Villa View: Issue 20/19

Villanova College acknowledges that the land we meet on today is the traditional lands for the Jagera and Turrbul People and that we respect their spiritual relationship with their Country. We also acknowledge the Jagera and Turrbul People as the traditional custodians of the region and that their cultural and heritage beliefs are still as important to the living Jagera and Turrbul People today.

On reading the Semester 1 reports, the overwhelmingly positive results clearly demonstrate the students’ commitment to their studies. The term ahead is an intense one with many curricular and co-curricular activities packed into a short period of time. To get the most out of this term it is essential that students organise themselves well and plan ahead. It is important that each of them spends some time, if not having done so already, outlining their goals, for inside and outside the classroom, as well as identifying strategies that will assist them in attaining their goals. Our College is a busy place as is evidenced by the number of significant events discussed in this newsletter.

One of my true blessings is working with the Year 12 Legal Studies class.  Over the past week, I have met with many Senior students who are fearful and confused about their present, and unsure about their future.  They are facing a whole series of changes.  As we embark on Semester Two, our Year 12 peers are facing the end of the familiar – life at school – and the beginning of the unfamiliar – life after school.  They will grieve the loss of the secure family that has given them meaning and purpose for so many years.  They will grieve the loss of the day-to-day contact with friends and will be unsure of what lies ahead.  Some can’t wait to be out of the gates while others are a little scared – both reactions are natural.

Someone once said that the only constant in life is ‘change’.  We are constantly changing.  Many changes are small, but some are quite significant.  Every now and again we go into a period of transition or significant change from one period or position to another.  When this happens, it is natural to grieve the letting go of that which we were used to, that which was familiar, that which was secure and often comfortable, and we venture out into the unknown.  This letting go involves risk and requires courage.  When we don’t recognise or listen to the changes within us, we can be confused by our unexpected reactions and moods.  Change invites us to embrace it, to welcome it and accept it, but change for change’s sake is of little value.  I often use the analogy of a journey; life is a journey and we are pilgrims on it. No ship is ‘at home’ moored tight and secure to the harbour pier.  The ship is truly itself on the open sea.  As they embark on their retreat experience and come to this part of their journey, our Year 12s can rest assured that they are doing themselves and our community proud.

This term we welcome to our community the new staff, students and families who will call Villanova home.  Joining our staff this semester are:

Ms Paula Henry – English
Mr Neil Kelly-Roche – Music
Mr Ben Stuart – Senior School LET
Mr Benji Lynch – Middle School LET
Ms Samantha Reader – Year 9 – 12 Maths
Ms Sandy Elliott – Art
Mr Mark Olivier – Business

We also welcome back Mr Juha Stroja who returns from Long Service Leave and Mrs Amanda McKay who returns from Maternity Leave in a part-time capacity.

As the new semester begins, I look forward to seeing you at the many activities, events and functions around the College.

Mr Steven Bremner, Principal (Acting)

EXCEPTIONAL LEARNERS (Gifted and Talented) NEWS

What makes a child gifted and talented may not always be good grades in school, but a different way of looking at the world and learning.” Chuck Grassley

This term brings many opportunities for those students who have been identified as our Exceptional Learners. These are some, but not all of these opportunities. Each fortnight this section will highlight progress and also new activities on offer.

Tournament of Minds is Ready to Launch at Villa for 2019!
Tournament of Minds is an exciting opportunity for students with a passion for problem solving to demonstrate their skills and talents in an exciting, vibrant and public way. There has been an immense interest amongst the students this year, but in order to make up the multi-age teams, we still require some students from Year 7 and Year 10.

More information can be found at www.tom.edu.au
Please email Expressions of Interest to kunderhill@vnc.qld.edu.au stating full name and year level. More details to follow.

Students in Years 11 and 12 are most welcome to assist training a team.

Exceptional Mathematicians Years 5 – 7
Students in Years 6 and 7 will continue to attend their weekly Maths Extension Sessions. There will be a variety of activities and learning programs the students will take part in during these times. In addition to this there will be extension opportunities within the core classes, commencing week 3.

Churchie Maths Problem Solving Challenge
On 5 August, 24 of our top Mathematicians from Years 7 – 10 will venture over to East Brisbane to participate in the annual Churchie Mathematics Problem Solving Competition.

ICAS Assessments
International Competitions and Assessments for Schools (ICAS) is a suite of six full-colour competitions designed specifically for primary and secondary students. From 2019 onwards, these assessments will be completed online, and the dates are listed below. Stay tuned for details on registering your son. (Further information may be found at www.unswglobal.unsw.edu.au)

Mrs Kath Underhill, Exceptional Learners Program Leader
kunderhill@vnc.qld.edu.au

ELEARNING UPDATE
Over the coming weeks I will be communicating some important information regarding laptop maintenance, apps and recommended privacy settings. Technology is a tool that certainly has benefits in learning – however it remains a tool that requires skilled operation, maintenance and adequate supervision. The purpose of this newsletter and any Facebook BYOD page updates will be to support parents in managing the use of BYOD laptops at home to ensure these educational tools do not create conflict and potential risks.

Firstly, some routine laptop maintenance is recommended:

Apps – do any holiday apps need to be uninstalled?
Over the holidays, students tend to use laptops for personal use, such as games. As we commence another term please ensure your son uninstalls game clients, cleans the desktop of icons and culls images/videos from the hard drive. I will be distributing this information to students via email messages this week.

Disk space check
Students should take a moment to check the free space on their laptop hard drive. Most students have 128 GB storage as per the minimum recommendations. This space will be quickly consumed by large installations such as Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Pro, etc. Office software also takes up significant space – however this is mandatory for all students. Check to see if space can be reclaimed by doing the following:

1. Delete the Recycle Bin
2. Uninstall applications no longer required (such as Adobe applications)
3. Clear the Desktop – move to Cloud storage
4. Clear the Documents, Pictures and Video folders – move to Cloud or flash drives
5. Run the “Disk Clean-up” app on C:/ drive (this is free, pre-installed on all Windows 10 laptops)

Migrating data to cloud storage
As mentioned above, Cloud storage offers an effective solution for storing files and reducing/reclaiming space. What does “the cloud” mean for your son? Put simply, it is his Google Drive File Stream. All students have oodles of space for storing school-related data, not for private files. Ensure your son moves files to the default location G:/Google Drive File Stream/My Drive. When this occurs the file space will be reclaimed as the G:/ synchronises with the cloud. If your son needs to move personal files to reclaim space, I would suggest you purchase a 1-2 TB external USB drive.

Join the online conversation
This week I will be posting surveys and parent-related information on the Villanova BYOD Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/villanovabyod This will be in relation to:

• Parent control apps and devices
• Recommended settings appropriate to different ages
• Technology addiction
• Recent high priority alerts for web/app scams
• Gathering information about what sessions the College could host to help support parent management of BYOD devices at home.

Please join the page and look out for posts in the coming week. If you do choose to share your opinion, please remember this is a public Facebook page. Further, any applications or subscriptions mentioned are not official endorsements – they are simple suggestions that may assist your own due diligence as you consider solutions that may suit your family situation.

Mr Jason Lane, eLearning Pedagogy Leader

Welcome back to Villanova College for an exciting second semester of 2019. As you are aware, I will be the Acting Head of Junior School during Term 3 while Steve Rouhliadeff is Acting Vice Principal.  It will be a big change for me and I’m sure my eyes will be opened to the inner workings of school life as a member of the Core Leadership Team.

There has been a lot of changes in my family life over the holidays. In addition to starting a new role I have become a father for the second time. My wife Diana, my three-year-old son George and I welcomed a new baby boy, Ben. He arrived a few days before we were expecting which changed our holiday schedule a little, but we were thankful I had the extra few days to spend with them. So far things are going well, Ben is doing everything he should be – drinking milk, sleeping and being really cute. We are still a little wary though because when George was a baby, he lulled us into a false sense of ease initially, only to “wake up” at four weeks in and keep us on our toes ever since.  We keep telling ourselves we are deserving of an “easy” baby this time around.

Ben’s arrival gives us another tiny piece of insight into family life with multiple children. Both my wife and I grew up in families of seven, and we find ourselves thinking of how hectic life for our parents must have been. As I am writing, I am thinking of how hectic life can be for many of our Villanova families with multiple school drop-offs, travelling all over Brisbane and beyond for sport and barely making it home for dinner.

Having a new child in the family I find myself thinking about different points in our family’s possible future. What will the boys be like at school? What sports might they play? Will they get on? It’s an easy and pleasant thing to do but it then I’m brought back to reality when people tell me to “enjoy this time,” “they grow up so fast.” It is easy to worry about the future only to realise all we can work on is the present.

With the end of semester reports received and parent teacher interviews complete, it is time for our students to take a look at where they are presently in their learning.  Some boys will be really happy with their Semester One results, and others may be a little disappointed. Regardless of specific results, all our boys should focus on the present.  For some boys the path ahead is very clear; more study, reading task and criteria sheets more carefully and working on specific skills. For others, they might have difficulty finding where to start. A saying that I like to use is “You can have it all, just not all at once.” The same goes for goal setting. Our boys might have many things they want to work on, but it is really important in goal setting to stick to just a few thoughtful goals. Once those few goals have been achieved, more goals can be focused on. Focusing on too many at once can be overwhelming and frankly too difficult.

A useful acronym for developing goals is SMART. Goals should be Simple, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely. Over the coming weeks, your son’s teacher will be working with the boys on developing their goals and the specific strategies they need to achieve them. It would be really helpful if you could check-in on your son’s goals and the progress he is making.  The more the goals are referred to the greater chance they have of being achieved.

Mr Brendan Kennedy, Head of Junior School (Acting)

This term, in place of the Middle School editorial, we will be featuring a series of podcasts where we’ll discuss a range of issues relevant to our adolescent boys. Happy listening.

Episode 1: “Effective Feedback” with Ms Kate Alexander and Ms Christianne Kemp. Click on the image to begin listening. 

Mr Greg O’Neill, Head of Middle School

Welcome back to all Senior School families to Term 3.

I hope all students had the opportunity to recharge and enjoy their mid-year holiday break and that all have returned ready to respond to new challenges and continue to build a mindset geared towards striving for excellence in both the classroom and how they conduct themselves as young men.

The parent-teacher conferences that were conducted on Monday of this week provided students and parents with purposeful feedback building upon the Semester One Academic Reports. I hope that all students have honestly reflected upon their academic performance and progress last semester and coupled with the teacher feedback are articulating new goals for their studies moving forward. I would like to thank the Senior School teaching faculty for their ongoing care and support of our students.

After reviewing the Semester One academic data, there is certainly the capacity for students to improve their performance. Consistent and disciplined attention to study plans and assessment processes- especially the importance placed on planning and drafting phases- is two key areas which will lead students towards academic growth. The new QCE system places greater emphasis on student autonomy for their learning and the need for more heavy lifting in the area of ongoing revision throughout the term and semester. As stated in my correspondence at the end of last term, key staff will engage with all Senior School students to discuss their academic performance and explore whether every student is maximising their potential.

There are several key events this term which are poignant in the Villanova Senior School journey. As you read this article, Year 12 students from Crane and Goold House will be in the middle of their Retreat experience. This significant formation time provides our Seniors with an opportunity to reflect on how their personal story has been shaped by their Villanova journey. The retreat also encourages our young men to nurture the value of interiority by exploring their inner selves, which is one of the foundational aspects of an Augustinian education. I would like to thank Dean of Mission and Identity, Mr John Holroyd and Year 12 Pastoral Area Leader Mr Peter Meecham for their leadership and organisation of the retreat program.

This Friday, the Year 11 students will no doubt enjoy their Semi-Formal occasion. Such events are important in the social development of our young men and I am confident that they will prove to be most generous and chivalrous in their care of their partners throughout the evening. I appreciate the efforts of Year 11 Pastoral Area Leader, Mr Tony Rolls in his organisation of this event.

Holiday Reading
One of my pleasures over the school holiday period is having more time to devote to reading. Over the last two weeks, I have read two engaging and thought-provoking books which both explore how to prepare for and live a happy and successful life.

The first book was entitled 10 Conversations You Must Have with Your Son by renown Australian educator and former headmaster of The Kings School, Dr Tim Hawkes. Each chapter provides practical wisdom for parents in guiding their sons in order to prepare them for life’s opportunities, responsibilities and demands. Key topics include love, identity, values, leadership, achievement, sex, money, health, living together and resilience. I look forward to sharing with you some of the insights from these topics of conversation in my weekly articles over the coming term.

The second book was Aristotle’s Way: How Ancient Wisdom Can Change Your Life by British Professor Edith Hall. As an ardent reader of the classics and ancient philosophy, this read poses a response to the question – what does it mean to live a good life? Aristotle believed the cultivation of virtue was a key part of living a flourishing life and why understanding your unique potential and purpose is also important – certainly these last two aspects are a focus of our care and support of our young men as educators in the Senior School.

Best wishes for a successful semester ahead.

“Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” – Aristotle

Mr Matt Levander, Head of Senior School

WINTER APPEAL – FROM NOW, UNTIL FRIDAY 26 JULY
One privilege for me in the holidays was to hear the story of Francis (not his real name), who is currently homeless. The tragedy and shock of growing up in an abusive home, compounded by the death of his father when he was 10, led Francis to be being expelled from school in Year 9 and he did not go back. Trying to mask pain by taking drugs became a habit.  Francis has moved from Melbourne – where the drugs were cheap and easily available – and he is now a regular guest at Blind Eye drop-in centre. The problem with living in the nearby hostel is not always being able to keep your stuff safe. The maximum time at the St Vincent de Paul hostel on Peel Street is six weeks.

People like Francis will move on soon. Through Blind Eye and St Vincent de Paul, we can make available simple items which provide practical support as well as securing the dignity of the patrons. Blind Eye provide a simple meal every day, as well as cans of easily edible foods like beans, spaghetti, noodles and chunky soup to take away. As co-manager Eddie Murray puts it so memorably, in Glaswegian accent, “It’s no use [volunteers] coming in here with a pole up their [backside], these people need food!”

Likewise, the manager of the St Vincent de Paul hostel asks for more shavers, deodorants and warm clothing, so that the men can move on ready for the next step.

Our Villanova winter appeal is very practical. We work with partner organisations in order to help them provide exactly the items that the people who are homeless want and need.

In particular, we are asking Senior School students to bring in hygiene products including deodorant, toothpaste and toothbrushes, and shaving gear. Middle School students are asked to bring sweet treats like biscuits and chocolate and lollies. Meanwhile, Junior School students are encouraged to bring those cans of food which Eddie is so enthusiastically calling for.

How to do extra:
For anyone who wants to over-achieve, both places are crying out for good quality, warm male clothing, sleeping bags, blankets and even swags.

2019 SLEEP-OUT
This year’s Sleep-out on the Quadrangle (Ostia Square) will occur on Friday 26 July. Staff and Senior students will camp out under the stars on cardboard they have sourced themselves. The learning which normally takes place in the classroom will occur on the concrete.

The afternoon and overnight will begin with the 30 or so boys delivering winter appeal items to Blind Eye, and the St Vincent de Paul Hostel. We will get to meet some of the patrons of these places, as well as listening to the managers.

On return to the College, we will be met by the Rosies van. We will provide all the tea, coffee, milo, biscuits etc for their evening run into the city, and hear from Sarah Corbett, who is the Coordinator of the Brisbane volunteers. We will also load the van up with any sleeping bags and blankets which have been donated.

After a light supper of soup or noodles, the boys will gather round the fire (washing machine drum) and share their responses to the experiences of the day. It will have been our privilege to deliver what the community has donated and to reach out the hand of friendship to people who are currently homeless. That is the essence of the way to live Gospel values.

YEAR 10 COMMUNITY SERVICE
One of the great things about the Year 10 service-learning program is that it is the antidote to entitlement. As the name “service learning” implies, a rapid acceleration in the real education of boys occurs when they undertake practical service. Many local outreach organisations have a high regard for Villa students and open their doors to accept volunteers. As mentioned above, Blind Eye were incredibly generous. Eddie made the Year 10 boys feel special by telling them how good it was that they gave up days in their holidays to volunteer. (He made a great speech about the teacher too: “Look at this guy: he went to university! He could be earning millions, but instead he’s giving up his time to teach you fellas.”)

Tributes for our students have rolled in from organisations such as Archbishop Duhig Village, and the following from SBH Qld: “Well, Villa delivered, and we are so very appreciative.  This year we had 12 clients and their families (one arrived with her seven siblings from Gladstone!). The Villa spirit was tangible when one of the kids named their Wheelchair Basketball team the Wildcats!  The three Year 10 students well and truly stepped up and hopefully found the experience rewarding and memorable. Special commendations to one lad, he displayed an empathy and genuine compassion with the kids that was exemplary, and many of the parents commented. They made themselves and Villa proud!” (Trish Sim, former parent)

ST VINCENT DE PAUL KIDS’ CAMP
Three current students – Isaak Collie, Bradley Roulant and Marcus Sountas – gave up the last weekend of the holidays to act as buddies for young children given the rare opportunity of a beach holiday through Kids’ Camp. There are only two schools for which St Vincent de Paul reserves volunteer places each year, and one of them is Villanova. The main reason for this is that so many of our students continue to volunteer when they leave the College. In 2019, Daniel Duskovic, Gus Tracey and Fabrice Ragoo (2017) all had roles of responsibility, and other volunteers included Tom Balshaw (2018). Overall organiser was none other than Dan Ingledew (2013)!

“The Vinnies Kid Camp was an incredible and enjoyable opportunity. For three days over the recent holidays, I was given the privilege of being a ‘big buddy’ to kids from the various support programs being run by Vinnies. Seeing the kids grow and mature over the camp was an awesome experience… A personal favourite experience was the canoeing activity, watching my little buddy begin to master something he had both never tried and feared, was a rewarding experience. If anyone is given the opportunity to go on this rewarding program, I highly recommend they take it!” (Isaak Collie, Year 11)

“Over the recent holiday Marcus Sountas, Isaak Collie and myself were given the opportunity to help give disadvantaged children from around Brisbane a chance to be kids and most importantly, have fun. The 2019 St Vincent de Paul Kids Camp gave not only 46 seven to thirteen-year-olds three days of jam-packed fun but presented over 50 leaders with a chance to give back to the community, help children who’ve come from underprivileged households, and of course have fun as well.

If it wasn’t watching some of the leaders capsize into freezing cold-water during canoeing, or witnessing kids overcome their fear of heights on the flying fox, there was also the afternoon game of football that brought everyone together. As the camp came to an end, the transformation of the kids was amazing, many of the little buddies came out of their shell and their truly heart-warming smiles reminded us that this camp had really made a difference. I highly recommend this amazing opportunity to all Year 11 and 12 students next year”.  (Bradley Roulant, Year 12)

Mr John Holroyd, Dean of Mission and Identity

Welcome back to all for what will be another busy term of sport. It is only Week 1 and already we have many sporting opportunities on offer for all students from Year 5 – 12.

AIC tennis, basketball and rugby league training for all teams from Year 5 – 12 has now commenced. Please note that there are ‘Season Schedule’ documents found on the website under the respective AIC Tennis, Basketball and Rugby League sections which contain the complete training schedule, coaches contact details, uniform expectations, home and away schedule, games times and much more for each of those sports. If you are requiring information regarding your respective sport, I believe all answers should be found within these documents.

With regards to tennis please be aware of the new starting times this year. The time slots have changed significantly from previous years. All players need to be aware of these as we lead into the season ahead.

Already all A, B, First and Second basketball teams from Year 7 – 12 have had a trial against St Laurence’s yesterday afternoon. Another set of trials will be held this weekend against St Patrick’s College.

Rugby league training is now in full swing. All teams will train at Little Langlands throughout the season. Again, all training times and venues are posted in the respective sport section within the College’s website.

The AIC track and field program will commence in Week 6 of this term – please be on the lookout for further details via next week’s newsletter and the College’s website.

In my opinion, to boost or better a school’s sports program we must firstly look at ‘School Spirit’. I feel fortunate that I am involved in a community where many people often exhibit enormous amounts of school spirit.  Our boys show spirit through participation, enjoyment and support of their mates and the College. I ask all parents to assist the College in its quest to further develop school spirit by strongly encouraging your boy/s to get involved and to support others when asked.

Over the coming weeks, I will be personally asking some of our talented student athletes to join the AIC track and field training program. There is no doubt that our College community gives greatly to each of its students. From time to time, I believe, it is a fair request that the College asks something in return. If a student is good enough and talented enough to represent his College – then he should. It would be a great shame to see our best athletes, musicians or perhaps academic students not use their gifts to benefit the College and to better themselves.

We understand the need for a balanced education, and we do not want to over-burden our students, but we want Villanova’s best to shine. If there are issues surrounding a student’s workload which impedes him from participating, please contact the Sports Office. The Sports Office is reasonable in its approach when working with families and students to come up with solutions and alternative programs which are beneficial for all. Again, I urge all students and parents to support this process. If you have a gift, please use it to benefit others.

This weekend we have basketball, rugby league and tennis trials against St Patrick’s College. This will be a further opportunity for coaches to assess players and adjust teams. I would expect some movement of players between teams in readiness for next weekend’s Round 1 fixture against St Edmund’s College. Coaches are instructed to choose their teams each week based on attendance, player performance and attitude.

As always, I urge all students to get involved in the sports program and enjoy the challenges you face along the way. Enjoy the term ahead boys!

AIC TENNIS, RUGBY LEAGUE AND BASKETBALL TRIAL ROUND
v St Patrick’s College, Friday 19 and Saturday 20 July – Times and Venues

All Year 5 and Year 6 basketball games are played on Friday afternoons. All Year 7 – 12 basketball and Year 5 -12 tennis and rugby league games are played on Saturday.  Please refer to the College’s website to view all times and venues for this weekend’s fixtures v St Patrick’s College.

GOOLD HALL CANTEEN – AIC BASKETBALL
We are asking parents to once again help by volunteering their time to assist in the canteen. It is usual that we need the most help within the first hour with food preparation and coffee sales.

Although at times the canteen may look like they have enough helpers, please come and offer your time, as some of those volunteers may need to get to their son’s games. So please come along and help, meet some new friends and catch-up on what is going on around the school. Please see the roster below.

GOLD COAST INVITATIONAL BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT REPORT
 by Mr Sean O’Neill, AIC Basketball Co-ordinator

Over the holidays, Villanova took two teams to the Gold Coast Invitational Basketball Tournament run at the Metricon Sports Centre. Over 60 teams competed in Open DIV 1, 2 and U15 DIV 1 and 2. As an excellent lead into the AIC season, our First V and 11A squads competed over four days amongst some very tough schools from around Queensland. It was an excellent opportunity to rehearse and prepare for Round 1 and both teams should feel confident about their chances this season. It is now about all the boys taking those skills back to their teams and using them to ensure we continue the success at AIC level.

The trials continued against Saint Laurence’s College on the first Wednesday back of Term 3 with Villanova teams winning seven of the 11 games played.

Good luck for all teams competing in basketball this season.

AIC TENNIS, RUGBY LEAGUE AND BASKETBALL – TEAMS
All internal AIC tennis, rugby league and basketball trials are complete and are posted on the web. We hope to re-publish all teams on the web by Thursday of each week. Please note that these teams may change throughout the season depending upon player performance, attendance at training and attitude. In fact, we expect further changes to teams after we play the trials against St Patrick’s this weekend. These trials will assist our coaches to finalise their teams before Round 1.

All information regarding the season schedule for tennis, rugby league and basketball is posted on the College’s webpage including bus arrangements for those teams training at Morningside Tennis Centre and Clem Jones Basketball Centre before school.

AIC TENNIS, RUGBY LEAGUE AND BASKETBALL UNIFORM
Any student who represents the College in AIC tennis, rugby league and basketball must wear the full and correct College uniform. Students who are not dressed correctly will not be permitted to take to the court or field. Uniform standards will be kept and maintained at a high level. The College requires the support of the parent body to ensure these standards are met.

By today all players should have collected their Villanova rugby league jersey or Villanova basketball singlet for hire from the Uniform Shop in readiness for the trials this weekend (Year 5 and Year 6 boys were given theirs by Mr Everding). Basketball and rugby league players must purchase the correct shorts from the Uniform Shop.

Tennis Uniform

• Villanova PE shorts
• Villanova team shirt (Please note – this is not the Villa PE shirt. The ‘team shirt’ is the same shirt worn by all cross country, swimming and track and field squad members)
• Villanova sports socks
• Villanova sports cap (green)

Rugby League Uniform

• Villanova rugby league shorts (not PE shorts nor the football shorts)
• Villanova rugby socks (same as rugby union and football socks)
• Villanova rugby league jersey. This jersey is for hire and will be made available through the College Uniform Shop. These jerseys should have been collected by Year 7 – 12 students already. Mr Everding has distributed all Year 5 and Year 6 jerseys. The hire cost is $20 for the season and will be charged to your son’s next school fees account.

 Basketball Uniform

• Villanova basketball shorts (not PE shorts)
• Villanova sports socks
• Villanova basketball singlet. This singlet is for hire and will be made available through the College Uniform Shop. These singlets should have been collected by Year 7 – 12 students already. Mr Everding has distributed all Year 5 and Year 6 singlets. The hire cost is $20 for the season and will be charged to your son’s next school fees account.

 TRIMESTER 2 AWARDS ASSEMBLY
A Trimester 2 Sports Awards Assembly will be held next Wednesday 24 July in Goold Hall commencing at 10.30am. The AIC rugby, chess, cross country and football awards will be presented. Parents and friends are most welcome to attend and should arrive by 10.20am. Please see a full list of award winners on the College’s website within the ‘Locker Room’.

AIC RUGBY UNION AND FOOTBALL
The Sports Office is looking to finalise the return of all rugby and football kit bags and equipment. We ask all coaches who still have the kits at home or in the boot of their car to please return them to the Sports Office as soon as possible.

BEN MOWEN AND ANDREW SLACK SQUAD
We hope to publish next year’s Ben Mowen and Andrew Slack squads within the next four weeks. Those who accept this invitation are required to participate in the College’s Track and Field program.

VILLANOVA RUNNERS CLUB

Where – Whites Hill Reserve, Boundary Road, Camp Hill
Who – Open to all students/parents/siblings/friends etc.

This activity is an initiative of the AIC Juniors cross country and track coach – Mr Tom Lonergan. It is an opportunity for all aspiring AIC runners/sportsmen to complete an extra training session each week. Parents, siblings and friends of the athletes are also invited to participate in the training. One of the training activities will be a Tabata session. Tabata is an anaerobic activity which complements fitness for running. Another component of this session is a Bush Run which utilizes the many Trails in the Whites Hill bushland area. Further information about this program can be gained by contacting Mr Lonergan email: lonert24@gmail.com

Villa Runners Club will be offered every Sunday (4 – 5pm) from Sunday 21 July through to Sunday 13 October.

REPRESENTATIVE SPORT
During the school holidays, Alexander John and Joshua Civitarese competed in two international Taekwondo events, both the Oceania Presidents Cup and the Australian Open. Alex made it to the podium for both events, obtaining a bronze medal for each one. Josh secured a silver medal in the Australian Open, in what were highly contested divisions. These young men have shown great commitment in their studies, school sport (football) and taekwondo training. They will now hit the ground running in Term 3 with important school commitments, along with the Australian Taekwondo Nationals held in Week 8. A great achievement, well done boys!

Well done to Andrew Vick who has made the Qld School Swim Team and will participate in the Australian Swimming Championships in Melbourne in late July. This is an outstanding achievement. We wish Andrew all the best!

Mr Craig Stariha, Director of Sport

REHEARSALS HAVE COMMENCED!
The term has commenced at a cracking pace and so have our ensemble rehearsals.  The attendance thus far this week has been impressive, and I would like to thank everyone who has arrived, ready to play each morning this week.  I am particularly pleased with the fantastic roll-up of our Junior School students – they braved some pretty brutal winter mornings to make it in and set a fine example for our older students – well done gents!

With only four weeks until the Festival, we need to ensure 100% attendance at rehearsals.  Students are strongly encouraged to come to rehearsal prepared, knowing their parts and sure of their music before arriving.  Please assist our students realise their August potential by ensuring the appropriate amount of home practice is achieved – we need your assistance.

SYDNEY TOUR 2019
The Sydney Tour was a resounding success!  If you have the opportunity, please take the time to view some of the photos and video from this experience on our Villanova Music Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/villanovacollegemusic/.

50 students and six staff members travelled from Brisbane to Sydney over the recent holiday break to spend eight days in the Southern capital participating in the Australian International Music Festival.  Our ensemble was cobbled together for this tour and comprised students from Year 6 – Year 12; all a wide range of experience and playing ability.  We rehearsed diligently across Term 1 and 2 and completed an intensive week of work before departing on July 4.

Whilst away, the students performed in the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House, the Concourse at Chatswood, in Verbrugghen Hall at the Sydney Conservatorium, and at the Maritime Museum Darling Harbour.  I am very proud of the performances the boys produced and extremely proud of the manner in which they carried themselves.  We received many positive comments regarding our boys’ behaviour and manners – they were exemplary ambassadors for our College and their families.

I would like to take a moment to thank the effort of the parents of our touring party – without your investment of time and money, your sons would not have had this fantastic experience.  I trust that they are very grateful!  I would also like to thank those families that chose to travel and experience the boys’ performances first-hand.  I was amazed (possibly more dazed) at the number of parents and well-wishers that met us outside the Opera House – that welcome meant so much to the boys and the staff – thank you.  Finally, I would like to recognise the staff who joined us on tour (alphabetically):  Ms Bastos, Ms Freney, Mrs Jimenez, Mr McKechie and Miss To: and the staff who ensured we made it onto the road:  Mrs Schrauf and Mrs Peace.

Thank you all for a great experience – stay tuned for BIG future tour plans!

QCMF IS COMING!  15-18 AUGUST
We are now only four weeks away from our 29th Queensland Catholic Colleges’ and Schools’ Music Festival.  From Thursday 15 August through until Sunday 18 August, we will be welcoming over 15,000 students from across Australia; this year we are welcoming students from Davenport, Tasmania for the first time!  106 schools will be represented by almost 570 ensembles – it is going to be a great event!

Every year, over 700 fantastic volunteers come along and help our College host what is a vital event in the life of Catholic Education in Australia.  Our volunteer committee would really love to hear from you and we strongly encourage our friends from far and wide to come and join our QCMF family and celebrate music, music education, and the youth in our Catholic Schools.  I can say unequivocally that this is an incredible event for our broader community and one that you must experience to realise the positive impact it has on so many.

Our volunteer portal is now active.  Please take the time to visit, sign-up, and join us for a couple of hours over the weekend.  The site for volunteering is located at www.qcmfvolunteering.com.au.  If you have any queries regarding volunteering at QCMF, please contact our organising group via qcmf@vnc.qld.edu.au.

VILLANOVA COLLEGE PERFORMANCE TIMES – QCMF
The Villanova Performance Times for QCMF have been distributed to families earlier this week.  Please ensure you received these via email.  For our community’s information, the times are provided by clicking on the following link.

We hope that you will come and support the Green and Gold and share in some of the fine music our students have been preparing over the past few months.  I look forward to seeing you all around Campus or down at St James’ over the weekend.

BRISBANE GIRLS’ GRAMMAR SCHOOL BAND WORKSHOPS – WEDNESDAY 24 JULY
Information has been distributed regarding the upcoming BGGS workshops in our College and music calendars.  Students in Concert Band (Monday band) and Wind Ensemble (Thursday band) will be travelling after school to BGGS.  Parents are invited to the Concert commencing at 6pm; students will need to be collected from BGGS upon the conclusion of this event at 6:30pm.

All Symphonic Band members will remain at Villanova to workshop with the Senior BGGS band.  The concert will commence at 6.15pm in the Hanrahan Theatre for this workshop.

Students will need their instrument, music, and full academic uniform.  Gig-sheets have been emailed to parents and students – please return them to the Music Office as soon as possible.

COMBINED CHAMBER EVENING – WEDNESDAY 31 JULY
On Wednesday 31 July, we will be hosting our inaugural Chamber Music Evening in the Augustine Centre.  Students in Year 6 – Year 12 who have been taking Instrumental Music lessons at the College have been busily preparing repertoire for this event over the past two and a half months.  I am looking forward to hearing this music performed for family and friends!

The evening will commence at 6:30pm and will comprise a number of performance spaces within the Augustine Centre.  Our Brass and Percussion students will be performing on stage in the lower section of Hanrahan Theatre, our String students will be performing in the String Room on level 1 of the Augustine Centre, and our Woodwind students will be performing in the Playhouse behind the Augustine Centre.

The Music Support Group will be present to provide refreshments across the evening and the concert is relatively informal in that you may move between spaces to enjoy the music.  Students are encouraged to attend the entire evening and support their peers.  Our musicians will be completing this activity as part of their Instrumental Music assessment for the semester.

I look forward to seeing you all here for a wonderful evening of music.

ENTERTAINMENT BOOKS 2019
If you have purchased books through the drive, please collect your books from the Music Office.  If you require clarification around collection of your Entertainment Books, please contact Mrs Schrauf in the Music Office on 3394 5691.

Entertainment Books can still be purchased through our Villanova Music Support Group portal (link below) or through the Music Office.

Thank you all very much for your continued support of this initiative.  We look forward to being one of Entertainments biggest contributors again!

Help Villanova College Music Support Group raise funds. Order your 2019 | 2020 Entertainment Membership!

We are raising as much as we can to support our fundraising. You can help our fundraising while also saving on everything you love to do! Invest in a 2019 | 2020 Entertainment Membership today and discover hundreds of offers to help you save every day. BUY NOW.

DATE CLAIMERS
As is tradition, we look forward to the fantastic events we have planned in the near future:

Thank you all for your continued support of Villanova Music.

Mr Michael Jones, Director of Music

VILLANOVA OLD BOYS DINNER
For all our Old Boy fathers (and staff) – the Old Boys Dinner on Friday 2 August is fast approaching. To secure your tickets for what is always a great night, click on the image.

TUCKSHOP
From the start of Term 3, boys who do not have their student card who wish to pay by giving their ‘student number’ when purchasing from the Tuckshop will have to wait to be served at the end of each break.

Methods of payment at the Tuckshop are cash and the tapping or scanning of student cards linked to a Flexischool account.

This process streamlines the service time for the boys. Boys who are using their ‘student numbers’ for payment are holding up the queues and delaying service for the students who are doing the right thing and presenting their student card for purchases.

If boys have damaged or misplaced their student cards, they can purchase a replacement card from the Tolle Lege Library for $5.To view our current tuckshop menu.

Tuckshop Menu Price List – 2019

TUCKSHOP ROSTER

Monday 22 July
Lauren Audet
Anna  Stines
Marnie Dalrymple
Melissa  Young
Janet Rogers

Tuesday 23 July
Gerda Odonnell
Marina Ryan
Sherry James
Mary-Anne Peralta
Ellen Greer
Therese  Staley
Ann O’Brien
Leanne Roulant
Eleni Diakos

Wednesday 24 July
Lily Fontana
Karen Blue
Katrina Theil
Connie Collins
Deb Griffiths
Anastasia Bailey
Angie Browne
Cleo Manolis

Thursday 25 July
Michelle Boxall
Bernadette Perrier
Taryn Byrne
Louise Wilson
Lisa Kelly
Anita Lazzarin
Belinda McPherson
Flora Di Stasi
Rachel Jones
Michelle Thomson
Annetta Cayas
Mandy Tong

Friday 26 July
Veronica Kennedy
Tracy Pereira-Trevethan
Nikki Reid
Caroline Caffery
Gregoria Makras
Sally Grigson
Nakeeta Sturgess
Natasha Dredge
Allan  Greig
Michelle MacKenzie
Dale Barnes
Kelly Rigby

LIBRARY ROSTER

Tuesday 23 July
Cristina Palacios
Melanie Pickering

Wednesday 24 July
Maritsa Malanos

Thursday 25 July
Sue Mulligan
Maryanne Bingham

ST JAMES FETE
The St James community extends an invitation to their fete on Sunday 28 July. Click on the image to view details.

CATHOLIC EDUCATION WEEK DINNER
The Catholic School Parents Queensland – Archdiocese of Brisbane invite parents to a free Catholic Education Week Parent Dinner on Monday 29 July. Click on the flyer image for further details. 

ST JAMES PARISH SACRAMENTAL PROGRAM – DATE CLAIMER
Children who are 8 years old and in Year 3 or older (and who have been baptised), are invited to prepare to celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation. Contact our Parish Office to register your interest and come along to the information session being held on Monday 29 July (6.00pm in St James Church). Phone 3397 1671  or email osastjames@bne.catholic.net.au to register your interest. All relevant information will be provided at this session, including family session dates and practice date. The Confirmation Ceremony will be held on Thursday 19 September 19 from 6.00pm to 7.00pm at St James Church.

LOURDES HILL COLLEGE – MIDDLE SCHOOL DANCE (save the date)
The Lourdes Hill College Middle School Dance will be held on Friday 2 August from 6.00pm – 8.30pm in the Good Samaritan Centre. Further details to follow after the holidays.

A+ ORALS SPEAKING COURSE
This course, for students in Years 7 – 11, has been attended by Villanova students in the past who highly recommend it. Students will learn speech writing, effective preparation, style of speech, effective storytelling, persuasive speaking principles, impromptu speaking skills and opening and conclusions. Further details are available by clicking the flyer image.

LORETO COLLEGE OPEN DAY

The fifth Rector of Villanova College – Fr Laurence James Mooney OSA
Laurence James Mooney was born in Brisbane in 1941 into a family of seven children.  Educated in his primary years at Mount Carmel Convent, Coorparoo, he finished his secondary schooling at Villanova College.  He spent his novitiative at Rochester, Victoria then completed his studies in the USA at the Augustinian College in Washington.  His ordination to the priesthood took place in 1965 at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington D.C.

On returning to Australia Fr Mooney did a short stint with pastoral work, and in 1967 was appointed to the staff of Villanova College.  After a nine year  ‘apprenticeship’ in the College classrooms he was appointed Rector in mid-1976.  Fr Mooney was the first past-pupil of Villanova College to be ordained and become Rector.

His term of leadership was at a time of great change in Queensland education, with an emphasis on staff development and clarification of Augustinian philosophy and the ethos of Villanova.  Non-sexist policies and emphases in education were adopted and there was an increase in the number of female staff employed.

In the years following his time at Villanova College, Fr Mooney was appointed to St Augustine’s College, Brookvale, and started a new outreach centre at Newcastle.  He was elected Provincial of the Order of St Augustine in 1990 and completed his term in 1998.

Since this time Fr Mooney has been involved in organising a number of APAC Augustinian Spirituality Conferences in India and the Phillipines, and a team leader of the Greystanes Spirituality Centre.Still based in Sydney, he has continued his writings on Augustinian spirituality and Augustinian educational values and assists with community and parish ministries.