1 April 2021

Newsletter Articles

Principal’s Report

As we move into the holiest time of the year for our Catholic faith, the celebration of Easter, we reflect on the perfect sacrifice Christ made for all humanity. I  recently read a thought-provoking article from the Archdiocese of Baltimore in the USA which asked the question – “What might Jesus tell us about his experience of the suffering and humiliation he endured?” The author’s reflection on this question was as follows:

“I went through all of that because you are worth it. You are worth living for. You are worth dying for. In your darkest nights, remember that God thought you were worth his life. You are loved that much. You matter that much. So, do not focus on life’s harshness, but focus on God. You will not be abandoned, and, as I arose above difficulty, so will you. Let go of your anger and bitterness and hold onto your God. And I will share my life with you forever.”

I hope this short reflection has meaning for you as it did for me as we move into this most significant time of Easter.

Term 1 Reflection

My first term at Marist Kogarah has been an incredibly rich and enjoyable experience. Meeting and getting to know the staff, students and parents over the past 10 weeks has been a joy – we have such a wonderful, thriving Catholic community. Our students have impressed me since my very first day at the College and have accomplished great things academically, on the sporting fields and in the arts. More than anything else, they are fine young men who do both their families and our College proud. I look forward to the rest of 2021 and seeing the amazing achievements of the young men of Marist Kogarah.

College Open Afternoon

The College Open Afternoon was held last Wednesday, 24 March. It was a fantastic evening with so many visitors – both current and prospective parents and students. Our current students were remarkable with around 200 volunteering to assist as tour guides, musicians and demonstrating classroom learning activities. My thanks to all involved, especially the College staff who did such a wonderful job organising the various activities around the College.

Year 12 Holiday Classes

The end of Term 1 signifies the halfway point for our Year 12 HSC students. These school holidays are a very important time for Year 12 to engage in regular revision and practice past HSC examinations. During the holiday period, many of our Year 12 teachers have volunteered their time to run revision classes which I encourage the students to attend. Year 12 have been given the schedule of classes and I hope to see them during the holidays using the generosity of the staff to continue to improve.

Term 2 Information

Term 2 commences on Monday, 19 April – which will be Day One on the student’s timetables. Students are to return to the College for Term 2 in full winter uniform, including wearing of the College Blazer to and from school. Students are also to ensure that their hair is appropriately styled and they are appropriately groomed.

Term 2 is an important term for all students with assessments and examinations, Semester 1 reports and parent/teacher interviews. I encourage all students to return to the College in Term 2 ready and eager for a great term of learning and success.

A Happy and Holy Easter

I wish all students, staff and families a happy, holy and safe Easter filled with love and care for one another. I hope that you are able to attend some of the liturgies that mark the Easter Triduum. Times for Easter masses at our local parishes are available in Ms Abihanna’s section below.

May God bless all staff, students and families.

Mr Simon Ghantous
College Principal

Assistant Principal’s Report

What’s On Tuesday? (WOT)

Through Marcellin Champagnat’s teachings of service to others, several years ago the College commenced an initiative What’s on Tuesday? (WOT) to provide additional opportunities to the students.

This year, WOT re-commenced on Tuesday, Week 8 at 3.10 pm until 4.10 pm. Participation in WOT is on a voluntary basis for any student who would like to be involved in the activities offered. Over the course of the last few weeks, students have been involved in Homework Club, Kids in the Kitchen, Art Club and SAS (Science After School). This is a great opportunity for the students to learn new skills, get help with old ones, meet new students and enjoy themselves.

The list of activities will be published on the College website and Compass at the beginning of each term and outlines where each activity is held. To enable a student to participate in WOT parents/caregivers must provide a one-off permission, via Compass for your son to attend throughout 2021. Should you wish your son to participate, please provide your consent online at any time.

Thank you to the College staff that give of their time and expertise to support WOT!

Police Talks

Over the course of the last few weeks, Senior Constable Kelly Stewart, the College’s Police Youth Liaison Officer has been at the College to speak with students from each cohort. Depending on the cohort, Senior Constable Kelly Stewart spoke on issues of Cyber Safety, Health Relationships, Assault, Safe Driving and Drugs and Alcohol. The purpose of these talks is to inform our students of the laws, to ensure their safety and the safety of others.

Many thanks to Senior Constable Kelly Stewart for her support of the College.

Late to School

As of the beginning of Term 2, if a student is late to school without an explanation, parents will receive an SMS informing them of his lateness. If your son is going to be late to school, please add an Attendance Note in Compass to explain this absence. All unexplained whole/partial absences will be recorded on the students Semester Reports.

Ordering a Replacement Compass Card

If your son has lost his Compass Card and requires a replacement card, please follow these instructions to order a new card.

Compass on PC

• Open Compass on your PC
• Click on the cog in the right hand corner
• Under My Account, select My CompassIdentity Card
• To order a new card, click on + (plus) sign
• Credit Card payment is required at the time of ordering ($10 replacement fee applies)
• The new Compass Card will be delivered to the College.

Compass App on Phone

• Open App on phone
• Go to (menu) on the left hand side
• Open in browser
• Click on cog in the right hand corner
• Continue as above.

Lost Property

A reminder for students and parents to ensure all uniforms and personal property are clearly labelled with student names. There is currently a substantial amount of lost property at the College Office without any identification. All of these items will remain in the office until the end of Term 1 at which point they will be donated to the Uniform Shop.

Commencing from Term 2, 2021, any lost property will be held by the office for 2 weeks before being donated.

I wish you and your families a very happy and a holy Easter and a wonderful holiday.

Mrs Catherine Roebuck
Assistant Principal

Religious Education Co-ordinator

Project Compassion 2021

Caritas Australia’s annual Lenten fundraising and awareness-raising appeal is an extraordinary, ongoing demonstration of the faith, love and generosity of the Catholic congregation and caring supporters throughout Australia to help end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity.

Project Compassion theme this year asks us to: “be more” for our world.

Starting with Ash Wednesday on 17 February, we at MCK are sharing stories from people in Bangladesh, Solomon Islands, Tanzania, Indonesia and Australia. Their stories humble and inspire us and show how your contributions to Project Compassion help people build better lives for themselves, their families and their communities.

As Lent draws to a close, I would like to thank the College community for their generosity of gifting to this year’s Project Compassion Appeal. Project Compassion is Caritas Australia’s annual fundraising and awareness-raising appeal that brings thousands of Australians together in solidarity with the world's poor to help end poverty, promote justice and uphold dignity.

We have raised a remarkable $5495.30.

Please see below the Easter mass times for the parishes of St Mary MacKillop's Parish, Rockdale City and St Gabriel's Parish, Bexley.

I wish you and your families a very happy and a Holy Easter to come.

May the Risen Christ be hope for all.

Ms Lauren Abihanna
Religious Education Co-ordinator

Archbishop's Luncheon

Last Tuesday, James Aroney and I attended St Mary’s Cathedral house in the city for a luncheon prepared by Archbishop Anthony Fisher. While we were there we were given the opportunity to ask the Archbishop questions and queries surrounding our faith and the youth of today. It was a great experience for us to strengthen our faith and I’m very grateful we were given this opportunity.

Max Efremidis
College Captain

Religious Education at MCK

Religious Education at Marist College Kogarah centres on a culture of learning, which guides students in their faith formation journey as well as a focus on promoting Religious literacy in the classroom. Project based learning is the pedagogy we follow which has provided opportunities for peer marking and interviews with students on their progress marks. Here, students become an advocate of their learning and bring about a culture of learning in the classroom

Emiliene DePasquale
Religious Education Teacher

Progress Marking

In Religious Studies, we are marked out of 20 based on our behaviour, book work, and work ethics. This is called a “Progress Mark'' and is worth 50% of our total mark. This is a great way to see how well we are travelling and can get constructive feedback to apply to our main task. Mrs DePasquale makes sure we follow the marking criteria to make sure we are ticking all the boxes and being on task. We apply the feedback and really does help me and my other peers in doing the task.

Thomas Moraitakis
Year 9

Throughout our syllabus in Religion we have been given and received feedback through our progress marks by Mrs DePasquale. Constructive feedback is given to help us stay on track with the marking criteria and complete everything with the main task. Throughout the year's work, we have a scaffold of marking criteria’s where the teacher monitors our work and also ensures that we work and strive for success. Therefore, the ideas of progress marks are useful for our progression throughout the year of work in Religion.

Hadi Saad
Year 9

Peer Marking

Peer marking is an amazing learning technique which I have experienced in the subject of Religion for the past two years with Mrs DePasquale’s class. In peer marking I would group up with another member of my class to mark my project, while I mark theirs. This is very effective as the feedback that they give back helps me improve on the project I am working on. I have taken part as a peer on multiple occasions and this marking has helped me improve on many aspects of my learning such as speaking, presentation and my writing. I remember when my current project for religion was a Ted talk to answer the question “Why Heal?” When it was time for peer marking I didn’t feel my speech was satisfactory. However I knew when going into peer marking it was a safe environment for me to learn in, and after I had gotten the feedback from my peers I was able to improve on many skills such as my eye contact and tone. This not only helped me with religion but also my current English assessment at the time which was a speech as well. This should make it crystal clear that peer marking is an important learning technique which helps me and many other people with their work and assessments.

Daniel Kostovski
Year 9

I believe that peer marking is a great activity for the whole class for many reasons. These include constructive feedback, practice in front of your peers and gives us a boost of confidence. Peer marking is an activity, I thoroughly enjoy doing no matter the task we are doing. It is a great activity that I believe could be implemented in every class to assist our everyday learning - like Ms DePasquale has. Peer marking has given me the gift of confidence, which can be observed in the way I speak and act during any of my Religious Education assignments. I feel my confidence increase through the constructive feedback I receive which improves my presentation or anything I do in this safe learning environment. I believe that peer marking overall benefits everyone and helps relax people during the stressful time of assignments and assessments.

William Marshal
Year 9

Peer marking has enabled me to be more confident when public speaking through the process of presenting in front of another pair of classmates which is significantly important as Speeches in Religious Education is very common each year within our assignments. The process of peer marking eliminates my anxiety and feeling anxious when preparing for speeches in Religion. This is why I Believe Peer Marking should be implemented in every class as it does improve the mental state which allows a student to positively and effectively learn and creates a safe learning environment for each student to express and understand their beliefs in Religion Class.

Nicholas Michailou
Year 9

Peer marking is a strategy which can be used between 2 or more people in order to simulate or mimic the customs of what would be the formal style of marking and assessments; it significantly increases the “already-wide” feedback that groups or individuals can receive, including its power to create and give brand new ideas for many people and enables them to become confident and more educated on the subjects they are being marked in. My experiences of peer marking has allowed me to become better informed in the many subjects which I partook the activity in, and have also allowed me to create a stronger connection through peer marking as I communicate with others; including those I do not have strong friendship relationships with. Through peer marking, it has also allowed me to share my own opinions of a particular task and expand my own understanding along with the people who peer mark with me. Therefore, within my perspective and opinions of peer marking, is a very comfortable and effective way of extensive learning. The wonders of peer marking - no matter the subject it is done in, can allow anyone to become better people if we embrace the facts and information given to us by our peers.

Dave Matthew Peras
Year 9

Leader of Teaching and Learning

Striving for Academic Excellence

Throughout Term 1 students have been demonstrating their ability to perform, achieve, and excel in academic activities. Striving for academic excellence to maximise development of your intellectual capacities and skills is the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, skilful execution and the vision to see obstacles as opportunities. Congratulations to our students who have commenced the year by developing a strong capacity to learn and play an active role in their own learning and by showing initiative and using their creative abilities. You are on a path towards success!

Year 12 Assessment

Year 12 have just concluded an assessment period over the course of two weeks that provided an opportunity for students to practice time management, deepen their knowledge and understanding of course outcomes and communicate effectively. At the commencement of Term 2, Year 12 will receive feedback from their teachers on these assessment tasks and will be asked to engage in reflective practice to feedforward to animate their growth.

“ The assessment period provided essential experiences for all students.” (Alexis Tzanos)

“ It gave me an insight into the commitment needed to my studies so that I succeed in the HSC.” (Johnathon Tirekidis)

Year 7 and Year 9 Naplan Practice Test

On Thursday, 25 March and Friday, 26 March, students in Years 7 and 9 participated in the online NAPLAN practice. Tests consisted of an Omnibus which was a combination of reading, numeracy and language conventions and a writing test. The results of these tests will not be recorded; however, they will offer students an opportunity to practice how to access the online test and to prepare themselves for answering questions on the NAPLAN tests in May.

Mrs Kylie Watson
Leader of Pedagogy

From the College Counsellor

Dealing with conflict can be a stressful experience for children, young people and their parents. As the school holidays approach, you might like to read this article by Kids Helpline on helping your child to handle conflict better.

Ms Amy Martin
College Counsellor

Year 10 Exploring Genetics

As part of our Year 10 unit ‘Exploring Genetics and Biotechnology’ our Year 10 Challenge class have extended their knowledge and understanding of the structure of DNA to construct a model double helix.

The students used their problem-solving skills to translate a short sequence of nitrogenous bases in order to build base pairs and create a small section of DNA.

Creating these colourful double helix structures turned out to be both a fun and challenging activity for the students and a wonderful addition to the decor in our labs.

Great job boys!

Mrs Jackie Cordwell
Science Co-ordinator

2021 College Walkathon

Our annual school Walkathon to commemorate the Feast Day of Marcellin Champagnat, our patron Saint will be taking place on Friday, 4 June 2021. Students will raise money to support Australian Marist Solidarity (AMS) and as a school community, we acknowledge their efforts with a raffle to be drawn at the end of Term 2. We are kindly seeking you to support our school community, with a monetary or other contribution, to go towards the raffle. In previous years, local businesses have donated a variety of prizes ranging from sporting jerseys, vouchers, technological devices to name a few.

Australian Marist Solidarity (AMS) is the agency for the aid and development work of the Marist Province of Australia throughout Asia and the Pacific Islands. AMS works with the people in this region on a combination of long-term and short-term development projects. These projects aim to develop, or support, locally sustained education opportunities for the young people in these regions. The money raised from this year’s annual walkathon will be donated to AMS focusing on sustainable growth through building a community’s capacity to deliver better quality education, to develop skills and to promote leadership.

If you are able to donate prizes for the raffle, please contact me at the College on 9587 3211 or email alexandros.sinadinos@syd.catholic.edu.au.

Thank you in advance for your support of this significant College event.

Mr Alex Sinadinos
PDHPE Co-ordinator

Sport Report

MCC Cross Country

Last Thursday, 25 March, our MCC Cross Country Squad travelled out to King George Park, Rozelle, on a picturesque autumn day to compete in the MCC Cross Country Championship.

The day started off well with the junior age groups leading the way and at the halfway mark, it was clear it was down to 3 schools - Randwick, North Shore and Kogarah.

2006 was the last time that Kogarah had won the Cross Country Championship. The College has always had star runners in different age groups who have progressed to the next stage, however, this year was different. All students ran out of their skin and after numerous years of finishing second and third place behind the other two schools, it was finally our turn to bring home the Aggregate Trophy.

Special mention must be made of those students who finished in the Top 10 out of 40 runners. Some of which have qualified for the NSWCCC Cross Country Championships next term. These students include:

A big thank you to Team Manager Mr O’Brien and coach’s Mr Scali and Mr Booth, who seem to get the best out of the students running ability each and every year.

MCC Tennis Grand Finals

The MCC Tennis Grand finals were played at Illawarra Tennis Centre at Rockdale on Thursday, 18 March on a wet and windy morning.

With rain pouring throughout the week, the outlook for Grand Final day was bleak. However, without a spare round to rely on due to the delayed start of the Summer Season due to COVID-19, the players and coaches of all schools did everything in their power to ensure the matches went ahead.

Despite their best efforts, which included squeegeeing the courts throughout the morning, the rain was far too heavy and the safety of the players needed to take precedence over all else. The first round of matches were abandoned after 15 minutes of play and unfortunately play did not resume.

Unfortunately for our Opens team, Lewisham deservedly took home the Opens Trophy due to superior points gained throughout the year, however, congratulations to our Under 15’s team who won the Under 15’s competition after they remained undefeated all season.

Again, a big thank you to the coaches Mr Lemos and Mr Azar for their tireless efforts every week, but in particular this week as they braved the pouring rain squeegeeing courts to try and get the games in.

NSWCCC Swimming Championships

On Monday of this week, the NSWCCC Swimming Championships were held at the Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre. In great news for the College, we had two students representing the MCC at this event and both did the College, and themselves, extremely proud.

Oliver Perez-Rook (Year 7) finished 6th in his heat and 24th overall which is an outstanding achievement considering he was in the most populated event, the Under 13’s 50m Freestyle.

Fletcher Warn (Year 10) participated in a number of long distance events at this year's Championships. Of particular note was Fletcher’s 3rd place (only 0.50 seconds behind the winner) in the 400m freestyle event, earning himself the Bronze medal. All of Fletcher’s results can be seen below:

• 3rd in the 400m Freestyle
• 4th in the 100m Freestyle
• 5th in the 200m Freestyle
• 5th in the 100m Backstroke
• 5th in the 100m Butterfly

MCC Winter Trials

Over the last few weeks, the MCC Winter Trials for Soccer and Rugby League have been taking place. Due to a few washouts and the later end to the Summer Season, these teams are yet to be finalised, however, will be after the Trial matches in Week 1 against Marist North Shore.

I want to take this opportunity to thank all students who have trialled for these teams. We have seen record numbers across almost all age groups and it goes to show that willingness to represent our great College has never been stronger. Also, a huge thank you to those staff members who have the unenviable task of trying to select a final team. In some cases trying to pick just 15 players from over 60 students who have trialled.

MCC Summer Jerseys/Singlets

Any student who still has not returned their playing jersey/singlet from the Touch Football or Basketball teams is asked to do so ASAP.

Mr Chris MacDougal
Sports Co-ordinator

Under 15’s Touch Football

Congratulations to under 15's touch football for an excellent season. With a strong commitment to training and a strong desire to succeed, the boys turned themselves into a formidable touch team as the season progressed. Unfortunately, the grand final saw us lose 9-6 to a very strong Lewisham side after a see-sawing context that was 3-3 at halftime and as close as 6-6 with 5 minutes remaining. The wet weather and terrible conditions made it a difficult and well fought contest. For many of these boys, the chance to progress into the A/B grade divisions will present a great opportunity to develop their ability further and hopefully go one step further and win a title.

Zac Richau in Year 10 has been refereeing the MCC Touch competition and was a referee in the Under 14 and Under 15 finals recently. Zac was recently awarded his Level three referee’s badge at the Junior State Cup in Wagga. This week he is refereeing at the NSWCCC Touch tournament at Nelson Bay. Zac is a very competent Touch football referee who referees men’s and women’s Open games at his local affiliate - Taren Point Touch Association, where he is highly regarded. We wish Zac all the best with his refereeing endeavours.”

Mr Jake Gallagher
U15’s Coach

Career Corner

Year 12 VET Construction

Year 12 VET Construction students are this week participating in the handling and preparing of brick and block laying materials incursion course at Marist College.

This intense three day course is part of their VET Construction Pathways course. These students are enjoying the opportunity to experience how to make cement, lay bricks using various tools and techniques and put into practice manual handling techniques which simulates an actual construction site.

UTS – Discover what engineering at UTS is all about

Tuesday, 27 April 5.30 pm
Wednesday, 28 April 1.00 pm

Learn about the various engineering courses offered at UTS, the subjects involved and engineering career opportunities after graduating. Engineering is all around us. From the infrastructure of our cities to robotics, personal electronics, renewable energy, Opal Card system and medical devices.

Register today for our live webinar to gain an insight into what Engineering is all about and find out if it's right for you. Hear from key academics about what it's like to study engineering at UTS and how best to prepare. There will also be a Q&A session where you can have your questions answered live.

UTS - The Galuwa Engineering and IT Experience

Held in July School Holidays.

Galuwa means 'to climb' in the Gadigal language and that's exactly what we want Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander high school students to do.

The 5-day program attracts students who are interested in the fields of engineering or IT, as well as those who have an aptitude for maths, creative thinking and problem solving and are unsure of which career path to follow.

The free program features interactive hands-on workshops, site visits with industry partners, cultural activities, information about career paths and lunch. Participants also hear inspirational talks from students, cadets and professionals.

Register here:

Information here:

SkillsOne TV

Digital Parents Showcase SkillsOne has created the Digital Parents Showcase, a free 30 minute video for parents that promotes vocational education and training, industry trends, apprenticeships and traineeships and discusses post school careers options. Register your details and then watch this short video.

To register-

Mr Peter Fitzpatrick
Careers/VET Co-ordinator

Community Announcements

Enrolling Now for Year 7, 2023

Second Hand College Uniform

Due to the generosity of the Marist College Community, we currently have an excess of stock of second hand uniforms available for purchase. To assist with finding these items a new home, the College will be holding a sale on Wednesday, 21 April from 3.00 pm – 4.00 pm. All items will be 50% off the usual uniform pricing. Sales will be cash only and all parents must be accompanied by students to ensure uniforms fit as there will be not exchanges or returns on items.

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