May the peace of Christmas be with all the families in our community over the holiday season. May God bless you and keep you safe during the holidays and bring you back to the Joey’s community in 2024 in good spirits and with open hearts.

Ms Amanda Wilson

Principal

Congratulations to all students on such a wonderful year. This week we celebrated the academic year with a wonderful awards presentation. Well done to all the students who received awards for their consistent approach to their classwork across the entire year.

Yesterday the HSC results were released. The Year 12 class of 2023 have done very well and we will highlight their efforts further at the start of 2024.

For all our students and families, we wish you a very merry Christmas and best wishes for the new year. Enjoy a relaxing break and we look forward to seeing you and supporting your learning journey in 2024.

Mr Brett Moran

Curriculum Coordinator

The 2023 Year 12 group saw 83 students graduate from St Joseph's. Please see below our HSC Achievements Booklet which outlines our Dux, First Place - Diocese of Wollongong, ATAR's over 85, HSC Distinguished Achievers, Major Project Nominations and VET Awards.

Well done to all of our HSC Students!

Careers Wrap Up 2023

The Careers space has been very busy this year, many students finding their way to the careers room through the year. A big thanks to parents and caregivers for all your support for career exploration activities and TAPS lessons.

In 2023 we saw a record number of students participating in career meetings to build resumes, explore careers and job interview coaching, approximately 85 per term which equates to approximately 340 students.

As a school community, we also attended many RIEP (Regional Industry Education Partnerships) Career Activities, our thanks to Jenny Watts from RIEP, these activities included: Cyber Industry Day, Nursing Day, SES Day, Warrigal Intergenerational Activity, Navy Life, Women in Careers Day and our own Apprenticeship Support Morning, we also hosted Corpus Christi students at this event. We also attended the BlueScope Brunch for International Women’s Day and the Careers Expo.

UOW has also been a huge part of our Careers Program, offering talks to our students, recently, James Terry from UOW was a guest speaker for our Year 9 Commerce class ( see photo below). UOW has hosted many of our students on campus for events like Future Me and Discovery Day.

Careers Education also played a part in Social Sciences week, offering our students opportunities to hear from speakers involved in environment related careers, to inspire budding humanities students.

At present, the Careers Education Program here at Joey’s is supporting students finding apprenticeships and interviewing all our Year 11 students to assist with their transition to the workforce.

The TAPS lessons were offered to Year 7-10 students, each year group involved in four lessons which promoted an awareness of careers education. We also had a part to play on school assemblies through Terms 2 and 3 with leadership activities inspired by the National Blueprint for Careers.

We thank all our Industry providers for their dedication to our school.

During 2024 we hope to expand further and bring mock interviews to year 10 students as well as all the activities we were involved in as part of the Careers Program offered here at Joey’s in 2023.

So, from the careers space, I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and safe holiday.

Sue Kennedy

Transition and Pathways Specialist

Thank you to everyone who has made sport the successful year it has truly been! We have had some remarkable results this year and I am so excited for what is to come in 2024.

Dance Company

Our Dance company performed at St Paul’s Primary last week. It was great to see them perform their group routine as well as their own choreography that they have developed during this program. Congratulations on a wonderful year girls. Information regarding Dance Company auditions for 2024 will be out in Term 1, Week 1.

Junior Boys Berg Shield Cricket - Rounds 2 & 3

In Week 8, the Junior Boys Cricket team travelled to Batemans Bay for the next instalment in the Berg Shield. Game 1 was against Lumen Christi (Pambula) who regular coach Ryan Maguire still has nightmares about from our previous encounter 12 years ago, so I was called in to guide the team for the day. Bowling first Opening bowlers Mitch and Sam kept things tight with Mitch rewarded with an early breakthrough. From there wickets were hard to come by but the boys stuck at it and did a good job restricting the runs with some good bowling and fielding. Liam created a sharp run out chance and Archie claimed a late wicket as Lumen Christi finished their 20 overs 3/115.

In reply Mitch copped an early LBW call (the only one for the day!!) so Ben G and Cody tried to push things along making 11 and 12 respectively. A few wickets then fell and a bit of pressure was building but skipper Tristan stood tall when it counted making 65 off 35 deliveries including five 4's and five 6's. With support from Archie and Ryan at the other end the boys finished the job with 5 overs to spare to help exorcise the demons of the past against our plucky opponents.

The win saw the team progress to round 3 against Edmund Rice, an older team with a lot of representative experience. Losing the toss, we were asked to field in what was the hottest part of the day, a decision which would prove crucial at the end of the day. A tweaking of the game plan between games saw immediate results with early pressure applied seeing the highly fancied opposition in early trouble reaching 4-41 at the agreed drinks break of 10 overs. Mitch (1) and Tristan (2) were rewarded with early wickets. Sam (1) and Ben M (2) also bowled tight in the middle overs to keep the pressure on and were well supported with some good fielding in particular from Ryan and Cody with some good catches in the outfield. ERC knuckled down in the remaining overs, Liam claimed a late wicket as ERC set a target of 7/117 from their 20 overs.

Mitch and Ben G opened and were solid both making it to the 10 over mark and putting 41 on the board. With plenty of wickets and depth in the batting line up the opportunity to push for the win was there. Unfortunately, the heat of the day started to take its toll with Mitch needing to retire to rehydrate. Ben fell for 19 followed by Cody (16) . From there wickets fell regularly and with runs drying up the job became too much in the end. Sam and Ryan finished not out on 12 and 9 respectively but after 20 overs we fell short on 5/87 and bowed out of the competition for another year.

The boys are to be congratulated on their efforts in pretty trying conditions. Special mention to Wil (Yr 10) who came along to assist with scoring and umpiring for the day) Thanks also to the parents who made the effort to drive the boys there and back and support them on the day. Also, to Mr Whalan who went above and beyond to return the key for the amenities block to the council for us, very much appreciated. Hopefully Mr Maguire is able to return next year!!

Sports Assembly 

It was an absolute pleasure to have Olympian Jessica Hull as our guest speaker and present our major awards. A massive thank you to Jessica for taking time out of her day and share her wisdom with our students.

Jessica is an Olympic 1500m runner, who placed 11th at the most recent Tokyo Olympics. Not only does she specialise in the 1500m, but she excels in the mile and the 3km events and currently holds the Oceanian Record in these 3 events as well. Jessica has placed in the top 8 world rankings several times at World Championships in Cross Country, Athletics, and the Commonwealth Games.

Congratulations to all our sport award recipients for 2023. Below are our Major Award recipients.

Secondary Reds

Our first award is the Secondary Red Awards, which recognise students who have either been selected in 3 Wollongong Diocese Teams OR Selected and represented in a NSWCCC team.

Congratulations to Lachlan Haining - Who represented NSWCCC at Cross Country.

Congratulations to Charlee Buckman who represented NSWCCC in Hockey.

Secondary Blues

The secondary Blues Awards recognise students who have represented in a minimum of 3 NSWCCC teams OR have been selected and represented in NSW All Schools Team.

Congratulations to Emily Hollingsworth who represented NSW All Schools in Under 15 Girls AFL.

Congratulations to Grace Pomery who represented NSW All Schools in Cross Country & Athletics.

Congratulations to Zali Schofield who represented NSW All Schools in Hockey and was also chosen in the Australian Open Girls Hockey Merit team.

Congratulations to Tayissa Buchanan who represented at NSW All Schools in Athletics and has since competed at Australian All Schools and won the U18 girls 800m with a personal best and a world junior qualifying time.

Overall Courage Award

This year we introduced the Sport Value awards which recognise students in our sporting teams who show respect, courage and service. Students have been nominated by their coaches and have been recognised each term. We will now acknowledge the overall winner of these value awards for each category.

The Overall Courage Award goes to a student who shows leadership in training, who continually gets out of their comfort zone, a student who works hard to improve and someone who is willing to try new things.

Congratulations to Benjamin Martin

Benjamin participated in the NSWCCC Triathlon at the start of this year. He signed up without any prior experience to what he was getting himself into. Mrs Linsley assisted Ben with his training in order to improve his confidence and ability on the day. The triathlon involved him swimming 300m, cycling 10km and then running 2 km and under a timecap to complete the course. This is a huge feat to take on as an individual athlete with no experience in triathlon. Well done Benjamin and we hope to see you back for next year's Triathlon.

Overall Respect Award

The Overall Respect Award goes to a student who shows exemplary behaviour towards their coach, team members and also students and staff from other schools. This student is committed to their training and making the team better as well as being a role model of what it means to be a Joey’s student.

Congratulations to Mackenzie Best

Mackenzie is a student who goes above and beyond for her peers and teachers at this school. Mackenzie has the utmost respect and always displays this at sport gala days and carnivals. Her modest and hard working attitude are a true credit to her. Well done Mackenzie.

Overall Service Award

The Overall Service Award goes to a student who assists others who are in need. This may be coaching other students, assisting their coach with equipment and training as well as serving the school by refereeing or coaching duties at sporting events.

Congratulations to Monica Tololeska

Monica has been an integral part of our netball teams this year. She has given up multiple lunches to assist in coaching netball teams and to improve their development. Monica has also stepped up into a leadership role at the Netball carnivals to assist in any way. Thank you Monica for your leadership and service.

Dragons Medal

The Dragons Medal goes to a student who represents their school with pride both on and off the field and has made a significant contribution in their schooling life. The medal recognises a student with good character, positivity, and teamwork.

Congratulations Mackenzie Best

Sportsperson of the Year Award

The Sportsperson of the Year Award acknowledges someone who is dedicated to the sporting domain. They continually strive to be the best across a range of sporting contexts and show exemplary leadership and role modelling to other students at St Joseph’s. To attain this award, students accrue points over the year from each sporting team they represent, the level of placing they achieve at competitions, age champion points at each carnival as well as higher points for excelling at a state, national and international level.

Congratulations to Tayissa Buchanan

Tayissa has returned from injury this year and has been dedicated to her athletics training. She was outstanding at the Diocesan Athletics carnival winning her main events and breaking 2 x Diocesan records in the 1500m and 800m and placing runners up as Age Champion. She went on to compete at NSW All Schools where she won the U18 Girls 800m and qualified for the Australian All Schools in Perth earlier this week. Tayissa proved her worth and showed that she is back to win. She claimed victory at the Australian All Schools in the 800m event with a personal best and a world junior qualifying time. Separate from her school athletics achievements Tayissa will be heading to Penn State in the USA next year to continue her athletics training. A well-deserved winner of this award. Congratulations Tayissa.

Sporting Success

Jacob Ong

Congratulations to Jacob who won NSW State championships, Queensland Open Championships and the ACT Championships for Judo. He is currently competing in Japan for training to learn from some of the best in the world.

Tayissa Buchanan

An outstanding effort by Tayissa to claim the U18 Girls 800m Australian All Schools title in Perth earlier this week. She ran a personal best and a World Junior Qualifying time to take out the title.

If your child has had sporting success outside of school we want to hear about it. 

Please email details to Miss Power (powers01@dow.catholic.edu.au)

St Joseph’s Sports Instagram Page 

For all things sports follow our new social media page.

@SJCHSSPORTS

Yesterday we held our Academic Awards Presentation for Years 7-11.

This was an excellent morning celebrating our many Student's who received Academic Achievement & Excellence Awards, Spirit of Micah Awards, Year 12 2023 Pathways Course Awards, Ignite Program Awards, Arcadians Theatre Group Awards, STEM Awards plus the below students receiving the following awards:

• Isabelle Plattner - CAPA Perpetual Trophy for "Contrubtion to the Arts"
• Harvey Andrews - Shellharbour City Council Award
• Chloe Norris - ADF Long Tan Youth Leadership Award

Congratulations to all the award recipients on your exceptional dedication to learning and your academic excellence!

Thank you to all the students and teachers (especially Mr Fenech) involved in the creative planting and propagation program. The funding for this project came from an Environmental Education Grant from the CEO.  

The idea of this project was to:

• Enhance the visuality of the House system.
• Engage with more community activities that give students a culture of service and belonging to the school community
• Support Laudato Si - Sustainability and Faith in Action
• Embed the colour symbology of each house within the design

Groups of students during CASA time, as well as house leaders and environment club members prepared and painted a range of pots (many donated) in house colours (Kembla= red; Macquarie= purple; Warrigal= yellow; Marshall= orange; Keira= green). Teachers and other members of the school community brought in cuttings or native plants or succulents. This has brought many in the Joey’s community together and raised awareness and participation in sustainability projects by bringing cuttings into school. Repurposing old pots means they are kept out of landfill and putting our commitment to reduce, reuse, recycle into practice. 

Plants chosen for the statement pot for each house will have flowers the same colour as the house.

Many of the pots will be a feature at the front of the school so that they are visible to parents and school visitors. They will also be placed at various locations around the school in order to enhance the visibility the house system, and the commitment of St Joseph’s to sustainability. 

Thank you to the many community members and local businesses for their donations. We would specifically like to thank Jamberoo Native Nursery for some Native Plants and soil, Bunnings - Shellharbour for some Native Plants, Soil and some Pots and Albion Park Landscaping Supplies for Soil.

Thank you to the entire school community on doing such a great job in keeping waste out of landfill by using the bin pods correctly. St Joseph’s is one of the best schools in the Diocese at keeping waste out of landfill.  A large amount of money has been raised for families in need in our community from collecting 10c containers in the blue bins. Food waste from students and staff has been turned into compost. Many recyclables have also been kept out of landfill, however it would be great to see less contamination in yellow bins in 2024.

Students were asked at assembly to consider ways to reduce their impact on the environment over the summer holidays by:

• Purchasing a lunchbox with compartments ready to pack a waste-free lunch each day in 2024
• Picking up rubbish found at the beach or footpath
• Ensuring all food waste on Christmas day goes in the FOGO bins if available (or is eaten as leftovers)
• Making sure all packaging from presents goes in the correct bins. Styrofoam must go into landfill, or can be disposed of at a recycling centre. Batteries cannot go into landfill and must be disposed of at a recycling centre.
• Selling or giving away clothes that are no longer wanted to families that can use them on a Buy/Swap/Sell site or clothing bin.
• Washing up plates on Christmas day rather than sending them to landfill.

Thank you to the amazing group of students and teachers who formed part of the environment team this year. The work you have put in and ideas you have come up with are greatly appreciated.

We hope you all have a very happy Christmas and look forward to working with the school community in 2024 to reduce our impact on the environment.

Mrs Musgrave &  Mrs Behl

(Environment Club leaders)

Miss Biddle and I had the privilege of taking some of our Year 9 and 10 students up to Magdalene College, Smeaton Grange on Friday afternoon.

The students represented our college in a beautiful manner. They were polite and respectful as they participated in a range of student-led workshops that reflected on their personal faith and other community outreach opportunities. Some students helped pack Christmas hampers, participated in Christian meditation, and were led in a praise and worship concert led by Father Rob in the evening. One group had the opportunity to consider our role as Catholics on the environment. They crafted beaded bracelets as a reminder of their responsibility as 'Prophets for the Planet'. 

With a 40-degree day, our students are to be congratulated for their outstanding behaviour and willingness to devote a Friday night to exploring their faith more deeply. I would like to extend my thanks to their wonderful parents for supporting their children in their development of their faith and for supporting our school with this event, particularly as we draw to the end of the year.

Last week, Year 9 were involved in Peer Support Training for 2024. The whole year group participated in one and a half days of teamwork, leadership skills, and personal growth. The students were divided into nine groups, each engaging in a variety of team-building activities aimed at fostering peer support and collaboration within Year 9 as well as with their Year 7 buddies next year.

The team-building activities challenged the students both mentally and physically, encouraging them to step out of their comfort zones and embrace new experiences. From problem-solving challenges to leadership exercises, each activity contributed to the overall development of essential life skills.

Throughout the training, our Year 9 students demonstrated commendable behaviour and enthusiasm, showcasing their ability to work together and support one another. Parents, you can be immensely proud of the remarkable young leaders you are raising. It was evident that the students embraced the opportunity to connect with their peers and develop meaningful relationships, laying the foundation for a supportive and inclusive school community. I also extend my gratitude to the dedicated staff members who facilitated the training and helped to ensure a positive and impactful experience for all participants.

Thank you for your continued support, and I wish you all a safe and joyful holiday break and a Merry Christmas!

Brooke Tomajka

Stage 5 PALS Coordinator

On the 7th of December the Year 7 Japanese class made sushi. Sensei taught us how to make a traditional sushi roles and temaki-sushi. Our overall experience was amazing, everyone present contributed and enjoyed this wonderful experience. We were taught the proper techniques of how to place our ingredients and role our seaweed, in the end everyone had a good time, learned lots, and experienced a traditional Japanese custom. 

This week we said a sad farewell to Mrs Mayumi Abel. Sensei Abel has been part of our Languages faculty for the past 2 years. In that time, she has been a wonderful teacher supporting our students in their understanding of the Japanese language and culture. On top of this, Sensei Abel has regularly organised a range of extra-curricular activities for students to engage in such as Kendo (sword fighting), origami, sushi making and traditional Japanese morning teas.

All the students have a high level of respect for her and she will be sorely missed by the students and Language faculty in 2024. Fingers crossed we will see her back in 2025.

The Online Booking System is now open for parents to be able to make their fitting appointments. Please see below last day of trade for 2023, back to school trading hours and resumption of normal trading hours.

Back to School Trade 2024:

Monday 15th January - 8:30am - 4:30pm

Thursday 18th January - 8:30am - 4:30pm

Monday 22nd January - 8:30am - 4:30pm

Thursday 25th January - 8:30am - 4:30pm

Monday 29th January - 8:30am - 4:30pm

Resume Normal Trade 2024:

Thursday 1st February 8:30 - 1:30pm

Tracey

St. Joseph’s Catholic High School Uniform Shop

Email:  stjosephs.uniforms@permapleat.com.au

Catholiccare offers a range of group work courses focusing on strengthening relationships, parenting, post-separation, supporting parents with children in care, managing challenging emotions and grief. Group programs are held in a supportive environment with others who share similar life experiences.  

Click below to view the Term 4 2023 group work courses.