By Mrs Liz Illingworth, Principal

ASH WEDNESDAY AND LENT

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent. On Wednesday all members of the College community participated in a Liturgy to commemorate Ash Wednesday, where we were all marked with Ashes on our foreheads as an expression of faith and humility. Lent prepares us for the season of Easter, the most important time in the Church’s calendar. By praying, fasting and giving alms, we are reminded of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and love for us all. Lent is a time when we are all called to examine our lives and are challenged to respond to the call to act for social justice and unite against poverty in our communities and the world.

COLLEGE EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES

Part of being a member of our Community is the opportunity and expectation for each of our members to be involved in many events during the College year. We absolutely see each of these events as value adding to what we offer at St Patrick’s College. These events enable relationships to be developed and deepened, they allow students to make connections within their Houses, they are often opportunities for resilience building and they allow our students to sometimes stretch their comfort zones. All these are excellent reasons as to why we prioritise, and will continue to prioritise, these events.

During the past fortnight, we have run three successful Athletics Carnivals - Middle School, Croagh Patrick and Senior School. Each carnival had a theme of participation, developing House spirit and doing your best. These themes were certainly evident on each of the days.

Congratulations to our overall winning Houses:

Middle School - MacKillop House

Croagh Patrick - Rice House 

Senior School - Rice House

Over the coming weeks, our College Calendar continues to be busy. Our Middle School Swimming Carnival (Tuesday 11 March); St Patrick’s Day Mass and Cup (Friday 14 March); NSATIS Athletics Carnival (Tuesday 18 March) and Senior Swimming Carnival (Thursday 20 March) are the next opportunities for our students to be involved in important community spirit building events. We are so looking forward to sharing these events with all members of our student community.

COMMUNICATIONS

The College uses Schoolbox as our communication portal. If you are still unable to access your SchoolBox account please visit www.stpatricks.tas.edu.au and click 'Parents' in the top right hand corner. Please contact the Front Office if you need further support.

Having access to College communications is important for all of our parents/guardians. Through Schoolbox, you can contact relevant staff members in regards to supporting your child/ren. 

You may notice over the coming weeks a new feature added to the Parent Schoolbox notifications which will allow us to share Service and Affirmation posts with parents/guardians and students.

Thank you to all who communicate with our staff in a respectful way, aiming to gain the best outcomes for our students. A reminder that all communication with members of our community needs to be respectful, whether over the phone, in person or via email.

SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT

In the coming weeks, Insight SRC will be conducting a School Effectiveness Survey on behalf of St Patrick’s College and Catholic Education Tasmania. This survey is designed to assist schools in gaining an understanding of parents'/guardians', students' and staffs' perceptions of their College experience. The results will provide valuable insights that can guide the College in using feedback from staff, students, and parents/guardians to plan programs and activities aimed at enhancing your child’s school experience.

This survey will be conducted annually, allowing us to track and compare data year over year. While participation is voluntary and we appreciate the time it takes to complete the survey, the success of this important project is dependent on the involvement of all parents/guardians. We will share further information as it becomes available.

As a Catholic Education Tasmania (CET) school, we operate under CET Policies and our College Protocols. These, along with the CET Feedback Portal, are available on SchoolBox and our College Website. I encourage you to familiarise yourself with these documents and support us in maintaining high expectations for all students.

Have a fantastic weekend.

Click to read the latest issue of the Launceston Parish Bulletin: 

By Mrs Lindsey Hills, Deputy Principal – Learning & Achievement

Submission of Work: Academic Catch Up

We take this opportunity to remind students about the importance of being organised and adhering to submission of work guidelines. Our policy on assessment work submission remains unchanged, however, we are excited to introduce a more streamlined Schoolbox notification system that will keep parents and students informed about when students have been referred to Academic Catch Up to complete outstanding work. Here are some reminders about this process:

Failure to Submit Work:
Students are expected to submit their work by the due date. If they are unable to meet a deadline due to absences (e.g., illness or sports), students must request an extension from the teacher before the due date. Extensions are only granted with teacher approval.

Academic Catch Up Process:
If work is not submitted on time, the following applies:

• Level 1: Lunchtime Academic Catch Up (notification via Schoolbox to students and parents). Note that if students complete the work prior to the scheduled Lunchtime Academic Catch Up they do not need to attend.

• Level 2: After-School Academic Catch Up on Tuesdays and Thursdays (Croagh Tuesdays only) (notification via Schoolbox to students and parents). Note that if students complete the work prior to the scheduled After School Academic Catch Up they do not need to attend.

We are committed to helping all students succeed and learn important time management strategies whilst at school, and this process ensures that students who miss deadlines have the opportunity to catch up and stay on track, and receive valuable feedback from their teachers about their academic performance.

We appreciate your continued support of this valuable process.

NAPLAN

The National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy (NAPLAN) Online testing will be held from Wednesday 12 March to Monday 24 March 2025. NAPLAN Online will include four components; Writing, Numeracy, Conventions of Language and Reading. NAPLAN is designed to illustrate the range of student performance across the country. Individual student performance is shown on a national achievement scale for each test. NAPLAN assesses literacy and numeracy skills that students are already learning at school, and it is not a test that students are expected to study for.

Students will be supported at school to download the NAPLAN Locked Down browser required to complete the online assessment. Students also require a set of corded headphones/earphones for the tests; Bluetooth earphones cannot be used.

Where a student’s circumstances meet the criteria for adjustments to access the tests, their test conditions may be adjusted. The adjustments made will reflect the kind of support and assistance provided for assessment in the classroom. Eligible students will be provided with information about their adjustments closer to the testing period.

Schools will receive results and reports for participants following the completion of NAPLAN Online. Individual Student Reports will have the same format as in previous years. Thank you, in anticipation, for you and your child’s participation in this important national initiative. If you have further questions, please contact the Director of Curriculum for your child's school, Mrs Anna Davie (Year 7) or Ms Fiona Phillips (Year 9).

Parent information brochures and other resources: A parent information brochure and questions answered on NAPLAN and what it means for your child can be found at: NAPLAN information brochure for parents and carers and NAPLAN Parents Carers translated.

Feedback & Reporting

Parent Teacher Interviews: The College will be holding Parent Teacher Interviews in Week 10 of this term, with bookings opening on 28 March 2025. Parents/guardians can access Schoolbox to read ongoing feedback comments, assessments and review Attitude and Engagement Rubrics from teachers. This will help to ascertain how your student is progressing and inform decisions around making a booking for Parent Teacher Interviews. You will receive a letter with details of how to book these closer to this time.

Attitude and Engagement Rubric: You will note on Schoolbox that we have recently updated our Attitude and Engagement Rubric on class pages to better align with the Personal and Social Capabilities framework of the Australian Curriculum. This change aims to provide a more accurate reflection of each student’s development in areas such as self-management, social awareness, and responsible decision-making. The revised rubric offers a clearer understanding of how students engage with their learning and interact with others. It highlights key skills in personal growth and social interactions. We believe this update will support a holistic approach to student development, helping us better track and encourage progress in both academic and personal growth.

Reports: Similarly to previous years, you will receive two formal reports from the College this year. The Commonwealth Government requires that student achievement be reported using an overall grade (A-E) for each subject. These are provided to you in the form of a Progress Report in Term 2 and an End of Year Report in Term 4. You also receive a pastoral report at these times. These grades reflect progress in a course up to that point, and are based on the Australian Curriculum Achievement Standards for Year 7-10 students, and TASC/VET standards for Years 10-12 (as applicable). 

When reporting grades before the end of the year, teachers assess what has been taught so far and determine a grade that aligns with demonstrated progress. The Progress Report indicates progress towards the end-of-year Achievement Standard. The grade received reflects the standard the student has for the reporting period. For example, receiving a 'C' in Australian Curriculum courses in both Semester 1 and Semester 2 indicates that the student has made progress overtime, and learned new knowledge and skills based on the new and more challenging material studied, after the entire year of schooling (i.e. EOY demonstrates that they reached the expected student achievement having been taught the entire year).

High Impact Teaching

We are committed to delivering high-impact teaching strategies in every classroom throughout 2025. As part of this commitment, we continue to embrace the Insight Project, a CET initiative that integrates the evidence-based Science of Learning and Reading into our everyday teaching practices.

All our teachers regularly engage in professional learning in this space, with many undertaking additional formal training through an external provider to further strengthen their expertise. Another 20 teachers will begin this journey in Term 1, deepening their understanding of cognitive science, engagement strategies, checking for understanding, and the importance of regular content review. We encourage you to discuss these learning approaches with your children and see how they are applying them in their studies.

Thank you for your ongoing support as we strive for excellence in education at our College.

After School Tutoring

After School Tutoring commenced in Week 3 of Term 1. This is a free weekly offering to all students at the College. All students are welcome, whether they need support, extension, or would like to utilise the opportunity to work collaboratively with others in this space. Support is offered predominantly in core learning areas, but is available for all learning areas.

Senior School - Tuesdays and Thursdays in the ERC

Croagh Patrick - Tuesdays

Middle School - Tuesdays and Thursdays in the Library

By Ms Jodie White, Future Pathways Coordinator

TASMANIAN POLICE CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM –
Year 12 students

Applications are NOW open for the 2025 Tasmania Police Career Development Program

When: October School Holidays (two courses running)
Sunday 28 September - Friday 3 October
Sunday 5 October - Friday 10 October

Where: Tasmanian Police Academy - Rokeby

Register and collect an application pack from Future Pathways

Requirements:

• Résumé with passport size photo – school photo
• Handwritten document outlining why you should be selected for the course and why you want to be a Police Officer
• Letter of recommendation from a teacher

Please note, there are limited numbers. 

You must have your application into Future Pathways by no later than Friday 4 April.

UniMelb 101 Webinar

To register for UniMelb 101 Webinar please click on the following link:
https://go.unimelb.edu.au

Launceston Clinical School

The Launceston Clinical School would like to invite Year 11 and 12 students interested in medicine to an information session about the University of Tasmania’s BMedScMD (Medicine) degree.

From 2025, Medical students can complete their first two years in Burnie OR Hobart, then transfer to finish their final three years in Launceston, Burnie or Hobart. This has already enabled several students this year from Launceston to stay at home while studying medicine in the North of the state.

Where: Launceston Clinical School – Level 2, Northern Integrated Care Service, 41 Frankland Street, Launceston, TAS, Australia, Tasmania

Date and Time: Wednesday, 9 April, 5:30pm – 6:30pm

Interested students are invited, and parents are welcome to attend.

The session is also accessible via Zoom for anyone unable to attend in person.

Topics will cover pathways into medicine:

1. Applying via RAP (Rural Application Process – the majority of Tasmanian students are eligible) or AEAP (Aboriginal Entry Application Process),

2. Prerequisites for entry - UCAT, ATAR, Pre-Requisite subjects and life at university.

3. Launceston Clinical School medical students will provide insight to why they chose to study in their hometown to complete their degree.

Please register via Humanitix: https://events.humanitix.com/studymedicine-infosession-2025

UCAT 2025

What is UCAT for?

The University Clinical Aptitude Test is the admissions test for entry into Medical, Dental and Clinical Science degree programmes in Australia.

What is the test format?

It is a two hour computer-based test containing 233 multiple choice questions across 5 separately timed subtests.

What is the cost of the test?

Tests are $325.00 and Concession $240.00

Where/When do I sit the test?

You will sit the test at a test centre in Launceston between 1 July – 5 August 2025. You sit the test in the same year that you apply to university. You can sit the test once each year.

How do I get my results?

Your results will be delivered to universities by early September.

Where can I find out more info?

The latest study tips, exam advice and free resources can be found at https://www.ucat.edu.au/prepare/practice-tests/

When can I register?

Registration and booking opens on March 4 and closes on May 16 2025.

Further information - https://www.ucat.edu.au

UTAS will have a UCAT information session at St Patrick’s College in April for any interested students. This is a great opportunity for Year 11 and 12 students to hear first-hand about the test and how to prepare from current UTAS Medical students.

Australian National University (Early Offer Applications)

KEY DATES

Click here for more information: https://study.anu.edu.au

Charles Sturt Advantage (Early Offer)

With the Charles Sturt Advantage you can get a guaranteed spot in your course before you sit your final exams. Last year Charles Sturt made almost 5,000 early offers – and now it’s your turn!

Early bird applications close 31 July 2025 and offers will be made from 1 September 2025.

Round two applications close 31 August 2025 and offers will be made from 19 September 2025.

Apply now

Information Session

Need some tips on writing your application? We've got you covered. Attend a Zoom session with the Charles Sturt Advantage team, where you can ask questions, get answers, and learn how everything works.

Date: Tuesday May 6, 5:30pm

Register your interest here.

SAVE THE DATE - CO-OP Schools Careers Expo

Launceston Christian School, Launceston Church Grammar, Scotch Oakburn College and St Patrick’s College are having a joint career event for parents/guardians and students in Years 10-12.

Date: Tuesday 14 May

Time: 5:30pm – 8:30pm

Location: Launceston Conference Centre – The Exhibition Centre

Timothy Innes was selected in the Tasmanian State Surf Life Saving Team to compete at the Australian Pathways Interstate Surf Life Saving Championships in North Kirra in April 2025.

Stuart Innes was crowned the Tasmanian Under 13, Aus Cycling State Cross Country Mountain Biking Champion, in the Championships held at Osmaston in early February.

 Jordan Enright will be competing at the Mountain Biking National Series Rounds 5, 6 and 7 at Mt Stromlo, Canberra. Jordan will also be competing at the Mountain Biking National Championships at Mount Buller, Victoria.

Harry Durkin, George Durkin, Cooper Tasker and Will Schipper have been selected to represent Tasmanian in the 2025 National Indoor Cricket Championships in Perth during July.

Grace Ebbelaar (17&U team) and Paige O'Neill (19&U team) have been selected as Netball Tasmania Captains for 2025. They will lead their teams to compete in the National Netball Championships in April this year.

Congratulations to these students!

By Mr Harrison Mills & Mr Jack Prosser, Team Captains

Relay for Life is celebrating its 25th anniversary in Tasmania! This event brings communities together to honor and celebrate those who have overcome cancer or are currently undergoing treatment, as well as the dedicated caregivers who support them. It also provides a special opportunity to remember loved ones lost to cancer.

St Patrick's College has been a proud supporter of this event for nearly all of its years in Tasmania. Once again, we have registered a school team, and we warmly invite students, families, staff, and other members of our community to join us in this meaningful cause.

Together, we will walk or run laps around the track to raise funds for the Cancer Council Tasmania. All donations will remain in the state, with a fundraising target of $150,000 for the Launceston event.

This year, Relay for Life returns to the St Leonards Athletics Track and will operate for 12 hours, from 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM, on Saturday, April 5.

In addition to doing laps on the track, there will be live entertainment, food vendors, and activities for kids throughout the day, making this a fantastic event for the whole family. Whether you’re doing laps for a loved one, enjoying the entertainment, or indulging in some delicious food, there’s something for everyone!

To join the team, please use this link: https://www.relayforlife.org.au/fundraisers/StPatricksCollege5988

For more information or questions about joining the team, please contact Harry Mills at hmills@stpatricks.tas.edu.au or Jack Prosser at jprosser@stpatricks.tas.edu.au

We hope you’ll join us for this incredible community event!

The St Patrick’s College Midford Uniform Store will be closed on Thursday 13 March.

The Midford Launceston City store will remain open from 8:30am – 5:00pm.

The Midford team apologises for any inconvenience.

St Patrick's College Dates:

23 June and 1 July for Year 7s and 10s only.

It’s time to be enchanted! Tickets are on sale now for MIDNIGHT: The Cinderella Musical!

Inspired by the timeless Cinderella story, MIDNIGHT is a bold and enchanting tale that turns tradition on its head. Don’t miss the Tasmanian debut of this magical performance. With just three shows from April 30 – May 2, tickets won’t last long.

Get your tickets now from Theatre North: https://theatrenorth.com.au/spc-midnight or phone 6331 0052.

SchoolBench is being introduced during 2025 for staff and families at the College, with a staged rollout over the course of the year. The SchoolBench suite allows staff to capture, catalogue and share images of students participating in College events and activities. This is especially necessary where a College photographer is not able to attend, for example, on school camps and excursions.

The SchoolBench Mobile App enables St Patrick’s College staff to capture images of students, at the same time ensuring that student images are not stored staff personal devices. All images are passed through a curation process, applying recorded consent for the publishing of a child’s images and name, provided by families at enrolment.

Later in the year, the St Patrick’s College community will have access to SchoolBench Portal+ through Schoolbox. This will allow parents to view any images of their child at College events or activities, when they are published.

Portal+ will also contain Collections of images from key College events, that will be visible to parents, staff and students.

Watch this space!

Paul Smith - Coach Tennis

Senior Tennis - Round 1 and 2

Boys 1sts

The season is well underway, with the boys putting in a good first-up effort against Grammar, and Hudson Young playing exceptional tennis against the talented Grammar number one.

In the second match, SPC defeated St Brendan-Shaw College (SBSC) 5-1, with wins to Hudson Young and Lochie McInnes in the doubles, and Tom Tanton and Oscar McGee winning both doubles and singles. It was a debut to remember for Oscar and Tom’s first win at this level. Hudson played an entertaining game to defeat the SBSC number one.

Girls 1sts

Two games into the season, the young side acquitted themselves well at this level.

Layla Chugg (number one) and Jasmine Ho (number two) are both Year 8s and have held their own with strong wins in singles and doubles against SBSC. 

In the opening round Grammar was too strong on the day, though Casey Williams (Year 7) played well in her Senior tennis debut to take a singles win. Josie Chambers and Ashlee Campton (both Year 11s) have contributed well to the team with improving performances.

Boys 2nds

The team consists of Cooper Kedey, Riley Woodland, Maxx Rawlings and Jaxon Owens. All very good athletes in other sports, they come together for friendly competition.

They are a good bunch who love playing competitively. Their skills are improving quickly and they have taken some wins already this season. Cooper, currently playing as number one, is being pressed by Riley’s form, creating friendly competition within the group as well. 

Girls 2nds

This young group is learning the game on the run, from set-up, to scoring, the skills of hitting and having some fun. All players have improved markedly in the opening two weeks of play.

By Mr Christian Cook, 1st XI Coach & Cricket PIC

Game 7 - St Patricks Vs Scotch (One day game at St Patrick's College)

St Patrick's College Def Scotch by 22 runs.

St Patrick's - All out for 88 off 28.4 overs - Ethan Arnott 18, Oliver Wright 17.

Scotch - All out for 66 off 24 overs - Jensen Smith 6-8, Levi Springer 2-24, Darcy Kitchin 1-10, Harry Page 1-10

By Meg Rickerby and William Symons, Rowing Captains

Over the weekend of 22-23 of February, the St Patrick's College Rowing Community competed with great success in the Tasmanian All Schools Championships.

This event saw rowers from Years 7-12 unite to take out many team and individual races, whether it be rowing, coxing, coaching or encouraging one another. There was much excitement as this was the Year 7s' first time in a major regatta at Lake Barrington and they embraced the opportunity to the fullest extent, with smiles being seen all around! For the Year 7 Rowers who have only been at the College for less than a month, it was incredible to see them already display the College Values of Endeavour and Excellence. A thank you to Old Collegian Elenoa Ravai and to Adam Symons for their efforts coaching our new Year 7 Boys and Girls crews.

Several amazing results were achieved over the weekend, with St Patrick's taking out the Junior Girls Aggregate Shield and 2nd overall on the medal tally with eight Gold, five Silver and five Bronze. There was also a strong representation of St Patrick's rowers in the finals with every rower participating in at least three events. This is an outstanding achievement and exhibits how the hard work and dedication of our rowers and coaches throughout the season is paying off. These results also place St Patrick's in a strong position for the upcoming and well-anticipated Australian National Rowing Championships later this month.

Congratulations to the following rowers who placed first in their events:

• Year 8 Girls Single - Eleanor Pietsch

• Year 8 Boys Single - Liam Birch

• Year 8 Girls Double - Eleanor Pietsch and Siea Harper

• Year 8 Girls Quad - Eleanor Pietsch, Millie Locke, Siea Harper, Jade Newstead and Will Hogarth (Cox)

• Year 9 Girls Quad: Morgan Butler, Gabby Tonelly, Jade Newstead, Ella Farquhar and Chloe Axman-Friend (Cox)

• Year 10 Boys Single- Jasper Twitchett

• Year 10 Boys Double- Jasper Twitchett and Sam Dettmer

• School Boys Double: Isaac Pietsch and Nate Bristol

Also a massive congratulations to the following Junior Girls and Coxes who helped achieve the Junior Girls Aggregate Award:

• Olivia Gooley (Year 7)

• Elka Dray (Year 7)

• Willow Bonham (Year 7)

• Ella Farquhar (Year 8)

• Amelia Bristow (Year 8)

• Jade Newstead (Year 8)

• Siea Harper (Year 8)

• Millie Locke (Year 8)

• Eleanor Pietsch (Year 8)

• Morgan Butler (Year 9)

• Gabby Tonelly (Year 9)

• Jonty Hodgetts (Year 7, Cox)

• Will Hogarth (Year 8, Cox)

• Chloe Axman-Friend (Year 11, Cox)

• Will Symons (Year 11, Cox)