From the College Principal
Newsletter 17 2023
Dear Members of the St Andrews College Community,
Our thoughts and prayers are with the Year 12 cohort, their teachers and their families as we start the Higher School Certificate Examinations. While many students have received early offers, most are still working towards an even higher ATAR to increase the opportunities that may be afforded. Thank you to the St Andrews Parish community for dedicating a Mass to our Year 12 students and their success. It is very much appreciated.
We have had a very positive start to Term 4. As we conclude Week 2 we move into Year 7 2024 Orientation and final assessment tasks in the coming days and weeks. I spoke to the students at Assembly about the mindset you bring each day to your learning plays such a significant role in the success you achieve. There are many supports in place at the College to assist in tackling the challenges we all face. Embrace the challenge, take up the opportunities afforded to you and I can ensure that you will succeed. Have a wonderful Term everyone.
It’s All About Learning
Reading Reflections: Give to Caesar What Belongs to Caesar and to God What Belongs to God – Mark 12:13-17, Matthew 22:15-21
This statement was made by some of the Pharisees and Herodians who were sent to “ensnare” Jesus in His speech. They act in a sneaky and cunning way to draw Jesus in.
They are trying to get Him to speak in opposition to Caesar so that they can get Him in trouble with the Roman authorities. But interestingly, what they say of Jesus is quite true and is a great virtue.
They say two things that highlight Jesus’ virtues of humility and sincerity:
1) “You are not concerned with anyone’s opinion;”
2) “You do not regard a person’s status.” Of course, they went on to then try to trick Him into breaking Roman law. Jesus does not fall for their trick and does outsmart them in the end.
However, these virtues are good for us to reflect upon because we should strive to have them alive in our own lives. First, we should not be concerned with others’ opinions. But this must be properly understood.
Sure, it’s important to listen to and consult others and to be open-minded. Other people’s insights can be crucial to making good decisions in life. But what we should avoid is the danger of allowing others to dictate our actions out of fear.
Sometimes the “opinions” of others are negative and wrong. We can all experience peer pressure in various ways. Jesus never gave in to the false opinions of others nor did He allow the pressure of those opinions to change how He acted.
Secondly, they point out that Jesus does not allow the “status” of another to influence Him. Again, this is a virtue. What we have to know is that all people are equal in the mind of God.
A position of power or influence does not necessarily make one person more correct than another. What’s important is the sincerity, integrity, and truthfulness of each person. Jesus exercised this virtue perfectly.
Reflect, today, upon whether these words could also be said about you. Strive to learn from the statements of these Pharisees and Herodians; strive to live a life of integrity and humility.
If you do so, you will also be given a share in the wisdom of Jesus so as to navigate the most difficult snares of life.
Prayer: Lord, I do want to be a person of honesty and integrity. I want to listen to the good advice of others but not be influenced by the errors or pressures that may also come my way. Help me to always seek You and Your truth in all things. Jesus, I trust in You. Amen
Parramatta Diocese Youth Lifted Leaders Gathering:
Congratulations to our students and Mr Alata for their representation of the College at the Parramatta Diocese Youth Lifted Leaders gathering last Thursday afternoon. They sang beautifully outside of St Patrick’s Cathedral Parramatta. Thank you to Mr Hoare, Ms Tan and Mr Ison for also attending and supervising and celebrating with our students.
Bishop’s Social Justice Statement Launch:
Year 9 students at the Bishop's Social Justice statement launch today. The Bishop spoke about listening to our Indigenous brothers and sisters, and the students worked together to design some strategies to implement at St Andrews over the next year in support of the Bishop's statement.
NSW Constitutional Convention 2023:
I am pleased to advise that Guntas Sandhu has been selected to participate in the 2023 NSW Constitutional Convention at NSW Parliament House, Macquarie Street, Sydney, on Friday 3 November 2023 from 9:00 am – 2:30 pm.
The organisational committee had an excellent response to the program and the statements produced by the students were of a very high standard. For Guntas to achieve a spot is a testament to her application and her knowledge. Congratulations.
Peer Support Training for Year 9 students:
Thank you to all the students who have volunteered to be part of the Peer Support Team for 2024. Thank you to Mr Leaves and Mrs Cooper who facilitated the training. I look forward to seeing you all in action at the Year 7 Orientation Day next week.
Formula One Success:
Congratulations to the students who made it through to the Finals at Eastern Creek yesterday. Thank you to Ms Serbin who assisted in the development and preparation as the STEM Leader at the College. I have seen a number of Year 8 classes demonstrating their prowess with their cars of late. It’s so exciting.
Year 9 Access Artist Workshop:
Thank you to all the students who took part in the last of the workshops. It was so pleasing to hear how receptive you were and how polite you were to our Visiting Artist. I hope you were inspired on to bigger and better art works in the future.
Junior Campus Hall and Multipurpose Court Renovations:
We have started the internal renovations of the Hall on the Junior Campus now and look forward to seeing it when we join together for St Andrews Day Mass. The renovation and repainting of all basketball/multipurpose courts will commence in the near future. I know how much the students love playing on the courts.
‘It’s All About Learning’
Fidem in Christo
Dr Stephen Kennaugh
Principal