On Monday 8 August we celebrate Australia’s first saint Mary MacKillop, St Mary of the Cross. Mary MacKillop took her vows at the age of twenty-five, and the religious name, “Mary of the Cross”. In doing so, she founded the congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. Mary MacKillop was very conscious of the plight of the poor and needy. She worked with families that lived in isolated areas of Australia. She was noted for her trust in the providence of God and miracles of healing have been attributed to her. She was declared a Saint by Pope Benedict XVI on the 17 October 2010. In January 2013, St Mary of the Cross (MacKillop) was declared by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, to be the Second Patron Saint of Australia. This means that Australia now has two Patron Saints: Mary Help of Christians and St. Mary of the Cross (MacKillop).

Thank you to all families who participated in Parent/Teacher/Student Interviews this week. They are a particularly important aspect of our partnership with families. They are opportunities to celebrate the successes of each child and to develop strategies with teachers for any support that might be required.

Term 3 always brings with it a hint of the next year as students begin choosing their future subjects or, in the case of Year 12, identifying their pathways post-secondary school. Many families have joined us over the last month learning about the choices available and how best to work with their child in helping them make decisions that are right for them. There are many here at OLMC who can support both parents and students during this period, along with excellent materials provided through SIMON or PAM and I encourage you to access all that will assist in supporting the decision making of your child.

We have a number of student achievements to celebrate over the last few weeks. Congratulations to Olivia Voulgaris, Class of 2021, who was the recipient of a Premier’s Award for being a Top All-Round High Achiever. Olivia worked hard and showed real commitment to her studies and achieved outstanding VCE results, all whilst completing two years of remote learning. We wish Olivia all the very best.

Congratulations to the Year 7 to 9 students who participated in the Australian Geography Competition. A number of students were successful in achieving a High Distinction or Distinction. Congratulations also to our team of STEAM students who participated in the Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools STEM MAD Student Showcase at the Catholic Leadership Centre in East Melbourne.

The AFL teams competed in a SCSA AFL Carnival Day in July. Congratulations to the Junior and Senior Teams who were Premiers and the Intermediate Team who were runners up. The teams truly showed themselves to be determined and courageous. Congratulations also, to the OLMC aerobics teams who competed at the AeroSchools State Championships winning the Aggregate School Champion (Secondary).

Today as a staff we gathered together in prayer and reflection as we explored our Catholic heritage and our Mercy story. We shared our experiences, including the joys and significant moments in our lives when our faith and our connections to the Mercy story has buoyed, inspired or guided us in our lives. I shared with the staff and now with you, that daily I feel blessed and take comfort that I am where I belong, in a charism and ethos that I value and connects me with a purpose and people, a place in the greater scheme of things, doing work that matters.

On Monday, 8 August, we celebrate the feast of St Mary of the Cross, our Mary MacKillop, our first Australian Saint.

A Woman Held In The Hospitable Heart Of God

Mary MacKillop was a big hearted woman full of compassion and love. She felt and experienced the abundance of God’s love for her. In times of trials and tribulations, she found refuge in the hospitable heart of God’s love. She wrote in 1907, “When storms rage, when persecutions or dangers threaten, I quietly creep into the deep abyss of the Sacred Heart; and securely sheltered there, my soul is in peace”. She was a woman whose heartbeat was in unison with the heartbeat of God. In her life, she became a heartbeat of God for our wounded world.

Let us pray:

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

God of hospitality, open our hearts to the abundance of your love. May we, like Mary MacKillop, trust in your loving care for us in all the situations of our lives. May we share this love in our wounded world

St Mary of the Cross, open to God’s presence, pray for us.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Term 3 for Senior School has started with our Year 11 Formal and the distribution of our much anticipated Year 12 hoodies. These two particular events are significant moments in our senior school calendar and it has been so wonderful to see the many smiling faces amid what is always a busy term, affectionately known as the ‘the business term’ with its focus on planning and forward thinking for our Senior students.

On 21 July the Year 11 Formal was hosted by Leonda by the Yarra, and we were delighted to see the excitement on everyone’s faces as they danced the night away. Staff were so impressed with the behaviour of the students, who put up with our old school dance moves and spent a special night together with their friends.

The excitement continued last Wednesday with the delivery of the Year 12 Hoodies. We could not resist surprising our Year 12s with a morning assembly to celebrate the moment. This year’s design has been met with many compliments from staff and students, as our cohort proudly wear their personalised hoodies around campus. Term 3 has also seen the beginning of our first OLMC senior mentoring program. This program allows Year 11s an opportunity to take on a leadership role in both supporting and guiding our Year 10s as they navigate the individual challenges and opportunities experienced during their second semester as senior school students. We look forward to watching these students form valuable connections that support each other’s academic and personal development throughout their remaining senior years.

We are also thrilled for two of our senior students Tabith B. (MSHO) Year 11 and Holly G. (CPSE) Year 12 who have recently achieved outstanding success in their basketball endeavours. Holly, who currently represents Victoria, has recently committed to continuing her basketball career post OLMC at Xavier University in the United States. Tabitha represented Australia as part of the Sapphires Basketball Team winning the Asia Cup and placing 5th in the World Cup held in Hungary. Congratulations Tabitha and Holly!

Jemma Banfield, Debbie Daly, Hayley Gamble-Curran and Kathryn Williams
Senior Year Coordinators

In Term 3 we are beginning a Mentoring Program that is being run by a number of our Year 11 and Year 12 students. The Year 11 group are assisting Year 10s through their subject selection process and their program includes some goal setting activities. Our Year 12 group have been visiting our Year 7 and 8 pastoral groups to discuss ways to deal with changing friendships and making good choices around how to navigate these challenges. It has been great to see our senior students show great leadership and support for other members of the college community.

Term 3 also signals the beginning of the process to determine our Student Leadership Team for 2023. Applications for the various leadership roles opened at the beginning of this week. Those students applying for any of the key leadership roles for next year will embark on a rigorous selection process. We encourage our Year 11 cohort to consider what they are passionate about and how they could use this passion to serve the college community as a student leader.

Next week on Wednesday 10 August we look forward to holding our first face to face version of House Arts in the last three years. It will be wonderful to see students back up on stage to perform live.

This term, the staff are focusing on challenging students who are not wearing the school uniform correctly. Teenagers will often want to push the boundaries and this is also seen in how students might approach the wearing of their school uniform. Thank you for your support of these expectations. Like so much that is achieved here at the college, we are reliant and appreciate the importance of the partnership we have with our families.

Megan Edwards
Head of Student Wellbeing

Humanities students across Years 7 - 9 tested their geographical skills and knowledge in the 2022 Australian Geography Competition earlier this year. The multiple-choice test was delivered through the Education Perfect platform. We have recently received the results and were very pleased with how OLMC students have performed.

Nearly 70,000 students from across more than 600 schools entered the Australian Geography Competition this year. They were tested across the three cognitive domains of knowing, applying and reasoning. Students used the stimulus materials and their own geographic understanding to analyse, synthesise and generalise often in unfamiliar and complex contexts. The Competition aims to encourage student interest in Geography. It is an important subject bringing together the physical and human dimensions of our environments, helping students to develop a deeper understanding of the world and its challenges.

We had a number of students receive high distinctions and distinctions.

High Distinction:

Distinction:

Rosemary Jones
Humanities Learning Leader

On Tuesday 26 July, the VCE Drama students headed off for a full day workshop run by Drama Victoria in Brunswick. The purpose of the day was to focus on the development of their solo performance.

In Year 12 Drama, students complete two exams at the end of the year, a written exam and a self devised solo performance exam. The Year 11 and 12 Drama students bravely joined together with other students from a variety of schools to create, refine and present work for the solo performances.

It was wonderful to see the students embrace the opportunity and actively engage in all of the workshops throughout the day. I was so impressed by their courage to present in front of people that they had only just met. They listened intently as the presenter spoke about the requirements of the exam. As they got back on to the bus at the end of the day, there was a fabulous energy as the students buzzed about ideas they had come up with throughout the day and what they were going to do next for their solo performances.

Felicia Taine
Drama Teacher

There is no time to rest in the Performing Arts department! After a fantastic run of Matilda in Term 2, we have started Term 3 with a bang.

In Year 7 and 8 music, students have been learning rhythm through drum beats. They have been mastering the a basic "Rock" beat, which works on reading skills, hand, eye and foot coordination and listening skills.

In Year 9 Music Technology, students are exploring the basics of microphone and amp set up, using a mixer and loop pedals. They also mastered the art of packing up cables the correct way!

Madalena Broadbent
Performing Arts Learning Leader

Last Thursday, the Unit 3 and 4 Theatre Studies class went to see “Looking for Alibrandi” at the Malthouse Theatre as part of Unit 4, Outcome 3. Whilst there, we ran into past OLMC and Theatre Studies student Jenny Le, who is completing an Internship in Stage Management at the Malthouse Theatre.

The class also met actor John Marc Desengano, who played Jacob Coote in the show.

Hayley Gamble-Curran
VCE Theatre Studies Teacher

Term 3 is always a busy term for music at OLMC, and 2022 is proving to be just that. As we prepare for our upcoming annual Celebration Concert, we have been delighted for many of our students to share their talents with others in the community.

On Monday 25 July many of our Year 7 students entertained their families and friends with solo or duet performances at the Year 7 Performance Evening. We were entertained by a variety of repertoire and enchanted by their talent and courage. For many students this was their first public performance and we were very excited to watch them as they undertook this huge challenge.

The following days a number of preps from St Clement of Rome Primary School also attended our College and were delighted to undertake a music workshop run by our Year 12 music class. The students were introduced to rhythms and percussion instruments and finished their day with a performance of “Happy”.

In the coming weeks we will continue to bring musical joy to others as we embark on a choir performance at St Clement of Rome Primary School in August.

With Arts Week also approaching we look forward to continuing to share the joy of music with our students, their families and the wider community.

Jo-Anne Mileto
Instrumental Music Coordinator

OLMC Medical Centre would like to advise families of students in Year 10 to please disregard the original return date of their Year 10 Meningoccal Vaccine Consent Cards, all consents are to be returned on MONDAY 15 AUGUST to their Pastoral Teacher.

Thanks

Nadia Cutinelli
Medical Centre

Congratulations to Olivia Voulgaris who has been recognised with a Premier’s VCE Award for her outstanding academic results in 2021.

Olivia received a Premier’s VCE Award for being a Top All-Round VCE High Achiever, which is given to students who achieved outstanding results in five or more of their subjects.

The annual Premier’s VCE Awards recognise the top-performing students in the state. This year, 298 students across 90 subjects were recognised with awards for their outstanding results.

The entire Our Lady of Mercy College community is proud of Olivia and would like to congratulate her on being the recipient of such a prestigious award.

We wish Olivia every success in her future studies and look forward to welcoming her and the class of 2021 when they return for their one-year reunion in August.

To view the full Honour Roll and to read more about the Premier’s VCE Awards, visit: https://www.vic.gov.au/premiers-vce-awards

Year 9 Dance are currently working on the choreography for their ‘Learnt Work’ assessment. This involves the dance students learning contemporary dance sequences choreographed by their dance teacher, and in groups participating in compositional workshops to develop their own movement sequences for the group dance routine. The dance is to the remix of ‘Hit the Road Jack’. Students will perform this to an audience in Term 4, as part of their assessment.

Students are also studying ‘Safe Dance’ and, in pairs have to conduct a warm-up to the class that demonstrates safe dance technique and awareness of the individual limits of the body.

Year 8 Dance students are learning the elements and history of Hip-Hop dance. They have learnt a set hip hop sequence, that they now manipulate through the use of canon, unison, tableaux and other choreographic devices. In small groups students will perform their hip- hop routine to an audience at the end of Term 3.

Year 7 Drama students are studying performance skills, such as vocal projection, strong facial expression and performing to an audience to create dramatic tension. They are learning how to work effectively in groups and are commencing work on stereotypes and individual characterisations. Towards the end of the term students will perform group plays based on their character development.

Deb Butterworth
Dance Teacher

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On a typical July winter day in Melbourne, a squad of 70 student from Years 7 - 12 ventured out to Royal Park Ovals in Parkville for the annual SCSA AFL Carnival Day.

OLMC was represented by three teams, Junior (Years 7 - 8), Intermediate (Years 9 - 10) and Seniors (Years 11 - 12). The teams had been selected from trials and training conducted in Term 2.

OLMC played in Division 1 Pool and was up against Genazzano College, St Columba's College, Avila College and Mater Christi College, each of our teams played four games and the winners then proceeded to go on to the Grand Final.

Our Junior Team was very strong in the pool matches and continued from strength to strength to take out the SCSA Division 1 Junior AFL Carnival Premiers.

The Intermediates Team had come up against tough opposition in the pool matches and unfortunately lost the Grand Final to a stronger Avila College.

Our Senior Team faced a very strong Genazzano College team. It was only in the dying stages of the match that Ava J. sealed the match with a winning goal to take out the SCSA Division 1 Grand Final.

Congratulations to all of the students from OLMC for a fantastic day of AFL and to Scarlett F. for winning the Best Junior GF Player and Ava J. winning the Senior Grand Final Player.

Trevor Robertson
Sports Coordinator

Congratulations to our incredible Aerobics team for winning Aggregate School Champion at the 2022 AeroSchools Victorian Championships (Secondary) on Friday 29 July.

OLMC had 50 students competing and an amazing 38 students have now qualified for Nationals in September.

Thank you and congratulations must also go to coaches Mrs Deb Butterworth and Mrs Dani Scuderi for all of the hard work, time and energy they have put in for this team.

Aerobics Captains Reflection:

Last Friday, the OLMC Aerobics squad competed in the Aeroschools State Championships. With a bright and early start, we headed over to Community Bank Stadium to begin the competition. There were 50 OLMC girls who competed throughout the entire day in their respective sections. Plenty of support was shown to all the girls before, during and after their performance.

We all anxiously waited for results to find out if our teams had placed and qualified for nationals. The day proved successful for so many of the girls with 38 of the 50 girls in the squad qualifying for Nationals in one or more routine. As well as many girls winning their sections the school as a whole were the Aeroschools Secondary Aggregate Champions. Winning the entire competition allows OLMC to hold the title of State Champions for the third year in a row, after being able to compete for the first time since 2019.

Congratulations to all the girls involved who proved all of the hard work that has been put in over the last two terms has paid off. We are so excited to head off to the Gold Coast at the end of term to represent the school, and a massive good luck to all the girls competing!

Aerobic Captains
Ashleigh P. (MSHO), Isabella F. (AGLE), Indiana O. (LJRE) and Angelique A. (CSGP)

OLMC Heidelberg Results

On Thursday 21 July, OLMC Heidelberg hosted an after-school workshop for primary school students, giving them a chance to learn some of the fundamental skills of painting.

The workshop was part of Experience OLMC Heidelberg, a new series of sessions aimed at girls in Grades 4 and 5, offering them a chance to try subjects they can study at OLMC. The sessions provide an opportunity to experience learning in a secondary school environment, using our facilities and technology.

More than 20 students took part in the Visual Arts workshop, creating some beautiful, detailed portraits of dogs.

In May we hosted a workshop in French and Italian, where students played games, learned songs and made their own Carnevale mask and model Eiffel Tower to take home.

A huge thanks to Fleur Davison, Loretta Costa, Mark Jenkinson and Adrian Stojkovich for their time and effort facilitating these workshops.

We aim to offer more of these workshops in different Learning Areas later in the year.

Liz Baxter
Leader of Marketing and Development

The event will support the work of McAuley Community Services for Women (McAuley), a Ministry of the Sisters of Mercy. McAuley is committed to advocate for a better, safer and just society through working with women, and their children, affected by family violence, mental illness or homelessness. Each year they help many women and children to rebuild their lives, supporting them on their journey towards independence and a safer future.

Ticket Prices
Tickets are priced at $45 for Adults and $25 for Students.

Booking Arrangements
To book a Group/Table, you can either purchase the whole table in one booking or purchase a ticket on an available table and then notify your guests of the table number they should specify when booking. If you want to rename the table so that your fellow guests can identify the table easily please contact Marie Jenkins. Tables will seat 10 people.

To book Individual Tickets, purchase the required number on any table.

Follow the link below "BOOK HERE" to purchase your tickets OR by contacting Marie Jenkins T: 9455 7571E: mjenkins@olmcheidelberg.catholic.edu.au

We do hope that you can help us to support the work of McAuley by joining us for this very special event.

Marie Jenkins
Community Development Coordinator

Join in with others from the OLMC Community for a fun night of laughter and frivolity!

This is an adults only licenced event with drinks available for purchase. BYO snacks only.

Bookings close Thursday 18 August

Tables will seat 10 people.

To book a group/table: Purchase the whole table in one booking or purchase a ticket on an available table and notify your fellow guests of the table number so that they can then book on the same table. If you want to rename the table so that your fellow guests can identify the table easily please contact Marie Jenkins

To book individual tickets: Purchase the required number of tickets on any available table.

For assistance with booking or table allocation please contact Marie Jenkins
T: 9455 7571 E: mjenkins@olmc.vic.edu.au

We do hope you will join us.

On behalf of the OLMC Parents Association

Follow the official Our Lady of Mercy College accounts on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. We’ll be sharing regular news, student achievements and stories from around the College.

Visit Our Lady of Mercy College Heidelberg online.

Our Virtual Tour takes you through the College and our facilities, into many of our learning spaces. View 360 degree photos along the way as you explore some of our classrooms and breakout spaces, as well as our Learning Commons, Chapel, Sports Centre and Performing Arts Theatre.

To see more of OLMC Heidelberg in person, book a College Tour.