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This week, we celebrated the graduation of our Year 12 HSC Class of 2025—a truly special occasion marking a significant milestone. This year, 123 students will graduate from Year 12, and we are incredibly proud of the fine young men and women they have become.

Our graduates embraced the many events and activities held in their honour, celebrating their time with us while continuing to show dedication to their studies. We look forward to seeing their hard work rewarded as they sit their HSC exams, and we are excited to join them for their formal, the final celebration of their school journey.

This week’s Gospel readings were especially fitting for our graduating class. They spoke of the commissioning of the apostles and their being "sent out"—a powerful parallel to our own Year 12 students as they go forth to make their mark on the world. Sunday’s reading reminded us: “The one who can be trusted in small matters can also be trusted in great ones; and the one who is dishonest in small matters will be dishonest in great ones.”

These words beautifully echo our College motto: “To know, love, and relish what is right and just.” It is my hope and prayer that our students carry this truth with them as they step beyond our gates into the next chapter of their lives.

We will also soon welcome our new College Captains, who were recently announced and will be formally inducted at the beginning of next term. I congratulate the students selected for these important leadership roles—a significant achievement given the number of outstanding students who also nominated and would have been worthy captains in their own right.

John Therry follows the system attendance policy, which is designed to support all students in attending school regularly. The policy provides clear guidelines for managing attendance, and I would like to outline the requirements around holidays, as we understand there has been some confusion and concern in this area.

We recognise that, at times, families may need to take leave during the school term for important family events such as weddings, funerals, reunions, or other significant occasions. In some cases, these events may involve overseas travel. If the absence for these events is longer than 10 days, Compass will automatically generate an exemption from attendance request. In extenuating circumstances, and for significant family events such as weddings or funerals, the Principal has the authority to approve this leave. While this will still be recorded as an absence, it will be marked as approved leave.

The policy states that any leave over 10 days that is for holiday only, is unable to be approved by the Principal as approved leave, and must be recorded as an unexplained absence. I appreciate this may cause some concern for parents and I want to clarify that this does not mean that we do not expect you not to take this holiday. We appreciate that parents are the primary educators of their children and that there can be significant value in a family holiday. The ideal scenario is that these are taken in school holidays, but we understand this cannot always happen. While this is listed as an unexplained absence, and leave will not be approved, we understand that you will have made a considered decision and we fully expect that you will attend this holiday with your family. Students will be requested to make arrangements for assessment tasks before leaving and would be expected to catch up on missed work on return.

Year 12 is the only year group that can be more problematic, as missing tasks can have a more significant impacts on their HSC results, and in some cases such as not sitting the HSC exam, may make students ineligible for the HSC. If considering taking a holiday during Year 12, please contact Mr McAllister or Mrs Ramchandra to discuss. 

On the 5th of September, ten John Therry students travelled to Edmund Rice College's Sustainability conference. The experience was highly thought provoking, with the focus on promoting biodiversity. Special guests included Dr James Dorey-- a biology researcher and lecturer at the Wollongong University. Dorey's research held an emphasis on conservation, ecology and entomology -- With his more specific point of research being bees. Dorey discussed his experience researching bees in Fiji and Australia, sharing the eccentricities of both countries' bee population. He also shared how photography has been beneficial to his career as a scientist, allowing for scientific research to become accessible to the public, and reinventing our idea of a standard bee-- With a lot of Australian bees being far more unique than we perceive. 

Another guest featured at the event was Sarah Anderson, founder of "Popes Produce"-- An urban farm, which she, along with friends and family has cultivated in her backyard. She discussed the process of developing her garden from bleak grassy land to her colourful garden-- Complete with chicken coups over the course of several years. Unlike most farms today, Anderson's garden has been entirely developed by hand. Along with discussing her journey, Sarah discussed the significance of having local grown produce to the community and the environment. 

Along with the conversations held with special guests, students were invited to engage in tactile activities-- Such as constructing their own "insect hotel," and making their own clay bee figures. Since  construction, our "bee hotels" have been included at our school, with one being featured at the Indigenous bush tucker garden and the other at our vegetable garden. We hope to observe success in our creation.  

POPES PRODUCE: https://share.google/fsgdoMkVIOxljmWEt
Instagram: "@popes_produce"
Dr James Dorey's Website: https://share.google/jMRbEG1eTRYA3FSG2
Instagram: "@jamesbdorey" 

By Selena Chakma

From page to Stage: Romeo and Juliet Incursion

On Monday 8th September, Year 9 students were treated to a dynamic and engaging performance of Romeo and Juliet presented by Shakespeare Australia. The incursion brought Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy to life, combining professional acting with interactive elements that made the play both accessible and memorable.

Students were captivated by the energy and passion of the performers, who highlighted the humour, conflict and heartbreak at the heart of the play. The performance focused on significant scenes from the play and presented these in an accessible and engaging way for students. The production also encouraged students to think critically about Shakespeare’s themes of love, fate and family loyalty, and how these ideas still resonate today.

This incursion provided an invaluable opportunity for students to deepen their understanding of Romeo and Juliet in a lively, immersive way that enriched their classroom learning. This performance will be beneficial for students as they prepare for their English exam next term.

Lisa Eljed
Leader of Learning- English

JTCC SPORT UPDATE - Term 4, Week 1

Congratulations to all of our Term 3 MISA teams on your efforts this term. JTCC had five teams in contention for the MISA premierships, read below for the Finals match reviews.

9/10 REC Sport Rotations update - Students have now begun the next cycle of rotations with their respective sport groups which will run from Term 3 Week 9 to Term 4 Week 2. A reminder that as summer uniform is now permitted to be worn, students will be required to wear hats for outdoor activities, along with our existing uniform policy of no black socks, no anklet socks and the John Therry sport shorts and shirt.

Illness/Injury:
It has come to our attention that a number of students are presenting to Sports Detention with notes from home claiming illness or injury. Unfortunately, some of these notes have proven to be forged or falsified. This is a serious matter. 

Students who regularly submit notes to avoid participation may be required to provide a doctor’s certificate to support their claim. Any student found submitting false or misleading notes will face further consequences. .Furthermore, students who repeatedly attend Sports Detention may be escalated to an afternoon detention. We expect honesty, integrity, and active participation in all aspects of school life, including Sport.

2025 STAFF v STUDENTS

The annual clash between the JTCC Staff and Yr 12 students commenced last week with TRIVIA. The staff collective were massively outnumbered 10:1 but after two rounds, two Yr 12 groups were leading the way over the staff team. Staff failed to read the question carefully and incorrectly gave the city/year of the last 5 Olympic Games instead of the country/year, which ended up being the difference in the end as the students ran away with the trivia contest to take a 1 -0 lead.

Monday - Netball was the game and it was evenly contested once again. Sharp shooter Ms Kelleher kept the teachers in front as Mr Chapman and Mr McKenzie locked up the defensive third. Staff ran out winners 8 -5, to even the scores up 1 -1.

Tuesday - Soccer was the game and it drew a massive crowd on the ovals. Ms Hawkesby was dominant upfront keeping Norman Hachem on his toes, but let an easy save bundle over the line for the staff to take the lead. VAR confirming the ball actually crossed the line. The game was a mixture of youth and finesse and slow/fat/old with one teacher even skying a penalty. There was a bit of contention regarding the score - so we went to golden goal penalties, and staff executed whilst Yr 12 missed, so staff won the game and took a 2 -1 lead.

Wednesday - Basketball. This normally is an outweighed contest with the Yr 12s normally dominating the event. The refereeing was non-existent, and the staff were gassed from the non-stop running which allowed the student youth to pick up the tempo and get a good lead. Some glimpse of a staff fightback, but Austin Matahau led his troops to a 4 point victory over a fatigued/untalented staff team. Scores tied at 2 - 2.

Thursday - Ultimate Frisbee. Yr 12 entered the playing arena to the sounds of victory as they were determined to get the win. The rules were set and the game commenced with Yr 12 crossing the endzone first with an Annelise Hall 2 pointer. But from then on it was a match dominated by the staff. Mr Tran, Mr Geribo and Mr Bodeker were instrumental in guiding the staff into the endzone for three 2 point scores and 5 single scores to take the match 11 - 6.

Staff remain undefeated since 2018 and will look to the future graduates of John Therry for more of a contest.

Upcoming Events Term 3 2025:

Diocesan and Pathways update

 2025 planning and calendar for representative pathway opportunities are below. 

CEDoW WEBSITE- Event Information, Selected rep teams and Carnival Results 

A reminder to visit our Secondary CEDoW Sports Web current information about events, selected teams and carnival results

INSTAGRAM 

Don't forget to follow the  CEDOW instagram handle: @cedow.sport

Students at John Therry are given the opportunity to represent John Therry at College, Diocesan and CCC sporting events.

CLICK HERE - JTCC PATHWAY INFORMATION

Diocesan Sporting Opportunities 

This is the main school sporting pathway that is offered to students at John Therry Catholic College. Some John Therry CC Diocesan teams are determined through trials, or a carnival hosted at a college  level (Athletics, Cross Country, Swimming), however some teams are determined by individual trials that students must nominate and register for online. Further information can be found at: https://www.dow.catholic.edu.au/sport/ 

NSWCCC Sporting Opportunities 

NSWCCC is another school sporting pathway that is offered to students at John Therry Catholic College. Some CCC teams are determined through qualifying at a carnival hosted at a Diocesan level (Athletics, Cross Country, Football, Rugby League, Swimming, Basketball, Touch Football), however some teams are determined by individual trials that students must nominate and register for online. Students must be currently competing at a representative level in their chosen sport to be considered for CCC team trials.The sports that require online nomination and registration include: 

It is important that online registration is completed before the closing date for each sport. These are outlined on the CSNSW website: https://csnsw.sport 

Online registrations are now open for 2025. Please refer to the information on the website regarding the registration process. Here is a link to assist with sports registration for parents: https://csnsw.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portal/2/topic/65d787c5-0d2a-4699-a63a-25d586b67ba2 

A reminder to check the Compass Portal for upcoming sporting events and their respective closing dates.

You can also access the Wollongong Sport site for more information regarding Diocesan Sport  throughout the year.

https://www.dow.catholic.edu.au/student-experience/sport/secondary-sport

Yours in Sport,

Georgia Roberts (robertsg03@dow.ccatholic.edu.au)

Jamie Cook (cooka01@dow.catholic.edu.au)

Please find below a link to the latest Parish Bulletin

https://www.olhcrosemeadow.org.au/bulletin/