With much anticipation and excitement, we are pleased to share with you all, on behalf of the 60th Anniversary Committee, the theme for our 60th Celebration year.
Virtue Courage – Building a Bold Future
Thank you to all who voted and submitted your ideas! Many great responses were submitted from students, staff and the wider MSJ community.
We are excited to continue to plan the special activities that we’d like to invite you to be a part of to celebrate our 60th Year!
MSJ Celebrates 60
Sunday 18 February 2024 2pm-4pm
Let's celebrate with a twilight picnic featuring the launch of our anniversary short film, an exhibition from the archives, food trucks, live music, school tours and much more.
Grand Gala Dinner
Friday 18 October 2024
Grand Gala dinner at the RACV City Club. All current families, staff, former students and staff are invited. Stay tuned for futher details.
On the Thursday 26 October Ms Courtnee Doering, Nishka Pidtala (Ministry Leader), Bridget White (Social Justice Leader), Poppy Randall, Sarah Trigger (College Captains) had I (Sustainability Leader) had the pleasure of attending the St. Vincent de Paul Society Student Conference Day at Caroline Chisholm Catholic College, Braybrook.
St Vincent de Paul Society is a dedicated Catholic organisation that upholds a mission of serving Christ in the marginalised. Guided by its vision and values, it advocates for social justice issues in Australia and through this conference, as leaders were able to explore and incorporate their goals within our leadership.
Through collaboration at the conference with other schools, we engaged in insightful discussions, fostering a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by marginalised communities. We collectively brainstormed innovative approaches to address critical issues such as homelessness, poverty, and social injustice. The experience inspired us to actively contribute to building a more compassionate and just school and society in line with the principles of Catholic Social Teaching.
As part of the day, we also had the opportunity to present on ONE Good Works project, our Winter Sleep Out where we had over 60 compassionate students and staff, spent the night in our sports hall to raise awareness about the prevalence of homelessness in our society. We raised over $1000 for Vinnies Victoria, donated winter items and care packages to our local Vinnies Conference. Our presentation inspired the other schools along with our video.
Poppy, summarised the experience saying, “It was so amazing seeing the work that Vinnies does through different schools, and I am excited to bring some new ideas back to MSJ.”
Similarly, Nishka, our Ministry leader, stated “Seeing Vinnies and the work they do with schools was so inspiring. I have so many new ideas to put into play at MSJ.”
We are so grateful for the valuable experience provided by St. Vincent de Paul Society and our College. This opportunity has further motivated us to approach our roles in 2024 with even more dedication and commitment to serving the MSJ and the wider community with greater humility and integrity.
Sofia Bitaks, Year 12 2024 Sustainability Leader
Our VCE Portfolio Exhibition evening was a fabulous opportunity for the hard work and creative talents of our VCE students in the following subjects:
Family and friends were invited to an evening at the College to view the exhibition and to celebrate together with our visual arts and technology teachers. We were also honoured to have Clare Tang (Class of 2012) return as a guest speaker to further inspire our students. After MSJ, Clare went on to study an Associate Degree in Graphic Design at Swinburne University of Technology and is now a teacher.
It has been a busy year in the Performing Arts Department with the musical, ‘Chords and Canvas’ music and arts night, instrumental soirees, lunchtime performances, MMADD day, MSJ’s Got Talent.
Our most recent performance by the drama students in the instrumental program, was the play, 'Children of the Black Skirt’ by Angela Betzien. Each student has weekly small-group lessons, but after some intense rehearsal, they presented this amazing Australian play as a whole group. All 20 students had the chance to demonstrate their learnt skills while working on this powerful gothic fairy tale which tells the story of lost children who discover an abandoned orphanage in the bush and learn a history of Australia through the spirits of children who have lived there, from convict times, through to World War Two, the Stolen Generation and beyond. It explores history, reconciliation and the power of storytelling.
Students from Year 7-10 presented ‘Children of the Black Skirt’ to a wonderful audience of friends, family and staff in the PAC building. It was beautifully presented with professional lighting and sound, operated by Richard Turton with the help of the media department at LaTrobe University.
Trudi Camilleri - Performing Arts Co-ordinator
At MSJ we are proactive in our management of potential fire risks. We have developed an Emergency Management Plan (EMP) that reflects our proactive response in the event of a fire emergency. For your information we have listed the controls implemented within the College to mitigate the risk of bushfires, and they are:
Quarterly evacuation and emergency drills are conducted to ensure that staff and students are aware how to respond in an emergency.
Staff participate in emergency awareness training and how to use the fire-extinguishing equipment.
Grounds and facilities take proactive steps to reduce fire risks around the College by:
Keeping gutters are clean and clear of debris
Landscaping is well maintained, and shrubs are cut back regularly
We are compliant with our fire rating regulations and fire-fighting equipment is regularly checked/tested and located throughout the college.
If you have any questions regarding our Bushfire preparedness, please email Anja D’Alessandri, Chief Warden on compliance@msj.vic.edu.au
Anja D'Alessandri - Compliance & Administration Manager
This term in the Year 9 Ignite Program, we had the opportunity to engage in a selection of masterclasses run by our Year 9 teachers. Masterclasses included RSPCA, Bob Ross, Altona trip to Italy, knitting, tool time, globetrotters, share trading, $10 challenge and keeping active outside.
Participating in the ‘Altona trip to Italy’ masterclass, we learnt about the world-renowned Italian cuisine along with its traditions and festivities. We learnt about Italian cooking, made spaghetti and fettuccine from scratch and walked from MSJ to Pier 71, an Italian restaurant in Altona . We tried arancini, pizza, and cannoncini, a highlight of the masterclass! Altogether, it was a great experience to learn about and taste some quintessential Italian dishes and what makes them so delicious!
‘Active Outside of Sport’ was a lively experience thought to be very worthwhile in order to maintain a healthy lifestyle. We loved being able to ride bikes around school, spend time outside enjoying nature, and play volleyball with Mr Zarkos at Altona Beach. This ultimately allowed us to appreciate the importance of general health and getting outside. It was fantastic!
A reminder that all fees for 2023 were due to be finalised by September unless alternative arrangements had been made with the Business Manager.
It would be appreciated if any outstanding balances could be settled immediately.
An email will be sent to all families regarding 2024 school fees & your preferred payment method (fortnightly, monthly, term, direct debit, credit card, etc).
Please note: All families will be required to complete this survey by 24th November 2023.
Daniel O’Malley - Business Manager
