Gellibrand Youth Advisory Committee

This year, Amelia Vivera and I were lucky enough to have the opportunity to be a part of the Gellibrand Youth Advisory Committee with Tim Watts MP. On Tuesday 27 April, we attended our first meeting with 10 students from other schools within the Gellibrand Electorate and Tim Watts MP, his policy advisor, his community outreach advisor and a few political aides. We were lucky to hear from Tim about what inspires him in his political endeavours and why he loves to stay involved with the youth of his community. This year, over a few sessions, we will be learning more about the processes of parliament and will be completing projects for Tim Watts surrounding topics that are important to us as young people. We are looking forward to continuing to work with the committee over the course of the year.

Lauren Vander, Year 11

Project Compassion - House Fundraising

During Term 1, MSJ successfully completed their annual fundraising appeal for Caritas: Project Compassion. This year, we added a little twist; an all-out fundraising battle royal between our school’s houses. The winning houses with the most money fundraised received points towards the annual House Cup. The fundraising blitz meant that the houses had two days each to fundraise money for Caritas, overall promoting house spirit and involvement. Starting the fundraiser blitz, Cameron hosted an amazing Club MSJ, followed by a number raffle from Solomon, scrunchie selling from Kincumber, and a ‘guess how many lollies are in the jar’ event from Penola. In the last week, McCormack hosted a whole-school Kahoot and lastly, Providence sold donuts. The House Captains did an amazing job organising and running their respective fundraisers during their lunch and snack. Thanks to the support of the students we were able to raise a whopping $4,000 for Caritas this year!

Jeanelle Uy, Social Justice Leader

Social Action Group (SAG)

The Ministry and Social Justice portfolio has established MSJ’s first social action group (SAG). Social action guided by faith forms an integral part of the life and ethos of Mount St. Joseph Girls' College. Thus, as the Ministry and Social Justice Leaders, we felt it essential to create a space that allows for the great minds of the new generation to come together to tackle the most significant issues currently prominent in society, in an attempt to foster a culture of support and global justice guided by faith. SAG’s first assignment in Term 1 involved participating in Stations of the Cross. Students interpreted the meaning of their assigned station, contemplating how the scripture is still significant and relevant to the contemporary world. This term, we look forward to tackling some important global issues.

Jade Steenkamp, Ministry Leader & Jeanelle Uy, Social Justice Leader