The College year is well and truly underway. We have had some wonderful opportunities thus far to come together and celebrate. The Opening College Mass, Senior House Welcome Evening, High Achievers Assembly, Ash Wednesday prayer service, Year 10 Wominjeka Retreats and soon-to-be Year 12 Retreats, all assist in nurturing and fostering our connections with one another.

Year 12 Retreat

The Year 12 students will be involved in a three-day Retreat from 13 -15 March. Through participation in the Retreat program, students will reflect on the following themes:

• I do not stand on my own. I am a part of my family, my friends, my school community, the Australian community, and the world community. All people are interconnected. It is in working together that we achieve more.
• God has made me unique and loves me. There will never be another me. I have gifts and talents that are unique in this world. No one can share these gifts and talents in the way that I can. “Be yourself, everyone else is taken” Oscar Wilde.
• "Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” St Catherine of Sienna
• “Let the love you have in your hearts be shown outwardly in your deeds” St Clare of Assisi (2024 College Theme).

I look forward to being able to share with you in the next edition of the Paduan reflections from our students from this Retreat.

Year 12 Jumpers

Each year the Year 12 cohort has the opportunity to purchase a unique jumper/hoodie that has their name and “class of 2024” on it. The Year 12 SRC are currently liaising with their Year 12 student body and collaborating on a design. The hope is that the order can be placed before the end of this term. Please ask your child/ren if they have completed the Google form survey sent out from the SRC as this allows them to indicate whether they would like to have a voice in the design process.

Managing Stress

On Tuesday 27 February, our Year 12 students heard from guest speaker Dr Jodi Richardson. This session discussed anxiety, why it’s not all bad, and what one can do about it. Please save the date of Tuesday 12 March at 6pm as the College will be offering Padua College parents the opportunity to attend a parental session. Jodi will share the insights she gave the students and provide valuable tips on supporting your child when the stress builds through the year. Further information will be sent out regarding this event so please check your inbox.

Radio Blah Blah

Radio Blah Blah has recommenced on Mondays! Tune into local community Radio RPPfm every Monday at 7.15am to listen to our Year 10 Drama students present their interpretation of the lyrics from a well-known song as text/script minus the music for listeners to guess the song. The collaborative segment is hosted by Padua alumni Peter Smedley on his morning show, The Scoop, with Kylie Donnelly, Performing Arts Learning Leader at Padua College. If you miss the early time slot, you can catch it later on the RPPFM site https://rppfm.com.au Happy listening

Please see below for student reflections,

With every blessing
Lisa Modd

Year 10 Retreat

On Wednesday 21 and Thursday 22 February, the Year 10s had their Wominjeka Retreat Days. These days replaced our regular school days and gave us all a chance to bond as a cohort.

On Wednesday we spent our first two periods with Mr Williams in the lecture theatre learning about servant leadership. After recess, we got on a bus and went to Fusion, which is an organisation that provides a home for young people with bad circumstances. It felt surreal to see this first hand and we all gained a new perspective of how to view and be grateful for what we have. We learned that it is important to listen to what people may need and to take an interest in what is happening in our community.

On Thursday we dashed to the bus bays to head to Baxter Hall, which had awesome air conditioning and was a much-needed reprieve from the scorching heat outside. This was our chance to bond as homerooms and get ready for the three years we are about to experience together. We completed competitive Homeroom activities along with ‘speed dating’ and writing a letter to our future Year 12 selves. Some of the other activities we were involved in are: Liturgies, Servant Leadership presentations, playing Uno in homerooms, and learning about our House Charism and House Patron.

Overall it was a great experience.

Written by Amy Limpens and Alex Scott
Year 10 John XXIII House Leaders

The Year 10 cohort were able to engage with their new house which gave an opportunity and chance to meet new people throughout these 2 days.

We started our retreat at Mount Martha, Fusion’s Housing Support Program, this program provides accommodation and support for young people experiencing homelessness in the Peninsula. We were taken through the fusion home with a storytelling experience, where we learned about some of the stories based on real life experiences of people who have lived there. The day continued with a presentation from Mr Williams in the lecture theatre about Servant Leadership where we engaged about what it means to be a Servant Leader. The day ended with a calming liturgy in the chapel followed by a house debriefing.

Wominjeka Day 2 MacKillop and other Houses went to different halls across the peninsula for a day session about getting to know each other. MacKilliop went to Balnarring Hall and we started the day off with some icebreaker games to get to know the people in our house that we are going to spend the next 3 years of senior school with. We continued the day with a liturgy and then finished off with some more icebreaker games and writing a letter to our year 12 self. It was good to connect with some faces that weren’t familiar before and to connect with our house. It was a great experience and we thank all of the house coordinators and teachers who got involved and made this Wominjeka year 10 retreat possible.

By Maddy Donoghue & Jess Jones, Year 10 MacKilliop

SIS Yr 11 & 12 Basketball Report

Today the Year 11 and 12 girls played SIS Basketball. The A and B teams were combined as Flinders A forfeited. We played against Bayside Christian College and won 31-14. Despite everyone not knowing each other we all worked together as a team and fairly. We had such a fun time with Mrs O’Dowd as our coach. One of the highlights of the game was receiving an icy pole at the end of the game.

By Rafi Demarte and Immy Day

Student Photo Permissions

At times, photographs or videos of our students will be published in newsletters, on the school intranet or website, or in our social media. Copies of our Standard Collection Notice and Privacy Policy are available on the College website in the Enrolments section of our Policies page. Please note that consent to use these images in this way, if provided at enrolment, may be withdrawn at any time by contacting our marketing team via email: marketing@padua.vic.edu.au .