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When 9 out of 10 is not good enough
90% on most assessment tasks would be a wonderful result, yet when we look at attendance and punctuality, this often doesn't quite cut it. Most employers would struggle to work with an employee who missed one day every fortnight, and turning up slightly late each day might be even more problematic.
Attendance and punctuality is an area we have identified as having lots of room for improvement at John Therry, and we are keen to ensure we instill good habits and values around the importance of attendance. We know that COVID has impacted attendance in most schools, and has meant that having symptoms of a cold or flu now means we need to stay away from school when previously we might have attended. The attendance issues at John Therry appear to be a bit broader than this.
Attendance 2022
Missing 1 day per fortnight adds up to over 2 terms of missed learning from Year 7 to 12. Missing 1 day per week adds up to missing over a whole year of schooling from Year 7 to 12.
This obviously has a significant impact on student learning and achievement, and is something we will continue to focus on this year.
Open Day - Year 7 2024
The John Therry Open Day was held on Saturday 25th February and was very well attended once again. We gave out approximately 240 applications for 180 places so it appears we will have some difficult decisions again offering places for 2024. Applications close on the 31st April and applications received after this date will go onto a waitlist if we have more applications than places. Interview will take place in early term 2.
Some images below of the set up for Open Day.
Lent and Project Compassion
We celebrated Ash Wednesday liturgies on Wednesday 22nd February, distributing ashes and marking the commencement of Lent as a College community. During Lent we are challenged to reflect in prayer, fast and give alms. This is a call to us as christians to follow Jesus more faithfully. The call to fast is a way to practice self discipliine and be grateful for what we have, and giving alms is more than just donating money, but also looking at how we can use our gifts and talents in the service for others.
Thank you to Ms Screppis, Angar and Tiana for joining me at the Project Compassion launch with Bishop Brian on Tuesday 21st February.
| Tuesday 21st March | 6:30pm P & F Meeting |
| 15-27 March | NAPLAN Period (Yr 7 & 9) |
| Thursday 30 March | JTCC Cross Country |
| Friday 31st March | Year 7 2024 Applications close |
| Wednesday 5th April | 3:30-7:30pm 7-10 PTS Interviews |
| Thursday 6th April | 8:30-10:30am 7-10 PTS Interviews |
| Monday 24th April | Staff Development Day |
PUPIL FREE DAY - Monday 13th March 2023
Dear parents, caregivers and students,
Welcome to what is going to be another great year of learning at John Therry Catholic College. I hope everyone had a happy holiday and that all of us are looking forward to a settled start to the College year.
Term 1 is always a unique one- a blend of familiar and new.
Old friends as well as new ones! I take this opportunity to welcome all our Year 7 students as well as students who have enrolled in Years 8-11, this year. I hope you have a smooth start to the year and enjoy every minute of your learning experience. Don’t hesitate to ask for help, if you need it.
Old classrooms as well as new ones! As students walk around the school, you will notice improvements to the school environment. You will notice your classrooms are newly painted, neat and clean with additional posters directing you to classroom procedures for your lessons. We hope this will help you stay focussed and find relevance in what you learn.
By week 3, all students will have received, via Compass and the Google classroom page, an Assessment Handbook, Assessment Calendar and Assessment Schedule (HSC students will receive the Assessment dates for tasks in Terms 1, 2 & 3). This information will also be available via email and on the school website (printed copies will be available on request). While teachers will draw students’ attention to various sections of these documents from time to time, I suggest you read the Handbook and make a note of the Assessment dates/weeks so everyone is well- prepared for these tasks and a true measure of learning is made possible.
On the 16th February, we celebrated the achievements of our HSC 2022 students. I would like to thank each and every HSC student for their hard work and commitment to getting the HSC completed as successfully as possible.
We are so proud of all our students and the following in particular:
- Tameka Thorne for her outstanding achievement as DUX of the College with an ATAR of 92.3
- Tameka Thorne for ranking 14th in the State in English Standard
In addition:
- Willow Davies for her nomination in OnSTAGE (Drama)
- Haylie Spiteri for her the selection of her work in OnSTAGE (Drama)
- Audrey Parag or her the selection of her work in OnSTAGE (Drama)
We congratulate Rainer Smith for being accepted into the Step into Teaching Scholarship Program for 2022, Tameka Thorne and Sokowa Parker for winning the Eileen O’Connor Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Scholarship.
I would like to congratulate all our HSC students on their success and am looking forward to a grand celebration in a few weeks’ time.
In 2022, our School assemblies highlighted the great work being done in the different faculties and we will continue to do so this year. I look forward to having the Hall stage overflowing with students who will be recognised for their hard work and success in learning.
Once again, I welcome you to an exciting year of learning at JT. We are always available to answer any queries you may have.
Mrs Lorraine Ramchandra
Leader of Learning-Curriculum
JTCC SPORT UPDATE - Week 6
Another beautiful, but very hot Tuesday sport. MISA rounds 1/2 commenced, with mixed results for our teams. Congratulations to those students who represented John Therry this week in MISA and also in Diocesan Tennis Teams. Those students who missed out, there are many future opportunities to represent JTCC, keep an eye out on the Sport Bulletin Board in the A-block corridor and on the Compass Newsfeed.
A few reminders regarding Sport:
- Students should not be signed out of school before sport unless for a medical or family emergency. If you are signing your son/daughter out from school, a reminder to please follow school procedure by physically signing them out via the front office.
- Students who are injured/unable to participate in sport need to provide a medical certificate/note to the Sports Coordinator. These students also need to have a conversation with the Coordinator regarding future sport options.
The behaviour and participation from the majority was great so thank you for making a positive start to the 2023 Sporting Year.
Mr Luke Bodeker
bodekerl01@dow.catholic.edu.au.
MISA REPORT - ROUND 2
|
Teacher |
Team |
Score |
Report |
|
MR COOK |
10-12 BOYS BASKETBALL |
Won 67 -14 vs MAS |
Our Round 2 game vs Macarthur Anglican School was a delayed event. We did not enforce the extra points for being late in light of their recent school tragedy. A much better effort on offense led to many team oriented shots. This disciplined manner allowed more scorers this week. Our defense let us down at times, but was resolved with our half time chat. Garang Bol led all scorers with 18 points, Kalan Nou 14 points and 6 points each to Lleyton Turner, Adrian Narvais, Keon Zaglas and Kalan Nau. Mt Annan Christian College next week. MVP: Garang Bol |
|
MR FIFITA |
10-12 GIRLS BASKETBALL |
Loss 6-2 vs MAS |
The senior girls basketball team played half game due to the recent school tragedy experienced by Macarthur. The girls defended well keeping the score to a minimum but unfortunately lost to Macathur Anglican by 4 points. The girls are getting better every week and with training, an elusive win is not too far away MVP: Annelise Hall |
|
MR WILLIAMSON |
7-9 BOYS VOLLEYBALL |
Loss vs 2-1 vs THAC |
A very long and somewhat miss directed bus ride saw us playing a shortened match. The boys were a bit flustered early, possibly due to the long trip. We regrouped in the second set and looked set for a come from behind victory until a series of fundamental errors let us down. With more experience playing in pressure situations and less simple mistakes we will recover and record some wins. MVP: Luke Billinghurst |
|
MRS HYNARD |
7-9 GIRLS VOLLEYBALL |
An improved game for the girls from last week. Three novice year 7's joined the team today and gained some valuable court time. Training over the last few days has seen the girls' serves improve dramatically. I'm sure the girls will continue to progress throughout the season. The team is looking promising for next week's match. MVP - Grace Akol |
|
|
MR TRAN |
10-12 GIRLS OZ TAG |
BYE |
|
|
MR MCGRATH |
10-12 BOYS OZ TAG |
Won 9-1 vs THAC |
Hot conditions today out at Kirkham. The heat didn’t bother the boys though, showing some brilliance in attack. Holding THAS to 1 point is outstanding in these conditions, playing a few troops down. We have a solid team this year, with a good group of students who listen and respond positively to feedback. Well done, boys! MVP: Matt Maytom |
|
MRS BULGER |
7-9 GIRLS HOCKEY |
Loss 3-0 vs MAS |
The junior girls hockey had a great first game. It was nice to see the team settle into the game and get use to pace and expectations. A very new experience for this Team. We had a tough defensive game against a very experienced Macarthur Anglican side. Although at first some aspects were challenging for our team to grasp by the second half they had adjusted well to the game play. Although Macarthur Anglicn were in the lead, it was very competitive. Even though 3 goals were conceded there were many more attempts our team were able to defend. I was so happy to see everyone trying their best there were some stand out efforts, congratulations to Jaswyn, Tanisha and Leyla who were in and among a lot of the play today, very exhausting given the weather. However our MVPs are Paige Halliday who, as goalie, saved two goals within the first two minutes of the game, and Alice Stephenson who was also able to deflect some near goals and held her own against some very experienced players on the other team. Congratulations all, a good start to the Term. I look forward to seeing what you can achieve next week. MVP: Paige Halliday and Alice Stephenson |
|
MR GERIBO |
7-9 GIRLS IND CRICKET |
Loss 57-31 vs St Pats |
Today’s match was a thriller against St Pat’s, which was a close game until the end where we lost a couple of late wickets. We all participated and were very encouraging of each other. We showed great sportsmanship and, even though we lost, had great fun and enjoyed ourselves. St Pat’s took the win today but we are determined to win next week! MVP: Ava Hilton |
|
MR CHAPMAN |
7-9 BOYS SOFTBALL |
Loss 5-6 vs BAC |
JT batted first and we started strong but could only manage 3 runs in the first innings. Our fielding wasn’t up to scratch and we put too much pressure on ourselves. In a close game and couldn’t quite get the job done. MVP: Joshua Booth and Brayden Mathew |
MISA REPORT - ROUND 3
|
Teacher |
Team |
Score |
Report |
|
MR COOK |
10-12 BOYS BASKETBALL |
Lost 42 - 41 vs MACC |
An away game with a sloppy warm-up set the tone for the first half of the game. We failed to run our offensive sets and with a lack-lustre defensive presence, we found ourselves down 17 - 0 after the first 10 minutes of play. The first round of subs even the tide and we were down 28 - 16 at the break. Smart defence got us back into the game and common sense and “unselfish” offense kept Mt Annan Christian College to 4 points after 10 minutes of play and soon we were even on the board with 5 minutes to go. Some more undisciplined basketball led to poor shot choices and silly fouls. A freakishly lucky 3 pointer put MACC up and there was not enough time to get another shot off. The result was a reflection of the “whole game” effort as our offense let the team down again. MVP: Kisione Tupola |
|
MR FIFITA |
10-12 GIRLS BASKETBALL |
BYE |
|
|
MR WILLIAMSON |
7-9 BOYS VOLLEYBALL |
Won 2-0 vs BAC |
An improved performance with room for further progress. Better teamwork and shot execution but need to work on decision making and shot selection. Continued concentration and focus should see us post a threat to the rest of the competition. MVP: William Chanhdara |
|
MRS HYNARD |
7-9 GIRLS VOLLEYBALL |
Lost 2-1 vs BAC |
Today the girls won a set! There was excitement all round even though in the end we narrowly lost the match. The skill level of the girls is certainly improving each week due to their dedication. It was however a detriment to the team we only had six players today. MVP: Emerson Hickey |
|
MR TRAN |
10-12 GIRLS OZ TAG |
Won 6-2 vs MCCC |
It was business as usual for the 10-12 girls OzTag against MCCC. The JT girls proved too swift and too slick, dominating through the middle and on the edges. The tries from Bridget, Chelsea, Tess, Gabby and Ella were the standouts for the strong JT outfit. A strong first half ended 3-1 in JT’s favour. An equally if not stronger second half allowed JT to take home the win 6-2, well done girls. MVP- Jorja Borg |
|
MR MCGRATH |
10-12 BOYS OZ TAG |
Won 12-5 vs MCCC |
It was business as usual for the 10-12 Boys Oztag against MCCC. The JT boys proved too swift and too slick, dominating through the middle and on the edges. The likes of Riley Oitmann, Marley Wickey, Coby Hilton and Noah McKenzie, some of Mr Webb’s former students, were the standouts for the strong JT outfit. A strong first half ended 6-2 in JT’s favour. Some sloppy errors and fatigue led to a total of 5 MCCC tries. An equally, if not stronger second half allowed IT to take home the win 12-5, and with that the inaugural Webb Cup. MVP: Coby Hilton |
|
MRS BULGER (Stanley) |
7-9 GIRLS HOCKEY |
Loss 3-0 vs MAS |
The hockey team was ready and firing to play today against WCCC after some committed training sessions with Mrs Bulger. I was lucky enough to step in today and experience such a courageous game with no subs in hot conditions. Jaswyn got an early goal and the defence did well to hold out WCCC and come away with a win. The team displayed exceptional teamwork with Leyla Davidson running the entire game, running the length of the field on a number of occasions and some great passing from Alice Stephenson at the back (MVP). Congratulations on a fantastic team win! MVP: Alice Stephenson |
|
MR GERIBO (Albery) |
7-9 GIRLS IND CRICKET |
Loss 57-31 vs St Pats |
MVP: Ava Hilton |
|
MR CHAPMAN |
7-9 BOYS SOFTBALL |
BYE |
U/15s SOUTHERN COUNTRY BOYS AFL TRIALS
On the 1st March, four John Therry students travelled to Canberra for the U15/s Boys Southern Country AFL trial. Upon arrival the students were organised into three even teams, consisting of different dioceses from Wollongong, Canberra/Goulburn, Parramatta and Wilcania-Forbes. These teams competed in a skills session and four games throughout the day before a final 22 students could be selected.
The following John Therry students represented the college extremely well and all showcased their AFL skills during hot and humid conditions.
- Will Gillette (Year 8)
- Torin Marlow (Year 8)
- Sullivan O’Dwyer (Year 8)
- Cooper Wells (Year 9)
A big congratulations to Cooper and Sullivan who were selected into the Southern Country team and will represent Southern Country at the NSWCCC U/15s AFL Championships in Wagga Wagga. Both boys should be proud of their achievements and we wish them the best at the NSWCCC Carnival.
2023 DIOCESAN TENNIS
The annual Diocesan Tennis tournament was very early in the school calendar year in 2023 limiting our preparation however that didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of our boys’ and girls’ teams. Students arrived early to school on the day of the tournament nervously looking at the sky as heavy rain was predicted. As we drove down Mt Ousley into the Gong the clouds dispersed and we were treated to some fantastic weather and an enjoyable day’s tennis.
Both teams represented JT with pride and our boys team tied with St John’s Nowra in the final of the repechage match which was an improved performance on previous years and a good sign for the future as all players from both teams will still be available to represent the College in 2024.
UPCOMING EVENTS TERM 1 2023
|
Week 6 |
|
Wed 1 March - Southern Country U15 AFL Boys Trials Fri 3rd March - JTCC Swimming Carnival @ GFAC Fri 3rd March - Dio Girls Touch @ Dalton Park |
|
Week 7 |
|
Thu 9th March - Dio Boys Touch @ Dalton Park Fri 10th March - Dio Swimming Championships @ Corrimal |
|
Week 10 |
|
Wed 29th March - 15’s + Open Rugby League Selection Trials @ Kirkham Oval Thu 30th March - JTCC Cross Country (Competitor’s Only) @ Thomas Acres Thu 30th March - Dio U15 + Open Girls Netball Trials @ Berkeley Fri 31st March - 7-10 Boys Soccer Championships @ Kooringa Fri 31st March - 7-9 Girls Soccer Championships @ Nowra |
A reminder to check the Compass Portal for upcoming sporting events and their respective closing dates.
NSWCCC TEAMS
Remember that there is a new way to nominate individual sports for NSWCCC. This portal is open now and all students wanting to trial for Southern Country and NSWCCC representative teams are to ensure they register by the appropriate CLOSING DATE.
This information, including registration closing dates can be found on the website:
Please note that some sports are selected by individual trials, and these can be held throughout NSW. Individual nominations require students to make their own way to and from selections.
Selection in the following sports: Swimming, Cross Country, Athletics, Touch Football, AFL (Boys) and Football are done through the Wollongong Diocese carnivals by way of representing John Therry at these respective carnivals.
Selection in the following sports: AFL (Girls), Baseball, Basketball, Cricket – Girls, Golf, Hockey, Netball, Rugby League, Rugby, Softball, Tennis, Triathlon, Volleyball will need to be done via individual nomination and selections.
You can also access the Wollongong Sport site for more information throughout the year.
https://www.dow.catholic.edu.au/sport/diocesan-sport-news/
EXTERNAL SPORTING ACHIEVEMENT - AUSTRALIAN SOFTBALL SELECTION
Congratulations to Dante Foweraker for his selection into the NSW U14 Softball team. Over the past 2 months Dante has trialled for the NSW u14 Boys softball and was selected for the NSW Metro side travelling to regionals in July in QLD.
Dante was also selected by NSW to attend the Softball Australia trial camp and was then Selected as part of the Australia u14’s Squad travelling to New Zealand in April.
Congratulations again to Dominic Baker for his achievements at NSW Junior Athletics Championships on the weekend. Dom placed 2nd in 1500m and 1st in U17 men’s Javelin
If your child has had an outstanding high level, sporting achievement outside of school, we would love to hear from you. Please email me so we can celebrate their achievements with the JTCC community.
Yours in Sport,
Mr Jamie Cook Mr Luke Bodeker
cooka01@dow.catholic.edu.au bodekerl01@dow.catholic.edu.au
CHANGE TO SINGLE DOSE HPV VACCINE
Please find a link below outlining the changes to a single dose for the HPV Vaccine and There is also attachments from the Chief Medical Officer and a Factsheet.
Please find below a link to the latest Parish Bulletin