Term 1 Week 4

Dear Parent/Carer

‘A good person out of the store of goodness in his heart produces good……; for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.”

Luke 6: 39-45

We are now a month into the 2022 academic year and it appears to have flown by! Our new students appear to have settled in well and our senior students are preparing for assessment items that will be due over the next few weeks.

It has been a very busy start to the term. I wish to thank families for their support as we continue to reinforce consistency with uniform, engagement in class activities and correct jewellery and appropriate hair styles.

Standards are important and the College wishes to work with students and their families in supporting these. These issues matter at St Paul’s and College staff will continue to work in assisting students to do what is required across the school day.

We had our Year 12 Retreat last week. This was an opportunity for Year 12 to step away from their studies and reflect on their personal journey with God and reflect on the year ahead and their future. I thank Mr Will Pollock and the Year 12 Pastoral Care team for their organisation and attendance across the three days away. It appeared to have been a very worthwhile experience.

Over the next few weeks we will be meeting with our student leaders across the College to determine goals and related actions for the school community. This will involve the:

College Leadership Team
College Team Spirit Leaders
College Student Voice Leaders
Student Representative Council
Reconciliation and Inclusion Group

We are very fortunate to have such a dynamic and capable group of students who will lead the College across 2022!

Across the next few weeks the College will be commencing a FAMILY CONNECT SERVICE. This is a service aimed at providing support for families experiencing significant challenges in their daily lives. Further information will be provided around this service shortly. It is a tremendous service that will further add to all we do at the College.

As regulations around the management of COVID ease across the state, an increase in positive cases was expected. The College has had a number of COVID cases and has been managed aligning responses to NSW Health directives. It continues to be encouraged that students wear facemasks while indoors, are conscious of social distancing and make use of the supplied RAT’s. Please seek medical advice if symptomatic and contact the College if further information is required.

Our Stage 1 Build continues to gain momentum. The existing hall is being removed of internal structures and will soon be replaced with a moveable learning space that will provide 6 general learning spaces. Our new College Hall that includes additional learning spaces, exercise area, staff room and full size sports/auditorium is also well on track.

Finally, we will be commencing our 2023 Enrolment period over the coming weeks and it is expected that interest will be high. There will be a number of opportunities for parents/carers to come into the College and meet with staff and re-connect after an absence due to COVID restrictions. I am looking forward to this enormously. This will be communicated to you when finalised.

Wishing you all a great weekend

Kind regards

Mr David JOHNS   B.Ed., Cert. Gifted Ed., Grad. Cert. Adol. Health and Welfare, M.Ed. (Ed Lead), M.Ed. (Theol) 

Principal

david.johns@lism.catholic.edu.au

We request your support in relation to partial day attendance of students. Arriving late and departing early places increased pressure on students, in relation to them needing to catch up on missed work. It also disrupts class learning when students enter or leave a lesson during class time.

We ask that appointments are made outside of class times and/or school hours. We realise that this is not always possible, therefore we require that the following occurs if your child has an appointment during the school day.

Early Departures

If you need to collect your child early a signed note MUST be provided to the Office, stating the reason and time the student is to be picked up. This must be provided to the Office prior to morning PC (between 8:30am and 8:55am) so that a pass out can be arranged for the student to leave class early. If a note is not able to be provided, an email with the information in regards to the appointment may be emailed to kmps@lism.catholic.edu.au

If a note or email is not provided to the Office, we cannot guarantee that a student will be ready for collection upon your arrival at the College, as rooming and class activities may change their location. This may result in a parent/caregiver having to wait until the end of a lesson before they can collect their child.

Emergencies

If an emergency situation occurs and your child must be collected immediately, we will endeavour to get them to you as quickly as possible.

Late Arrivals

Students arriving late MUST report to the College Office, so that they can be marked as present, prior to them going to class. Parents/carers are not required to come into the College with their child, however we do require an email or phone call from you to explain the reason for the late arrival.

Thank you for your cooperation with these procedures.

If your contact details, or those of your child's nominated emergency contacts, have changed please ensure that you inform the College as a priority.

Please email kmps@lism.catholic.edu.au with your new address/mobile number/work number.

This will assist us greatly in providing the best pastoral and academic care for your child.

Are you missing out on emails from the College?

Please note that many organisation email accounts (work email accounts) will block emails sent from the College.  We highly recommend that you use a personal email account to receive communications from the College.

We are also aware that many email accounts will automatically place emails from institutions such as the College into the Spam/Junk/Promotions folder.  Please check these regularly so you do not miss important information about your child.

If you are still not receiving emails from the College please let us know. We often find that families have accidentally 'unsubscribed' from our emails, this can be addressed quickly once we are aware.

The school term is in full swing with lots of activity occurring in classrooms. I have been privileged to be in a number of different learning environments at St Paul’s in the first month of school and I have been impressed with the enthusiasm and energy of our students. I am very pleased to speak to parents about the opportunities for their sons and daughters specifically to discuss their learning opportunities at the College and set academic goals which can be reviewed throughout the year. St Paul’s College is committed to working within a partnership with our students and their parents where we can support each other and continue to evaluate improvement.

The primary goal in Learning and Teaching at St Paul’s in 2022 is the Academic Care of our students, where each student is understood not just as a learner, but also as an integral part of the broader Macleay Valley community. We are seeking to build classroom experiences that develop curriculum and approaches to learning and teaching that are visible and enhance student learning, well-being and resilience, and to embed these practices each day in the classroom. Academic Care at St Paul’s aims to build positive self-esteem and connectedness through pedagogies and activating personal growth which supports students to cope with challenges and struggle; to endure and persist; and to create and develop a range of strategies and skills which can be used flexibly in order to achieve their goals.

There is a wonderful staff at St Paul’s who are committed through their own professional learning, collegiality and collaborative practices to support students being at the centre of everything we do. We believe that academic success is hard to achieve if a student’s wellbeing is not in balance. Combining pastoral support with academic growth allows students to whole-heartedly embrace their life choices and, importantly, enjoy their time at high school with a belief of being capable of achieving whatever they set their minds to and develop a sense of connectedness to the school and the broader school community. I look forward to speaking to parents and carers during the rest of this term regarding the opportunity for us to work together in supporting their child to continue to grow under the guidance of Academic Care at our school.

Mr Geoffrey Melville - Assistant Principal - Learning and Teaching

geoffrey.melville@lism.catholic.edu.au

I would like to thank all parents who have helped their children to comply with the uniform policy and also with our changes to the mobile phone policy. We have seen students less distracted and more engaged students across all year groups. Having time away from phones will hopefully break the dependence that some students may have been experiencing. Please let us know what you think. We are always happy to hear feedback from parents on our updated policies.

I would encourage all parents/carers if they have any issues relating to your child could they please contact your child’s Pastoral Care Teacher. This is the teacher that your child has every morning before lessons commence. No question or issue is too small, we are on a journey with your child but also with the family. When you are engaged in the education of your child and have an open dialogue with the College we can, together, improve your child’s educational outcomes.

LEAD

LEAD is a Student Leaders Conference that enhances Senior Ministry Teams of Year 11 and 12 students to be equipped for ministry in their schools by nurturing their own faith and developing them into supportive communities. Returning from LEAD, these students will be encouraged to meet regularly to support each other and to facilitate Youth Ministry initiatives within their own school communities and at regional events such as SHINE. Any child interested in attending LEAD could they please see Mr Will Pollock, Leader of Evangelisation, to register their interest. The LEAD conference will be at McAuley Catholic College, Grafton on Thursday 10 - Friday 11 March, 2022

Transitus

Transitus is a retreat for Year 7 students to grow in their discipleship of Jesus Christ, membership of His Church and to strengthen their transition into Catholic Secondary School. The word ‘transitus’ was chosen because it is the Latin word for passage, crossing, movement over, transition, transit.

In 2022, seventy-five Year 7 students from the North and the South are invited to attend Transitus. This will be a two-day retreat using various group processes, student discussion, small groups led by Year 10 Youth Ministry students, prayer and celebration of the Eucharist. If your child is interested in attending this retreat, could you please ask your child to see their Catholic studies teacher or Mr Will Pollock, Leader of Evangelisation.

Our Parishes

We are blessed to be supported by two wonderful parish communities here at St. Paul’s College. I would invite and encourage you to have a look at their respective websites (by clicking on the links below) to find out about ways to connect with parish life, including to find out Mass times:

Have a wonderful weekend and thank you for your support of St Paul’s.

Mrs Bronwyn Shipton - Assistant Principal - Mission and Wellbeing

bronwyn.shipton@lism.catholic.edu.au

Ministry Matters
The school year has certainly started with a bang! Our opening school Mass was a success, our first open-air Mass at St Paul’s. We thank Fr James for celebrating with us. At the conclusion of Mass we welcomed Uncle John who provided a smoking ceremony to welcome the College community to country for the upcoming academic year.
Our Year 12 retreat was a success, and now the College community begins preparations for Lent. More information about the ways in which our community will embrace Lent will come in our next newsletter.
Coming up this term we have two CSO formation programs for our senior students and our year 7’s. Students in years 11 and 12, as well as students in year 7 will need to keep an eye on their emails and the daily notices for more details about LEAD and Transitus.

Year 12 Retreat
On Monday 14 February Year 12 headed off to Bonny Hills for their senior retreat. After a false start last year because of Covid, the students enjoyed the peaceful surroundings of the Francis Retreat Centre to take some time out of the busyness of life to reflect on their journey so far.
The Retreat allowed the students an opportunity for prayerful reflection across the three days, interspersed with some fun team building games, liturgy and much needed down time to blow off steam. The students enjoyed the opportunity to bond with one another across a variety of contexts over the three days. Highlights included the affirmation session on the final day, lantern making on the first evening and getting the opportunity to socialise during free time.
We’d like to thank all of the staff who were so generous with their time to facilitate small groups and supervise in the evenings. A special thank you to Mr. Johns, Mr. Pitt, Mr. Bramley, Mrs. Meehan and Mrs. Igerl for giving their time for three days. The students would also like to thank Mrs. Shipton, Mr. Fahey, Mr. Melville, Mrs. Tovey and Fr James for spending time supporting different sessions across the 3 days of retreat.

Mr Will Pollock - Leader of Evangelisation

will.pollock@lism.catholic.edu.au

2022 is off to a flying start and the new Positive Behaviour Reward Scheme (PBRS) has begun to take effect at St Paul’s. As of Friday 18th February Noah Bailey and Mannix Baillie lead Year 7 on 270 points, Anica Andrews leads Year 8 on 300 points, Marlie Van Hugten leads Year 9 on 360 points, Harrison Lee leads Year 10 on 250 points, Patrick Preston leads Year 11 on 230 points and Ella Allen leads Year 12 on 260 points.

Teachers are always looking to reward all aspects of positive behaviour and the students are responding very well to this new initiative. The prize for each Year level will be $100.00 per term and we will be rolling out the first of our House Sport initiatives over the next few weeks allowing students to access points by competing in lunchtime sporting competitions.

The College is looking for sponsors for this new initiative and would really appreciate the assistance of any interested businesses in the Macleay or Nambucca Valleys. Please contact leon.robinson@lism.catholic.edu.au if you would like more information in this regard.

Thank you to all families who have supported the tightening of uniform standards at St Paul’s since the start of Term 1. Families have been really helpful with this initiative and over 90% of students are now fully compliant with uniform expectations and wearing their academic or sport uniforms on the correct days. The current uniform has been available for the last four years after close consultation with the College community and is supplied entirely by Team Spirit Sports, a proudly local business owned and operated by two former students Jarrod and Jeremy Lipscombe.

Families should feel free to contact the College if any hardship is making it difficult to provide a full school uniform for their children. We will assist with the provision of the correct uniform and any requests will be considered in confidence.

This year we have amended our Mobile Phone and Electronic Devices Policy which is shown below:

MOBILE PHONE and ELECTRONIC DEVICES POLICY

Bringing mobile phones and electronic devices (including; BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) devices, iPods, digital/video cameras, electronic games, Bluetooth devices etc), to school, if not for learning purposes, is discouraged. The College takes no responsibility for the safety and security of these devices.

Mobile phones ARE TO BE IN SILENT MODE AND OUT OF SIGHT AT ALL TIMES. For security purposes, students may still leave their phones or other electronic devices switched on and secured within their lockers or bags in order for messages to be accepted.

Mobile phones and electronic devices are not to be seen or heard on the College grounds prior to the 3:25pm bell without permission. If a member of the College Executive or appropriate Pastoral Co-ordinator considers it necessary, students may use the phone under their supervision. Phones are permitted to be used appropriately on bus lines in the afternoon.

The College recognises that certain items may be required for class learning and may be requested by the class teacher. For example, there may be times when a teacher allows students to use their mobile phones in the classroom as a learning tool.
.
BYO devices which are required for daily learning are exceptions to this policy and are expected to be accessible by the student each lesson, however, the use of these devices are to be appropriate and for learning only.

Students in Years 7 - 10 who enter a teaching space who have their phones on their person, are to place their phones in a secure box at the front of the classroom until such time as the teacher allows them to be collected for use in class or at the end of the lesson. Senior students (Years 11 & 12) may leave their Mobile phones in their bags (unless directed to place them in the box by their teacher).

Students using SMART watches for any purpose other than to tell the time will have their watch confiscated. If a pattern of inappropriate use occurs, this student will be banned from using a SMART watch at school.

Students must hand over their mobile phone/SMART Watch/Electronic Device if directed to do so by a teacher who has considered that it was being used inappropriately or take their device to hand in at the office when directed to do so by a teacher. Any Student who refuses to hand over their mobile phone/SMART watch/Electronic Device in this situation will be internally suspended and will write out the Mobile Phone and Electronic Devices Policy as a consequence to reinforce their understanding of the Mobile Phone and Electronic Devices Policy.

No earphones are permitted for use in the playground by all students. Earphones can be used for teacher instructed learning. Music through a device may be listened to in class at the teacher’s discretion, that is, when the teacher gives explicit permission to do so. If permission to listen to music is given by the teacher, the following conditions must apply;
Students must have a pre-organised play list and are not to search for music.
Music cannot be downloaded at school.
Music must not be audible to others or distracting self or others.

Exceptions to this are Year 11 and 12 students in Senior Study, who are permitted to listen to music at any time without disturbing others.

The policy outlined above is being strictly enforced at St Paul’s in 2022 and as a consequence many students' mobile phones and electronic devices are being confiscated.

I would encourage all parents to discuss this updated policy with their children and ensure that students realise that teachers have complete control over student use of mobile phones and electronic devices at St Paul’s College and that this rule is in the best interests of the entire community.

Mr Leon Robinson - Leader of Pastoral Care

0401 166 415
leon.robinson@lism.catholic.edu.au

What has your child been learning this week?

At St Paul’s we value and support the role of families in the education of our students. One of my goals, as Leader of Pedagogy, is to make transparent to our families the knowledge, understanding and skills that our teachers are imparting in the classroom so that you can feel more involved in the education of your children.

So what is going on in the classrooms across Years 7-10?

Currently, in my Year 7 Science class the students are working through a unit called Mythbusters. This is a very hands-on unit and aims to teach the students how to determine fact from fiction using the Scientific Method. So far, they’ve consumed M&Ms, made whiteboard marker drawings float, used magnets to try to pull iron out of breakfast cereal, and conducted a “guess the smell” investigation.

Mrs Smith’s Year 7 Art class is exploring the 'Elements of Art' in a unit that looks at drawing inspiration for artmaking from nature. They have already explored line, creating their own 'zetangle' style landscape and looked at an artwork by Brett Whitely. They have also been exploring colour and having some fun with painting.

In Mr Crowley’s Year 8 Art class, the students have been working through a unit called My Place - taking inspiration from the Hermannsburg Potters (an Aboriginal art collective near Alice Springs). The students will be creating ceramic coil pots painted with their personal special ‘place’ (landscape).

Mr Smith’s Year 8 English class is currently studying a unit called "A Sense of Place," which looks at how setting can influence plot, characters etc. They are focusing on short stories, before moving into a film study later in the term.

In Mr Melville's Year 8 Maths class the students are considering the role of Ratios in Society. The students were split into work groups where they reviewed a M&Ms bumper pack to sum per colour and the variation between groups per colour. Each group then composed 4 inquiry questions from their data and from a comparison to the other groups’ data. The class demonstrated the 21st Century skills we are seeking to teach at St Paul's; collaboration, communication, creativity and critical thinking. The students then ate the M&Ms!

Mr Northey’s Year 9 IST class is learning Adobe Photoshop/Graphic Design while his Year 10 iSTEM class is building Robots and will start programming them in the next few weeks.

In Mr Taylor’s Year 9 and 10 Metalwork classes, the students have been completing safety tests. They have also been writing a statement of intent for their project folios which encompasses what the project is, what it is used for, and how it is made. The statement of intent is a document the students refer back to during the project and associated folio, especially when a written evaluation takes place. The students use the statement of intent as a tool to evaluate if their project was a success or not.

While the teachers at St Paul's College ensure that the educational opportunities we provide meet the appropriate syllabus requirements, we also aim to deliver our lessons in creative and engaging ways. Ultimately we want to improve our students' results through a research-based approach to their education.

So how is your child learning at St Paul’s College Kempsey? Well, perhaps you could ask them these 5 questions see if you can find out:
What did you learn today?
How did you do?
What did you do if you didn’t understand?
How can you improve on your learning?
What are you most proud of?

If there is any way that we could help your child learn more effectively, please let us know via email. I am more than happy to help where I can and I am sure the class teacher would be too.

Ms Maria Littlejohn - Leader of Pedagogy

maria.littlejohn@lism.catholic.edu.au

The SRC Members for 2022 are:

Year 8
Matthew Chow
Mia Matlock
Year 9
Ben Muir
Evie Griffiths
Year 10
Evie Barton
Bailey McVerry
Year 11
Jade McLean
Shelby Mitchell
College Leaders
Ben Brennan
Aamber Rowe
Carly Pollard-Smith
Ronan O’Loughlin
First Nations Reps
Senior - Jada Quinlan
Junior - Cecil Griffen

The Student Representative Council held its first meeting for 2022 in Week 3, with the new members forming into four portfolio groups to begin their focussed discussions on improving the College community. Each portfolio group will be responsible for creating initiatives and/or events for their particular focus area and will be chaired by a College Leader with a direct line of communication to a member of the College Executive for discussion and action. The four portfolio groups are Holistic Health, Sustainability & Stewardship, Catholic Identity and Social Justice & Welfare.

Holistic Health will focus on matters pertaining to the improvement of physical, mental and spiritual wellness of the College. Sustainability & Stewardship will focus on improving the ecological footprint as well as infrastructure of the College. Catholic Identity will focus on building College harmony and community through tradition and fellowship. And finally, Social Justice & Welfare will look to build and strengthen connections between the College and the local community.

As the SRC mentor I am looking forward to working with these students throughout 2022 and seeing what we can achieve together.

Cheers

Mr Angus Crowley - SRC Mentor

angus.crowley@lism.catholic.edu.au

St Paul’s Catholic College’s first major event of the year, the annual swimming carnival on Tuesday 22 February, saw the 2022 launch of the annual staff versus student competition for the Warwick Clarke Memorial Shield. The Shield was created in memory of Warwick Clarke, son of Bruce and Maureen, who passed away as a result of a farming accident in 1978. Warwick was a Year 9 student at St Paul's. Each year, the Shield is presented to the winning team in memory of Warwick and all students and staff who have passed away while a part of our College community. This year, despite stiff competition from students, the staff team took home this round of competition for the Shield. Principal of St Paul’s College, David Johns, said the Shield recognises the importance of strong, supportive relationships founded in a sincere dignity and respect of both teacher and student.

On Tuesday, 22 February, St Paul’s hosted our Annual Swimming Carnival. It was a fantastic day, with participation at an all-time high. Thank you to all the students who were involved in the day, whether supporting your house, helping the staff or competing in events.
The pool was fast, with the carnival being one of the most successful in terms of records in many years. A total of 22 official records were broken across a range of ages and events:

U13's boys 50m Backstroke - Mitchell Hornick - 32.66 
U14’s Girls 50m Breaststroke – Keeley Smith – 37.33s
17+ Boys 50 Breaststroke – Harry Askew – 33.27s
17+ Boys 50m Freestyle – Harry Askew – 25.42s
U14’s Girls 50m Backstroke – Cleo Schubert – 35.03s
17+ Boys 50m Backstroke – Harry Askew – 29.97s
U14’s Girls 50m Butterfly – Keeley Smith – 30.90s
17+ Boys 50m Butterfly – Max Farrell – 26.85s
U14’s Girls 100m Freestyle – Keeley Smith – 1.04.62s
17+ Boys 100m Freestyle – Max Farrell -57.05s
SNR Boys 4x50m Relay – (Max Farrell, Jake Worthing, Ben Brennan, Jonte Ross) – 1.59.31s
SNR Boys 400m Freestyle – Max Farrell – 4.30.02s
JNR Girls 200m Freestyle – Cleo Schubert & Keeley Smith (tie) – 2.23.86s
SNR Boys 200m Freestyle – Max Farrell – 2.05.25s
JNR girls 100m Breaststroke – Cleo Schubert – 1.24.75s
SNR Boys 100m Breaststroke – Jake Worthing – 1.17.75s
INT Girls 100m Butterfly – Brielle Woodger – 1.09.00s (equal record time)
SNR Boys 100m Butterfly – Max Farrell – 1.01.80s
JNR Girls 100m Backstroke – Cleo Schubert – 1.15.73s
SNR Boys 100m Backstroke – Max Farrell – 1.08.36s
JNR Girls 200m I/M – Cleo Schubert – 2.43.92s
SNR Boys 200m I/M – Max Farrell 2.23.31s
Finally, a special record to Symon Gleeson – INT Boys for an 11/10 in the Belly flop competition.

Our 2022 Swimming Carnival Age Champions:

12s Joey Silk (M) Tahlia Wall & Sophie Dimmock (F)
13s Mitchell Hornick (M) Jada Appleyard & Tessa Elsley (F)
14s Jayden Swaine (M) Keeley Smith (F)
15s Ollie Byrne (M) Briella Petterson (F)
16s Darcy Swaine (M)Brielle Woodger (F)
17s Max Farrell (M) Ella O’Neill (F)

Our 2022 Swimming Runners Up:

12s Levi Henry (M) Maggie Brenton (F)
13s Ashton Kemp (M) Chelsea Stringer (F)
14s Riley Moffitt (M) Cleo Schubert (F)
15s Tyler Lane (M) Phoebe Laws & Annika Kilmore (F)
16s Joshua Stuart (M) Ruby Trappel (F)
17s Harry Askew (M) Ruby Lennon (F)

Overall house points:

1st place – Edmund – 856 points
2nd place – McAuley – 619 points
3rd place – Farrelly – 607 points
4th place – MacKillop – 391 points

Mr Heath Needs - Teacher and Sports Coordinator

heath.needs@lism.catholic.edu.au

The Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools Ltd is implementing a new financial management system in all Catholic Schools in the Diocese.  Schools will be converted over the coming school year with the process scheduled to be completed by mid-2023.

Our College will transition at the beginning of Term 3 2022, and as such, there will be some changes to school fee billing and payment methods which are listed below: 

• Tuition Fees will be billed at the beginning of each semester instead of annually. Term 1 & 2 will be billed in the coming weeks in our current system and Terms 3 & 4 will be billed later in the year in the new system.
• Each Term will have a specific due date, however if you wish to pay all your school fees in advance, please contact the School Fees Officer to discuss.
• School services levy, Pastoral care levy, carnival levy (athletics & swimming) and elective course fees for the full year will be billed in Term 1.
• Art Packs for Year 7 students will be billed in Term 1.
• Elective Sports fees will be billed per semester.
• BPAY payments are still the preferred method of payment for school fees, however parents can still pay over the counter via cash or EFTPOS if required. With the implementation of the new system, there will be another payment method option available later in the year. Information on this will be sent at a later date.

If you have any questions, please contact the School Fees Officer on 6562 7200 ext 2.

Thank you for your continued commitment to the payment of all school fees.

We are excited to announce a new partnership between St Paul's and the Family Connect Service at Social Futures. This new service can provide support to any family in our community that might need some help from time to time. Family life isn’t always easy and the Family Connect Service is here to help.

The Family Connect Service connects families who need a helping hand, to the right support services and community resources that will best meet their needs.
The Family Connect Service can help link families in with:

Housing Support
Financial Services
Counselling and mediation
Parenting Support Services
Emotional and Wellbeing Support
Culturally appropriate support
Employment, education and training services
And other support options

Introducing our Family Connect and Support Worker: Ashleigh Howe
Ashleigh Howe is here to support families to access any of the services they might need to help their family thrive. Ashleigh is looking forward to meeting and supporting our families. However, due to current Covid guidelines which restrict parents being on school grounds, Ashleigh is not able to meet with families onsite but she is able to meet off site and can provide phone support. Ashleigh can be contacted on 0448 526 777 and ashleigh.howe@socialfutures.org.au

A Message from Ashleigh Howe:
I am the new Family Connect and Support Worker based within St Paul's Catholic College community and I am looking forward to being able to meet with many families to provide help and support with any issues your children or family may be experiencing. My professional background is in family support, with a focus on helping families experiencing domestic and family violence and also with a wide range of mental health and wellbeing issues. I have worked in Kempsey for the last 10 years and value our great community.  When I’m not at work I enjoy playing sport and spending time with my children exploring our beautiful valley and beyond.

Former student success

St Paul's is blessed with exceptionally talented and high achieving students and we love to hear about their achievements after their days at St Paul's are over.

If you have any information regarding former students' successes we would be grateful if you could email the College kmps@lism.catholic.edu.au with details and if possible, photos.

St Paul's College Alumni 

St Paul's College Alumni welcomes all past students from St Paul's (named Macleay Regional Catholic High School during the early '80's) and St Pius X High School. 

As we build our Alumni contacts we can assist you to remain in touch with one another, enjoy organised reunions and events, keep up-to-date with the latest College news and have the opportunity to support the College and its current students.

You can register as a member of the Alumni by completing this form:

Please be assured that your contact details will be kept secure.  We will not disclose your private information to any other third parties.  However, if you are happy for your name and email address and year of graduation to be made available on an Alumni database, please indicate this on your registration form.

Congratulations to former St Paul’s Catholic College student, Tommaya Kelly-Sines who scored a try for the Indigenous All Stars team which played at Commbank Stadium on 12 February.  Commentators said that Tommaya showed pure strength and explosive power during the game. After graduating from St Paul's College and moving away in 2012, Tommaya started playing rugby league in 2017 at Glenmore Park Brumbies.  In 2018, she started her career with Mounties in the Harvey Norman Premiership and then this year signed with the Parramatta Eels in their inaugural NRLW season.  We’ll be proud to follow her career with the Eels this year.

St Paul’s Catholic College is proud of our former student, Albert Kelly, who featured in the Indigenous All Stars team which played the Maori All Stars on 12 February. While Albert was born in Macksville, he was brought up in Kempsey. 2021 saw Albert return to the NRL after six years spent in the Super League for Hull Kingston Rovers and Hull FC. Having played for the Sharks and Titans before his stint overseas, the skilful playmaker’s Broncos debut came in Round 11 against the Roosters, where he was instrumental in his team’s upset win at the SCG. We look forward to cheering him on as he plays with the Broncos this year.

Macksville Stingers Soccer Club is looking for girls who would like to join their Open Women’s Team this season. No experience necessary, just a fun loving attitude!

If you think you might be interested pop along to a training session on Tuesday nights, 6pm, at the Macksville soccer fields. Please see Mrs Smith at school for more information or contact the club directly through their Facebook page.

South West Rocks Dockers AFL Club is looking for girls and boys who are born between 1/1/2010 and 31/12/09 for their Under 13s AFL Team. No previous knowledge of AFL is required.  Please contact Coach, Mark Plummer on 0411 613 764 with expressions of interests asap as a team must be nominated by 1 March.  Registration fees are $125 (Active Kids vouchers accepted), shorts, socks and guernsey provided. Training is on Wedneday afternoons at the SWR Oval.

Smithtown Tigers Junior Rugby League

Miss Von Holdt's Year 7 Food Technology have started their practical lessons with a delicious smoothie bowl. Students are learning basic hygiene, safety skills, how to style and photograph food and healthy eating all whilst keeping with current food trends. Looks delicious!

Please note that some families have been sent a Release of Information form.  If you have received this please could you complete and return to the College as soon as possible.

Welcome both students and parents to our St Paul’s Chisholm Library for 2022.

For those new to our College, the library is open to students at lunch and from 8.30 am in the morning till 4pm on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. On the other days it is open till 3.30pm.

The library's open layout allows for a variety of activities from quiet study and reading to games, puzzles and small group activities.  In 2022 we hope to add to the To Do list with events such as Chess and the formation of a Reading Club.

For those new or anyone needing a reminder, below are a number of library links you may find useful.  You will need to use your child’s school details to access SORA and ClickView.

• SORA – our ebook library
• Our Chisholm Library website to browse our collection.
• ClickView – our online educational video repository
• Online Library Book Request Form

An URGENT reminder, to parents of students who still have overdue textbooks from last year.  Please discuss with your child, as a matter of urgency, the return of these texts.  We are coming to the end of Week 4 and other students are needing these books to complete their studies so if these overdues are not returned we will need to replace them.  Subsequently, if there is no correspondence in relation to this issue or the items remain outstanding by 4th March the library will charge the student the replacement cost of the text.  So please, contact us as soon as possible if there is an issue with these loans; return the outstanding texts or pay the Front Office the cost of the item.  Thank you for your support in this matter.

On a final note, we look would love to hear from parents who are interested in borrowing from our library collection, who would like to donate to our book exchange corner or who have any great ideas they wish to share on how we can best encourage our students to enjoy reading.

Kind regards

Mrs Patrice Martin & Mrs Cathy Whalen - Library Assistants

Once again St Paul’s is participating in the annual Premier’s Reading Challenge (PRC).  This annual government sponsored event aims to “encourage a love of reading for leisure and pleasure in students, and to enable them to experience quality literature”.  It is open to students from kindergarten to Year 9.  If you would like more details, please visit PRC website.

To complete the PRC participants usually need to read and register 20 books (15 from the PRC booklist and 5 of their own choice).  However, in order to encourage more students within our College to participate, we are not only offering prizes but also reducing the number of books that students need to be eligible to win a prize.  Students who register for the Challenge and read a minimum of 5 books will be entered into the draw to win prizes including a $50 gift card.  The more books they read the more chances they have to win.

If you feel your child would benefit from being part of this Challenge, please encourage them to complete our online Expression of Interest form or visit the library and talk to staff about entering.  Reading starts from 28th February……

Workers Urgently Needed

We need volunteers to help in our canteen once a week, fortnight or month.  No special skills required.  If you can make a salad wrap, toastie or put some drinks in the fridge, your help will be greatly appreciated.  All welcome - mums, dads, nannas, pops, aunts and uncles.  Should you be able to spare just a few hours, please contact the College Office.

Ricki Saunders

Canteen Manager