Year 10 Leadership, Formation & Ministry Class - Mini Josephite Colloquium
The Year 10 Religious Education class studying Leadership, Formation and Ministry, recently attended a Mini Josephite Colloquium at the Mary MacKillop Heritage Centre in North Fitzroy. This experience included exploration of the unique links that St Mary of the Cross MacKillop has with Penola Catholic College. In particular, the fact that St Mary established a foundling home for abandoned babies and young children in the early 1900’s on the Broadmeadows Campus site. Students also visited Madame Brussels Lane in the CBD area where St Mary and the Josephite Sisters worked to help vulnerable people.

The highlight of the experience was a tour of the Mary Glowrey Museum at the Australian Catholic University. The Catholic Church is currently in the process to canonise Mary Glowrey as Australia’s second Saint. Mary Glowrey was a doctor, who later in life, migrated to India and became a Nun helping many under privileged people in their country.

On the final day, students visited the Asylum Seekers Resources Centre in Footscray, the Year 10 charity organisation that they fundraise for each year. Students developed a broadened awareness of this organisation and the work it does to support refugees to this country.

This two-day, Mini Josephite Colloquium was truly a rich and rewarding experience for all involved.

Mother’s Day Mass 2023
On Friday 12 May, we celebrated our annual Mothers’ Day Mass in St Joseph’s Chapel, prior to the Mothers’ Day breakfast. It was a beautiful way to start the weekend’s tribute and honouring of all mothers, grandmothers and guardians and an opportunity to thank God for the amazing gift of love that He showers upon each of us through our mothers. It was fantastic to see our St Joseph’s Chapel full, with many students and their mothers present for the occasion. We also had a number of families join in our Mass via the livestream, which broadens further the accessibility of our Eucharists for families. Fr Tony Cox, our College Chaplain, created an atmosphere of true celebration, concluding our Mass with a blessing of all mothers, both present and at home.

We extend our thanks, to Mrs Turco, for the amazing donation of hampers that she provided as prizes for our Mother’s Day Raffle and also for the numerous boxes of sample products she supplied, which we handed out to all the mothers present at the breakfast.

Harmony Week and LOTE Week Daily Prayers
Throughout both, Harmony Week and LOTE Week, you would have noticed that our Daily Prayers were filmed and spoken in various languages other than English by some of our students and staff. This was a wonderful way in which to celebrate our cultural diversity and highlighting our College’s inclusiveness, respect and wish to create a sense of belonging for all.​ If you missed them, I encourage you to have a look at back at them on MyPenola because the students and staff all beautifully demonstrated their faith through their language used in their homes.

Many thanks to Sarah S, Cagan C, Titanya K, Merinia C, Caryl S, Jameila R, Sherlock N, Cinar C, Angus K, Mrs Donna Mihos, Ms Doretta Mudgway, Mrs Kasia Pliszka and Ms Rana Nahas for their willingness to assist us in the preparation and presentation of our prayers in languages such as, Spanish, Maltese, Italian, French, Turkish, Indonesian, Arabic, Tagalog (Filipino), Polish and Japanese. I extend my thanks also to Melissa Fry, Paolo Muccini and Stanley Azarcon for the time and effort they put into assisting our students with the production of these prayers.

Moving forward, we will now endeavour to post a prayer in another language once a week, to continue to celebrate the diversity of our College culture. As such, we would truly love to have any willing parents, along with their child, to record a prayer in their family language for us to utilise. Please let me know and I will organise a prayer and the recording process for you. I truly believe it would be a beautiful addition to our Daily Prayers and the faith life of our College community.

Year 8 Reflection Day 2023
On Wednesday 24 May, we held our Year 8 Reflection Day at the Broadmeadows Campus. It was another great opportunity for the students to reflect on their faith, and was led by the ever-vibrant, singing sensation, Fr Rob Galea (who you may remember from his appearance on Australia’s Got Talent). Fr. Rob Galea is a Catholic Priest who has a powerful personal testimony that inspires young people to be all God created them to be. The Reflection Day was a whole day activity during which, our students experienced the Catholic faith in a youthful and dynamic manner. It was a deeply reflective and thought-provoking experience for all our Year 8 students.

Staff Spirituality Day
We held our Staff Spirituality Day on the first day of this term, Monday 24 April. This year, our guest presenter was Fr Justin Driscoll. He explored with all staff the theme of One Family, One Common Home. Fr Justin challenged us to consider and discuss some quite interesting concepts and ideas such as:

• Do we as a College community create borders and boundaries that lock others out or are we a frontier, open to new ways and inclusive of all?
• What are the strengths, challenges and opportunities of our College identity?
• How does our College identity reflect being Catholic?
• The principles of Catholic Social Teachings and what they mean for us in the way we lead our lives and the way we work within our school.

Personally, the concept that stood out for me the most was Justin’s discussion about the concept of the Kingdom of God. He stated that the “Kingdom of God is where brokenness and injustices are restored”. In listening to the many comments made by staff about our school, it was clear that yes, we do have some brokenness and injustice present within our school community but as a staff, together, we are working to restore and resolve these struggles by providing the very best support possible for our students, their families and each other. Collectively, it is clearly evident that the Kingdom of God is alive and present amongst us.

Post Easter Reflection – Fr Tony Cox
The 40 days since Easter are now drawing to a close and as we wait for the celebration of Pentecost, let us pray that we will always be open to the Spirit working within each and every one of us.

By the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the Church remains in every age vivified and sanctified by Christ’s presence. The Holy Spirit prepares us with his grace to draw us to Christ. He manifests the risen Lord to us, opening our minds. He makes present the mystery of Christ. And he reconciles us, bringing us in communion with God. Saint Thomas Aquinas said that the Holy Spirit interiorly perfects our Spirit, communicating to it a new dynamism so that it refrains from evil for love. With the Holy Spirit within us, “it is quite natural for people who had been absorbed by the things of this world to become entirely other worldly in outlook and become people of great courage.” (Saint Cyril of Alexandria)

Let us pray that we will be free of fear and live with the strength bestowed on us by the Holy Spirit and may the peace of this same Spirit continue to bring us NEW LIFE and HAPPINESS.

Amen.

Languages Week
It was Languages week for the school last week. On the Glenroy Campus there was a range of activities for Years 7 & 8. Japanese classes were involved in Sumie Art workshops, anime character drawing, Japanese cooking and origami. Our French classes had a performance by a French mime artist and a French cooking competition. Our Italian classes had a Italian Commedia Clowning performance and all students had the opportunity to enjoy a gelati from a gelati van.

Uniform
During Terms 2 and 3 we please ask students to wear their college blazers to and from school.

STEAM
The students at the Glenroy campus will experience school a little bit differently in the last week of term as they participate in STEAM projects. Students will participate in these projects instead of their normal timetabled classes. The projects are based on students developing their collaboration, leadership and research skills as they explore their chosen project. Students will have the option to undertake a 4 day or 2 separate 2 day projects on Monday 19 to Thursday 22 June 2023. Students will have the opportunity to choose from a range of 19 different projects, each with a different focus, examples range from sewing, woodwork, music, ceramic, sustainability, science of basketball, mask making.

Wellbeing Day
On the 13 June students at the Glenroy Campus will participate in a Wellbeing Day on the Glenroy Campus. We will have Project Rockit with us for the day with an opening keynote on cyberbullying as well as cyber safety workshops. The staff will be running a range of wellbeing activities from both a physical aspect as well as mindfulness. An outline of the day can be seen below.

It is hard to believe that soon we will be at the end of semester one! It has certainly been a busy semester with many wonderful learning and wellbeing opportunities for our students.

Examinations
All year 10 and 11 families have been sent a letter outlining the arrangements for year 10 and 11 examinations. Please discuss the exam timetable with your child. No homeroom will take place for year 10 and 11 students during the exam period. Year 11 students are only required to be on site for their examinations. Year 10 students are permitted to leave after their last examination for the day, they are not permitted to leave the College in between examinations if they have a break. Study rooms will be made available for year 10 students. Year 11 Vocational Major classes will continue during the year 11 exam period. All the very best to year 10 and year 11 students completing examinations.

City Experience
We wish our year 9 students all the very best as they embark on City Experience next week of 29 May to 2 June 2. Students have been advised that they are to wear full College uniform Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday including the College blazer. On the Wednesday year 9 students are permitted to wear full PE uniform to allow families a chance to wash uniform items.

Digital Devices
A reminder to families our College expectations regarding digital devices. The consequence system is very clear to students and we encourage them to take personal responsibility and accept the consequence if they choose to breach our College rules. Ultimately, we want to limit distractions at school and assist students to maximise their learning opportunities. We thank families for their support of the College rules and expectations.

Resources for families
Hume City Council run a variety of workshops for families to support their children including teenagers. Some of these are online. Please see the Hume City Council website for more information.

Glenroy Campus
Language and culture are closely intertwined and learning an additional language certainly opens new horizons into traditions, heritage, and culture.

Last week we celebrated Languages Week at Penola Catholic College during which our students had the opportunity to participate in a range of cultural activities and incursions relevant to the language they are learning. Our students displayed their creativity by participating in a variety of competitions and quizzes. The creations were impressive, and our students were rewarded for their wonderful enthusiasm and effort.

Homeroom Quiz

• Jesiah C –Year 7C
• Angelina C – Year 7C
• Sabina T – Year 7H
• Eli I (7I) – Year 7I
• Rushil R – Year 7I

French Cursive Handwriting (Calligraphy) Competition

• Joseph S – Year 8C
• Summer D – Year 8G
• Anastasia T – Year 7I

French Cooking Competition

• Ruby J – Year 8G
• Angus K – Year 8G
• Zoe O – Year 7D

Our Year 7 Italian students enjoyed ‘La Commedia Clowning’ performance from Cultural Infusion. The students were introduced to well-known historic Commedia characters such as Pantalone, the grumpy mayor, and the know-it-all, il Dottore. Using music, mime, magic and mayhem, Commedia Clowning offered a delightful clowning show full of energy, fun and laughter!

Our Year 8 Japanese students participated in ‘Sumie’ workshop, the art of traditional Japanese calligraphy incursion where they learnt about the rich history of this art practice. They got hands-on with some ink and their own brush to create shapes and pictures using Sumi painting techniques.

Our Year 7 and 8 French students enjoyed a fun, hilarious and educational performance by Philippe and Jacques, where they combined French music, mime, comedy, drama, and magic. With audience participation, students were taken on a fun journey of French drama and music, using accordion, fife, drum, bombarde, singing and mime.

The students also celebrated this special week in their respective language class as they participated in trivia competitions. They also indulged in delicious Crostoli and Chinotto, sushi snacks as well as breakfast croissants. The delicious Crostoli and Chinotto snacks were generously donated to our College by La Manna Patisserie. We would like to express our gratitude and appreciation to La Manna Patisserie for providing our students with this wonderful opportunity to indulge in these wonderful culinary traditions.

On Friday, we were fortunate to be visited by Tom and his dearly loved Gelati Van. The students were able to purchase their favourite Italian-style ice cream from the Gelati Van.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank our dedicated team of Language teachers and assistants for their consistent efforts, contribution, and commitment to provide our students with an exceptional Languages Week program. It is evident that monolingualism can be cured!

Thank you – Arigatō – Merci beaucoup– Grazie!

Rana Nahas
Head of Languages Glenroy

From our Students
On 19 May the Year 7’s who are studying Italian had an incursion. A man with big shoes, reeboks and huge pants taught us about famous Italian idols and Italian meals. As he held up a photo, he would tell us what made them big stars or famous. Then he ran over to a huge box and pulled out masks. “They take three hours to make”, he said. Then he put one on and slipped behind a red curtain and 2 minutes later he came out with a whole new character. He would put on a show and teach 1 special student to walk as they would walk; talk as they would talk and act as they would when they were once living. There were many characters. From a pig who liked pizza a little too much to rooster who had skinny legs and a big upper body. We then danced for 5 minutes to some music and some people got to put on masks and take a photo with everyone in the background. Many laughed and some might have cringed but in the end we all had fun. – Mia L

LOTE week was a very fun experience. Unfortunately I don’t remember his name, but a man came to our school and presented his Italian heritage. He brought people from the audience to perform and they all did extremely well. It was heaps of fun and I would love from him to come again - Charlee

Broadmeadows Campus
Languages week is visibly the most exciting time of the year for our Languages faculty. It is a celebration of languages and cultural diversity, as well as the connections that each language and culture naturally establish with the others. It is a celebration of the effort, resilience and success of language learners. It is a time of joy and awareness that there will always be exciting new opportunities and goals in the future of languages.

The week started with the excursion of Year 10 Japanese and Year 9 CLIL Japanese students to Melbourne University. Before I leave you with the words from one of our students, I would like to add that it was such a lucky coincidence that, during our visit of the Campus, our Senior Japanese teacher Josephine Carr was recognised and stopped by one of our former Penola students, Daniel Ferlewicz, who completed VCE Japanese in 2013 and is leaving Australia in one month because he obtained a job in Japan. I really hope such examples can open the eyes of our students and make them realise that they should never doubt that the opportunities languages offer them are amazing and that they should seize them.

On 15 May, the Japanese CLIL (Content and Language Integrated Learning) year 9 and year 10 students went on an excursion to Melbourne University. The purpose of this excursion was to encourage this year’s CLIL students to continue pursuing their dreams in learning the Japanese language, which may also be passed down to lower year levels and inspire them to follow this pathway with language.

The University had a large variety of options for students with different levels of knowledge of the language, which is assessed via an entry test. This allowed us to understand that no matter where you stand, there is an area that is perfect for your capabilities. We travelled around various classrooms and buildings which revealed a large diversity of cultural appreciation towards Japan. A Japanese-styled room was extremely unique compared to the building it was in, as it had traditional elements within it. We were lucky to be given the opportunity to have conversations with the current advanced Japanese students who were able to answer many questions we were eager to ask, like their main motivations to continue the language subject, what the best study tips were, the beauty of Japan from those who were able to complete an exchange program for a few weeks to maybe months thanks to the school program. Next, we went to the library which was filled with thousands of books with useful information about Japan, history or reading books all in Japanese. No English written books were on the floor of the library. It was amazing!

Each student was very lucky to be able to go to Melbourne university to gain inspiration. It was overall a special opportunity for myself, I was glad to be a part of it and it inspired me in my own personal ways towards the language. Japanese is a wonderful language that is definitely encourage by the 3 teachers who teach the language at Penola and by this trip it has 100% made a change in the view of the language than before.

Rhianna N (Year 10 )

Thank you to our Japanese teachers and assistants from Glenroy and Broadmeadows for participating in and supporting the excursion- special thanks to Megumi Irihama for conceiving of and organising the excursion.

On Tuesday 16 May, the Languages faculty organised a Staff Morning Tea in the PAC courtyard with sweets, savouries and delicacies which were, for the most part, traditionally from three countries which are represented through the languages we teach at Penola: we had Italian and French pastries, continental style cakes, sushi and much more. Thanks to the canteen for providing us with the savoury food for morning tea and accommodating for all dietary requirements.

On Wednesday 17 May, we had the biggest event of Languages week- the Year 9 Languages banquet. All Year 9 languages students gathered in the ASH, which was set up as a banquet hall, and sat at their assigned tables after decorating them with the themes of the country of which they study the language. In preparation for the banquet, students had to write a full restaurant menu in French, Italian or Japanese, which was displayed on their table for a real cultural and language-based experience. Tables for each language won a prize for best menu and best decorations. A delicious three- course lunch with sushi as an entrée, lasagna as a main course and chocolate eclairs as a dessert followed, served by the Year 12 Legal Studies students who were coordinated by the Food Tech Department. During the banquet, there were several language and culture-based activities presented by our entertaining and dynamic MC Angela Xidias, such as the big quiz questions and some hard tongue twisters. Students participated eagerly and had the opportunity to win some extra lollies as well as a movie voucher for the best attempt at the tongue twisters. All languages students and teachers were also joined by the Jumpstart, Quicksmart, Curriculum Support and Sounds Write students and their teachers. Many students presented foods from the countries of their background- a joy to witness such beautiful displays.

Finally, on Friday 19 May, the Year 10 Japanese students participated in a workshop with Taiko drummer Toshi, and learnt more about this wonderful Japanese art in a very hands-on way. The energy was great as usual.

Throughout the week, we could hear French, Italian and Japanese songs played through the PA system; the Year 11 and 12 Japanese students were treated to a special Obento box lunch and all languages teachers organised special activities and treats for their students.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff who were involved in Languages week- not only the amazing Languages faculty, but also all those teachers who joined us and supervised students during the banquet; the teachers who replaced us in our classes so that we could run the activities; the maintenance staff who helped us with the set up over the whole week and made sure we had everything we needed for events to run smoothly; the IT staff and their prompt advice and support. Thank you on behalf of Languages for keeping this flame alive!

Fulvia Galigani
Head of Languages Broadmeadows

Congratulations to Our Senior Dance Students for an entertaining Dance concert on Tuesday 23 May. It was wonderful to see so many families and friends at the Mary MacKillop Auditorium to support our students. Dance is offered at Penola from Years 9 through to VCE, giving students an opportunity to perform a variety of dances they learn in class, as well as group devised routines created by the students as part of their formal assessment. Special thanks to Dianne Lee for her assistance with Dance Costumes and Year 11 student Masson Sauzier for his assistance with lighting and sound.

Jane Dalli
Dance Teacher

Anzac Day Commemoration Ceremony.

During the last week of Term 1, a group of Year 10 students studying WWII were given the opportunity to attend the Schools Anzac Day Commemoration Ceremony that was held at the Shrine of Remembrance.

The students attending were excited to be selected and were looking forward to the event. When they arrived at the Shrine of Remembrance they were surprised to see so many students from different schools, primary and secondary, Catholic, Government and Private sectors. At that point they started to understand the significance of the day. Before taking their seats the students explored the Shrine, took in the atmosphere and then settled in for the ceremony. Towards the conclusion of the ceremony our students laid a wreath at the foot of the eternal flame on behalf of the college.

After the ceremony the students were very appreciative and thankful to be given the opportunity to attend the ceremony. During their study of WWI and WWII, the students had learnt about Australia’s sacrifice in the wars. The students now have a deeper understanding of the impact our defence force and soldiers have had to peace keeping in Australia.

I would like to thank the students who attended, Ms Palma and Mr Jacuta for accompanying the students on the day.

Daniel Ferlewicz

After finishing a Bachelor of Science at Melbourne University in 2016, majoring in mathematical physics, I was offered a spot in the Master of Science program. When deciding on a research topic, thanks to my history of studying Japanese in high school and continuing into University, I chose to work with the Belle II experiment based in Tsukuba, Japan. During my PhD I managed to squeeze as much travel as I could around Covid border restrictions. This included conferences in the UK and Canada, working with a physics institute in Austria, and of course, a few trips to Japan. Although science is mainly conducted in English, having that knowledge of Japanese meant that during my free time, I could go and be a tourist in Japan while their border was still closed.

I finished my PhD a few months ago, and I was fortunate to have published a few scientific papers during my degree. This meant that I had options around the world to work as a post-doctoral researcher. In the end I chose a position at the University of Tokyo, working with the T2K experiment. I will be moving to Tokyo in about a month for a two year contract, after which I have not yet decided whether I will stay in physics, move into industry, stay overseas, or come back to Australia. I'm excited that my mix of science and languages has opened up all these options for me, and I hope others consider going down this road so that we get a bigger representation of people from Broady in the field.

BlendED

Safe on Social Training and Education

Brunswick Neighbourhood House Homework Club

NDIS Info Session

NOW HIRING School Crossing Supervisors

2023 Williamstown Literary Festival

Successful Secondary Years

World Refugee Day