St Andrews held their annual International Women’s Day Breakfast on Friday 8th March in support of the theme Inspire Inclusion. Our special guest was St Andrews alumni Anna Kravtsova, who spoke about her experiences within the music industry, and completing her Mechatronic engineering degree since leaving St Andrews College. Anna also entertained those in attendance with a wonderful performance of the song Rise up. 

It is a great privilege for us at St Andrews to be able to honour the women in our community who mean so much to us, who uplift us and inspire us on a daily basis. To be able to hear your insights and experiences in regards to womanhood was a joy.

Saint John Paul II said regarding womanhood, “thank you, to every woman, for the simple fact of being a woman! Through the insight which is so much a part of your womanhood, you enrich the world’s understanding and help to make human relations more honest and authentic.” 

Thank you to Anna for being a part of our breakfast, thank you to Mr Chiapetta for encouraging Anna to be with us, and Ms Serbin for providing the catering. Finally thank you to all the women in our community. Happy International Women's Day.

Andrew Hoare

Director of Faith, Mission and Learning.

Technology can be a wonderful learning tool and way to connect with people. There are many rules that need to be followed to ensure safety of everyone while using the technology. St Andrews has a code of expectations in regards to the use of technology at school.

The following are some basic rules that need to be followed:

1. No student or teachers’ photo is to be taken without consent. 
2. No image of students or teachers are to be put on social media without consent
3. Any abuse, misuse of images, bullying online or images of a sexual nature must be reported to the office immediately. 
4. Uploading or sharing of images and inappropriate content without consent will have serious consequences
5. On the Junior campus, technology is not to be used during breaks until the end of the break when class schedules can be checked.
6. Technology should only be used in class at the direction of the teacher. This is on both campuses.

Students must make responsible decisions about the use of technology. Ultimately the person who pays for the service/ device has the final legal responsibility for what happens online. It is essential that parents set guidelines and monitor all online use of technology.

E safety commissioner

In situations where there are issues online, the e safety commissioner is a great place to get advice and help. 

If there is cyber bullying, inappropriate content, and photos etc, there is action that you can take.

1. Screenshot the problem. Keep a record of names and times.
2. Notify the social media platform and report the issue.
3. Monitor the online activity and if the social media platform does not act, after 48 hours, contact the E Safety Commissioner and put in a report.
4. Get support from family and friends and school.

WHAT’S IN THE PLANNER

The BIG 5

To be your best self you should combine 

1. healthy eating, 
2. daily exercise, 
3. adequate sleep, 
4. drinking water and 
5. a positive attitude.

If we do these 5 things, we have a better chance of having great wellbeing.

What’s the difference between a fixed and growth mindset? 

Fixed mindsets are about proving, they only look at performance not effort, you feel that there is nothing you can do to change your ability. 

                      Hard work and effort = lack of ability

Growth mindsets rely on efforts being made and you trying different things and learning.  

                   Hard work and effort = achievement 

As learners we need to learn to Prioritise. Making a list of MUSTS and OPTIONS helps us prioritise what needs to happen in our life. Must might be school work or family obligations; options might be social media and TV.

Getting balance in your life is important to your overall well being. Four things that help with this are healthy eating, daily exercise, adequate sleep and having a positive attitude. Have a look at ways you can develop these areas in your planner.

Wellbeing fitness challenge

Thinking of others- Having positive vibes.

Tell me more- Interested listening.

Feel good menu- doing feel good activities.

Self-image- positive messages to yourself.

Others matter- Acts of kindness.

Aimless writing- clear your mind by writing everything down. 

God Bless

Mr Nicholas Thrum

Assistant Principal

Dear Families,

Please be advised that there is still time to order student photos. You may find further information on the attached flyer. 

Kind regards, 

Melissa Welch 

College Business Manager 

Year 12 News

Year 12 students are currently preparing for a round of HSC assessment tasks in their respective subjects. There is some very good work and preparation going on in all of the Yr 12 classes - but it is important also that each student has developed a home study plan to enable them to not only keep up with their current course content - but also to keep revising from their previous units and modules.

In order to support students in their learning, the Learning Centre is open every Tuesday and Wednesday until 5pm for students to be able to utilise the school resources and to help them study. It was great to see this week so many senior students in both Year 11 and 12 making good use of this resource!

Year 12 Captains Connect

Recently our College Captains and Vice Captains travelled to Cerdon College to take part in an inter-school initiative looking at student leadership across the diocese. The St Andrews leaders (Euleila Barret, Joshua Sammut, Jeremy Delfino and Patricia Tuazon) did a great job in representing our students. We are looking forward to the next round of meetings at Cerdon College.

Mr Andrew Houseman

Leader of Wellbeing - Year 12

We are at the halfway point of Term 1 of 2024 and I would like to express how proud and impressed I am with Year 8. A lot of you have shown so much growth from last year and are applying yourselves to your classwork. There is still a lot of room for improvement for every student but to be able to see what you all are doing and how you go about your days is great to see as your Leader of Wellbeing. Keep this up. 

Learning Group Leaders

Congratulations to the following students who have been elected as the Leader of the Learning Group for Semester 1

8B4 - Ninoy Batara and Erin Cagney

8B8 - Eliah Angok and Ann Atienza

8C10 - Hayley Graham and Eshan Kumar

8C6 - Oliver Franjic and Tanisha Jeshani

8F7 - Aniela Kozinski and Sage Cheng

8F8 - Giselle Nyambi and Xayne Casipit

8G8 - Akon Mabouc and Helli Vyas

8G9 - Hannah Myint and Mercy Andrea

The learning group leaders will have more opportunities this year to showcase their leadership skills in areas of teaching lessons and developing ideas to increase positivity and school engagement.

Class Swaps

Every year, your timetable will change along with your core classes. You are put into a class that is different to what you had the year before, meaning that you may be in a class with students who you do not usually interact with. These classes are done randomly so the complaints about the classes need to stop. I have always said that it is important to interact with other students as you will see them up until year 12 so you should create a sense of mutual respect and understanding of one another. If you are trying to develop different friendships, then you will have a more positive approach to your classes. No one will be allowed to change their classes at all. 

Swimming Carnival

Congratulations to the students who entered the competitive side of the swimming carnival, it was great to see you competing. Thank you to all students who participated in the novelty events, it was great to see you all interacting and developing those social connections. 

Public Speaking

Congratulations to the following students who have been selected to represent St Andrews in public speaking

CSDA

Aiden D’Silva

Perla Chamoun

Voice of Youth

Avneet Kuar

Filinita Aho

Diving 

Congratulations and good luck to the following students this weekend at their diving event

Eesa Mir

Rachael Griffiths

Analise Gregoriou 

It is always good to see those excelling in their strengths outside of school

Final Words

As we enter the second half of the term, always remember to respect one another and to always be a person for others. Help a teacher carry their books or hold a door open for someone in the St Andrews Community. Always greet your teachers when you go to class and always say thank you when you leave. 

As I mentioned before, as your Leader of Wellbeing, I am very proud of how you all are so far this year. Let’s keep it up. 

As always, my door is always open for a chat. 

Mr. Kharl Carlos

Leader of Wellbeing - Year 8

To our students, families, staff and all other members of our St Andrews Community,

We are officially launching our St Andrews Project Compassion fundraiser for 2024. This year, the theme For All Future Generations is inspired by the story of the burning bush in the book of Exodus (Exodus 3:1–20). In this story, God tells Moses that he has heard the cry of the people. God responds to injustice and chooses Moses to speak to Pharaoh. 

Though Moses is afraid, God promises to be with him. Thus, God says, ‘By this name I shall be invoked for all future generations.’

As God called Moses, so now God calls us to work for all future generations.

For over 60 years, Caritas Australia has worked hand in hand with the most marginalised and remote communities in Australia and overseas to confront the challenges of poverty.  In the video we saw three new stories that were highlighted for Project Compassion this year, from the Philippines, Samoa and Malawi. 

This year, we will raise money via a fundraising link on the official Project Compassion website that is specifically set up for St Andrews College. As we are cashless, you can participate in Project Compassion fundraising activities by donating directly to the website via the link. We encourage all families in helping to raise money as well as the link will be accessible to everyone. When donating on the St Andrews Caritas Fundraising link, students can actually set up their own student profile, or this can be set up by a parent/guardian. This means that you can share the link with others and represent yourself as a St Andrews student. You can also sign up as a team with a group of your friends, your families  or your Learning Group, so you can track how much money you've raised together as a group. Please see Ms Tan if you'd like to create a fundraising team on our St Andrews page.

 Posters of the Project Compassion Calendar and instructions on how to pay using the QR code have been placed in Learning Group folders and around the school. Please have a look at these posters so you know when our fundraising events are taking place.

Caritas Australia believes that fundraising should be FUN! It's also an opportunity to raise awareness about important issues, and a chance for the community to take part in a social justice action. Everyone who contributes is empowered and able to stand in solidarity, with the communities we serve and those who benefit from our actions.   So please keep an eye out for announcements about fundraising activities that students and staff will be running from the beginning of Week 7 to the end of Week 9, on both the junior and senior campuses.

Olivia Tan

FIAT (Faith in Action Teacher) Coordinator

Dear Parents and Guardians, 

It has been a great start to the year in regards to sport. On the 23rd February we were fortunate enough to hold an entire school swimming carnival at Charlie Lowes Emerton. It was pleasing to see our students either participating in a swimming event, novelty events or the volleyball games with such enthusiasm and enjoyment. A big congratulations to all the students who participated in a swimming event or a novelty event. It was great to see students getting involved, participating, cheering for their houses and earning house points. 

Congratulations to the students who have progressed through to PDSSSC swimming which will be held on Friday 8th March at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre, Homebush. 

Congratulations to the following age swimming champions- 12 year GIRLS-  Piper Kreiss, 12 year BOYS- Micah Makari , 13 year GIRLS- Analise Gregoriou, 13 year BOYS- Sage Cheng , 14 year GIRLS- Isabella Dabit , 14 year BOYS- Aidan D’Silva, 15 year Girls – Gabriella Azar ,15 year old boys- Caleb Palafox, 16 year BOYS- Kevin Pham , 17 year GIRLS- Issabella Narayan, 17 year BOYS – Youssef Tannous, 18 year BOYS- Loudonald Go. 

In softball news, Amelia Manks has been selected to play at the NSWCCC All Schools State Championships on the 11th March. We wish Amelia all the best of luck. 

A big congratulations to Piper Kriess on placing 3rd in the 12 year girls 50m freestyle.

Piper has also placed 3rd in the 100m freestyle. Such outstanding swimming results from Piper. Well done. 

Miss Ivana Nikitovic 

Leader of Wellbeing - Sport 

PUBLIC SPEAKING UPDATE

CSDA

I’m pleased to share the remarkable success of our public speaking students in the CSDA competition. Round 1 of the CSDA Public Speaking Competition was held last Friday here at St Andrews on our Junior Campus and provided a platform for our students to demonstrate their communication skills and confidence on a range of topics. Their performances showcased their dedication and preparation for this competition and every student who competed should be commended. 

Out of the twelve students who represented our school from Years 7 to 12, three have secured a place in the Zone Final which will be held at Emmaus Catholic College, Keeps Creek on Friday 8th March, 2024. I would like to extend my congratulations to the following students who have earned their place in the Zone final:

• Emily Stevenson, Year 9
• Lucas Baginski, Year 9
• Lexi Iskander, Year 10

Navigating through tough competition from other schools, our students displayed resilience and determination, leaving a lasting impression on both judges and spectators alike. Over the course of the evening, I received a number of positive comments from visiting staff and parents about the way our students, including both our speakers and student helpers, conducted themselves. 

Their achievement reflects their hard work and the support provided by their teachers and mentors. As they gear up for the Zone final on March 8th, 2024, we wish them the best of luck in their preparations and performances.

Voice of Youth

Our Rostrum Voice of Youth Speakers will be competing on Monday 11th March for the heat rounds. They will be competing at Montgrove College, Orchard Hills during the 6:00pm heat. As with all of our speaking competitions, community members are welcomed to join us in the audience. Your presence at the event will not only encourage our students but also contribute to the vibrant atmosphere of encouragement as these students push themselves to develop new skills.

We wish our Voice Of Youth speakers the very best of luck for their competition on Monday. 

DEBATING UPDATE

Welcome to 2024 Debating season!! 

The debating season starts up Week 1 of Term 2 and I’m excited to announce the teams for the Catholic Schools Debating Association (CSDA) competition. 

I want to give a huge congratulations to every student who tried out for the teams. Your passion for debating really showed, and the selection process was very difficult. So much so that almost every year group has at least 1 reserve speaker. 

The competition allows for 2 teams of three students per year group to compete. Please see the teams listed below

Your success in being selected reflects your talents as individuals and as a team. You all showed great potential, regardless of whether you made the teams or not. Your willingness to go beyond your comfort zones for many of you shows a positive attitude towards challenges and I encourage you to pursue that. 

Let's continue to support and encourage one another as we prepare for upcoming competitions and events. 

Congratulations once again to our successful debaters!

Warm regards,

Miss Mickaella Douglas,

Debating and Public Speaking Leader

College Leadership Team

Leaders of Learning - Wellbeing

College Leaders of Learning - KLA

College Leaders of Learning