To the community of St Edmund’s College,
Appointment of Deputy Principal
Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA) has appointed Mr Ian Garrity to the substantive (permanent) position of Deputy Principal of St Edmund’s College, commencing in January of 2019. Ian is currently the Deputy Principal at Daramalan College, a position he has held for the past 6 years. Ian has also held various Assistant Principal portfolios at Daramalan College and St Clare’s College and is an ACT Teacher Quality Institute Certification Assessor. Ian comes with a depth and breadth of experience in school leadership, teaching and learning, curriculum development and teacher professional learning. We welcome Ian to the St Edmund’s community.
I take this opportunity to acknowledge the outstanding work carried out to date by our Acting Deputy Principal Mr Jacob Knowles and look forward to continue working with Jacob in this position until the end of this year. Jacob will remain on the College Leadership Team and we look forward to working with Jacob in a new capacity in 2019.
Heritage Game/Old Boys Rugby Round
Driving back home after a long day at school on Saturday, I said to my wife that if any educational theorist wanted to capture and celebrate the very essence of a boys school and all that is good in boys education, then last Saturday was certainly the day to do it! Last Saturday captured the spirit of St Edmund’s College in a real and tangible way. The spirit of the College was truly alive and well – the College grounds were buzzing with activity with rugby games and football (soccer) matches being played from early morning to late afternoon. Wins were celebrated well and losses were discerned and taken in good spirit. A personal few highlights for me from last Saturday:
- The significant presence of our old boys really added to the spirit and atmosphere of the day. There were organised reunions and informal reunions, memories and laughs. I sincerely thank the number of old boys who gave of their time to be with us on the day and be an important part of a community which will always be theirs.
- The significant presence of current students, dressed in full school uniform, cheering on our players and teams in the various codes. The College spirit was particularly demonstrated during the First XV match with the well organised chanting and singing and one of the longest tunnels I have seen in quite a while to welcome the First VX onto the field. Whilst our students gave the Eddies teams their full support, I must congratulate them on their co-operation and sense of sportsmanship shown to the Marist players and supporters.
- It was a thrill to meet foundation student Bishop Pat Power, whose messages, words, writings and homilies over the years I have admired for the way in which they clearly and intelligently capture what it is to be a contemporary Australian Catholic. It was also a great pleasure to again spend time with former principal Br Bob Wallace.
- It was a privilege to be present during the First VX jersey presentation, with the beautiful words of staff member Tracey Brown who took time out of her cancer treatment to be with our boys and be witness to the dedication of their jerseys to the Leukaemia Foundation.
- I was greatly encouraged to watch our older students coaching and guiding our younger students in their games – in particular watching Aidan Rhodes (Year 12, Rice) and Samuel Iglesias (Year 12, Mulrooney) coach their respective younger football teams in a respectful yet authoritative manner. This is a clear reflection of the Eddies spirit and sense of right relationships.
- I must also thank the significant number of members of staff who joined us on the day to be present with their students and engage with them in such a positive and meaningful manner.
Prayers and Best Wishes
We pray for the following school communities and their present struggles:
- To the community of St Clare of Assisi Primary School in Conder – we pray for the members of that community and for the family affected by the tragic accident of late last week.
- To the communities of St Joseph’s College, Gregory Terrace and St Joseph’s Nudgee College (both EREA schools in Brisbane) – we pray for the students in each College who are being treated for recent spinal injury and wish them well for the journey of recovery.
Proposed School Bus Travel Changes
Transport Canberra has released details of the proposed new bus routes servicing schools from the commencement of 2019. I am most concerned about these changes as our dedicated school bus services have been reduced from 18 to 6 services in the morning and from 16 to 6 services in the afternoon. Transport Canberra is proposing that there will be more regular public bus services servicing our students – this is in fact true but this also means that (1) students and parents will need to make their way to busy interchanges rather than having a school service that is closer to home (2) some students will need to catch more than one bus to get to school (3) some students will be dropped off on the other side of Canberra Avenue with no safe access of crossing the road to the College side (4) students will be at interchanges in the mornings and afternoons with hundreds of other students from other schools which causes a grave safety issue (5) some of our students will now have a very long trip to school without a dedicated bus service (6) buses will be fuller at peak times.
We will make a submission this week to Transport Canberra regarding our disappointment, objections and significant concerns with the proposed changes. The changes proposed for St Edmund’s College can be found here:
https://canberrabuses.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/St_Edmunds_College_School_Guide.pdf
You can voice your concerns with Transport Canberra here (please bear in mind that the consultation period ends this Sunday 12 August):
https://www.yoursay.act.gov.au/rapid-bus-network
We will certainly keep you informed as to the progress of these changes and will pass on any communications we receive from Transport Canberra regarding our submission.
Thursday Morning Mass
I extend an invitation to all members of our College community to join us for Mass every Thursday morning, commencing at 8.20 in our Chapel. It is quite a special experience to participate in Mass celebrated for a very specific faith community and it would be wonderful to see parents attend this Mass regularly with their sons. I would ask parents to consider making this a regular activity to further enhance the faith development of their sons.
Transfiguration of the Lord
Last Monday was the feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. The Catechism of the Catholic Church explains to us that this is “The mysterious event in which Jesus, speaking with Moses and Elijah on the mountain, was transformed in appearance – in the sight of Peter, James, and John – as a moment of disclosure of His divine glory” (CCC, 554). Peter, John, and James witness a significant change in Jesus’ appearance and see him conversing with Elijah and Moses. The voice of God says to them, “This is my chosen Son; listen to him.” Just us God’s words encourage the apostles present, the transfiguration experience gives us hope as Christians – the event of the death of Jesus on the cross is overshadowed by this great positive sign of the divinity of Jesus, and his presence in the company of Elijah and Moses tells us that Christ is the fulfilment of the Law and the countless prophecies in the Old Testament. The transfiguration is a preview of Jesus’ glorification and enthronement as King of kings. This continues to give us hope in our lives and as a faith community.
At the Transfiguration, Father, You showed Jesus in glory,
a glimpse of what His disciples would see in His risen life.
Bless us in our humanity,
with an awareness of Your presence,
leading us to share in Your divine life even in our daily struggle.
Help us to deepen our knowledge of the Law and the Prophets,
channels of Your grace throughout history,
and signposts for our journey.
Amen.
Blessed Edmund Rice, pray for us.
Live Jesus in our Hearts, forever.
Christus Lux Mea
Joe Zavone (Principal)