21 July 2016

Newsletter Articles

Important Dates

2016

Gilroy on the Go

Transition Days

Information Night

Lee at Mt Isa for Work Experience

Lee Osmond, in year 10 helped to install new bearings to a Gorman Rupp pump that he and Bruno were rebuilding while he was doing work experience for a week at the Mica Creek Powerhouse in Mt Isa over his school holidays.

Pictured is Lee standing beside a Frame 6 Turbine. This is capable of producing 60,000 Horsepower and is converted into 32 Megawatts of power ready for distribution throughout North West Queensland.

100 Million Year Old Fossil on Dispay at Gilroy!

Gilroy Santa Maria College is proud to announce that a museum quality specimen of a Trachyteuthis Willisi (Giant Squid) is now on display in the College Library. This specimen is estimated to be 100 million years old and is from the Cretaceous Period when an inland sea flowed through the middle of Australia. In 2014 the year 9 Extension class travelled to Western Queensland to experience life in one of the most significantly drought affected areas in Australia as well as to search for 100 million year old marine reptile fossils.

After an 8 hour trip to Richmond, the students were excited to begin their fossicking expedition. The group was fortunate enough to be welcomed onto Marathon Station by the Levers family who discovered the world renowned 'Richmond Pliosaur' on their property. The Richmond Pliosaur is the most complete fossil of its kind ever to be discovered in the world.

The students listened to a presentation by palaeontologist Paul Stumkat on Marathon Station and then they were ready to try their luck. As well as finding various smaller fossils, the group made a once in a life time discovery of a fossilised giant squid that measured over a metre in length. After the students prepped the fossil under the guidance of the palaeontologist, it was kindly donated to Gilroy Santa Maria College and the year 9 Extension class which consisted of: Emma Castles, Michael De Leo, Felicity Flanagan, Rosie Galletly, Madeleine Hardy, Chelsea Lynch, Steven Rinaudo, Kiara La Rosa, Andrew Pallanza and Clinton Forden.

The College is very fortunate to have a fossil of this calibre on display and kindly thanks the Levers family of Marathon Station for their very generous donation.

QISSN

During the first week of the June/July holidays, the GSM Netball team travelled to Rockhampton to compete in the annual Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Netball carnival. After a week of some very tough competition, the Gilroy girls earnt a spot in their first ever Grand Final courtesy of a hard fought win against Assisi College in the Semi-Finals (a team they had previously lost to in the pool stages).

In the Grand Final, Gilroy met Columba College from Charters towers. Playing in front of a vocal band of passionate supporters, Gilroy was able to take home their first piece of QISSN silverware defeating Columba College by 39 points to 33 in a very fast-paced and thrilling final.

Congratulations to the entire GSM team and a special mention to Hannah Maggiora who was awarded Gilroy's Player of the Carnival.

The Gilroy Netball team has had a fantastic year winning the Catholic School's Cup at Charters Towers as well as the Ingham round of the Vicki Wilson Cup Competition against Ingham High. Well done girls!

Hayden is GSM's King of Cane

Hayden Di Bella has taken out the Cane section for GSM at the Annual Ingham Show. Hayden entered 7 stools of second ratoon cane and placed Grand Champion, 3 first ribbons, 3 second ribbons, 4 third ribbons and a Stool of School Trophy. Hayden grows and looks after the cane at GSM. Thank you to Mr Staples, Mr Valinoti, Joseph Bortolanza, Rowan McLennan and Adam Di Bartolo on helping Hayden with cutting and transporting the can to the Ingham Show Grounds. Well done.

From the Acting Principal

Welcome back to Gilroy Santa Maria College for Term 3 to all of our Students, Staff and Gilroy Community.

I hope that you all had a chance to recharge your souls and prepare for what will no doubt be a very busy Term 3. While my time as Acting Principal has been rewarding, hopefully this will be my last newsletter in this capacity, with good news that Mr John Nuttall is progressing extremely well with his knee operation and should be back on deck in Week 3.

While many people had the chance to take a deep breath and relax for the first week of the holidays, I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to attend the QISSN and Confraternity Carnivals in Rockhampton. What a fantastic effort by, our staff and by our students. To witness the level of commitment that is displayed by our staff throughout this week is something that says a lot about the type of school that we are a part of. The presence of many parents and supporters of both teams was also very heartening and went a long way towards the successes of both teams in 2016.

Congratulations to the QISSN girls who continued to improve throughout the carnival and were rewarded for their hard work with a win in the Grand Final of their division. This was a fantastic result for the school and was the first ever silverware that we have managed to bring home from this carnival. A big thank you must go out to Mrs Lauren Devietti and Mrs Roslyn Giuliano for their ongoing work in developing a great Netball culture within this team and within the school.

Thanks also must go out to Mrs Joan Devietti, Mr Ian Schifilliti, Mr Paul Dezolt and Mr Brendan Spina for their magnificent work with the Confraternity Team. The Confro boys managed to win all of their pool games and finished this round in third place with the hope of advancing to their first semi-final since 2012. Unfortunately, they came up against the eventual champions, Marist Ashgrove, who piled on the pressure to win a hard fought Quarter final. To the credit of the boys and the coaching staff the Confro team never gave up in any of their games and proved to themselves that they have what it takes to compete at the highest level.

Throughout the holidays a lot of work went into preparation for the annual Ingham Show. Thank you to Mrs Petrina Coco and on her continued efforts in organising our show display for 2016. This display was a great opportunity to show the wider community the many great aspects of our College and Petrina once again created an excellent display with the help of Mrs Annie Yung. Yet another example of our fantastic efforts within the school was in the Wearable Art section of the Ingham Show. Encouraged and supported by Mrs Miranda Pietrobon, many students not only entered some wonderful evening wear, but also provided models for their dresses. As you have all seen in the local paper, the dresses and our students looked fabulous.

As I write this Newsletter, staff and students are most likely recovering from an arduous week of Camps, Cultural Week, Work Placements and QCS practice. The commitment, professionalism and Pastoral Care that has been demonstrated by our staff throughout this week cannot go unmentioned. Thank you to all staff on the time that you have generously given away from your own families, so that the Gilroy Santa Maria College family can be catered for. Congratulations also to all those students who made the commitment to attend and engage in the many different events that were running throughout this week. I have only heard positive comments from staff about their interactions with students. Well done to all.

As week two begins, many students have been very fortunate to have been selected to attend Mulkadee 2016. I had the absolute pleasure of attending the culminating concert on the Friday night in 2015 and was blown away by the spectacle and the high standard of Music, Song and Dance that was presented at the end of only one week. Mulkadee is a special Catholic School event for the Townsville Diocese and we are very fortunate to be able to be a part of this student-lead showcase of the Arts.

Regards
Peter Groundwater

Japanese Student Needs Billeting

A male Japanese student is currently visiting for a period of 4 – 6 weeks and is eager to learn the English language and immerse himself into the Ingham Culture. He is in need of a place to stay for the few weeks while he is here. If you could billet Tetsuro, please ring the Office and talk to Mr Peter Groundwater 47762888.

From the Assistant Principal
(Religious Education)

Welcome back to Term 3. I hope you had a relaxing break and are ready for what will be a busy term.

Last week I had the pleasure of accompanying our Year 8 students on a Friendship Retreat to Mungalli Falls with Mr Barbagallo, Mr Matthews, Miss Cerqui and Father Damian. It was a beautiful couple of days filled with prayer, singing, games and discussion on how to be a good friend. Congratulations to all the students for their excellent behaviour and participation.

This week we have several students participating in Mulkadee. This is an opportunity for students from our Catholic Schools in the diocese to showcase their talents in choir, dance, drama and music. The week ends with a marvelous concert showing what the students have learned throughout the week. All the best to the students.

Next week is Catholic Education Week. Leaders will be travelling to the Sacred Heart Cathedral on Monday to celebrate Mass. While there, Cathy Day will be presenting the 'Deus Caritas Est' Award in recognition of individual students who promote their Catholic identity within schools. This year our award goes to Celine Aquilini. Celine is presently on the World Youth Day Pilgrimage. I look forward to giving her this award when she returns and listening to her wonderful experience in Krakow. The Year 7 students will also take part in a Combined Districts Schools Mass on Wednesday at St Patrick's Church with Lourdes, St Peter's and St Teresa's College.

In this 'Year of Mercy' we continue to recognise the important role of parents in our school community. As a way of saying 'THANK YOU' we are giving vouchers for a FREE COFFEE during the week, July 25 to 29. Please print out the voucher and bring it in to Fiorelli's for your coffee and ENJOY!!

God Bless
Christine Timms

From the Acting Assistant Principal
(Administration & Curriculum)

Welcome back Parents and Students to Term 3. I hope that everyone had a relaxing and enjoyable school holiday. Term 3 has certainly started with a bang as students were all engaged in alternate programs for week one. From all reports, the Year 9 Camp and Year 8 and 10 Retreats went well as did Year 7 Cultural Week. Year 11 and Year 12 non-OP eligible students undertook an opportunity for Work Experience; this is vital ground work for choosing career pathways. The OP-eligible Year 12 students were consumed by QCS practice testing in preparation for this gruelling test which occurs in Week 8.

Semester 1 Report Cards were mailed home to parents yesterday. Should there be any concerns, please do not hesitate to contact the subject teacher to discuss your student's progress.

Term 3 again promises to be a very hectic term. The Term 3 Student Assessment Planner is available on our school website and a link is available below. As always, this contains all the information for your child's assessment as well as what exams to expect at the end of this term. Again, I urge all students to take advantage of the College Academic Support program.

Year 10 students have been involved in an ongoing careers program. Nancy Douglas, our Careers Advisor, has also begun subject displays outside the Careers area, students are able to see the senior subject textbooks and course content and have an opportunity to ask questions. The program also includes the completion of SET Plan booklets. These booklets generate a plan and pathway that students would like to venture in their senior education and beyond. This will be an important document that parents also must sign.

Also a Year 10 Subject Selection Information Night will be held in Week 6. This evening will provide vital information about subject choices and career pathways. There will be a further opportunity for students and parents to meet with subject teachers and discuss any questions before deciding if this is the right subject for them. Following the information evening, parents and students will have the opportunity to meet with Nancy and myself to ensure that the choices they have made are best for them. Students will receive their subject line choices for 2017 within the next couple of weeks. They will also receive a detailed subject selection handbook that provides information about each senior subject.

Please do not hesitate to contact Nancy Douglas to make an appointment to discuss possible career pathway options or myself in regards to subject choices. We can both be contacted on (07) 4776 2888 or by email.

Joan Devietti: jdevietti@gilroysm.catholic.edu.au
Nancy Douglas: ndouglas1@gilroysm.catholic.edu.au

Joan Devietti

Year 8 Camp

The Year 8 class spent an enjoyable, though cold and damp, 3 days up at Mungalli Falls as part of a 'Friendship' retreat run by Father Damian. The first day saw the students discussing what it meant to be a good and a bad friend: 'Friendship Makers' and 'Friendship Breakers'. This led to other sessions talking about trust, commitment, honesty, compliments, gossip, jealousy, forgiveness and saying sorry. Each session started and ended with prayer of which the most enjoyable was 'God Does Not Make Rubbish', a very catchy tune by Father Richard Galea.

As the retreat went on, the singing got louder and more fun was had. On Thursday night we celebrated Mass by giving thanks for all the wonderful things in our lives and praying for those who are in need of God's love and mercy. It was certainly a very special way to finish off the retreat.

Students also participated in camp activities. The Scrapheap Challenge involved students bidding for scrap items such as egg cartons, plastic bags and string, that would be then used to protect a balloon from being burst. Students also had the opportunity to try Archery. For some, this was the first time that they had held a bow and arrow.

Everyone enjoyed themselves, the food was great and all came home safely.

Thank you to Mr Barbagallo, Mr Matthews and Miss Cerqui for being tremendous helpers on retreat and to Father Damian for organising and running it.

Christine Timms

Year 9 Camp

Last week the Year 9's went on a four day camp to Blencoe falls. This year's camp was based around bush survival and bush cooking with some of the activities been water trapping, starting fires with magnifying glasses and flint, learning how to tell where North is using the sun and the stars as well as cooking in camp ovens and making damper twisties on a stick.

The students all behaved amazingly well and got into the full spirit of the camp. We had some quite successful fisherman on the trip who caught a few fish and bagged a lot of Cherabin posing for photos before releasing them. The weather held up for us until Thursday afternoon when the rain set in, but to their credit the students didn't complain and participated in all activities and still had a great time.

All the staff on the camp had nothing but praise for the student's behavior and involvement and we can't wait for next year's camp. I would like to thank all the students who attended as it was a pleasure going away with you all and you worked fantastically together. A massive thank you must also go to the staff for their help and all the long hours they put in helping to run the camp over the four days.

Thanks
Mr Schrodter

Year 10 Camp

The Year 10 cohort along with Father Vitalis attended their annual three-day Retreat at Magnetic Island where they participated in a range of peer-support, leadership and problem solving activities. With an overall theme of Building Community, the retreat also allowed students the opportunity to reflect on the things that matter most to them as a cohort. The students themselves also prepared and presented their own beautiful liturgy around the theme of community. We even managed to sneak in an afternoon at the beach while the sun was shining. The teachers would like to thank the students for their excellent behaviour and participation throughout the camp.

Peter Groundwater

Extension Class off to Canberra

Extension students from our school will soon be undertaking an education tour of the national capital. Students will be given the opportunity to participate in a variety of educational programs with a focus on Australia's history, culture, heritage and democracy. The Australian Government recognises the importance of all young Australians being able to visit the national capital as part of their Civics and Citizenship education.

To assist families in meeting the cost of the excursion the Australian Government is contributing funding of $150 per student under the Parliament and Civics Education Rebate 3 program towards those costs. The rebate is paid directly to the school upon completion of the excursion.

Sarah Dunn

Debating

Gilroy is set to debate the topic of mobile phones against St Margaret Mary's College on Wednesday, 3 August.

This time the Year 7 / 8 team will have to argue the affirmative case, that is, that mobile phones should be banned at school. The other side will argue the negative - that they should not be banned.

Quite often in debating, especially senior debating, arguments depend on the wording of the topic. In this case, the topic implies that all mobile phones should be banned whenever on school grounds. Here is where the two teams' will lock horns.

This term, a new shadow player will join the team. Emily Firth will officially be a researcher and writer for the team. The other team members are Alicia Galipo, William Price and James Hunter.

David Price

ACADEMIC SUPPORT

Academic Support will be offered for students after school MONDAY, TUESDAY and WEDNESDAY from 3:00pm-4:00pm.

Monday: Support will be available in the Library, senior Sciences in L1 and at the Trade Training Centre.
Tuesday: Support will be available in the Art Room for the Arts (Art, Creative Art, Drama etc).
Wednesday: Support will be available in the Library and the Indigenous Tutoring program will also continue.

Lunch time support is still available Monday – Friday in the Library.

Students can use this time to:

• Complete homework
• Work on assessment
• Gain subject specific tutoring

with up to 3 teachers from various faculties present for student support.

Students are strongly encouraged to take advantage of this very generous donation of precious teacher time.

Tuckshop Roster

VOLUNTEERS ARE NEEDED FOR 2016!!

Please note: The lunch times this year are as follows:

1st Lunch – 11:15am – 11:40am
2nd Lunch – 1:20pm finish 2:05pm

Start time is preferably 9:00am until when you are available.

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you all again this year.

If there is any query in regards to this roster or you are unavailable please contact

Sandra Benedetto Home [4776 5321]
Jodie Lino Home [4776 5718]

What's Happening in the Parish

Philippines Mission Trip Cake Stall

Mission Trip students are holding a Cake stall to raise funds for their September journey. Donations of cakes, biscuits and slices will be gratefully accepted. Baked goodies must be wrapped and labelled with name and ingredients and can be dropped off between 7.30am - 9.00am on the day of the Cake Stall.

When: Saturday 30th July
Where: Coles (back entrance)
Time: 8.15- 12pm
Contact: Paula Henderson 47 980 149 Christine Timms 0488757717

Upcoming Events

• Young Vinnies Sleepout—July 29
• Parish Mission— 6 August to 21 August

Father Damian McGrath
Parish Priest
Ingham Region Catholic Parishes

District News

St Peter's School Afternoon Tea & Hoy

Combined School Ball