Filter Content
- Principal's Reflection
- Mission
- Year 7 Camp Information Monday 22 May - Friday 16 June
- Student Drivers
- Absentees
- IT Department
- Uniform Shop
- Pathways
- Quiet Achiever
- Chisholm House Raffle
- E-Sports - Waffle Wednesday
- Legally Blonde Musical
- Fundraising - Molly our School Captain
- QISSN Sponsor Spotlight
- Monster Raffle for QISSN Boys & Girls Teams
- Australian Teacher Aide of the Year Awards
- Chess News
- Science & Engineering Challenge
- From the Library
- Sport
- Term Dates
- Tuckshop - Breakfast
- Parent and Carer Tuckshop Volunteers
- Shalom Sunday Markets
- The Catholic Parish of Bundaberg
- Community Notice Board
This week is National Reconciliation Week. In a year when we will be asked to vote on the Voice Referendum, this reminder of the reconciliation process is particularly pertinent. I’m sure many of you, like me, watched the clip from Q&A in which Stan Grant explained why he is stepping back from journalism for a while. I thought what he said was pretty powerful. Grant spoke about the toll that social media comments have had on him and his family. Toxic ‘keyboard warriors’ seem to be a malignant cancer in Australia. Stan Grant seems to have attracted awful vilification from a segment of society because of his aboriginality and opinions he has made public. We’ve seen the same thing happen to indigenous sports people who excel. It is so sad and an appalling blight on our society where people still seem to be judged, not on their character or ability but on the colour of their skin. In his final remarks on Q&A, among other things, Grant said:
“Many of you would know by now that I'm stepping away for a little while. Sometimes we need to just take time out. Sometimes our souls are hurting and so it is for me. I've had to learn that endurance is not always strength…. To those who have abused me and my family, I would just say if your aim was to hurt me, well you've succeeded and I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I must have given you so much cause to hate me, so much to target me and my family, to make threats against me… I'm not walking away for a while because of racism. We get that far too often. I'm not walking away because of social media hatred. I need a break from the media. I feel like I'm part of the problem and I need to ask myself how or if we can do it better.”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbITk8cDBjg
Surely our country and our society can be better. Sadly, anyone in public life seems fair game for trolls. But if we don’t all call that out, every time, might they think that such behaviour is OK?
Reconciliation Week is a chance to again have a look at our country’s ‘Closing the Gap’ aims. There are six areas the Government is trying to address –
• Childhood Mortality
• Early Childhood Education
• School Attendance
• Literacy & Numeracy
• Year 12 Attainment
• Employment
• Life Expectancy
In the most recent report published (2020), in none of those areas are indigenous outcomes anywhere near as good as those for the rest of us. The ‘Closing the Gap’ initiatives look to bring indigenous outcomes closer to those for the rest of the community. The report shows that there are two areas where the gap is closing a bit - Early Childhood Education and Year 12 Attainment Goals. Not so in the other areas. In Early Childhood Education and Year 12 Attainment, indigenous young people are still at a significant disadvantage, but the gap is getting smaller. As I’ve listened to both sides of the Voice debate, I have heard some who support the ‘No’ campaign claim that a successful Voice result in the referendum will ‘divide the nation’. If the statistics related to ‘Closing the Gap’ are accurate, we are already a nation clearly divided on racial lines. I am really pleased that it is in the Education space that we are making some progress. It is as true today as it was for Edmund Rice, Catherine McAuley and Mary MacKillop who all recognised that the best way to get kids out of poverty was to provide a quality education.
School Satisfaction Surveys – these have been dropping into your inboxes over the last week. As of Friday, we had only about 10% of parents complete this survey. This gives the College good feedback from parents about what is working well and the areas we need to continue to work on. I really hope you will find a little time to complete this survey thoughtfully.
This Week we have the Bundaberg Show Holiday on Thursday and we have a Student Free Day on Friday to enable teachers to work together on Curriculum delivery. Saturday night is our College Formal which, I have no doubt, will be another wonderful and joyful occasion.
Attendance Data – as we approach the middle of the year, I am really pleased to let the community know that across the College at the moment, our attendance rate is 92% which is a significant increase from this time last year. This is a really pleasing result and I want to thank parents and care givers sincerely for your support in encouraging your child/ren to be at school, dressed well and ready to work.
Mr Dan McMahon
Principal
mcmahond@shalomcollege.com
Laudato Si’ Week
Laudato Si’ is an encyclical of Pope Francis published in May 2015. It focuses on care for the natural environment and all people, as well as broader questions of the relationship between God, humans, and the Earth. The encyclical’s subtitle, “Care for Our Common Home,” reinforces these key themes. Laudato Si’ Week is a global celebration that unites Catholics to rejoice in the progress we have made in bringing Laudato Si’ to life, while also adding inspiration for continued progress around spiritual ecology.
In Australia, we celebrated Laudato Si’ Week between Tuesday 16 May to Wednesday 24 May. These dates are different from the dates promoted internationally to enable us to also celebrate National Sorry Day (Friday 26 May) and National Reconciliation Week fully (Saturday 27 May – Saturday 3 June). This year we are all encouraged to view the film “The Letter,” as inspiration. The film can be accessed at http://www.theletterfilm.org/watch/
Class Masses
Each Religious Education class is allocated to a Wednesday morning 8am Mass in Loyola Chapel. The class, along with another, co-hosts this Parish Mass by taking the roles of readers and processors. When your student has an upcoming class Mass, you will receive a notification or an invitation to attend. We warmly welcome all to this weekly joint Parish School celebration. The Year 10 classes will be hosting over the next few weeks:
• 31 May Mr Gilbert’s 10 RE D & M
• 7 June Mr Kiernan’s 10 RE F, H & K
• 14 June QISSRL & QISSN teams
• 21 June Mrs Harman’s 10 RE A & C
Mrs Sandra Freeman
Assistant Principal - Mission
Sandra_Freeman@shalomcollege.com
Mr Peter Robinson
Student Welfare - High Performance Program After School Activities
Peter_Robinson@shalomcollege.com
Parents and Carers of Year 11 & 12 Students
If your child has obtained their Provisional Licence and wishes to drive to and from school you are required to fill out a Permission to Drive Form and return it to Student Reception for approval by Mr Aaron Brown. Once approved the details will be placed on our School Register.
Thanks to those Parents who have already completed this form for their child.
Preferred Student Absentee Option
Parents are now able to inform the College of student absentees via Parent Lounge, using the below pathway:
Parent Lounge> Student Details> Attendance> "+Add Absence Notification"
The Shalom College App has now been updated so when parents select "Absentee" it will re-direct to Parent Lounge for the absentee notification to be added.
For Parents that do not already have the College App please click below:
ALL student absentees should be notified to the office by 9am each day. If no notification has been received, an absentee text message will be sent out to parents to advise of the student's absence.
Outage to SIA
I would like to advise all Parents, Staff and Students that there is a scheduled outage to Sia on Thursday 1 June 2023 from 4:30pm – 5.00pm. The Schoolbox team will be upgrading Sia to the latest version. During this time, you will not be able to login to access information and resources. The Shalom app will also be impacted from this outage.
Laptop ADP vs Warranty vs Intentional Damage
For those who are not aware or have forgotten, our Shalom HP student laptops are all purchased with ADP (Accidental Damage Protection). ADP allows us to repair up to three laptop parts per calendar year with a processing fee of $60.50 each time a claim is logged.
Warranty allows us to claim manufacture faults on a device. There are no fees associated to a warranty claim.
Accidental Damage Protection avoids excessive out-of-pocket repair or replacement costs caused by accidents such as drops, spills or electrical surges. HP provides the final decision on whether a device will fall under ADP or not. HP has strongly reminded us that intentional damage does not fall under ADP and therefore will incur the full cost of repair.
Intentional damage is when a student has intentionally or recklessly destroyed or damaged the Shalom laptop. HP does not cover intentional damage under ADP and therefore the families will have to pay for the cost of parts and labour. A great example is keys falling off a keyboard. Keys don’t just fall off and the common cause of this is students picking at the keys keyboard. A keyboard replacement is over $250.
We always do everything in our power to get the best outcome for Shalom families, however please understand that whether it’s HP or another brand, the vendor will have the final decision on whether the issue is warranty or ADP. As mentioned in the ICT agreement signed at the start of each year by all guardians, it is up to the school’s discretion as to what repairs need to be performed. This is a good timely reminder to talk with your child/ren about looking after the College laptop. If they transfer to another school, we must pass this laptop onto another student that enrols at Shalom.
Where should Students be saving files?
Just a reminder that the College process for students is to only save files to their college home folder. They can use Foldr to access their home folder from any location. Foldr has an application that can be installed on all devices and a website in case there is an issue with the apps. We do not recommend saving to the local device or on usb sticks. One major reason for saving to home folders is this allows us to assist the users to with automated backups.
URL for Foldr- https://Foldr.shalomcollege.com
We have noticed recently students are losing documents from not saving. Every time a document is started, we need students to save this to their home folder immediately so there is a better chance of recovery in the event of an issue.
Mr Matthew Mills
Information Technology Manager
millsm@shalomcollege.com
Monday to Thursday: 8.00am to 12.00pm
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday: 3.30pm to 5.30pm
Friday: Closed
Pathways Information
- School Leavers Support – What’s next for you? Know your opportunities in 2023
- Registering your Interest for Work Experience
- TAFE Applications for 2024 will open on Monday 10 July 2023 – Link to Course Guide HERE
Click on the HERE for complete Pathways Newsletter for further information.
The Pathways Team
Mrs Liza O’Donnell, Mrs Kim Toll, Mrs Monique McLucas & Ms Jacinta Cook
Liza_ODonnell@shalomcollege.com
kim_toll@shalomcollege.com
monique_mclucas@shalomcollege.com
jacinta_cook@shalomcollege.com
This week's Quiet Achiever goes to Indigo M from Walsh House. Indigo is able to recite the first 30 digits of pi as well as list all elements of the periodic table (all 118). A skill that very few students attempt. She does this in her PC without being boastful or showing off. Other students in her PC are fascinated by Indigo’s memory and the ability to recite this information.
Indigo will also be competing in the Maths Team Challenge next week and we wish her all the best.
Chisholm House is holding a raffle with some great prizes! Students will be selling tickets at lunchtime and tickets are also available to take home and sell. Please email Mrs Blinco if you would like some tickets to sell outside of school. Proceeds go to Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.
Raffle will be drawn Thursday 8 June. Be in it to win it!!
Year 12 Student and College Captain Molly is saying goodbye to 23 incredible inches (or 58.42 cm!) of her luscious locks!
Molly is cutting her hair to help sick children throughout Australia - a cause close to her heart.
It is estimated that, on average, 750 children aged 0-14 are diagnosed with cancer each year in Australia. Molly’s hair will not only be used to make a wig, but assist the ‘Kids with Cancer Foundation’ to continue their support of families who have a child suffering from cancer.
Molly will be having her hair cut in front of her peers in Week 8 during lunchtime on Tuesday 6 June.
If you would like to donate to Molly’s fundraiser, please follow the link below.
Your donation to the cause (big or small) means so much to Molly, and even more to those experiencing childhood cancer.
Together, we can all make a difference.
https://fundraise.kidswithcancer.org.au/fundraisers/mollysellers/wigs-4-kids
In the lead up to the QISSN Carnival being held in Brisbane in the first week of the June/July holidays each week throughout this term we will spotlight one of generous QISSN sponsors.
Aussie Bundaberg is located at:
A: Shop 321 Sugarland Shoppingtown 115-119 Takalvan Street, Bundaberg, QLD 4670
P: 4152 8820
https://www.aussie.com.au/mortgage-broker/qld/bundaberg/
Shalom’s QISSN team is grateful for the support provided by Aussie as a Silver Sponsor in assisting the team to get to the Brisbane carnival in June.
Mrs Nikki Somerfield
QISSN Manager
Nikki_Somerfield@shalomcollege.com
TAs at Shalom College are an integral part of our learning team. If you would like to recognise a Shalom College TA for their hard work and enthusiasm for the job, please see the flyer on how to nominate them for this award. Nominations close Thursday 29 June.
“Many have become Chess Masters, no one has become the Master of Chess” (Siegbert Tarrasch)
Congratulations to the 27 players who represented Shalom at the Inter-School Chess Competition held on Tuesday 23 May at Walkervale State School. Shalom entered an impressive 7 teams, our biggest number yet, and the largest represented school in the district - a fantastic achievement.
Our teams played some excellent chess, with our top team of Shalom Black (Callum M, Seth G, JJ W and Waylen H) finishing with a bronze medal in a close contest with a strong field in Division A. The Shalom Red team (Khan A, Jonathon E, Harry L and Max C) were our second-best performing team in Divionsion A finishing 8th, with Shalom Blue (Ruslan R, Luca H, Luke R and Alex M), Shalom White (Thomas B, Max L, Jacob B and Lachlan B) and Shalom Yellow (Josh W, Tyler P, Jacob O and Taniela K) battling hard but finishing further down the rankings.
In Division B, the Shalom Orange team (Beau K, Zach G, Connor D and Balin C) finished just off the podium in 4th while Shalom Green (Mason C, Marko M and Will M) finished 7th, an impressive result given they had only three players. The quality of chess played by these young guns shows the future of Shalom chess is in good hands.
Individually, Callum M, Waylen H, Taniela K, Marko M and JJ W finished with ribbons of merit. These are awarded to players who won at least 4.5 of the 7 games they played on the day. Excellent work boys!
To see the results in their entirety, including both team and individual results, follow the link: https://gardinerchess.com.au/event-results/inter-school-competition-results/?_term=2&_year=2023
If you are interested in playing or learning chess, then you are more than welcome to join us at Chess Club on Tuesdays from 11.25am-12.00pm in Beerarlem. The more the merrier!
Mr Brendan Maher
Chess Coordinator
maherb@shalomcollege.com
On Thursday 18 May a team of 29 students of Shalom’s best and brightest participated in the Science and Engineering Challenge held at the Bundaberg PCYC. The Science and Engineering Challenge is a day-long competition designed to provide Year 9 and 10 students with a positive experience of Science and Engineering.
Each school provides 8 teams of 3 or 4 students. Each team is assigned a challenge in which they must design, build and test something in order to solve a problem. There are 8 possible challenges including designing, building and testing a balsa wood plane, Mars rover, earthquake-proof tower and bridge.
Shalom students showed some exceptional enthusiasm in these challenges displaying excellent problem-solving skills and teamwork to comprehensively win the Challenge on the day. The score of 1430 out of a possible 1600 was a particularly high score and testament to the consistency across the teams. Performances across all groups were all fantastic, however, special mention goes to the groups who won their challenges on the day.
The Pink team of Hannah P, Ava M, Lucy W and Sophie W, the Yellow team of Landa A, Chase S and George S and the Green group of Jacob N, Freddie C and Jack G won both their challenges on the day – an outstanding effort. Additionally, the Red team of Callum M, Jack M, Trey H and Francis B were impressive in winning the Confounding Communications Challenge.
The prestigious Bridge Challenge was also won by Shalom, taken out by the Silver team of Ethan M, Michael C, Kodee P and Maxwell C. This challenge takes place at the end of the day with all groups watching, however the boys were undaunted by the extra pressure, with the bridge only being able to be broken by the intimidating ‘Bridge-Buster’. No group finished lower than fourth in the entire day – truly remarkable. It is hoped that Shalom will now qualify for the State Finals for the S&E Challenge which would be a very fun event.
The 2023 Science & Engineering Challenge Winners
Once again, our students participated in the great spirit that Shalom is known for and the day was enjoyed by all who attended.
For more photos from the day, click HERE to view them
Mr Brendan Maher & Mrs Debbie Bishop
Shalom Competition Coordinators
maherb@shalomcollege.com
bishopD@shalomcollege.com
Calling all writers…
Be a part of our Shalom College Literary Wonders competition for 2023.
The theme for 2023 is “Locally grown”.
Feel free to interpret this theme as creatively as you like: be inspired by our vast local scenery to build your setting; incorporate our local history into your characters or plot; the opportunities are endless!
Entries close: Friday 4 August
You can print a hard copy of your entry and place it in the box in Beerarlem or submit your piece electronically via this LINK. Please include a cover sheet with the following information: full name, grade, category, title of story. You can enter once only but you can enter both the poetry and short story category for your age/subject.
The categories are:
- Years 7-9 poetry
- Years 7-9 short story (max 500 words)
- Years 10-12 poetry
- Years 10-12 short story (max 1000 words)
- Years 10-12 Essential English short story (max 1000 words)
- Years 11-12 Literature short story (max 1500 words)
There are fantastic prizes for all the winners and runners up in each category.
Denise_Harvey@shalomcollege.com
Hockey - Open Boys - QSS State Championships
Congratulations to Ethan K, Sam A and Cohen U who represented the 13-19 years Wide Bay Boys Hockey Team at QSS State Championships held recently in Hervey Bay. It was a great four days of Hockey for the three Shalom boys.
The Wide Bay team finished 2nd in the Pool Rounds, playing and winning a crossover game, then drawing 2-2 in the semi final game. Both goals in this game were scored by Sam & Cohen. Due to the game resulting in a draw, it then went on to shoot outs, with Sam & Cohen selected as part of the five players. They won the shoot out 3-1, progressing to the grand final. Ethan was one of the teams goal keepers who had an excellent tournament making some crucial saves. The Wide Bay team finished with a silver medal after going down 3-2 in the grand final.
Sam was the team’s Captain. He had an outstanding carnival, scoring four goals and was rewarded with a place in the Under 19 QLD School Boys Merit Team. His teammates also awarded him with the Wide Bay players player award.
Cohen lead from the front, scoring six goals for the tournament including one in the semi’s, shoot outs and grand ginal. He was rewarded with a place in the Under 16 QLD School Boys Team which he will play at Nationals in Adelaide mid-August .
Mr Peter Robinson
Student Welfare - High Performance Program After School Activities
Peter_Robinson@shalomcollege.com
Motocross - QLD Championships
Izaak T from Walsh House PC2 recently placed fifth in the State for QLD Motocross Championships which is a wonderful achievement. The competition was held at two locations over two days at each. These competitions were held in Gladstone at the Benaraby raceway motocross track and the second, at Coolum.
There were approximately 300 riders that started with each round consisting of qualifying events - three races in each. After the end of the two rounds last weekend in Coolum, Izaak placed 5th overall. What a fantastic achievement Izaak!
The National Motocross Championships are being held in Darwin later this year. Izaak has now qualified for these. Congratulations Izaak and safe riding ahead!
Mr Chris Roelofs Walsh House Coordinatorroelofs@shalomcollege.com
Rugby Boys - QSS State Championships
Congratulations to our Shalom staff and students who represented the Wide Bay Rugby League at the QSS State Championships held in Townsville last week.
Mr Peter Robinson
Student Welfare - High Performance Program After School Activities
Peter_Robinson@shalomcollege.com
Rugby Girls 7s - QSS State Championships
Congratulations to Zoe S and Taylor D who played for the Wide Bay Girls Rugby 7s at the QLD Secondary Schools State Championships held in Hervey Bay recently.
Zoe played for the Wide Bay U16s team and Taylor played for the Wide Bay 17-18 years team.
Both girls played well. Zoe's team placed 3rd out of the 10 teams. Taylor was Wide Bay Captain and her team placed 7th.
Well done and congratulations again.
Mr Peter Robinson
Student Welfare - High Performance Program After School Activities
Peter_Robinson@shalomcollege.com
Term Dates for 2023
Term 1: Monday 23 January – Friday 31 March (10 weeks)
Term 2: Monday 17 April – Friday 23 June (10 weeks)
Term 3: Monday 10 July – Friday 15 September (10 weeks)
Term 4: Tuesday 3 October – Thursday 30 November (9 weeks)
Breakfast is available every morning for purchase from 8.00am - 8.30am.
Items available are:
Croissant Ham & Cheese (1/2 side) $1.00
Breakfast Bars $1.00
Toasted Sandwich $3.50
Bacon & Egg Muffins $3.50
Bacon, Egg & Cheese Wraps $3.50
Fresh Fruit (seasonal) $1.00
Other items available for purchase are Yoghurt Pots (not everyday), Up n Go drinks & Flavoured Milk.
Students who train before school need to consider utilising the breakfast menu to replenish energy lost during their early morning training sessions, however, students must be dressed appropriately before entering the tuckshop and must not be late for class.
If you are interested in volunteering at our College Tuckshop, we would love for you to indicate your availability and book a shift following the link below.
The booking system helps to accommodate our very much appreciated regular volunteers, but also families who may not be able to commit on a regular basis and have a day here or there throughout the year. The beauty of this system is that you can select your day and manage your booking, so if something comes up, you can quickly and easily go online to reschedule or cancel. Your booking will generate a confirmation email with links to manage your booking, it can be synched with your calendar and an SMS is sent the day before as a reminder. Of course, we are also here to help - simply contact Shalom College on 4155 8111.
For those of you who are regular volunteers your shifts have already been added to the schedule for this year and you should have received an e-mail for each booked shift.
Shifts last from 2-3 hours (school drop off to around 11.30 am).
No experience required!
The Shalom Markets are open every Sunday 6am-midday. Come along to purchase your fresh fruit and vegetables, local food products and handmade items.
Volunteers Required - Markets Tuckshop
We are seeking your help!! We are always in need of new volunteers for the Markets Tuckshop and BBQ. If your child/children would like to gain some work experience, why not get them to volunteer in the canteen. If you have a few hours you could spare to assist in our canteen, please contact Leanne via email at barkerl@shalomcollege.com
Markets Tuckshop Roster
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Sunday 4 June |
6:00am – 9:30am |
Danielle Morrish |
|
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9:00am – 12:30pm |
Volunteers required |
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Sunday 11 June |
6:00am – 9:30am |
Volunteers required |
|
|
9:00am – 12:30pm |
Emma Jansen |
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Sunday 18 June |
6:00am – 9:30am |
Volunteers required |
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|
9:00am – 12:30pm |
Maria McMahon |
| Sunday 25 June | 6:00am – 9:30am |
Volunteers required |
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9:00am – 12:30pm |
Brendan & Astrid Clancy |
Markets BBQ Roster
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Sunday 4 June |
St Joseph's P & F |
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Sunday 11 June |
Bundaberg Croquet Club |
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Sunday 18 June |
Rotary Club of Bundaberg Sunrise |
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Sunday 25 June |
St John's Lutheran School |
Office Hours: 9:00 - 1:00 Monday to Friday
Parish Office: Rossolini Place Level 1, 66 Woongarra St
Phone: 07 4151 6666 PO Box 79 Bundaberg QLD 4670
Email: sbundaberg@rok.catholic.net.au
AFTER HOURS: Anointing of the sick for medical emergencies
phone 4151 6666 and follow the prompt
UNDER THE PATRONAGE OF MARY MOTHER OF CHURCH
"The annual parish "Good News" magazine is now available in all churches for a Gold Coin Donation. As you read our in-house publication of the Good News magazine this year, discover the ways in which our parish vision statement is being made clear.
Shalom College Families Business and Trade Directory
To help assist the Shalom College community in supporting local businesses that are run by Shalom families, we have created our Shalom College Families Business and Trade Directory. If you would like to be listed in this directory, please send a copy of your business card to Mr Peter Robinson who will be establishing and developing this directory to Peter_Robinson@shalomcollege.com
Workshop - Supporting Students with Autism
Student Travel Rebates
Student travel rebate applications are only open in May for Semester 1 and October for Semester 2. Please click here to check if you are eligible.
Youth Suport
