School visit from Bishop Mark Edwards

Bishop Mark Edwards visited the school on Tuesday morning as part of his schedule visiting Parishes, Primary schools and Regional Colleges. Bishop Mark is the Regional Bishop of the Western region and the President of the Canonical Administrators of Catholic Regional College, Melton. Bishop Mark chairs our CRC Federation Council meetings and works closely with Fr Maurie Cooney whom he delegates many of the day to day duties of the CRC role.

Bishop Mark was escorted on a school tour by College Captains Evana Miesen and Dylan Hassan, and then addressed our Year 12 students during period one.

Pictured below is Bishop Mark with myself, Rebecca Cassar and Student Leaders, Ann Praveen-John, Swen Anthony, Ivana Meisen, Dylan Hassan and Luke Heaney.

Parents and Friends office bearers for 2019 are Jenny Machado (President) and Jane Seymour (Secretary).

Child Safety

At CRC, we are committed to being a nurturing, child-safe school where children and young people are respected, their voices are heard and where they are safe and feel safe. Our commitment and responsibility to child safety is driven by Jesus Christ’s message of hope, love and care for all. Listed below are several strategies currently in place in our school designed to keep students safe and to effect positive student learning.

Examples of our school’s child safety work include:

• Example 1

All visitors must register with the front office before having access to the school grounds.

• Example 2

All teaching staff have recently completed The Protecting Children - Mandatory and other Reporting Obligations eLearning module.

All mandatory reporters must make a report to Victoria Police and/or DHHS Child Protection as soon as practicable if, during the course of carrying out their professional roles and responsibilities, they form a belief on reasonable grounds that: a child has suffered, or is likely to suffer, significant harm as a result of physical abuse and/or sexual abuse, and the child’s parents have not protected, or are unlikely to protect, the child from harm of that type.

I trust you will agree that we have undertaken much work in this space, and our school continues to reflect, review and improve our child safety strategies. Wellbeing and child safety is everyone’s responsibility. As always, we welcome your comments and would be happy to discuss any ideas or concern.

A full complement of the school’s child safety policies are on the school’s website.

School Photos

School photos are scheduled for the 30th of April. All students are to be in full winter uniform for the photos. If anyone needs to purchase winter uniform, extended hours during the holiday period have been organised.

As was the case last year ordering of photos is online, http://www.arphotos.com.au/. Individual class and family photos will be taken on the day. Details as to how to order photos will be given to students before the end of this term.

There is a range of extra products available online only.

A range of payment options are available online, including ZipPay, so you can order now and pay later!

School Uniform - Term 2

Students are required to be wear their winter uniform from the start of Term 2. The requirements are set out below. It is clearly stated the College Blazer is the external garment to be worn to and from school. Excuses of leaving the blazer at home or in the locker will not be accepted.

Girls

• Blazer - compulsory, required external garment worn to and from school
• Winter Kilt - CRC tartan (length to knees)
• Tailored Slacks - CRC slacks
• Shirt - white long sleeve shirt with CRC monogram
• Jumper - can only be worn to and from the College if under the Blazer
• Tie - compulsory
• Tights - navy blue
• Socks - long navy blue
• Shoes - black leather lace up school shoes

Boys

• Blazer - compulsory, required external garment worn to and from school
• Trousers - navy blue with CRC monogram
• Shirt - white long sleeve shirt with CRC monogram
• Jumper - can only be worn to and from the College if under the Blazer
• Tie - compulsory
• Socks - navy blue
• Shoes - black leather lace up school shoes

The PE uniform is only worn when the student has a timetabled PE or Drama/Dance class, or when otherwise specified by the College Leadership team. The winter PE uniform requires the wearing of the College rugby top or sports jacket as the external garment to school. CRC sport socks are compulsory for all year levels.

We look for your support in ensuring your child is wearing the College uniform correctly at all times.

Holiday Uniform Shop Hours

Melton Tuesday 16th April at 11am to 3pm

Sydenham Monday 15th April at 1pm - 5pm

Thursday 18th April at 8am - 11am

Saturday 20th April at 9am - 12pm

Thomastown Monday - Friday at 9am - 5pm and Saturday 9am - 12pm

As this is our last Newsletter for the term, I would like to wish all families a safe and restful Easter break. Students have experienced many opportunities for learning and other experiences including Camps, Sports days and excursions.

Term 1 Reports and Parent Student Teacher Interviews

Interim Reports and Parent Student Teacher Interview bookings are made via the Parent Portal. If you have any difficulty accessing the Portal, please contact the College office or email itsupport@sfcc.vic.edu.au.

Parent Student Teacher Interviews will be held on:

• Tuesday, 2nd April Interviews: 4:00pm-7:00pm
• Thursday, 4th April Interviews: 4:00pm-8:30pm

It is expected that students attend interviews with their parents/guardians.

To access P-S-T Bookings:

• Log in to PAM
• At the top you will see the Parent Interviews link (click to enter)
• Then select your child (if you have more than one, each will be listed separately)
• Select the subject
• Choose an available time with that teacher
• Repeat for each class and child as needed
• Use the print icon to print off interview times

Bookings for Tuesday evening are now closed. Bookings will open Wednesday morning until Thursday noon for Thursday evening appointments.

SACCSS Swimming Report

On Tuesday 26th March, 25 students competed in the SACCSS swimming competition at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre. The students swam very well throughout the day. A special mention to our younger swimmers who swam in higher age groups and a big thank you to our senior swimmers who led the team.

Congratulations to Alannah Morrow who won senior age group champion. Alannah came first in every event she entered.

James Morrow also won age group champion for the 15 year olds, an amazing effort by both the Morrows.

And a very special acknowledgement to Jack O'Rourke who helped CRC Sydenham multiclass swimmer Marcus who has cerebral palsy, get to the end of his race. We received this note from Annika Miesen, Head of Sport at CRC Sydenham:

"It was really huge for our multiclass student Marcus to compete in his two events today. Jack, your student, showed support and encouragement that went beyond any expectations. In both of Marcus’ races Jack walked alongside the pool deck and encouraged Marcus for the entire length of his races. In addition to this, at a moment where Marcus was getting visibly tired Jack jumped in the pool and swam alongside him to the very end. This act was on Jack’s own behalf, and it was incredible (I wish I had more adjectives to describe it). It was possibly the truest, most raw demonstration of sportsmanship many have seen. It was heart-warming to watch one young person from a different school truly support another young person. I think it is also something as a CRC Federation that we can be proud of. At the end of the day, it’s moments like these that epitomize what school sport is about and make it such a meaningful experience."

Our aggregate results for the day included intermediate Boys, Senior Girls and overall senior aggregate champions.

Jordyn Syme

Head of Sport

Please note the Library will be open 15-17th April, 9am – 3pm over the school holidays.

You May Already Be a Winner, By Ann Dee Ellis

Twelve-year-old Olivia Hales has a foolproof plan for winning a million dollars so that she and her little sister, Berkeley, can leave behind Sunny Pines Trailer Park. The plan includes everything from designing a preschool curriculum for her sister since neither of them goes to school, fixing the swamp cooler and making dinner each night because their mum’s too busy, writing letters to her dad even though he hasn’t written back yet, and entering a minimum of fourteen sweepstakes a day. Although Olivia is being so brave and so strong, there’s one person she’s forgetting who needs to be taken care of too: herself. But who is going to do that? Luckily, somewhere deep down between her small intestine and stomach is a little pocket with a tiny voice reminding her that sometimes people can surprise you. Even the ones at dumb-bum Sunny Pines.

Fing, By David Walliams, Tony Ross (Illustrator)

Meet the Meeks! Myrtle Meek has everything she could possibly want. But everything isn’t enough. She wants more, more, more! When Myrtle declares she wants a FING, there’s only one problem… What is a FING? Mr and Mrs Meek will do anything to keep their darling daughter happy, even visit the spooky library vaults to delve into the dusty pages of the mysterious Monsterpedia. Their desperate quest leads to the depths of the jungliest jungle where the rarest creatures can be found. But will they ever find a FING? An explosively funny, totally surreal Tall Story about two perfectly nice parents and their unbelievably monstrous daughter from the phenomenal bestselling author David Walliams and illustrated by artistic genius, Tony Ross.

Can you help us? In preparation for the celebration of the College’s 40th Anniversary in 2020 we are seeking help from the broader community of ex-students, staff and parents. Part of our celebrations will involve documenting our school history to preserve it for the future and we are currently archiving photographs and artefacts important to understanding the story of the College. If you have stories you’d like to tell, or artefacts you’d consider sharing from your time here, we’d love to hear from you! It could be anything – photographs, reports, school assignments with comments from teachers, newsletters, newspaper clippings. Anything that you feel helps to paint a picture of the life of the College over the years would be gratefully accepted, carefully documented and returned. If you think you might be able to help, or have a story to tell, please get in touch with Kezi Todd via email at ktodd@sfcc.vic.edu.au.

Kezi Todd

Teacher

Thank you to families who donated food to our local Melton Food Bank. The College was overwhelmed with such a generous response.

CRC Sydenham restaurant Quatrefoils is open for bookings between 6pm & 7.30pm. 3 course dinner $35 or 2 course $25.

See attached flyer for more information.

In the lead up to the Federal election, Melton City Council is embarking on an important advocacy campaign calling on the Australian Government to upgrade the Western Highway to an urban freeway standard within the City of Melton.

Around 60,000 vehicles use the highway every day, with this figure expected to increase to 113,000 by 2031. In its current condition, the highway won’t cope with this increase in traffic, and needs urgent upgrades to meet the demands of this projected growth. Upgrades would include the construction of interchanges at Bulmans and Mt. Cottrell Roads, and a pedestrian overpass at Arnolds Creek. Additionally, the project will include road improvement works and the removal of at-grade infrastructure, like bus stops and driveways, between Deer Park and Melton West. Future planning will include additional lanes, an interchange at Harkness Road and an overpass at Paynes Road. These works will improve commuter safety, reduce congestion, and prevent the highway from becoming gridlocked in the next 20 years.

The upgrade will also positively impact the lives of tens of thousands of residents who will spend less time stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, and more quality time with their families and friends.

Melton City Council is seeking your support to encourage community members to sign our online petition at //catchup.org.au/melton and get behind this campaign before the election, which is likely to take place in May.

If you require further information, please contact me at your convenience.

Sally Edwards

Lifelong Learning Officer | Melton City Council

Melton City Council

With Term 1 coming to a close, Melton City Council have a wide range of FREE activities for young people aged 12-25 years these April school holidays!

Registrations are essential and can be made at either Melton Youth Centre or Taylors Hill Youth and Community Centre.

Free activities on offer include boxing, cooking, 3v3 Basketball, Pool Party and Werribee Zoo!

For more information, please contact 9747 5423.

Thank you for supporting Melton Young Communities.

5km Fun Run

Join in the City of Melton’s 5km Fun run/walk around the Toolern Creek Trail. With all proceeds going to Hope Street, a crisis accommodation facility in Melton for young people experiencing homelessness. See attached flyer for more information.

Artists Collective of Melton Inc.

Artists Collective of Melton Inc. will be holding a number of workshops over the Autumn holidays. See attached flyer for more information.