Important information for the new year

Patrick Brennan, Deputy Head of College

Welcoming a new year

The start of the year has been a truly positive one amongst staff and students. We welcomed our new Year 5 and 7 students last Wednesday, and celebrated the return of the entire student body on Thursday with a wonderful College assembly.

I reminded the boys of the importance of following fair and reasonable requests.  These are linked to their learning and wellbeing. Should a boy wish to speak to me about a classroom incident, I encourage them to sleep on it, and see me the following day if they still think a teacher’s request wasn’t fair and reasonable.

I would also like to thank parents for the way their sons attended school this week. The uniform standard was excellent and so too was their behaviour, grooming and presentation.

Commencement Mass

This Thursday, 7 February,  the Junior and Senior School students, and their parents, gathered in the Centenary Quad for a special Commencement Mass.  Father Bernie Thomas OFM had a touching message for students as they embark on a new year, promoting a holistic approach that balances Spirituality, Academics and Co-curricular activities. A special mention was also made of this years’ Year 12 inspirational theme: “We rise by lifting others”.

Invitation to the cocktail party

All Parents are warmly invited to  Parent Association Welcome Cocktail Party on Saturday, 2 March. Last year over 800 parents got together to renew old acquaintances and meet new parents. As a College community, we use this opportunity to celebrate the start of a new year and welcome new parents to the community. I look forward to seeing many of you there.

Updating your contact details

Parents are requested to always keep their contact details up to date by informing the Registrar whenever there is a change. An opportunity for this will be the Mentor Meetings on Tuesday 12 February between 1.30 and 4.00pm. A separate email has been sent out about this.

EREA Student Leadership Conference

During the last week of the summer holidays, Waverley College Captain Harry Whitaker joined over 50 student leaders across Australia and New Zealand’s EREA Associate and Partner schools at the annual Schools Leaders’ Conference. The Conference was hosted by Northern Region schools and was facilitated by the EREA Identity and Liberating Education Team. Some highlights included:

• The opportunity to build relationships and share stories about the richness and diversity of schools in the EREA network.
• Engaging together through daily themes of Encountering/Listening/Speaking and Reflecting.
• Being welcomed to Country by Traditional Custodian and Elder, and then walking Country with him.
• Reflecting on how all life on the planet is connected, and the power we have to affect this in positive and negative ways.
• Engaging with one another around the issues facing young people, with a focus on leadership, learning, the Church and the World.
• Reflecting on the question: “If I had a chance to speak to the EREA community about my hopes and dreams for a better world for all, what would I say?”
• Actively contributing to the development of the EREA Strategic Plan
• Participating in prayer, reflection and ritual experiences
• Networking, socialising and collaborating while sharing insights and building community