Term 1 Week 8 - 28 March 2025

Presently the parish priest of the Macleay Valley Catholic Parish, Fr James, is taking a very well deserved break. The parish has welcomed Fr Pius Jones during this time. Fr Pius has been very active with St Paul’s celebrating Mass at 8.30am each Tuesday for the staff and community members as well as his upcoming support of the College during the Easter Liturgy.

Celebrating Mass together at 8.30am on a Tuesday morning is a very special start to the day for staff who have a busy day ahead. The clock is ticking down towards the first interactions with students at 9.00am which then continues throughout the day with a direct teaching experience or providing advice to fellow staff, students or families until the 3.30pm bell sounds, many staff continue to work well after this time at school in preparation for the next days experience.

Fr Pius spoke during his Sunday homily of the parable of the fig tree that had not borne fruit for three years, the gardener had faith that the fig tree would bear fruit with ongoing care. “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’’. These sentiments ring true in schools, no one is perfect yet there is a recognition of potential supporting growth to occur. During my first Term as College Principal, I continue to experience so many circumstances where our staff are working with students and families together to support student growth, just as the patient gardener from the Gospel. When we all work together many things can be achieved, this continues to sum up what St Paul’s College and its motto proclaims: “Let your light shine”.

Long Service Leave 
Prior to my appointment as St Paul’s College Principal in 2025, I had sought and confirmed Long Service Leave with the DLCS from 7 April to 22 May. As such, I am very pleased to write to you to confirm the announcements of Mrs Kate Fullbrook as Acting Principal and Mrs Amy Tovey as Acting Assistant Principal- Learning & Teaching during my leave. Kate and Amy are outstanding leaders who I warmly congratulate to their new appointments, there will also be further leadership announcements as their roles are filled within our College staff.

St Paul’s College School Community Forum
The nature of school Parents & Friends committees has changed recently into a new format and the first meeting of the newly formed St Paul’s College School Community Forum will take place in the Mercy Centre on Wednesday 9 April beginning at 5.30pm. The College has been tremendously supported by the P&F Committee for many years, and our newly formed SPCSCF executive is looking forward to opportunities for parents to work closely with the school as a committee and determine meaningful ways of support. One of the features of this meeting will be the final review of fabric and style of proposed changes to the 2026 College uniform, all parents and friends are very welcome to attend the meeting during this new and exiting phase for our St Paul’s parent group.

2026 Enrolment Period
St Paul's has begun the 2026 enrolment period with significant numbers for 2026 enrolment already received. The enrolment period will close on Saturday 31 May, the school will then begin the significant organisation of interviews beginning in Term 2. The College has been over subscribed with enrolment applications across the past four years into Year 7, if you wish to enol at St Paul’s for 2026 please meet the agreed published deadlines or your application will not be considered immediately.

Kind regards

Mr Geoff Melville  BRurScEd, MEd, GCertRE

Principal

kmps@lism.catholic.edu.au

St Paul's Parents and Families (P & F) Association has proposed a motion to adopt a new name and constitution. The P & F will be known as the St Paul's College School Community Forum. The proposed constitution of the School Community Forum can be found below.

Year 12 Assessments
Congratulations to the Year 12 students for undertaking their assessments this week. Attendance was excellent and the students really tried their best. Well done Year 12. The feedback from these tasks will be valuable as you move forward with your HSC course. Only 202 days until your HSC exams begin!

Year 11 Assessment Block
Weeks 9 and 10 see the Year 11 students undertaking their first Stage 6 assessments. Please make sure all are in attendance throughout this period and remember that a doctors certificate, or a telehealth certificate from a doctor must be provided if students are absent. Best of luck to Year 11!

NAPLAN
A huge thank you to Mrs Jo Day for all of her work administering the NAPLAN exams and to Mr Roger Shipton for his support. Thank you to the parents who ensured their children had headphones for the period, we appreciate your support. The valuable data collected by NAPLAN ensures we know what we need to be doing as a school to move students forward.

Reading Intervention
Thank you to those parents who have supported our reading intervention program that has commenced this Term. Our teachers Ms Deb Vermunt and Mrs Krystal Brady are highly qualified and competent literacy specialists who have engaged 55 students from Year 7 and 8 in this valuable program. We know how critical the skills of reading are for students to have in life.

“...reading competence is foundational, not only for school based learning, but also for children’s behavioural and psychosocial wellbeing, further education and training, occupational success, productive and fulfilling participation in social and economic activity, as well as for the nation’s social and economic future.”
Teaching Reading Australian Government Department of Education

Atomi
Congratulations to Parvathy Jayakumar and Luana Silk for being the highest Atomi users over the last two weeks. A canteen voucher will be gifted to you! Year 11 and 12 students should be using Atomi for revision and to boost their confidence in the lead up to assessments. Well done Parvathy and Luana!

Please reach out if you have any questions about the learning for your students.


Ms Kate Fullbrook - Assistant Principal - Learning and Teaching

kate.fullbrook@lism.catholic.edu.au

St Paul's Year Seven and Year Nine students have been sitting the NAPLAN assessments and once again the sleeping beast of Why NAPLAN? has awoken. While the College has no control on the delivery or content of the assessments it does make the most of the data that is fed back. The following are some of the ways being NAPLAN-informed assists us as educators:

• Indicates general performance level regarding competency in Literacy and Numeracy. While NAPLAN is not particularly useful as a diagnostic tool, it can indicate students who may be 'slipping through the gaps'.
• Indicates growth from Year 7 to 9 which is a direct reflection of our teaching practice in the classroom in all subject areas.
• Indicates areas of weakness and strength that inform our staff professional learning.
• Allows comparison to trends of other colleges in our diocese and state/national schools.
• Indicates aptitude for performance in senior elective courses.
• Indicates a trend for individual students regarding achievement and/or application.
• Invites parents into the conversation about levels of achievement.

While NAPLAN is not a choice for schools, it is important that our students achieve their best and understand that it allows opportunities to create better classrooms.

amy.tovey@lism.catholic.edu.au

Families are asked to ensure that their child/ren are equipped throughout the school year with the listed equipment. 

Required equipment lists for students in 2025 can be found here:

• Year 7 and 8 Compulsory Equipment
• Year 9 and 10 Compulsory Equipment
• Year 11 and 12 Compulsory Equipment

The required equipment lists are also available via Parent Resources in Compass School Documentation.

This week, we welcome Kieran Reilly to our staff. He is replacing Linda Pogson, who will be on leave in 2025. Kieran is a proud Dunghutti man who will be working with a range of students, particularly our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students.

In previous newsletters, I have been writing about the Year of Jubilee - Hope, called by Pope Francis. We have looked at why and the meaning of the Jubilee year. This week the focus will be on the motto used. In choosing the motto ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ for the Jubilee, Pope Francis noted that "We must fan the flame of hope that has been given to us and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision. The forthcoming Jubilee can contribute greatly to restoring a climate of hope and trust as a prelude to the renewal and rebirth we greatly desire". This is a great time, particularly during Lent, to take time and look at ways we can help and support each other.

We need to find ways to be a little kinder to each other. One way is the way we communicate with each other. In the encyclical (Pastoral Letter from the Pope to his people) Fratelli Tutti, Pope Francis writes that kindness is an “attitude that is gentle, pleasant and supportive, not rude or coarse.” This might seem a bit shallow in the grand scheme of things. Of course, we should be kind! What is remarkable is how many people aren’t kind when they are on social media. We are probably all guilty of this, and we can see that the small decisions we make to interact without kindness can have a significant impact. Shifting to a kinder way of communicating would dramatically improve everyone’s experience on social media if more people practised kindness in their tweets, posts, and comments. (Some content sourced from Daniel Amiri)

Millennials on the way to Sainthood
Sister Clare Crockett was a young woman who left a promising career in movies and television to dedicate herself to God as a religious in the Servant Sisters of the Home of the Mother.

Clare was born in Derry, Northern Ireland, in 1982, and although she seemed to be heading toward a life in the arts, an encounter with Christ during a retreat changed her destiny. She felt God’s call, entering the congregation in 2001, and took her perpetual vows in 2010. A joyful spirit marked her life, a total dedication to others, and a testimony of faith that impacted many. She died on 16 April 2016, during an earthquake in Ecuador while helping her students at a community school in Playa Prieta.

Sister Clare Crockett. Credit: Photo courtesy of Servants of the Home of the Mother

Following the 2023 granting of the “nihil obstat” by the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, the diocesan phase of the cause for her beatification was officially opened on 12 January 2025, in Alcalá de Henares, Spain. Since her passing, numerous testimonies have reported graces and conversions attributed to her intercession, including religious vocations and possible miracles. The ecclesiastical tribunal is now investigating her life and heroic virtues, a key step on the path to her possible beatification. (Source: Catholic Telegraph)

Mrs Lesa Morrison - Assistant Principal - Mission 

lesa.morrison@lism.catholic.edu.au

LEAD
Fifteen St Paul's senior students attended the Lismore Diocese LEAD conference in Grafton last week where they joined 270 students from other parts of the diocese.

LEAD is run to help equip and empower students who wish to be involved in school leadership and senior ministry. The event is run by the DLCS (Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools) Evangelisation Team with assistance from College Youth Ministers and is geared towards equipping the students for ministry in their schools by nurturing their own faith and developing them into supporting communities.

During the conference the students had the chance to listen to testimonies and keynote speakers regarding Christian leadership, attend workshops, play some games and participate in praise and worship with Proclaim Lismore Wildfire and in Mass before heading home.

Mr Adam Clay - Leader of School Evangelisation

adam.clay@lism.catholic.edu.au

With Easter fast approaching, I acknowledge any extra prayer or acts of service from members of our community throughout Lent. May we celebrate the ultimate sacrifice shown by Jesus Christ as He took our sins to the cross on Good Friday, then defeated death and sin on Easter Sunday.

I pray that the Easter weekend is full of quality time with friends, family, and Christ. Please see below for the Easter Mass times in the Macleay and Nambucca valleys.

God Bless

Mr Brendan Goswell - Leader of Catechesis

brendan.goswell@lism.catholic.edu.au

Navigating Digital Dangers
As digital technology continues to advance, it brings new opportunities and significant challenges for young people. One growing concern is the sharing of inappropriate images, which can have far-reaching and serious consequences, both legally and emotionally. This behaviour not only breaches personal privacy but can also lead to cyberbullying, harassment, and even criminal charges.

We encourage you to engage in open, supportive discussions with your young person about respecting themselves and others online. Help them understand the potential outcomes of their digital actions and reassure them that it’s okay to ask for help if they ever feel pressured or uneasy.

One particularly troubling issue is sexual extortion, or "sextortion," a form of online blackmail. This can occur across various platforms, including social media, messaging apps, and live-streaming services. Offenders may exploit these platforms to manipulate young people into sharing intimate images or videos, which are then used to demand more content, money, or other favours.

These questions can help create an open dialogue, encourage critical thinking, and reassure young people that they can turn to their parents for support:

• ‘Have you ever heard of the term sextortion? What do you think it means?’
  
• ‘If someone online ever made you feel uncomfortable or pressured you to share something, how do you think you’d respond? Do you know who you could talk to for help?’
• ‘Why do you think some people use the internet to exploit others? What can we do to protect ourselves from that?’
• ‘What would you do if a friend told you they were being blackmailed online?’
• ‘Let’s talk about why it’s important to never give in to pressure to share private content, even if someone threatens or promises something in return.’
• ‘How can we make sure the people we interact with online are trustworthy?’
• ‘If someone you don’t know tried to contact you online, what steps would you take to stay safe?’

Helpful Advice for Parents from Think U Know
If your young person experiences sextortion:

• Document Evidence: Take screenshots to preserve a record of any communications.
• Cut Off Contact: Cease all communication with the perpetrator and block them.
• Report the Incident: If you’re under 18, the best way to get help is to report it to the Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation (ACCCE).
• Over 18s - You can report to Report Cyber. If you've reported to the platform/app/site and the platform doesn't help, you can also report to eSafety.
• Or visit your local Police Station with the information, and they can support you.
• For urgent situations, call Triple Zero (000).

Communicate with the College about what has occurred so they can support your young person with any challenges at school.

For more information, please follow the links below:
Think U Know
Kids Helpline - Sextortion

Mrs Krystal Brady - Leader of Pastoral Care

krystal.brady@lism.catholic.edu.au

NSW Schools Mountain Bike (MTB) Series
I wanted to take a moment to highlight the fantastic participation of selected students at the recent local NSW Schools MTB event. Their enthusiasm and dedication was evident and it was great to see them engaging in both the competitive and recreational aspects of the sport.

Perry Kennedy placed second in his U15's age group on Friday 21 March in the MTB Series, placing first on Saturday in his local club event. Tjala Rosenstein placed third in his age group against a very competitive U19's field in the MTB Series. Hudson Gidzala and Noah Bailey also competed. The event gave our students an excellent opportunity to challenge themselves and connect with the other 160 students who share the same passion for mountain biking. Thank you to Mr Michael Crummy who prepared this report. We wish all the students the best of luck in the rounds that follow.

Diocesan Netball Trials
Congratulations to Year 9 students, Lakyah Bell and Amelia Wilson, who have been selected to trial for the Diocesan U15 Girls Netball team on Friday 4 April. This is a very competitive process and we wish the girls luck in their pursuit of a place in the Diocesan Netball squad.

College Cross Country
Depending on venue availability the College Cross Country will be run on Tuesday 8th April (Week 10) and students will need to nominate to participate in this event. A google form has been opened to collect these Nominations and will close on Wednesday 3rd April. The Cross Country will be run on the Cinder Track at Verge Street Sporting Complex.


Mr Leon Robinson - Teacher and Sports Coordinator

leon.robinson@lism.catholic.edu.au

Mrs Patrice Martin, Mrs Cathy Whalen & Mrs Jennifer Anttilla - Library Assistants

Did you know that 6 in 10 Australians don’t fully understand how school funding works? Catholic Schools NSW has launched the Keep School Funding Fair campaign to ensure families have access to clear and accurate information.

Our schools play a vital role in providing high-quality education while keeping costs affordable for families. A fair, means-tested funding model ensures all students are supported, no matter their background.

Read the Catholic Schools NSW media release below to learn more, and visit keepfundingfair.org.au to watch the explainer video and take action.

St Paul's is proud to offer senior students the opportunity to complete an SBAT (School-Based Apprenticeship and Traineeship) while completing their HSC. The College currently has nine senior students who are completing an SBAT and eight students who have commenced a Full Time Apprenticeship/Traineeship. We wish them all the very best in their studies.

School-Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships

Full Time Apprenticeships/Traineeships

Mrs Tess Meehan - Careers Advisor

Students and staff from St Paul's will be participating in ANZAC Day marches and wreath laying services held at Kempsey, South West Rocks, Macksville and Crescent Head on Friday 25 April. All are very welcome to join us on the day. More details will be communicated towards the end of Term.

Students, staff and families are also invited to attend the ANZAC Day Mass at All Saints Catholic Church, Kempsey at 9am on Friday 25 April.

The College Office has a large number of lost uniform items that remain unclaimed. Parents/carers are asked to please ensure their child's uniform, such as hoodies and hats, are all clearly labelled to ensure that lost items may be easily returned to their owners.

St Paul's Year 10 and 11 Drama students will be competing in the annual Shakespeare Carnival which is a state wide competition focusing on Shakespeare. Students will compete in the categories of Duologue, Ensemble Scene and Group Devised. All are warmly invited to be entertained and captivated by the exceptional performances held on Thursday 10 April at 5:30pm in the Edmund Rice Centre. No RSVP required.

All current and previous students, staff and family are invited to save the date to join St Paul's 60th anniversary celebrations on Sunday 5 October 2025.
Mass will be held at 9:30am in the Mercy Centre at St Paul's College, followed by a BBQ picnic. More details to follow closer to the date.

NSW Health School Vaccination Program 2025
Each year, St Paul's College provides the venue for NSW Health to conduct the NSW Schools Vaccination Program for our students. Register online (see below) or contact the College kmps@lism.catholic.edu.au to request a paper form.

Online consent for school vaccinations
If your child is in Year 7 or Year 10 this year, you can now provide online consent for their routine school vaccinations.

⦁ Year 7 students are offered free vaccines for diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (Boostrix) and human papillomavirus (HPV).
⦁ Year 10 students are offered a free vaccine for meningococcal ACWY.

Please note - Year 8 and Year 11 students who have an online consent/signed consent form from 2024, will be offered catch up vaccinations in 2025.

If parents/guardians consent online they will receive a reminder text 3 days prior to the clinic date.

Vaccination will only be provided at school if consent has been received.

Vaccination Program Dates for 2025:

Term 2 – Thursday 8 May

⦁ Year 10 (Meningococcal ACWY)
⦁ Year 11 & 12 (Meningococcal ACWY) - (Catch up)
⦁ Year 7, 8 & 9 HPV (Human papillomavirus) and Boostrix (diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis) - (Catch up)

Term 4 – Tuesday 21 October

⦁ Catch up clinic if required

To provide consent for vaccination online, parents/carers will need to:
⦁ Visit the online consent portal here.
⦁ Follow the steps to log in to your existing Service NSW account. This is the same account you may already use to renew your driver's licence. If you don't have a Service NSW account, refer to Service NSW to create one.
⦁ Enter Medicare details for yourself and your child and provide consent.
⦁ If you consent online, you will receive a reminder text 3 days prior to the clinic date.
⦁ Read a step-by-step guide on how to provide consent online. Translated guides are available online.
⦁ If you or your child do not have a Medicare card or you cannot provide consent online, please email the College Office kmps@lism.catholic.edu.au to request a paper consent form to be sent home.

Please ensure your child has eaten breakfast on the morning of the clinic, this helps prevent fainting.

The benefits of providing consent online:
⦁ easily update your child's details.
⦁ receive SMS and/or email notifications when vaccinations are given.
⦁ faster upload of vaccination records to the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR).
For more information on routine school vaccinations, please visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/schoolvaccination. If you have any questions regarding your child's school vaccinations, please contact the NSW Public Health Unit on 1300 066 055.

The I AM A GIRL Program is supported by the NSW Government's Strategic Focus on women and girls in sport. Come and try basketball, in a fun, safe environment just for girls!

You'll enjoy fun games while developing fundamental and basketball movements. Boost your confidence, spark your imagination, and enjoy being active. Don't miss out - bring a friend for double the fun. Register now and receive a FREE T-SHIRT!!