Principal's Message
Message from the Principal
Message from the Principal
Last week we celebrated Catholic Education Week, which provided us with an opportunity to reflect on what makes our College so special.
The Diocese of Ballarat Catholic Education Limited, or DOBCEL as it is commonly referred to, is celebrating 150 years of providing incredible service to the area, and a special dinner was held at the culmination of the week to acknowledge staff who have dedicated 30 years to Catholic education. Our current Art teacher, Mr Gavin Lang and former principal, Mr Tim O’Farrell, were acknowledged for this incredible achievement and we thank them for the positive difference they have made to the lives of thousands of students and families and for their contribution to Trinity.
The commitment of our staff to the development of young people never ceases to amaze me and the acknowledgement of Tim and Gavin’s service was a fitting celebration in a week that highlights the impact of our values on the students who attend our Catholic schools. At Trinity, we are inspired by Jesus to make a difference, which means that love, compassion, kindness, patience, forgiveness and acceptance are at the heart of everything we do. It is truly special to be a part of a community that genuinely cares for the wellbeing and personal fulfilment of everyone and that seeks a more just society.
On the subject of DOBCEL, the Executive Director of Catholic Education, Tom Sexton has recently responded to the announcement that the vast majority of Catholic school families will miss out on the $400 School Savings Bonus announced in the State Budget. Tom points out that 1 in 5 students will miss out on this much-needed support, while 100% of government school families will benefit from the program. You can read Tom's press release and find out more information here .
Our relationship with our students’ parents and carers is an important aspect of our faith community. Our College families are the cornerstone of the work that we do here at Trinity and we appreciate their commitment to our values. Thank you to all the parents and carers who took the opportunity to meet with their children's teachers at our Student Learning Conversations (SLC) last week. The feedback was very positive, with parents saying that they are now much clearer on the strengths and challenges their child is currently experiencing in each of their subjects. The SLC initiative has been shown to increase the student’s chances of success in reaching their goals and strengthens the relationship between home and school so I commend our parents for attending.
I paid a visit to our Year 8 students on camp in Creswick this week and witnessed the terrifying activities the students were taking part in! I am very pleased to report that the behaviour of the students was excellent. Their encouragement and support of each other and their willingness to step out of their comfort zones was fantastic.
I am so hopeful when I see kids hanging from high wires, balancing precariously on wobbly stacks of crates and paddling in freezing cold water. While they were supervised by professionals with all safety precautions, it was heartening to see them taking appropriate risks. They were extending themselves and rising to the challenges with courage and resilience. They were assessing situations, making critical decisions and giving it a go. They were making memories that will last a lifetime, building relationships that will support them during their formative teen years as they develop into adults, and creating a sense of belonging that builds self-confidence and promotes wellbeing. I feel hopeful because this is not what the current popular opinion is of our kids – the story often told is that they are constantly on their devices, dominated by over-protective parents and not held accountable for their actions. I’m not going to suggest that these things might not be a reality for some, but I think our children have far more gumption than we give them credit for nowadays. We need to let them make mistakes so they realise the consequences; we need to let them take risks in order to learn to assess situations, and we need to let them be challenged so they can make courageous decisions. It is a delicate balance but it is only through learning that they will accept responsibility and build resilience that will prepare them to cope with the more complex challenges of adulthood.
Finally, I’d like to wish all the mothers, grandmothers and other significant females in the lives of our students a very happy Mother’s Day on Sunday. We look forward to seeing lots of Mums and maternal figures at our Mother’s Day morning tea on Monday next week.
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College News
Top End Tour
Top End Tour
This month, 45 Trinity College Colac Year 10 students visited the Top End, spending two weeks immersed in the culture and nature of the Northern Territory.
The fantastic tour took the visitors from Uluru to Darwin, providing opportunities aimed to develop a deeper appreciation of the cultural significance of many important sites.
The students experienced the wonder of Uluru before heading to the domes of Kata Tjuta and hiking through the Valley of the Winds. In the Watarrka National Park on the traditional lands of the Matutjara people the group explored King’s Canyon’s mighty 300m high sandstone walls and enjoyed views that stretch across the Red Centre.
At Alice Springs the students were introduced to local wildlife at the Reptile Centre, appreciating the opportunity to get up and close with scaled creatures and feathered ones too, before the group set off to the iconic Karlu Karlu (Devil’s Marbles).
A trip to the Northern Territory wouldn’t be complete without a visit to Daly Waters where Australia’s first international airport was opened and the students were treated to a look around Tim’s Junkyard with its unexpected array of classic cars before continuing to Nitmiluk, also known as Katherine Gorge. There they enjoyed the heavenly natural thermal springs on the banks of the river before enjoying a cruise down the river, appreciating the dramatic scenery of the Gorge as they basked in the sunshine on board the ferry.
Picturesque waterfalls and great swimming spots were also highlights of their Nitmiluk National Park experience and the ever-changing landscape at Yellow Water Billabong and South Alligator River provided the explorers with some further glimpses of Top End wildlife.
The cultural significance of the country offered a deeper connection for the visitors, and the Burrungkay (Nourlangie) rock art site in Kakadu National Park highlighted the ancient history of the traditional owners. The students also marveled at the rock art at Ubirr with paintings of fish, turtles and goanna, as well as a thylacine, which became extinct on the mainland more than 2,000 years ago.
The students were also privileged to attend the Anzac Day dawn service at Jabiru and enjoyed a refreshing swim at Florence Falls in Litchfield National Park, discovering the magic of the landscape that is an important area to the Koongurrukun, Mak Mak Marranunggu, Werat and Warray Aboriginal people.
At the end their incredible adventures, the group arrived in Darwin, visiting the legendary Mindil Beach Sunset Markets and enjoying their last few hours together in the capital before heading home with fantastic memories and a deeper appreciation of the culture and beauty of the Top End.
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Musical Notes
Musical Notes
Trinity College's Music department has been busy sharing their incredible talents with the wider community, providing excellent entertainment to young and old alike.
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Mercy Aged Care performance
This term, our talented musicians have commenced special performance afternoons providing quality entertainment for the residents at Mercy Aged Care. Launching the sessions, Jesse and Charlotte treated their audience to a mixture of guitar duets and solos, with Jesse leading on vocals for a few pieces also. The residents loved the entertainment and commented on how wonderful it was to see the students creating music. Our next performance at Mercy is on Monday 20 May.
Sacred Heart concert
Our Concert Band musicians were in fine form at Sacred Heart Primary School, entertaining students with a toe-tapping repertoire and explaining aspects of the various instruments. The concert aimed to entertain, educate and inspire the younger generation to pick up an instrument.
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Music workshop day in the Bay
Trinity College combined musical forces with Apollo Bay P-12 College and Colac Secondary College and Trinity College with 60 young musicians spending a day making music and performing together.
Apollo Bay hosted the day and tutors were on board to assist students learn their parts and gather valuable knowledge about their instruments and music in general.
The morning consisted of full group rehearsals, followed by sectional tutorials. The afternoon was another quick full rehearsal before the musicians put on a concert for the entire school.
Students performed four new pieces they had only learned that day – 1812 Overture , YMCA, Viva la Vida and We Know the Way from Moana, as well as a bunch of their old favourites from previous workshops.
It was a wonderful day of music and collaboration for the three schools and we look forward to the next workshop day in Term 3.
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Instrumental Music and Concert Band programs
It is wonderful to see that tutors have filled their time allotments already this year with a few already having waiting lists. Students still interested in learning an instrument are encouraged to complete a form and submit to be on the waiting list ready to go.
Vocal Ensemble is still open for students to join, with or without singing lessons, everyone is welcome. They meet on Thursday Break 1 in the Drama Room.
Junior Band will commence this term and will run in Break 1 (day to be confirmed).
As a reminder, it is expected that ALL students enrolled in the Concert Band Program will attend weekly rehearsals and lessons. This is applicable to the students in Concert Band and Junior Band.
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House Cross Country
House Cross Country
Trinity College Colac’s House Cross Country took please under blue skies with a refreshing breeze supply some natural air-conditioning for the fast-paced competitors.
Trinity College Colac’s House Cross Country took please under blue skies with a refreshing breeze supply some natural air-conditioning for the fast-paced competitors.
The students set off in gender year groups, heading off on the 5km course through the back streets of Elliminyt. The packs soon split off, with the athletes settling into their rhythm and giving it their all for the prize of being the fastest in their cohort.
Staff on bicycles kept pace with the runners and many also ran and walked the course, urging on the competitors and enjoying some time with the students out of the classroom.
Congratulations to the age group champions for their commitment to excellence, and special mention to the overall champions who are listed below.
Well done to everyone who entered – every effort contributes towards the coveted House Spirit Cup that is awarded at the end of the year.
Age Group Champion Girls
- 12-13 Girls – Stella Foley
- 14 Girls – Bella Billing
- 15 Girls – Matilda Gazzard
- 16 Girls – Harmony Parker
- 17 Girls – Kayley Phillips
- 18 Girls – Remi Higgins
Age Group Champion Boys
- 12-13 Boys – Fred Melville
- 14 Boys – Sam Phillip
- 15 Boys – Izaac Tate
- 16 Boys – Thomas Russell
- 17 Boys – Jack Fish
- 18 Boys – Aiden Kelly
Overall Champions
- Boys – Jack Fish with a time of 16.30 minutes
- Girls – Harmony Parker with a time of 21 minutes
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Year 10 Social
Year 10 Social
Our Year 10 Social is on 17 May and parents and carers are invited to join their child and dance the Pride of Erin and Chicago Swing at the beginning of the evening.
Students are asked to bring a plate to share for supper. More details are below.
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Sustainability Update
Sustainability Update
This term at Trinity we have begun our new recycling and organic waste process, with opportunities for glass, hard plastic, food tins and food and organic waste to be recycled via the Colac Otway Shire kerbside program. This adds to our whole school paper and cardboard recycling process that occurs with the help of an external local provider.
Our major goal for 2024 is to decrease waste production and increase opportunities around the school to divert products from landfill, such as by reducing unnecessary waste, seeking more environmentally friendly materials and by recycling or composting. The use of our special bins is an easy way to work more successfully towards achieving this goal.
Our Food Technology department is leading the recycling charge with various products and materials now being recycled or composted, which is dramatically decreasing the amount of true waste produced at all year levels. Our recent Student Learning Conversations Day was no exception, with staff encouraged to separate and correctly recycle waste and food leftovers from our lunch and afternoon tea breaks.
We chose to integrate the Colac Otway Shire recycling system as it is what we are familiar with in our homes. Familiarity and consistency are key, so sticking to established colour representations will help us all quickly adapt to recycling at school and encourage an ease for students and staff to think in a uniform way about recycling in their home and school lives.
Separating different materials and recycling items appropriately is quite simple and so important in ensuring that we can reuse materials as much as possible and that nothing with recycling or re-use potential goes to waste. At first, it might be an extra effort to think about what materials an item is made up of and in some cases pull a plastic section apart from a cardboard box (think tissue boxes), to remove the metal lid from a glass jar (think sauces and spreads) or separate a soft plastic cover from a hard plastic packet (think meat trays or fruit packets), but positive actions will become habit, allowing better environmental outcomes.
From every perspective, aiming to allow the benefits of recycling is a no-brainer. At Trinity, we strive to educate and develop the whole person. From whichever perspective you consider, a humanitarian viewpoint, a secular (non-religious) viewpoint or a religious or specifically Catholic viewpoint, care for the environment is crucially important and very much encouraged. By educating about sustainability, addressing sustainability matters and advocating for better environmental outcomes, we are working towards many of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals including Goal 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities, Goal 12 Responsible Consumption and Production, and Goal 13 Climate Action. For some thought, below are just two particularly relevant quotes from Pope Francis, encouraging all of humanity to take a united approach to better care for the environment and for our common home.
“Today, however, we have to realise that a true ecological approach always becomes a social approach; it must integrate questions of justice in debates on the environment, so as to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.”
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Pope Francis, encyclical letter Laudato Si’ on care for our common home
“We must regain the conviction that we need one another, that we have a shared responsibility for others and the world, and that being good and decent are worth it.”
―
Pope Francis, encyclical letter Laudato Si’ on care for our common home
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Parent Resources
Cyber-Bullying: what it is and how to avoid it
Cyber-Bullying: what it is and how to avoid it
Cyberbullying is using digital technology to hurt someone deliberately and repeatedly. It can happen anytime, anywhere and on any digital or internet platform. Understanding and supportive conversations can help your child avoid or copy with cyberbullying.
Celebrating IDAHOBIT
Celebrating IDAHOBIT
As a Catholic school inspired by Jesus, we believe in the inestimable worth of every human individual for each is made in the image of God and is a reflection of God's goodness. The International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia, Intersexism, and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT), celebrated each year on 17 May, emphasises the critical need to educate children about diversity and inclusivity. Inaugurated in 2004 by the World Health Organisation, this day is a global call to promote tolerance and combat discrimination against the LGBTQIA+ community.
We possess a profound ability to shape our children's attitudes and beliefs, embedding values of acceptance, inclusivity, and respect for all.
Instilling respect and acceptance for people of all sexual orientations and gender identities in children is crucial. Celebrating IDAHOBIT helps families communicate a strong stance against discrimination, highlighting the importance of diversity and the damaging effects of stereotypes and biases. These prejudices often arise from the media, societal interactions, and peer influences, necessitating proactive efforts from parents and caregivers to counteract and discuss these issues.
Creating inclusive environments supports diversity and plays a vital role in raising awareness and demonstrating solidarity with LGBTQIA+ students and community members. It is a commitment to creating a world free from prejudice and discrimination, instilling values of empathy, respect and inclusivity.
This Special Report will help you fostering acceptance, empowering young people to become compassionate and informed advocates for equality.
Important Dates
Important Dates
Important Dates
Monday 14 May
McAuley House Day
Friday 17 May
Year 10 Social, JC Robinson Hall, Trinity College