“If we walk in the light, as he is the light, we have fellowship with one another.” 1 John 1:7
To the family and friends of St Edmund’s College,
I would like to offer our students, families and wider school community a very warm welcome to the new school year and I trust that you have all had a safe and happy holiday. It was encouraging to see all of our students start today with new energy and refreshed spirits – we had a very successful first day. On Monday of this week we welcomed our new students to the College and I wish them every success as they now become part of the St Edmund’s story. We will welcome their parents with the New Families Welcome Evening, scheduled for Wednesday 10 February. Our new students and families now become part of the rich tradition of St Edmund’s College – the oldest continuing Catholic school in Canberra. Together we will celebrate 67 great years this year.
I have spoken to our new students and new parents about participation, community and communication. If the College and families work in partnership then our students will make the most of the excellent range of opportunities provided by the College. I wish all of our students a very successful and happy 2021 school year and look forward to another dynamic year here at St Edmund’s.
Scriptural Theme
We continue the tradition of having a scriptural theme this year to guide us throughout the year. This year’s scriptural them is taken from John’s Gospel: “If we walk in the light, as he is the light, we have fellowship with one another.” I had the pleasure of breaking this open for our students at today’s Opening Assembly. “If we walk in the light, as he is the light” – If we walk in the light of Jesus; if we follow the life, words and actions of Jesus and if we walk in the same path as Jesus.
“Then we have fellowship with one another” – we are in good relationships with one another; we relate well to one another and we become members of a united community with the same interests, intentions and goals.
So how do we walk in the light of Jesus? This is in fact quite simple to undertake – we do as Jesus did in his treatment of others. We treat everyone as if they are our neighbours and as if they are our brothers. We include everyone with dignity, with respect, with honesty, with goodwill, with fairness, with justice, with inclusion, without judgement and without aggression. We do this whether we know someone or not; whether we agree with someone or not; whether we like someone or not and whether someone is similar to us or very different to us. If we do all of this, we will be in good relations with one another. It doesn’t matter what religion we are, nor does it matter if we have no religion – these are the basic foundations of what it means to be a good person. It is no coincidence that the scriptural theme links closely with our school motto – Christus Lux Mea – Christ Is My Light.
The scriptural theme, plus the Statement of Eddies Pride, tells us who we are, why we are and how we act as members of the St Edmund’s community.
STATEMENT OF EDDIES PRIDE:
- Striving to achieve my personal best, showing resilience and engagement.
- Investing in respectful, positive relationships with everyone in the College and the wider community.
- Contributing to a constructive learning environment and meeting College expectations.
- Honouring the College name, reputation and facilities.
- Reflecting the College motto in all that I do and say.
Staff
Just as we have welcomed new students to our community, we also welcome our new staff. The following teachers have commenced with us this year:
- Jack Chalker – Head of Haydon House, English
- Caroline Devlin, English
- Gaby Funnell, Performing Arts and Religious Education
- Brendan Ferguson, Mathematics
- Megan Hojem, Library
- Zach Holmes, Head of Mathematics Semester 1
- Andrew O’Brien, Mathematics Semester 1
- Andrew Riethmuller, TAS & Visual Arts
- Deann Wade, Finance Manager
- Noyal Saji and Patrick MacFarlane, Youth Ministry
- Benjamin Jelfs-Smith and Richard Brady, Learning Support Assistants
- We also welcome back Ben Manley and Emily Ireland to the Maths staff after their two-year break from the College to pursue interests overseas.
At the very end of last year we had Mr Jacob Knowles leave us to take up a leadership position at John Paul II College, Gunghalin. We wish Jacob well in his new role and thank him for the many years of service he gave the College.
Year 12 2020 Achievements
Our Year 12 cohort of 2020 finished the year in a very impressive manner. Our ATAR results were once again very strong – a great testament to the hard work and motivation of our students and staff.
Congratulations to Benjamin Francis on being recognised as our Dux for 2020. Benjamin’s achievement is a wonderful reflection not only of his academic ability, but of the Gifted Program we have here at the College. Benjamin was an accelerated student and chronologically should have been in Year 9. Also part of our Gifted Program were Jay Horan and Tian Uksi who were in the top ten of our ATAR achievers. Benjamin provided us with this statement regarding his time at St Edmund’s and his future plans:
“I came to Eddies in 2019, as a Year 11 student in the Diverse Learning tailored acceleration program. I quickly came to realise what a great fit Eddies was going to be for me, and how much I would love the next two years. During my time at the College I studied Physics, Chemistry, English, Maths and RE, and I had the privilege of being taught by some amazing teachers. I also greatly enjoyed the time I spent playing in the St Edmund’s and St Clare’s Combined Band. I was pushed by both my classmates and teachers to achieve highly, and I’m glad to say that it paid off. I’m especially thankful for all the support I received as an accelerated student that helped me to smoothly transition into the sometimes-challenging world that is senior school. I plan to study a double degree of Science (Physics) and Medical Science at ANU, with the intention of working as a medical physics researcher. During Year 11 at Eddies, I completed a short work experience placement at Canberra Hospital, observing the various roles that medical researchers performed. I was, and still am, fascinated by particle physics, and I’ve always admired those who research cancer or other life-threatening conditions; their work saves lives! That’s why I want to research medical physics, as it’s a field that combines these two things that I am passionate about. As well as studying at ANU, I also plan to spend the next few years being creative. I’ve been learning the piano for 10 years, and I’m looking forward to being able to develop my repertoire. I also love composing, so I plan to write lots of music. As I’m quite young, I’m more restricted in where I can travel, but when I’m old enough, I do plan to travel internationally, whether it’s for work or leisure. I completed a H-course in Chinese during my time at Eddies, and I would one day like to travel to China as a test of my language skills.”
Congratulations also to our other students who were in out top ten ATAR achievers: Lawson Burn, Noyal Saji, Patrick MacFarlane, Richard Alverez Baumann, Daniel Fisher, Roy Wallace and Lachlan Brayshaw.
2020 Presentation Ceremonies
Our Presentation Ceremonies were held on Tuesday 8 December last year. I would like to congratulate and acknowledge students in Years 7 – 11 who achieved significant academic awards. The Andrew Robertson Award was achieved by students who gained a Gold Award in both Semester 1 and 2 for the academic achievement. Congratulations to the recipients of this award for 2020: Year 11 Leo Blaney-Brown, Year 9 Tristan Borghouts, Year 9 Toby Francis, Year 9 Andrew McFarland, Year 11 Nicholas Odgers. Congratulations also to the students who were awarded Dux in each year group for 2020: Year 7 Christopher Buckland, Year 8 Rory Forbes, Year 9 Tristan Borghouts, Year 10 Andrew McFarlane, Year 11 Nicholas Odgers.
The Junior School acknowledged students who achieved first place in each class as well awards for improvement in each class. The Spirit of Edmund Rice Awards were presented to the following students: Year 4 Max Riva, Year 5 Blake Sixsmith and Year 6 Patrick Kelly. Congratulations also to the following students who were presented with special awards: Chase Tiffen (Junior School Sportsman of the Year), Ian Scott/Lucas Regan (Languages Award), Ethan Dixon (Dr Paul Kildea Award for Music) and Sonny Lauvao (The Patricia Doyle Award for Leadership).
College Prayer
Dear Lord,
Grant that we may live each day to the full, inspired by the Holy Spirit.
Let us cast away all worries and concerns into your divine care.
Christus Lux Mea
Give us strength to confront all challenges that we face with hope and faith.
Let our community seek truth in all that we search for.
Christus Lux Mea
Let us stand for others always giving generously without counting the cost.
Amen
Blessed Edmund Rice, pray for us
Live Jesus in our hearts, forever
Christus Lux Mea
Joe Zavone
Principal