers innovative and engaging programs and services for individuals and families.
It supports more than 3500 people in Melbourne’s western region so they can flourish in their lives, fulfil their potential, and thrive within their community.
The Leaders of the Pack Program strives to provide our students with various opportunities to engage them in their community and develop their leadership skills.
The students develop resilience, self-awareness, and social awareness, learn to lead others and understand the impact they will have on their local community once they have completed the program.
The program highlights the importance of inclusion by embracing and celebrating awareness of our multicultural, indigenous and all-abilities community.
Some of our students have committed to the 10-week Leaders of the Pack Program, through which they will learn about different education and employment pathways and participate in the Western Bulldogs sports program.
During the program, the students are also supported by SFCC staff members Abraham Jongroor and Carolyn Howard.
This week, students shared their thoughts on the Leaders of the Pack Program.
“I love the program. It provides so many different opportunities and exposes us to things we wouldn't normally get to experience. It's also a great environment, and good to work with a different group of people I don't usually work with.” Alannah, Year 10
Being a part of the Bulldogs program has been beneficial and very enjoyable. I’ve had so much fun meeting with the group and Jamal and Maggie every week. We have learned about a range of topics that have all been useful, for example, mental health and gender equity, and Victoria University has even spoken to us about pathways. Melton Young Communities also talked to us about what is available for teens in Melton. We have been given the opportunity to work in groups and have open discussions about our opinions and ideas, giving us a voice in the community.” Erin, Year 10
The program has been incredible. Every lesson involves discussions and engaging activities. The activities have helped develop my problem-solving skills and confidence. I've also connected with and learned more about my peers. We also had the opportunity to recently meet with some Victoria University student ambassadors, who provided us with information and insights into university life and career pathways. Avneet, Year 10
Cheryl Bullen
Deputy Principal Student Wellbeing - Melton Campus
Pre-Biology Classes in the Lumination Lab – Melton Campus
Our Year 10 Pre-Biology class recently spent a lesson in the new Lumination Lab, using virtual reality headsets to experience the organelles in a cell and complete a frog dissection.
For many students, this was their first experience with virtual reality. Learning how the technology works and navigating the experience was challenging but rewarding.
Here’s what our students thought:
“I loved finding the cell organelles and going into dimensions to learn more about healthy cells and cancer cells. We then explored the structure of the frog organs and how they function. I loved this experience in the Lumination Lab and am looking forward to the next one.” Daniel
“Instead of sitting down and writing notes, Ms Layton took us into the Lumination Lab and showed us the inside of a cell. This made learning Biology even more fun and exciting. Using the headsets, we saw the structure of a cell by going inside and moving around to different areas. There was information that explained what we were looking at. We could also dissect a frog – the lesson showed us where to cut and then explained which organs we were looking at.” Aiden
Melton Campus Badminton Champions
Congratulations to our Melton Campus Badminton team that brought home two grand final wins yesterday during the SACCSS Open Doubles Badminton Tournament at Eagle Stadium in Werribee.
Year 10 students Ashlynn and Sophia won first place in the Girls D division, while Findlay (Year 11) and Kevin (Year 12) were the Boys A division champions.
There were approximately 250 matches played across 28 courts in the round-robin competition.
Claudia Alp
Sports Coordinator
Faith and Mission Update
Thank you to all Melton and Cobblebank students and staff who supported the Faith and Mission Team’s recent fundraising activities for the Cure Brain Cancer Foundation.
The College raised more than $1700 for this worthy cause, including $915 at the Cobblebank Campus Athletics Carnival BBQ, $606 at last Thursday’s Melton Campus BBQ, and $210 at the Melton Athletics Carnival face-painting stall.
Well done to all involved.
Faith and Mission Team
Melton Campus Students Attend Youth Forum
Our Melton Campus students participated in the Melton Young Communities annual Youth Forum at Diggers Rest Community Pavilion last week.
They enjoyed rich discussions with their peers on issues that affect them and found the experience rewarding and relatable.
The issues discussed have inspired the students to be more optimistic about finding their voice and influencing positive action for the good of our community.
Year 10 student Erin shared this reflection of the day:
The 2024 Melton Youth Forum was such an amazing experience. We had the opportunity to be with new people to discuss pressing issues affecting teens and youth in Melton.
We started the day brainstorming ideas and chose three topics: youth violence, mental health, and public safety.
We discussed each issue and how it affected us, then came up with ideas on how to fix or change the situation and how we could put these into action.
We spent some of our time playing games and getting to know other people on our table, sharing stories relevant to the topics.
This forum was an enlightening experience. It was moving to see how passionate other teens were about these issues, and it made us optimistic about our future leaders.
Successful Maker’s Market – Melton Campus
Our Melton Campus VCE VM and VPC students hosted an incredibly successful Maker’s Market last Friday, surpassing all expectations and raising more than $1800! This achievement is a testament to their hard work and the support of our community.
There were queues out the G Block entrance as students and staff lined up during the big break to purchase quality handmade items for themselves or someone special on Mother’s Day.
Students spent many weeks hand-making and packaging all the items for sale. On market day, a classroom was transformed into a gift emporium featuring a popular hot chocolate stall and coffee cart.
Thank you to everyone who encouraged our students, supported their journey and purchased their products. The experience developed their business, planning, marketing and teamwork skills in a practical and meaningful way.
The funds raised will be used to purchase a new BBQ for the College and equipment for the VCE VM and VPC program.
Narelle Layton
Applied Learning Leader
VCE Drama Performance – Melton Campus
Our Melton Campus VCE Drama class has been working hard to develop two ensemble pieces based on the theme of illness. They will perform these on Tuesday 28 May.
Families are invited to the Performing Arts Centre from 6.30pm to watch our students debut their works.
We advise that the performances deal with sensitive topics such as mental health and wellbeing and suggest that audience members be 15 years or older.
Natalie Saunders
Dram teacher
Year 8 Fibre Display – Cobblebank Campus
Our Year 8 Cobblebank students have done fantastic work creating tote bags in their Design Technology Fibre classes.
Students were tasked with creating a practical design that could be sold alongside reusable bags in supermarkets.
They skillfully sewed the bags using calico and designed the artwork, resulting in a wonderful display in our art room.
This project was a great learning experience about sustainable materials and designing for a cause.
Natalie Malle
Teacher
Canteen Update – Melton Campus
Students are reminded that lunch service is at 11.25 am, and any extra lunch items will be served during the first break (Big Break). Some smaller hot items will be available during the second break (Short Break). Preorders take priority and will be served first.
We accept cash, card or contactless payments. Phone payments are not accepted after the first school bell.
Online lunches can be ordered via the Flexischools app. Download the app from the Apple
or Google
stores and follow the prompts to create an account. Once set up, click Order Food to see the online menu, place your order, and pay.
Flexischool orders can be placed at any time (up until 8.45am on the day you require your order).
SFCC Canteen
Canteen Update - Cobblebank Campus
From this week, the Cobblebank Campus Canteen will only open during Big Break.
Please remember we can only accept cashless payments due to facility constraints.
To assist individuals without a keycard, we have provided the option to purchase vouchers worth $5 or $10 through the Flexischool app. Vouchers can be used to buy any item from the Canteen, do not need to be used in one transaction, and do not have an expiration date.
Online lunches can be ordered via the Flexischools app. Download the app from the Apple
or Google
stores and follow the prompts to create an account. Once set up, click Order Food to see the online menu, place your order, and pay.
Flexischool orders can be placed at any time (up until 8.45am on the day you require your order).
Preorders take priority at the beginning of the first break and will be served first.
SFCC Canteen
Sports Update
Melton Campus
SACCSS Senior Competition AFL – Round 2
Team
Result
SFCC Ladder position
Senior AFL Boys
Penola Catholic College 101 d SFCC 60
5
SACCSS Year 7 Premier League Competition – Round 2
Team
Result
SFCC Ladder position
Boys Basketball
St Monica’s College 51 d SFCC 28
5
Girls Basketball
St Monica’s College 45 d SFCC 20
4
Boys Volleyball
SFCC 2 d St Monica’s College 1
2
Girls Volleyball
St Monica’s College 3 d SFCC 0
8
Netball
SFCC 18 d St Monica’s College 10
2
AFL
St Monica’s College 74 d SFCC 49
4
Football
St Monica’s College 9 d SFCC 0
7
Cobblebank Campus
SACCSS Year 7 Premier League Competition – Round 2
Team
Result
SFCC Ladder position
Boys Basketball
Kolbe Catholic College 65 d SFCC 13
5
Girls Basketball
Kolbe Catholic College 27 d SFCC 23
6
Boys Volleyball
SFCC 3 d CRC Caroline Springs 0
3
Girls Volleyball
SFC 2 d CRC Caroline Springs 1
3
Netball
SFCC 31 d Kolbe Catholic College 10
2
AFL
SFCC 75 d Kolbe Catholic College 13
1
Football
SFCC 1 d Kolbe Catholic College 0
1
Jessica Hodge and Sophie Cryan
Sports Assistants
Parent Webinars
Community Notices
Goal Mentoring Program
Bounce Back Program
School Crossing Supervisor of the Year
Nominations are now open for the School Crossing Supervisor of the Year Award.
The biennial award acknowledges the dedication of school crossing supervisors who contribute to the safe journey of students to and from school throughout Victoria.
Click here for more information and to nominate your local crossing supervisor.
Soup Van volunteers wanted
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