Week 8 Term 2 2021

Principal

The endorphins were pumping through the veins of the cast, as well as many people in the audience, last Saturday night as the 2021 Musical production High School Musical – On Stage! came to its pulsating finale followed up by a joyous encore. Each of the four shows were sold out and the quality of the production was a credit to everyone involved - staff and students alike. We thank our partner school Mary MacKillop College and their talented young ladies for their involvement. Special thanks are extended to Ms Alison Kilgour, the Artistic Director, for her leadership and commitment to what is a long term project. It was particularly exciting to see increasing numbers of our boys involved and enjoying themselves on the stage. For some, it is a sign of a growing confidence in performing arts at the College. I also commend the Year 12 students who were involved for the manner in which they engaged with and led the younger boys.

At Tuesday's assembly, we presented students from Year 5 to 10 with the Semester 1 Old Boys Awards, which are based on the learning dispositions of our Habits of Mind framework. The Awards are named after outstanding Old Boys who achieved both at Nudgee College and in life beyond their school days. Their names include Old Boys from many years ago such as Neal Macrossan and Patrick Donovan as well as younger men such as Patrick Cook and Stephen Daley. The Year 7 Awards are named in honour of Mr Ian Brusasco (NC - 1947). The significance of the Year 7 Awards was heightened by the fact that Ian Brusasco passed away recently. We extend our prayers and sympathies to his wife, Patsy, and his extended family. The College was represented by our school leaders at his public memorial service that was held on Wednesday.

Ian Brusasco was a proud Nudgee College Old Boy who came to the College from a very poor, Italian migrant family in Far North Queensland near Ingham. He claimed that the first time he wore shoes was when he came to the College in the 1940s and he still did not know who paid for his education as his family were in no place to afford the fees. He embraced the educational opportunity that the College offered and embraced his study and sport. Beyond school, he built a highly successful career in pharmacy, politics, sports administration and charitable organisations. His life of service to others was honoured with awards such the 1988 Member of the Order of Australia; the Centenary Medal in 2001 and in 2002, he was named an Officer of the Order of Australia for "distinguished service to the community of Queensland through leadership roles with a range of public administration, sporting and charitable organisations, particularly Foodbank Queensland". In the 2018 GPS Centenary year, he was named in the Nudgee College Hall of Fame. The public memorial held in his honour was a fitting tribute to a person who never forgot his poor upbringing and who ultimately sought to use his success in life to help the most needy. Vale Ian Brusasco.

We also remembered Br Vic Larkin in a special way at assembly on Tuesday. It was the third anniversary of his passing. He served the Christian Brothers for many years, in many schools and in many roles. He lived in retirement here at Nudgee College for 15 years until 2018. Though retired, he was an active member of the school community and a much loved character. You always felt better after a conversation with Vic, even if that encounter was barely a few minutes. He dealt with his Parkinson’s Disease without complaint and it never detracted from his quick wit and sharp intellect. He was a man of great faith who could see the good in every person. Those in the community who knew him still miss his regular presence amongst us. We are comforted in knowing that he will be looking down on us and blessing the daily endeavours of all those who walk the path of a Catholic education in the Edmund Rice tradition.

Finally, it is with some sense of relief and anticipation that I inform the community that I am taking leave for six weeks at the end of the term. I return to the office early in August. I had plans in place to take leave last year but these were scuttled by COVID-19. This period of time away from the daily grind will be focused on some personal renewal, rest and well-being. In my absence, the school will be well led by:

Mr David Johnston as Principal
Mr Peter Todd as Deputy Principal
Ms Jo Barrett as Dean of Students
Mr Michael Byrne as Director of Students
Mr Brendan McGuinness as Ross House Dean

As we come to the end of Semester 1, I am very grateful for the collective contribution of so many individuals and groups in our 130th year. We are grateful for the many blessings that we enjoy but we are also mindful of those in the school community for whom the year has been a challenge. The Nudgee College community, and the boys in particular, will remain in my prayers over the coming weeks.

Mr Peter Fullagar

Principal

Deputy Principal

Half way

Next week we begin the last week of the first half of the academic year. The busy end of semester is upon us and our focus is on end of semester exams, followed by the issuing of mid-year reports. No doubt, there will be assignments and projects to finish as well. I hope that most students are settled into a routine and developed good habits for managing their time in order to get work submitted on time.

Our boys will have to make sure that they plan their homework and study time to fit everything in. Teachers too have a busy time as they grade the work that is submitted, supervise and assess exams and then write reports.

I regularly make the comment to our staff that we need to make sure that we are respectful of each other’s workload during busy times and try to accomplish our own work in a way that does not impact negatively on others. Generally, the single most important way that we can do this for each other is to make sure that we meet deadlines. In the case of the teachers they will be under pressure to make sure that reports are written on time. This takes a lot of planning. Students can help in this regard by making sure that they hand work in to teachers on time.

If we can all be mindful of this at all times, but particularly in the busy times, then we are demonstrating a very important way of answering Jesus’ call to “Love one another as I have loved you”.

Over the next week, it would also be good for all families to make time to review the family calendar to make sure that students have adequate time set aside to make the most of Semester 2. Nudgee College is always a busy place, but I always feel Term 3 is by far the busiest time. We have many key events on the calendar - Year 10 Immersion, Year 12 Kairos (our second attempt), Year 12 also completing their last internal assessment tasks, the Long Lunch, Dimensions Art Festival, not to mention basketball, rugby and some debating. And I know this is not a comprehensive list!

I reiterate the challenge to all students to ensure that they always submit their best work, and that they approach every lesson and piece of work with a genuine desire to make the most of the talents they are blessed with.

Mr David Johnston

Deputy Principal

Identity

WALK FOR EDMUND

The College's annual Walk for Edmund will be held on the last day of term, Friday 18 June. Every student will walk from Wilkes Oval to the Boondall Wetlands, and back, from midday as a way of raising much needed funds for the Edmund Rice Foundation Australia (ERFA) and as a mark of solidarity with those in our Edmund Rice network here in Australia, and in countries like Timor, PNG, Kenya and the Philippines with whom ERFA work to improve educational outcomes.

The funds we raise through Nudgee College's largest participation event are vital to ERFA's work but, more importantly, we acknowledge the many blessings of being part of this community and, out of a heart touched by the command of Christ to love others, we passionately commit ourselves to sharing what we have with others. Any act of charity must start with an action of the heart. We hope this is the educational outcome for all our Nudgee College men.

Your son was recently given a postcard as a means of inviting others to support him in his Walk for Edmund. Please ask him to show it to you if he has not already done so. He can collect another from the Edmund Rice Centre in the Spirit Tunnel or from his House Dean if he needs. It contains this QR Code below which takes you to ERFA's Walk for Edmund page.

The day itself is a lot of fun. The boys set off at the beginning of Period 4 and return for a BBQ lunch and the 1st XI game versus IGS on Ross. The day will end as normal at 2.55pm. All students are to wear their sports uniform on that day. A hat and a water bottle are must haves!

Thank you for all you are doing in supporting your son's participation in this vital community activity.

SUSTAINABILITY

In celebration of World Environment Day, Friday 4 June, today we are presenting our NC Sustainability Progress Report for 2021.

Tree report

As the saying goes, from little things big things grow. Nowhere is this more apparent than through the efforts of our NC Sustainability team. 2021 marks 5 years since we planted our first tree. This 5 years of growth is visible at the Native Regeneration Garden between O’Neil & Hendry. Furthermore, 4 years ago, trees were planted next to the Cattle Yards in celebration of National Tree Day. Although not even 12 months has elapsed since last year’s Year 10 Immersion, the gumtrees and the bottlebrush trees that were planted down the back paddock have grown considerably, with many even tripling in size. This is significant considering last year we planted 2500 trees on campus.

Waste report

We have successfully saved the following waste from ending up in landfill:

60,000 litres of food compost from the boarder’s kitchen, which has been processed through our Pulpmaster 6000 converting the waste into useful fertiliser.
40,000 plastic drink containers through the Containers for Change program
47 tonnes of scrap metal was diverted from landfill from the Treacy redevelopment including aluminum, copper and stainless steel.
38 tonnes of cardboard & paper have also been re- diverted over the last 4 months thanks to the efforts of the NC Sustainability Crew

For those who would like to join NC Sustainability - we meet every Friday lunch in L1.3 above the tuckshop. You can also sign in using the Team App. Look for NC Sustainability under NC Solidarity.

Samuel Rogers & Jameson Jameson

Co-Captains of NC Sustainability

Student Formation

Bus Committee

One of the many blessings of Nudgee College is our amazing Bus Service. We have 15 runs and transport about 800 students per day. Considering that 300 of our students actually live on campus, our bus service is the main way most Nudgee College men get to school. We have worked hard over many years to make sure this is the best experience we can, but there's the occasional hiccup still. To improve the student voice and feedback on our bus system, we have created a bus committee. Well done to the boys in Year 6, the middle school and the senior school who have been selected by their House Deans to be part of this committee. We will meet twice per term for a consultation style meeting. The boys will be recognisable by a badge and I will advertise this to Nudgee College men. We look forward to a successful new group.

School PC Photos (Years 7-12)

On return to school in Term 3, school PC photos will be held in Week 2 – Wednesday 21 July. Parents will be emailed details regarding ordering these photos before the end of term.

Mr Peter Todd

Dean of Students

Reader's Cup

On Wednesday 9 June, four Nudgee College students, Paddy Williams (BA - Year 8), Harrison Elsley (DU - Year 7), Andrew Emery (DU - Year 7), and Max Molloy (BA - Year 7), travelled to Padua College to take part in the Children’s Book Council of Australia Reader’s Cup inter-school competition. They competed against 20 Brisbane schools, who were all quizzed on details and content from five books: Detention by Tristan Bancks, The Happiness Quest by Richard Yaxley, Jinxed by Amy McCulloch, Hive by A.J. Betts, and Pirate Boy by Jackie French.

After months of preparation with Teacher Librarian, Ms Kathleen White, and current senior students, Lachlan Barrett and Oliver Evangelista, our students were excited to attend the big event. Our Nudgee College team placed 11th overall in the competition, and the boys are keen to try again next year. We are proud of the team for all of their efforts, and congratulate them on their representation of our school.

Ms Melissa Miller

Head of the Learning Centre

Learning & Teaching

Semester Reports and Learning Habits Reports

Semester reports provide a summary of results for each subject using an A to E scale. Grades in Year 5 to 10 are allocated using the Achievement Standards of the Australian Curriculum. (Link to the Australian Curriculum) Detailed feedback on assessment pieces is provided in the Parent Lounge and Student Cafe.

Year 11 and 12 students are provided an A to E grade for each subject studies using the unit results from the QCAA courses they are completing. Students can review their QCE results via their learning account (Link). Detailed feedback on assessment pieces is provided in the Parent Lounge and Student Cafe.

Learning habits reports will also be emailed. They provide a snapshot of how your son is progressing in the classroom. They’re practical things your son can do to put himself in the best position to maximise his learning opportunities. Each learning habit is based around our Habits of Minds pedagogical framework (Link). Use the Learning Habits poster to frame a conversation with your son about his results.

Parent -Teacher-Student Conferences

Our second Parent -Teacher-Student Conferences will take place on Monday 12 July. This date is the student free date for the start of Term 3. It also marks the return date for our boarders.

Booking emails have now been sent to all families. This email provides the link to PTO and individual login details. Please be aware that the password is unique to each event and, as such, if you have previously saved a password, you may need to update it to log in successfully this time around.

We are pleased to advise that all booking emails have successfully left our servers on Monday 7 June (boarding, Year 12, 5 & 6 families) and Tuesday 8 June (7, 8, 9 ,10 & 11 families). If you have not received your email please check your spam/junk folders to see if your email provider has directed it to that location. Some email providers notoriously mark our mass email campaigns as spam and deal with it accordingly.

In response to parent feedback from last term’s conferences, we will continue to offer a hybrid of online and face to face interview options. We have, however, added another face to face opportunity to the schedule. Please be mindful of the method of delivery when you are booking your times.

8:50am to 10:40am - Face to face interviews

11:10am to 1:10pm - ONLINE meetings only

2:00pm to 4:00pm - Face to face interviews

4:30pm to 6:30pm - Face to face interviews

PTO will be accepting bookings until Wednesday 16 June.

Mr Jason Sepetauc

Dean of Learning and Teaching

UQ Science and Engineering Challenge

On the Thursday 13 May, 29 Year 10 Physics students travelled to UQ to compete in the UQ Science and Engineering Challenge. Well done to all who competed and Mr Carmody and Mr Luke for accompanying the students. The report below is from Year 10 student, Patrick Kennedy:

On the day, we completed two of the activities including the Helter Skelter Shelter and Confounding Communications. In the first activity we completed, Helter Skelter Shelter, we had to build a tower of least 35cm that could support as many kg blocks as possible. After this, we had to build a new tower that could support as many kg blocks, this time knowing it would be shaken whilst supporting the mass. Our group came 4th for this activity.

We headed then over to Confounding Communications where we devised a code using only the primary colours (red, blue, green). This code was used to send a message from one half of the group to the other half. Their job was to decipher this message using the code that was created. The message was translated into the symbols given at the start of the activity.

Nudgee College finished 3rd overall after performing well in numerous other activities, which included bridge building and future power. Congratulations to the winner of the day - Marist College Ashgrove.

Boarding

Each Sunday evening I sit in the chapel, with close to 300 young Nudgee College boarders. I relish this time of the week, as it gives me a small window of ‘quiet’ or silence in an otherwise busy environment. I certainly hope that the boys feel the exact same way. Not just about praying, but about being comfortable to be in their own head space, and enjoy the quiet following Mass, I spoke passionately about two topics.

Along the theme of ‘Positivity being a choice’ that we can make each day, despite what might be happening in our world at that time. This in itself can become a lifelong habit. In a boarding context, I spoke about our relationship with others within the community. It can be at the conclusion of the term whereby we can react differently, based upon the pressures of the term and the longing to be at home.

Secondly, I asked the question to the boys: are they prepared to succeed? Are they striving for their goals? Are they planned with their assessments? Do they know who is available to help them within the Reach for the Stars study program? Are they getting enough sleep? Are they eating well? Sometimes boys assume that success will just happen, but they have to be prepared for this to occur.

Western Trip

Last weekend, Nudgee College had the pleasure of taking some staff and students out to Goondiwindi for the Rugby clinic and ‘Nudgee’s shout’ parent function. A wonderful morning whereby the young Gundy and Toowoomba players were put through their paces by Mr Anthony Connellan, and other members of our Rugby High Performance Unit. The most enjoyable aspect of this morning was the presence and connections these kids had with some of our senior students who made the time to come out and ‘give back’ to their communities.

The afternoon finished watching Mr Theo Betteridge and Mr Casey Brealy play for the Gundy 3rd XV in an entertaining display, as well as watching some Old Boys run around on the field. Thanks to Mr Anthony Connellan, Mr Theo Betteridge, Mr Casey Brealy, Ben Bright and Jamaal Sugars for making the day run so smoothly.

Goondiwindi Bus Transfer

Bookings are once again open for the Nudgee College Term 2 Brisbane to Goondiwindi bus transfer.

Book: https://www.trybooking.com/BIQFH

Next Run: Friday 18 June at 1pm

Ticket Price: $40

Departure: Nudgee College

Photo Competition

This year the Boarding Support Group will once again be running the annual Boarding Photo Competition to encourage boys to showcase the pride they have for their hometown or region. The Art department staff will judge the entrants, with a single winner chosen from each Boarding House and at least two runners-up. The winners of this competition will receive a $50 voucher. During the upcoming mid-year holidays, I want to encourage all students to use their phones or cameras and capture images that represent their community.

Photo Requirements:

The photos MUST be in high resolution (minimum 300dpi, but preferably 600dpi) so that we can print the winners and runners-up onto canvas for the Arts Festival - You can see previous winners entries in the Dining room.

The higher resolution you use, the better the quality of Image.

You have until the end of Week 2 next term to get these photos in – final date is Friday 23 July

Email these photos to boarding@nudgee.qld.edu.au (in the subject of the email write your name and House).