There has been a significant amount of discussion in the media recently regarding religious freedom and discrimination, with religious schools being at the centre of much of the debate. In the interests of sharing a Catholic perspective on this matter, I invite you to read the following media release from the National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC). If you have any questions about how we, as a Catholic school, strive to uphold the dignity of all those who are, or seek to be part of our community, please do not hesitate to reach out for a conversation.

God bless,

Angela Myles | Executive Principal

I was fortunate recently to watch the Under 12’s Girls Touch Football team from Mudgee be crowned State Champions. This team played in a number of carnivals leading to the Northern Conference Junior State Cup in Dubbo in late February. They won the Grand Final beating Northern Beaches on the final bell. This meant they were invited to play the winners of the Southern Conference (which was held in Wagga Wagga), the winners of this conference was Balmain. So on the second weekend in March the girls from Mudgee and their support crew travelled to the home of Touch NSW at Tempe, Sydney to play in a three game series against Balmain. After narrowly losing the first game, the Mudgee girls won the second game meaning that they would have to play the third and deciding game. The girls from the country prevailed over their city cousins in the final game to earn the title of State Champions, the best U12 girl side in the whole of NSW. 

These girls trained for months to lead to this final moment, multiple times per week for two hours at a time. They worked so hard towards excellence, challenging each other and being challenged by their coaches to be better and strive for excellence. I imagine that it wasn’t always fun but the girls stayed committed to the task and got enjoyment from seeing their talents grow and their potential realised. It was inspiring to see the performance of these girls at this elite level and knowing that these girls from a small town could take on the best from around the state and not only match them but succeed against them. 

Why do I write about this team today? It was clear from watching these girls and their performances that excellence isn’t an accident. These girls experienced success because they worked hard on the right task consistently over a period of time. They had setbacks at times but responded positively to them and had the resilience to overcome these setbacks. Watching during the games they were relaxed, calm as they were comfortable that they had done the hard work previously and could rely on the systems that they had trained for to guide them once they were fatigued. It wasn’t by chance that they won that final, they had spent countless hours working towards that moment for months. This is true in other aspects away from the touch field. If students put in the right hard work towards a task consistently, they can achieve great things. Work hard, get the results. Excellence isn’t an accident.

God bless,

Justin McCarney | Head of Campus Secondary 

RISEN

On the 22-24th March, four of our Senior students attended this year’s RISEN at Shalom House of Prayer in Carcoar, finishing on Palm Sunday with a Mass at the Cathedral of St Michael and St John, Bathurst. RISEN has given our students the opportunity to spend time reflecting on who Jesus is to them, as well as learning new skills in leading others and having fun. We had a group of amazing people leading the music and dances. Between music sections we had workshops with the RISE DeoQuest team. With Natalia and Rosario leading sessions on “questions we all have about God '', as well as a session run by Fr Michel Remery on the Bible. There was reconciliation on the last night, where it always gets a bit emotional for everyone. But always a highlight at RISE events. After the Palm Sunday Mass, we got to participate in the annual “Seminarian vs RISE Youth '' soccer match, with the victors being RISE Youth. RISEN was once again a chance to go deeper in an encounter with Jesus and the next youth event will be RISE to be held from 11-12th July 2024 in Bathurst. Registration is here: https://bathurst.catholic.org.au/rise-youth-ministry/

Thank You!

We have raised over $700

Caritas Australia would like to THANK YOU for supporting Project Compassion 2024. If you still have your Project Compassion box at home, please bring it back to school next week.

Your generosity will empower the world’s most vulnerable communities to grow stronger and lift themselves out of poverty.

Together, we can help vulnerable communities face their challenges today and build a better tomorrow, for all future generations. 

Belinda Redden | Leader of Mission        

Year 12 Universities Information Evening 10 April

We are offering an informal information evening for interested parents and friends of Year 12 students navigating university admissions and options for the first time (or a ‘refresher’ session if necessary!).  The sessions will outline applying through UAC and Direct entry options; early entry programs such as UAC’s Schools Recommendation Schemes (SRS) and direct early entry programs and access programs for disadvantages.

The session will be held at the Secondary Campus at 5.30pm.

If this is something you would like to attend please RSVP by Monday 8 April to b.mccarthy-english@bth.catholic.edu.au or ring the school office.

 

UCAT now open for students following a medicine pathway in 2025

For students wishing to follow a Medical Science pathway (medicine & dental) sitting an additional Aptitude test is a requirement. The UCAT exam is now open for registrations and closes on 17 May for students intending to study in 2025.

This is in addition to meeting ALL university admission requirements including the prescribed ATAR.

For general information in regards to the test and important dates please follow the link below:

UCAT Information

For participating universities and courses please check eligibility and requirements on the link below

UCAT participating Universities & Courses

    

 

Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) Parents page - Stay informed

As Year 12 moves into this important phase of their schooling, many students are starting to think of life after school. There are many pathways open to our students and one is further study at university. For many parents this process can be daunting particularly if they did not attend university themselves. The University Admissions Centre (UAC) has a page dedicated to parents to help navigate them through the process so they are better equipped to help their student. Link here

 

 

 

Charles Sturt University - Environmental Science & Ag Night - Zoom Info Session

Charles Sturt University (CSU) are hosting an information session for interested students and their families on 28 May 6pm - 7.30pm online via zoom

Want to be part of the future of agriculture? Keen to do your bit to protect and preserve the environment? Be an agent of change and take the first step, by joining Charles Sturt University’s online Agriculture and Environmental Science Information Night.

CSU Environmental Science & Ag Info Night

 

 

 

Western Sydney University - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Future Student Information Evenings

Register for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Future Students Information Evenings to be held on 10 and 11 April at Western’s campuses. Students can learn about what programs and pathways are on offer, scholarships and how Western can help with studies. Follow the link to register:

Western Sydney Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander Future Student Information Sessions

ADF Virtual Information Session - 16 April 10am - 11am

The ADF will be hosting a virtual information session on 16 April at 10am - 11am via zoom. To register follow the link ADF Virtual Info Session registration

  

Years 9 & 10 Work Experience - Starts in Term 2

Work experience is open to students in Years 9 and 10 and is a wonderful opportunity for students to experience different workplaces. Work Experience will resume in Term 2, allowing students to engage fully in their lessons for 2024 - limiting disruptions in Term 1. Students wanting to discuss work experience options and the process of work experience are encouraged to see me in either Break 1 or Break 2 in my office next to Student Services.

A summary of the St Matthews work experience process is below:

 

The St Matthews Work Experience Process:

1. Student finds a host employer
2. Student discusses experience with Ms McCarthy and collects forms
3. Student completes ALL forms (host employer; travel form; and other permissions as required as per placement); Teacher approval form
4. Student returns all COMPLETED forms to Ms McCarthy and dates will be cross checked with Assessmernt & school calendar.
5. Ms McCarthy will organise with Student Services for the rolls to be adjusted
6. Student attends work experience
7. On return to school student discusses placement with Ms McCarthy and completes experience evalutaion

Work experience is a privilege of a St Matthews student who is genuinely contributing positively to school life - both in the classroom and in cocurricular and whole school opportunities. As a school we need to be confident that students participating in this program will represent our school well and demonstrate in their actions, words and attitudes the St Matthews Way. Some students may be asked to improve their attendance; behaviour or attitude to school activities before being granted permission to participate in the work experience program.

 

Blaney McCarthy-English | Leader of Transition & Pathways

Year 10 History students have studied the impacts and effects of the Stolen Generation. After hearing and reading stories from survivors, students were tasked with creating a visual representation of their knowledge regarding the Stolen Generation. This activity enabled students to showcase their creative and artistic talents as well as demonstrate their critical thinking skills. Each artwork was combined with their peers, to visually communicate the impacts and effects felt by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from this period of Australian history. 

Mr Hammond and Mrs Croake | History Teachers

The community puzzle has been very popular all throughout term 1 in the Learning Resource Centre providing opportunities for the students to spend five minutes or all of break to contribute and complete. Numerous puzzles have been completed. Some have been completed quickly whilst others have provided more of a challenge.

Easter Egg Guessing competition

Congratulations to Blake (Year 7)  for guessing the correct number of eggs in the jar (91!) for our guessing competition. There were over 150 entries in the competition.

  

Anzac Day Display

Mrs Sugden | Learning Resource Centre

Secondary School Photos

Secondary photo day will be Wednesday 15th May

Primary School Photos

Primary photo day will be Thursday 16th May

Sibling Photos

Familes are able to order sibling photos. The cut off for sibling photos will be 12am (midnight) Monday 13th May. No exceptions can be made.

We are pleased to once again offer sibling photos for families with children at both campuses. More information regarding this will be communicated to families closer to the date.

Please find below instructions for booking school photos. Envelopes will be available from the front office for those families who are unable to purchase online.

Flexischools is St Matthews Catholic Schools preferred way to order from our canteens. The cut-off time is 9am, please allow yourself enough time to complete an order. An order can be placed the night before or even days in advance.

Orders that are phoned through via reception after 9am will be offered a simple sandwich, a drink and snacks only (No Hot Food will be offered, so please do not ask). Credit Card details must be provided at the time, no exceptions. This ensures no further follow up for payment is required.

If parents are experiencing issues with Flexischools, please contact Flexischools directly using the Parent Help Line Number- 1300 361 769 (8am-12pm)

1. Introduction to Flexischools
2. How to Register with Flexischools
3. How to Place an Order (Canteen)
4. How to Place an Order (All Services)
5. How to Top Up Your Flexischools Wallet

A reminder to parents to please update your childs year group to the correct one for this year before placing an order online. This will help alleviate confusion when your child collects their order.

We have a smaller menu that is available over the counter every day but our more comprehensive menu is online. For over the counter purchases we accept cash and Eftpos.

All our food is freshly made on site and we are committed to use locally sourced ingredients.

Mary Holdsworth | Secondary Canteen Manager

Holiday Trading Hours 

The Midford Uniform Shop is open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8.00am to 4.00pm.

EFTPOS only, no cash.

Enjoy the convenience of online shopping. Save time and energy by ordering your uniforms online in six easy steps:

1. Go to midford.com.au
2. Select St Matthews Catholic School from the Online School Shops tab
3. New users to click the ‘Register New Account’ button
4. Start the registration process by selecting St Matthews Catholic School from the drop-down menu and add the unique school pass phrase: “Matthews1912”
5. Add your personal information, create a username and password
6. Order the items you need, select pick-up in store/deliver to school.

Online orders for Primary will be delivered to the school office on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 1:30pm. Cut off time for ordering is 1.00pm.
Online orders for Secondary will be delivered to the school office on Wednesdays and Fridays at 9.00am. Cut off time for ordering is 3:30pm the day before.
Online orders for shop pick up - pick up only within the shop hours, please allow 1 hour after ordering for collection.

If you have any queries please contact the uniform shop directly:
Phone: 0439 442 509 or Email: st.matthews@midford.com.au