PRINCIPAL'S MESSAGE
Dear Parents / Guardians,The first full week of the school year is over and it is amazing how quickly we return to routine. The holidays, New Year and Christmas period are fading into memories. For the students the excitement of new adventures and challenges that lie ahead become engaging.
At our High Achievers Assembly yesterday, I invited the students to – BUILD upon what we have achieved at John Therry. We have a wonderful community, pastoral care system, teaching Staff and close ties to the Marist Brothers’.
Both academically and on the sporting field we have champions. So the challenge is not to sit back and enjoy what has been built by those that have gone before us, but more importantly to BUILD upon it and take the school, and the students development and achievement levels, to new heights.
This is not a simple measure generated by the analysis of each years HSC results – although these are the results that receive most coverage through the press. Our performance in the NAPLAN testing in both Year 7 and Year 9 are equally as important and during this year we will be challenging the students to take a greater ownership of their own learning and the Staff will be working with them in performing to their best. LEARN time each morning will become an important part of this and I ask that you discuss with your son/daughter each day exactly how they used this time.
In conversation with Staff we can see an increased commitment to quality of assignments and effort in presenting work samples. This is a very positive sign.
So as we move into this exciting year of BUILDING I encourage all parents to be active in the learning life of your child. Ask questions, offer support, explore options and do not be daunted if you do not know the answers – as I experienced with my own children. You need to persevere for their benefit.
HIGH ACHIEVERS ASSEMBLY
What a wonderful celebration of the effort and persistence of the Yr 12 students and their success. A Year group of 106 students with 80 seeking an ATAR, achieved a total of 36 Band 6's.
This included a total of 8 students with scores over 90.00 – or 12.9% of the 62 students seeking University admission. The school ranking improved from 448 in 2019 to 218 this year. Across all examinations 7.6% were converted to Band 6 results, up from 1.9% last year.
We celebrate our College Dux, Olivia Mesa who achieved a personal score of 97.90 and five subjects with Band 6's.
We also recognise Luca Sannio who achieved a fourth place in the state in his Automotive VET course.
Several students had their major works nominated and recognised - Visual Arts Morgan McPhee, Aaron Crispino, Logan Harber-Kerr and Hollie Cunningham. Morgan and Logan having their works selected in Art Express. Olivia Mesa was also selected in OnStage for her drama work.
In a year where we had covid interruptions and the loss of a classmate that impacted all, the resilience of this group of young people has been amazing.
Olivia Mesa – 97.90 Morgan McPhee – 96.65
Joshua Innes – 94.85 Sophia Wolczak – 94.40
Giselle Levine – 92.30 Kyle Kalabric – 90.10
Chloe Kerswell – 90.60 Amith Jacob-Kavoor – 91.05