Please see me if you require any further assistance or information.
Ms Kath Knowles
Senior Studies and Careers Coordinator
E: kknowles@waverley.nsw.edu.au
TiE Young Entrepreneurs is a global program aimed at fostering our future generation of entrepreneurs. TYE focuses on teaching entrepreneurship to high school students and helping them discover the rewards and challenges of becoming an entrepreneur.
During the program, the students form teams, go through classroom session modules focused on different aspects of business and entrepreneurship, then write their own business plans.
Teams compete at the chapter level Finals first, and the winner of each chapter goes on to the Global Competition, to compete for $10,000 in cash prizes.
Congratulations to Zoltahn Szabo and Cillian Donnelly, who were selected as the Waverley participants this year. They will both participate in a series of structured workshops for high school students, where students learn how to come up with a good business idea and build a plan around it.
Participants are mentored in teams by TiE Charter Members, culminating in a formal presentation of their idea and plan to a panel of experienced entrepreneurs.
Ms Stephanie Boyce
Academic Enrichment Coordinator
E: sboyce@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As you are aware, the Welcome Cocktail Party has been postponed until Term 2, date to be confirmed.
However, we are excited to welcome all Year groups along to a fun, social event in Term 1, that will give you an opportunity to catch up, meet other parents and carers, and enjoy a night out.
Years 5-10 parent Year group social events will be held on separate dates at the Clovelly Hotel, and Years 11 and 12 at the Coogee Pavilion.
Tickets are $20 per person, and include light refreshments and a drink on arrival. We hope that many of you can come along! We have an amazing College community and these events are a great way to stay connected.
We look forward to welcoming you, Waverley College Parents’ Association and Parent Representatives.
Ms Jade Stapleton
President, Parents’ Association
Annual Field Exercise (AFX – Cadet Camp), takes place in the last week of Term 1 at Majura Military Training Area in Canberra, from Sunday, 3 April – Friday, 8 April, 2022.
The Joining Instruction for the AFX has been emailed to all parents and cadets. Please read this documentation before completing the Google Form in the link below, to register your son’s attendance on camp.
>>> Click here to view and complete the Google Form.
It is important that we have the latest next of kin and health and dietary information, to ensure the best care for your son on camp.
Registration is required by Tuesday, 1 March 2022.
MAJ(AAC) Julie-Ann de Kantzow
Commanding Officer – WCCU
E: jdekantzow@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Students who need a School Opal card or travel pass, but have not yet applied, need to apply or update their details as soon as possible.
Students are also required to comply with the Student Code of Conduct when travelling, to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and other passengers.
This week our Year 9 students had the valuable opportunity to attend a workshop on Study Skills Kickstart by Elevate.
The workshop covered:
Year 9 Learning Valuable Study Skills
Student Participation Was Key to this Successful Session
>>> Click here to view Junior Seminars at Elevate Education.
Elevate work with our students in Years 9-11 during key times throughout the year.
Elevate also offer free webinars for parents and carers. The webinars are held fortnightly on Wednesday evenings. Parents and carers can click on the link below to register.
>>> Click here to register for the free parent/carer webinar series.
Ms Lynsey Porter
Director of Curriculum
E: lporter@waverley.nsw.edu.au
The Waverley College app can be downloaded from your app store. Please use the following instructions to download and set up the app:
>>> Click here to download the instructions.
Waverley College is a diverse and vibrant learning community, and in 2021 we had 179 students choose their own path to complete Year 12. A learning path that played to their strengths and engaged their unique passions and gifts. Whether they selected the HSC plus ATAR or HSC plus Vocational pathway, each student experienced personal success, and we had the pleasure of celebrating these achievements with them and their parents last night at their Graduation Ceremony.
At Waverley College we are committed to providing a holistic education for our students, and recognise the importance of acknowledging and celebrating success in all its measures. We want our students to be happy at school as well as flourish post-school. We aim to open doors, not narrow pathways. As educators in the EREA community, it is our ongoing quest to support the formation of our young people, so that they “may have life and have it to the full.” (John 10:10). The interests of our students are front and centre, and we educate for the diverse learnings that make the whole person.
Contemporary educational research tells us that, over time, attending to more holistic aspects of achievement (spiritual, cognitive, social, emotional and physical) is more likely to have greater educational and life benefits for individuals (Shannon, 2019). Broadly defined and acknowledged measures of success will enable young people to graduate with confidence and capacity to successfully navigate post-school pathways and life experiences. Hattie & Larsen (2020), assert that “the purpose of schooling is to help young people to uncover and recognise their particular talents that, appropriately nurtured through the school experience, will influence their future happiness.”
We are proud of the diversity of our student body, and congratulate the individual efforts of every student and the personal milestones that have been achieved. Whatever path our Year 12 students chose, it is important to remember that they leave the College with much more than just a number, mark or rank. The journey that brought each student to this point has been far more valuable.
>>> Click here to view the Major Award Recipients and High Achievers of the Class of 2021.
Ms Elizabeth Watson
Deputy Principal – Teaching & Learning
E: ewatson@waverley.nsw.edu.au
The College has partnered with Youth in Union to help aid our neighbour Tonga, as they try to recover from the recent tsunami that has devastated many parts of their nation.
In terms of what’s needed;
The biggest problem they face is the psychological trauma of having lost everything. I think it’s important for us to remember that they are living in a communal space with nothing more than the clothes on their back.
Last night, I attended the Year 12 2021 Graduation, which was celebrated at the Australian Turf Club, Randwick, enabling students and parents to attend this significant event. Thank you to Ms Suzi Sucur, Ms Sue Walsh and Mr Patrick Brennan for organising this fitting and memorable celebration. There was a wonderful ambience in the room, and it was great hearing about the university courses that students had got into and how apprenticeships had started.
There has been a little bit of discussion in our community surrounding the 2021 Band 6 HSC results. If you track our HSC results over the last six years, we have been tracking fairly consistently with 50% of our students achieving a Band 5 or 6 in their HSC results. Last year (2021) was no different; slightly over 50% of students achieved a Band 5 or 6. Where there was a difference to how we have been performing of late, is a 3% drop in our Band 6 results, which dropped us considerably in the SMH ranking of schools. We also saw a significant increase of more than doubling of our early entry offers to universities.
We track our students throughout their time at the College via internal assessment moderation and also utilising Allwell testing and NAPLAN results. We also review our HSC results using the Results Analysis Package data that NESA provides on an annual basis. These various sources of data allow us to identify and address weaknesses and areas of development with targeted strategies. We increased our Year 12 tutorial program in 2021 for this very reason. We track our results and other schools’ results to seek improvement, and monitor how our programs are developing. We also see noticeable fluctuations between cohorts as no two are identical.
I will outline at our upcoming Parents’ Association Meeting, some of the learnings from 2021, and where we will seek improvement.
There were many wonderful results to celebrate from our 2021 cohort including:
There has been a lot of debate both in Parliament and the media this week, in regards to the Federal Government’s proposed Religious Discrimination Act which has now been delayed.
Edmund Rice’s inclusivity was evident in his deliberate actions to ensure that each individual felt valued, respected and accepted, irrespective of their circumstances.
Waverley College and EREA upholds this inclusivity and values the diversity of our school communities, and embraces all students, staff and family members irrespective of their sexual orientation.
Furthermore, EREA Child Safeguarding Standards Framework clearly states that we must be attentive to the needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children, and young people, children and young people with disability, children and young people from culturally and/or linguistically diverse backgrounds, children and young people who are unable to live at home, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex children and young people.
At Waverley we work hard to uphold these standards and pride ourselves on our diversity and inclusive culture.
Should you or your child have any concerns in regards to this matter, please do not hesitate to contact me.
I was honoured to attend the 2022 CAS Cadet Conference yesterday, hosted by Waverley College, with proceedings held at St Catherine’s School. In attendance were the Commanding Officers and Senior Rank from the Waverley, St Catherine’s School, St Aloysius’ College, Knox Grammar, Ravenswood, Trinity Grammar School, Meriden School, and Barker College Cadet Units. They took part in activities and engaged in discussions on topics and issues relevant to all units. That evening, the delegation moved to Waverley College for a formal military mess dinner. Well done to our Commanding Officer, Julie-Ann De Kantzow.
Patrick McClure has long-term experience as a leader in the social purpose sector in Australia. Former CEO of Mission Australia, overseeing strategic corporate partnerships, he worked closely with Commonwealth and State Governments, and also as CEO of the Society of St Vincent de Paul, providing leading NSW homelessness services. We are very excited to have Patrick join us as part of our Advisory Council.
>>> Click here to view all members of the College Advisory Council.
Congratulations to the 40 students who competed in the Branch SLS carnival last weekend. Please let Mr O’Donnell, Mr Wilmot or Mr Wachtel know of your results, and whether you are planning on competing at the upcoming State Championships.
Kai Gregory and Raff Toohey (Year 8), in the Sydney Branch Championships, who qualified for State Championships in the prestigious event, Surf Board Rescue, and also took home a Bronze Medal in the Cameron event
Kai also took home a second medal (Bronze) in the Board Relay
I am very happy with how we are addressing the risks associated with the current COVID-19 conditions, and in the table below, you will see a reduction in numbers across all Year levels. However, there is still room for improvement. I am still receiving reports from the public that some of our students are not wearing masks on public transport. Please address this with your son and ensure he has a mask and a ‘back up’ mask when he leaves for school.
When your son is conducting a RAHT, I would like to reiterate that any pink/purple line visible next to “T”, even if faint, is confirmed as a positive and your son must stay at home and isolate for 7 days.
If a student or their sibling has COVID-19, they must isolate for 7 days regardless of the RAHT test result. Both CSNSW and AIS support this policy at present. The only exception to this rule is if they have had COVID-19 in the past 28 days, then they can come to school and test every day.
| COVID Positive | Close contacts | |
| Year 5 | 2 | 3 |
| Year 6 | 3 | 1 |
| Year 7 | 0 | 2 |
| Year 8 | 6 | 1 |
| Year 9 | 0 | 5 |
| Year 10 | 1 | 1 |
| Year 11 | 3 | 0 |
| Year 12 | 1 | 0 |
| Staff | 2 | 2 |
| 18 | 15 |
The NSW Government has launched Parents NSW Vouchers to thank parents, guardians and carers who provided home learning to their school-enrolled children during 2021.
>>> Click here to view further details.
This week, we have our first full round of CAS Summer sport against St Aloysius’. This will be the first time in quite a while that we are actually playing a competitive round, and I am sure all students, parents and coaches are excited about this.
We do still have a number of COVID-19 protocols in place, and all students and parents need to ensure they are meeting the following requirements:
It was great to see our first ever Sailing group last Saturday undertake their new activities. From all reports, it was a wonderful initiative, led by the students. This is certainly a sport to grow in the future, and Waverley actually has a number of Old Boys who are currently sailing at a national level.
Inaugural Sailing for Summer Co-curricular at Rose Bay
With some wet weather forecast at the end of this week, it is important for parents and students to have the Waverley College App on their phones, or ring the wet weather line. Please also note that whilst it may be wet in one area of Sydney, this does not mean that games elsewhere are called off.
The app can be downloaded from your app store. Please use the following instructions to download and set up the app:
>>> Click here to download the instructions.
All students must also now be fully attired in the full summer playing kits for this weekend please.
Well done also to our 1sts and A teams that competed in various Blitz matches last week. Also a reminder that any student who wishes to nominate for any CIS trials, will need to check the College website for dates as well as fixtures and training schedules.
Good luck to all teams and students this weekend!
Mr Steve O’Donnell
Director of Co-curricular
E: sodonnell@waverley.nsw.edu.au
As many Nurrunga readers will know, on 15 January 2022, a volcano erupted in Tonga about 60km north of the main island of Tongatapu. The eruption caused a tsunami that wiped out most parts of the west side of the main island, plus some of the more remote surrounding islands. This left many families without food, clothing, shelter and other basic necessities.
Many Tongan residents and families are still without basic household goods, and are in desperate need. Whilst many world aid organisations, including aid from Australia, have assisted, they have also unfortunately brought COVID-19 positive cases to Tonga for the first time. This has resulted in a lockdown which has hampered many of the aid efforts.
As part of the humanitarian efforts, Youth in Union, an Australian registered non-for profit organisation, are seeking your support. We are currently raising funds and requesting items for a shipping container to go directly to Tonga, to help those who have lost everything in the tsunami.
We appeal to the Waverley College and wider community to donate wrapped household items labelled with their item name, to assist with this very important charity.
By Monday, 28 February, we request these items to be brought in by each Year group. Please leave these wrapped and labelled items at the Senior School Reception.
You are also very welcome to donate any of the items listed below, regardless of your son’s Year group. Please feel free to help where you can. We thank you in advance for your generosity.
YEAR 5 – Toys/books, coloured pencils and crayons
YEAR 6 – School backpacks, healthy snacks
YEAR 7 – Wipes, water bottles (refillable), canned food
YEAR 8 – Sleeping bags, canned food
YEAR 9 – Clothing of all types (boys and girls), water bottles (refillable), towels
YEAR 10 – Shoes and slippers of all sizes, wipes, towels
YEAR 11 – Toothpaste and toothbrushes, sports equipment, towels
YEAR 12 – Sanitary products for girls and women, clothing of all types (men and women), towels
Waverley College student Joseph Tangi (Year 10) was actually in Tonga at the time of the eruption, and was on the phone to his parents when his phone suddenly cut out. Obviously this was a very distressing time, but thankfully Joseph is now safely in Sydney, and attending classes this week.
We will also be raising funds through a wonderful raffle prize of a signed and framed Christchurch Crusaders jersey. The Christchurch Crusaders were the New Zealand Super Rugby premiers in 2021, and one of the most successful provincial Rugby teams in history.
Waverley College has a strong history with many Tongan families previously or currently attending the school.
>>> Click here to buy a raffle ticket to help people in Tonga.
You could win a signed and framed Crusaders jersey!
>>> Click here to donate to the GoFundMe Tonga Tsunami Emergency Fundraiser.
We also want to say a huge thank you to Mr Eddie Ahololei, Mr Darran Rawson and Mr Lachlan McAffrey, for their inspiration and support with this vital initiative.
Mr Stephen O’Donnell – Director of Co-curricular
E: sodonnell@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Ms Sue Walsh – Director of Identity & Student Formation
E: swalsh@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Please find below some reminders about upcoming events. For all of Term 1 events, please refer to the College calendar.
I would like to congratulate Mr Matthew Johnston and his wife Annella on the arrival of their beautiful daughter Maeve Anna Johnston. The family are doing very well and we hope to meet little Maeve in the not too distant future.
A reminder that Parent Information Night will be held on Monday, 14 February, hosted by your class teacher. You will have received an email today from our IT Department providing instructions on how to access zoom, and the meeting ID you will need to use for your session. Please note, Year 5 will be held at 5pm, and Year 6 will be held at 6pm.
The Junior School Parent Information Booklet is intended to inform you of the more detailed aspects of life at Waverley College Junior School. The first section deals with overall aspects of the College and the second section is more class specific. I hope that you get involved in the many facets of life at Waverley College and enjoy being part of our great community.
>>> Click here to view the Year 5 Parent Information Booklet.
>>> Click here to view the Year 6 Parent Information Booklet.
Please note, the class teachers will refer to these booklets during the Parent Information Session on Monday, 14 February.
On 15 January, a volcano erupted in Tonga and the eruption caused a tsunami that left many families without food, clothing, shelter and other basic necessities. We appeal to Waverley families to please donate the following wrapped household items labelled with their item name, and drop these at the Senior School Reception on Birrell Street.
>>> Click here to view more information in the article by Mr Steve O’Donnell and Ms Sue Walsh.
Ms Gabrielle Smith
Director of Junior School
E: gsmith@waverley.nsw.edu.au
What a wonderful start it has been in the classroom. Our students have come back from a long break with enthusiasm to learn, and have already embraced the challenges we have set for them academically.
Students have started to set SMART goals with their classroom teachers this week. Goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and timed, will set our students up for success. Students will set SMART goals each term, and I encourage you to sit down and discuss what your son wants to achieve this term. We know that having it recorded allows them to revisit their goal throughout the term, and build on strategies to make sure they achieve their goal/s. These goals can be found on Page 59 in the College Diary.
At the beginning of each term, I will provide a Curriculum Overview of what your son will be learning in the classroom. It is clearly set out so that you can see the subject and topics being taught across the curriculum.
>>> Click here to view the 2022 Year 5 Curriculum Overview.
>>> Click here to view the 2022 Year 6 Curriculum Overview.
Ms Gabrielle Bransby
Assistant Director of Junior School/Curriculum
E: gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Today Waverley College Pool was the scene of the Junior School Swimming Carnival. The House spirit and enthusiasm from all participants went a long way to making the carnival a success. It was a shame the day had to be cut short due to inclement weather, but we were pleased to have been able to get in the majority of the day’s events.
The support of parents was very evident with a great turn out. Thank you to all attending parents for your patience during the difficult time when the weather quickly turned. Special thanks to all staff who ensured the carnival ran smoothly.
Thank you to the following Year 6 House Captains who provided outstanding leadership for their respective House throughout the carnival:
| Aungier | Brennan | Conlon | Green | Lacey | O’Connor | Quinn | Tevlin |
| Captain:
Max Wu |
Captain:
Max Malley |
Captain:
Cooper Misson |
Captain:
Geoffrey Gibbons |
Captain:
Joshua Raymond |
Captain:
Kobi Keenan |
Captain:
James Fanning |
Captain:
Kingsley Turinui |
| Vice Captain:
Hunter Leondis |
Vice Captain:
Vinny Kapos |
Vice Captain:
Cooper Mott |
Vice Captain:
Ben Fernandes |
Vice Captain:
Ngakau Hiroti |
Vice Captain:
Cameron Spies |
Vice Captain:
Henry O’Donnell |
Vice Captain:
Sam Ireland |
All events that were missed as a result of the weather, will be undertaken at some point over the next two weeks. Thank you for your understanding. This will help us decide who will be selected to represent Waverley College at the IPSHA Swimming Carnival at Homebush. Once these races are complete, we can look forward to announcing the winning House for the 2022 Swimming Carnival.
The big week of Co-Curricular sport continues with Round 1 commencing from tomorrow (Saturday, 12 February). Although it hasn’t been the most ideal start to the Co-Curricular season, with missed training due to weather and the Swimming Carnival, we’re looking forward to getting started.
Please ensure you refer to the Waverley College app announcements each week, as I will continue to send out the weekly Sports Fixtures for each round. All families can also locate all relevant Junior School Co-Curricular information through the College website via the link below.
>>> Click here to view all Junior School Co-Curricular information on the Waverley College website.
Please ensure your son now has his team sports uniform for Saturday, as this will best help represent Waverley College in high regard. It is important that students also have all the appropriate equipment needed for their sport. Please email me if you are unsure about what your son requires for his sport on Saturdays.
I wish all teams the best of luck for their games on Saturday, and know that our students will represent the College at a high standard, and have fun when competing with their teammates.
Please ensure you have now downloaded the Waverley College app, as all communication with parents and carers around wet weather cancellation will be sent through the app. An announcement will be sent out between 6:30am to 7am to inform all families of the sports that will go ahead and those which have been cancelled.
If you do not receive any notification, all sports games will be considered ON as planned. Families travelling far distances for away games are firstly considered, but please be aware that other schools are relying on groundsmen to make the final call, which can impact when announcements are sent out.
A huge congratulations to the following Junior School students who were selected for the IPSHA Trials in their respective sports:
Basketball – Hunter Bligh (5 Gold), Charlie Carr (6 Indigo) and Darcy Kidd (6 Orange)
Tennis – Noah Dalton (5 Gold)
This is a significant achievement and all students involved should be proud of their selection.
A large number of Waverley College Junior Students recently competed at the Branch Surf Life Saving Titles. Branch is the major carnival prior to State Life Saving titles and covers all the beaches from Bondi to Garie in the National Park. It is an extremely tough field, with a large number of the best State competitors coming from these Sydney beaches.
Congratulations to the following students for their involvement and achievements in the two-day event:
Roman Szabo (Water Competitor)
Talin Opai (Sand Competitor)
Louis Coleman (Water Competitor)
Jack Baker-Sedgeman (Sand Competitor)
Jayden Newrick
Joshua Raymond
Nippers Branch Championship 70m Sprint
Mr Jack Wachtel
Assistant Director of Co-Curricular
E: jwachtel@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Have you ever played Guitar Hero on your Playstation? Perhaps you prefer some serious moves with your air guitar? For the boys at the Junior School, the 2022 instrumental program provides a chance for all students to experience the real thing.
Mr Jesse Johnston (an Old Boy of Waverley College) has developed an engaging program that takes boys through guitar basics including correct playing posture, understanding the instrument, string names and musical notation.
Each class will have the opportunity to participate in the beginner guitar classes on a rotating roster through 2022. For boys who enjoy the beginner guitar experience, further study is available through private lessons (please contact Mrs Keiran Kossenberg at the senior school kkossenberg@waverley.nsw.edu.au for more details).
The Junior School also offers a guitar ensemble for more advanced players. This group meets on a Monday at lunchtime and is directed by Mr Nick Yatsef.
As we welcome a new group of students to Waverley in 2022, The Learning Hub aims to nurture and guide them in their social, creative and academic development.
Last week we saw the boys use this space in many different ways before school and during lunch.
As an educator, I believe it is vital for our boys to have a strong understanding of the advantages of reading. The boys were asked to use the thinking routine ‘Think, Pair, Share’ to answer the question ‘What are the advantages of reading?’
Reflecting on this question is an important part of their learning journey.
The boys’ reflections were exceptional. Here are some examples:
The boys have also set personal reading goals for themselves. Goals are an important part of Waverley and of successful learning. These goals are specific to them, measurable, achievable, realistic and timely. I am looking forward to working with the boys and their reading journey.
We offer all students in Year 5 and Year 6 the opportunity to receive free additional support after school for the completion of home learning tasks. The afternoon sessions also provide a quiet, supervised study space for students who want to complete their assigned tasks.
Home Learning Club operates in the Learning Hub from 3pm until 4 pm – Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays – during school term, unless there is a scheduled Professional Development meeting and the club will be closed.
Procedures
>>> Click here to register your son.
Only register his name once, to allow other students the opportunity to attend. The session is limited to 20 spots. There will be a roll call to ensure attendance.
If your son is not present at roll call, a phone call will be made to check on his whereabouts. If your plans change and you decide he is unable to attend, please contact the school via email nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au or call reception.
Students are required to stay for the full session unless there is a message in the student diary requesting early leave, a parent signature will be required.
Behaviour
As it is important to respect the rights of others to learn and work. All students are expected to settle to work in the Learning Hub and not cause a disturbance for others.
Teachers
Monday and Wednesday – Mrs Natasha Zivanovic
Tuesday & Thursday – Ms Gaby Bransby
If you require any further information, feel free to email us.
E: nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
E: gbransby@waverley.nsw.edu.au
Mrs Natasha Zivanovic
Literacy & Innovation Teacher
E: nzivanovic@waverley.nsw.edu.au
We would like to acknowledge the Gadigal people of the Eora nation who are the traditional Custodians of the land on which Waverley College is located. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging. We are committed to honouring Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ unique cultural and spiritual connections to the land, waters, seas and sky and their rich contribution to society.
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