This week is National Reconciliation Week (NRW). It is a time for all Australians to learn about our shared histories, cultures, and achievements and explore how each of us can contribute to achieving reconciliation in Australia.

Reconciliation must live in all Australians’ hearts, minds, and actions as we move forward, creating a nation strengthened by respectful relationships between the wider Australian community and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

We all have a role to play when it comes to reconciliation, and in playing our part, we collectively build relationships and communities that value Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, histories, cultures, and futures.

Before many of our meetings or gatherings, we acknowledge the country in which we live, learn and work.

We acknowledge all the country in which we minister in Catholic education in this Diocese. Those of us in Ballarat are in Wudawurrung country, and all of us are located in culturally significant lands.

We acknowledge our first people who have nurtured and cared for Country for tens of thousands of years, and we acknowledge that they have managed to survive and thrive, demonstrating their strength, resilience, and adaptability.

We also acknowledge their elders as custodians of this land that was taken from them without consent, without compensation, without treaty, but not without resistance.

We commit to the work of truth-telling and reconciliation in our nation.

We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.

The funeral for our much loved friend, colleague and teacher, Jeff Simpson, will take place at Peter Tobin Funerals, 1251 Doveton St North, Invermay Park, on Tuesday 7^th June at 2:00pm.

We are expecting a large number of staff wishing to attend the funeral and, at this stage, anticipate running our regular education program with the support of our wonderful team of casual relief teachers. There are numerous exams taking place on Tuesday, including Year 11 students who will be studying from home if they do not have any exams scheduled. As I have said, there will be a strong staff contingent present, grieving the loss of a friend and colleague.

We understand that there will be students and families who would like to attend the funeral. Grief is a very personal experience, and we believe that for students to attend, it must be done with the support of family members. If students are in attendance, I kindly ask them to wear their full winter uniform.

I will email those families who were in Jeff’s TA, given their special relationship with Jeff, and we will follow up with them regarding their student’s needs and wishes on Tuesday, and we will support them as best we can.

On Friday night, the College hosted the Catholic Education Leadership Dinner in the Damascus Events Centre. It was a lovely night acknowledging the 30-year award recipients, including Wayne Forster, for their service to Catholic Education. Three significant Diocesan Leadership Awards were presented on the night, and our very own Martin Ryan was awarded the Catholic Leadership award. This award is for leadership that provides active witness to God’s presence in the education, parish, and/or diocesan community and enhances the education community’s Catholic identity. It is for excellence in leadership around Religious Education, spirituality, liturgy, religious art, social justice, the founding charism, evangelisation and/or ecology.

Martin has completed 40 years of consecutive service to Catholic Education, with a significant portion of this time in Religious Education Leadership. He has been instrumental in writing the Awakenings curriculum and sacramental programs within the Diocese. We congratulate Martin on this fantastic achievement!

A huge thank you to Dan Cook for his management of the event, Alan Archbold, Maria Russell and students for their support on the night.

This Friday evening, 3rd June, the Middle School formal will take place from 7:00pm to 10:00pm. This is a social opportunity that Damascus College facilitates for the Year 9 and 10 students of our community. It has always been a very positive event on our calendar, but it is important that I reiterate that normal school rules apply. It is an alcohol, drug and smoke-free event; any student who is suspected of having consumed alcohol will not be let in. There are no pass-outs through the evening. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the evening, please contact your House Leader. It is a social activity, and hair and make-up appointments are not more important than school on Friday. Any student who is away on Friday will not be able to attend the formal. I must reinforce my encouragement that parents support one another by not condoning after parties. If you say no to requests from your child, you’re supporting other Damascus parents who may receive the same pressure from their student. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the evening, please contact your House Leader. Students are encouraged to bring a plate of food to share.

Damascus Staff were to gather with staff from Loreto College and St Pat’s College on the first day back in Term 3 as a combined Faith Development Day. The scheduled international presenter cannot make it to Australia this year and therefore will not be available. We are looking at alternative presenters; however, it will not be on the first day back. The first day of term 3 – Monday 11^th July will be a day of normal classes for all students. We are looking at an alternative day for our Staff Faith Development Day later in Term 3 and will communicate with families when available.

I wish our Year 8-11 students well over the coming week as they undertake exams beginning this Friday. The last day of Semester 1 will be Friday 10^th June, and we will commence Semester 2 with Early Start on Wednesday 15^th June. Tuesday 14^th June will remain a non-teaching day for students to enable staff to prepare for Early Start and continue to provide feedback on end of semester assessments.

We keep Toby Sharp (Year 7) and his family in our thoughts and prayers on the passing of his beloved grandmother this week. May she rest in peace.

We also keep the Emmanuel College Warrnambool community in our thoughts and prayers this week as they mourn the loss of a dear staff member, Ms Michelle Joseph. We can certainly empathise with how their community will be hurting at this time, and we send our love and prayers.

Until next week…

Chris

On Monday 23 May, the Damascus College community received the sad news of the death of a long-serving staff member, Mr Jeffrey Simpson.

The Damascus community is deeply saddened by Jeff’s death and offers his family sincere sympathy, support and prayers at this difficult time.

Jeff has been an incredibly talented teacher at Damascus for the last 27 years. He was a generous, skilled and passionate teacher and member of the Technology team. Throughout his time at Damascus, he taught Wood, Metal, Electronics and Systems Engineering.

His engagement of young people was truly extraordinary. Jeff loved his teaching and the educational journey of young people. Jeff was a passionate Geelong Cats supporter and used this as bridge in building relationships with those around him. Jeff was a true character and had an extraordinary capacity to engage all through story and humour, he was quick-witted and his sense of fun endeared him to all.

Jeff was an Australian Defence Force returned personnel and had great respect for the ANZAC tradition and Remembrance Day. Amongst the student and staff community, he took great pride in instilling a sense of tradition and respect for those who fought for the freedoms we all enjoy today.

Jeff’s Teacher Advisor group and the students he taught regularly continue to be supported through this tough and tragic time.

The College has assisted Jeff’s family in any way possible throughout this difficult time. Damascus College will conduct a memorial service to remember Jeff towards the end of Term 2, to express our love for him as well as an extraordinary sense of loss within the community.

At such a difficult time of grief and sadness, as a Catholic school community, we turn to our faith for solace and strength. Our prayers continue to be with Jeff’s family and friends, and we ask that the community keeps them in their thoughts and prayers.

On Monday May 9, Luke Gallagher (Year 8) and Olivia Daly (Year 12) represented the BAS (Ballarat Associated Schools) combined team in the 2022 Victorian School Associations Competition.

They were selected into this team based on their performance at the BAS Swimming Carnival held mid March. It is important to note that Charlie Snare (Year 9) was also selected into the team however unable to complete on the night due to illness.

The BAS team was quite small, so it was great to see them finish in 4^th place behind the APS, AGS and EISM associations (which are much larger associations than us and had much larger teams).

Individual results for the night for Luke included: 5^th Medley Relay, 4^th 50m Breaststroke, 4^th Freestyle Relay, 1^st 50m Butterfly (PB) and 8^th 50m Freestyle.

Olivia's results are as follows: 6^th Freestyle Relay, 6^th 50m Butterfly, 6^th Breaststroke Relay and 3^rd Medley Relay.

Well done to both these up and coming champions!

On Tuesday May 24, approximately 150 students represented Damascus College with pride at the BAS Athletics.

It was great to be able to participate after COVID caused the cancellation in 2020 and poor weather meant that it didn’t run in 2021. Mr Rod Mathews and Mr Gavan Walsh are great advocates for this event and they both put in a significate amount of time preparing the students for the day.

Congratulations to the Junior Boys who came away with the Junior Boys Aggregate on the day and in the overall results, Damascus came 3^rd, only 50 points behind BCC in 2^nd place. This is a great effort and gives us great motivation moving forward. There were 10 records broken on the day, with 3 coming from Damascus. Congratulations to Lucy Jones who broke the record for the U14 800m (old record 2:26.54, new record 2:26.14) and Armani Anderson for the U15 100m (old record 12.40, new record 12.31) and the U15 200m (old record 25.80, new record 25.50). Congratulations to Lucy and Armani who both participated in their first BAS Athletics.

Listed below are the full breakdown of points awarded on the day. This is important to note as it shows how close we are to receiving 2^nd and 3^rd place in the age groups tallies. 16 points are awarded for 1^st place in a division 1 and relay event, down to 2 points for 8^th place. 8 points are awarded for 1^st place in a division 2 event, down to 1 point for 8^th place. Further success in 2023 is looking promising for our BAS Athletics Athletes.

Male Results

Female Results

On Tuesday the Damascus College Year 7 students participated in a whole year level mass in our beautiful school chapel, presided over by Father Eladio.

Celebrating the Eucharist together helps promote our Catholic Identity, that of one community, family and faith.

The Gospel reading reflected on today was the 2022 Damascus College theme taken from John 15, where we are encouraged to abide in God’s love. Just as branches can only bear fruit if they stay on the vine, so the only way believers can glorify the Father through fruitful lives is by abiding in Jesus.

Thank you to all the students and staff who helped set up and lead us in our celebration of the Eucharist.

Damascus College Commences Reconciliation Action Planning Process

For several years there has been a deep desire in the college to work on a process that might lead to greater recognition of the truth of our First Nations peoples. For many years we have used Acknowledgment of Country to begin our community events but there is much more to be done.

The national process towards Reconciliation Action Plans Reconciliation Action Plans - Reconciliation Australia has been on the college radar throughout the Covid-19 period. Reconciliation Action Plans (RAPs) have enabled organisations to sustainably and strategically take meaningful action to advance reconciliation. Based around the core pillars of relationships, respect and opportunities, RAPs provide tangible and substantive benefits for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, increasing economic equity and supporting First Nations self-determination. Progress has been difficult through Covid-19 but now it is hoped to commence the process in earnest.

The human resources are being gathered to support the journey. Direct links with the Ballarat and District Aboriginal Co-operative (BADAC) Home | Ballarat and District Aboriginal Cooperative | badac.net.au have been established as well as links with Mirriyu Cultural Consulting, an Aboriginal owned and operated cultural consulting service. The Catholic Education office has been consulted and discussions have begun with local schools who are on the RAP journey. It is an exciting time.

National Reconciliation Week is being marked by various activities and this year's theme is Be Brave, Make Change is challenge to all Australians to tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation and to create change. Our vision for reconciliation is to see a county that meaningfully acknowledges its past, a country that listens to First Nations Peoples. By learning, listening, and collaborating with First Nations Peoples, we hope to shape a better understanding of the injustices experienced by First Nations Peoples and create change through education.

National Reconciliation Week Activities

This week is National Reconciliation Week and this year’s theme is 'Be Brave, Make Change'.

To mark this, Damascus College is running a host of morning activities including: PA announcements, Didgeridoo music, Explanation of the colours on the Indigenous flag, Book Club with a Reconciliation focus, culminating in a Human Flag whole school photo on Friday, where students will wear an accessory in one of the colours of the Aboriginal flag, and money will be raised to donate to the ‘Clothing The Gap Foundation’, which is an Aboriginal led foundation aiming to improve life expectancy of First Nations people.

This year’s theme is a challenge to all Australians to tackle the unfinished business of reconciliation and to create change.

Our vision for reconciliation is to see a county that meaningfully acknowledges its past, a country that listens to First Nations Peoples. By learning, listening, and collaborating with First Nations Peoples, we hope to shape a better understanding of the injustices experienced by First Nations Peoples and create change through education.

This week Art Club students had a great time getting out of the cold weather to spend some time modelling with clay.

The Damascus Art Club is on every Tuesday lunch time, and is a great opportunity for students to not only develop their creative thinking and skills, but is a wonderful opportunity to meet new people in a relaxed environment.

To get involved in Art Club just turn up to Room 5111 at lunchtime Tuesday, and for any enquiries please reach out to Naomi Olthof n.olthof@damascus.vic.edu.au or Jessica Wong - Jessica j.wong@damascus.vic.edu.au

The Damascus College Performing Arts department, on a dark and stormy night, invites you to a very unusual dinner party.

Tickets are now on sale for the annual drama production - Clue on Stage!

Clue is a hilarious farce-meets-murder mystery. Based on the iconic 1985 Paramount movie which was inspired by the classic board game Cluedo.

Murder and blackmail are on the menu when six mysterious guests assemble at Boddy Manor for a night they’ll never forget! When their host turns up dead, they all become suspects. Led by Wadsworth – the butler, Miss Scarlett, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock and Colonel Mustard race to find the killer as the body count stacks up.

Clue is a comedy whodunit where the audience tries to figure out through the laughter and mayhem …WHO did it, WHERE, and with WHAT!

Was it Mrs. Peacock in the study with the knife? Or was it Colonel Mustard in the library with the wrench?

The possibilities are endless but you will need to see it to find the culprit and solve the mystery.

The season opens on the 20th of July at 8:00pm and continues to the 23rd with a 2pm matinee on it’s final day.

Tickets available at: https://www.trybooking.com/BZHFR

Below are the criteria used to determine a student’s eligibility for the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF).

Criteria 1 – General eligibility

To be eligible for the fund, a parent or carer of a student attending a registered Government or non-government Victorian primary or secondary school must:

• on the first day of Term one
• on the first day of Term two

For the list of eligible financially-means tested cards refer to the CSEF Policy:

https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund/policy

Parents who receive a Carer Allowance on behalf of a child, or any other benefit or allowance not income tested by Centrelink, are not eligible for the CSEF unless they also comply with the above.

Criteria 2 - Be of school age and attend school in Victoria

For the purposes of CSEF, students may be eligible for assistance if they attend a Victorian registered primary or secondary school. CSEF is not payable to students attending pre-scho ol, kindergarten, home schooled, or TAFE.

Special Consideration

A special consideration category exists for

• Families on a bridging visa, temporary protection visa, in community detention or are asylum seeker families
• Student’s in temporary out of home care arrangements, including statutory kinship care

For more information, see https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund/guidance/eligibility

Eligibility Date

For concession card holders CSEF eligibility will be subject to the parent/carer concession card being validated successfully with Centrelink on the first day of either term one (31 January 2022) or term two (26 April 2022).

PAYMENT AMOUNTS

CSEF payment amount

The CSEF is an annual payment to the school to be used towards camps, sports and/or excursion expenses for the ben efit of the eligible stud ent.

• Primary school student rate: $125 per year.
• Secondary school student rate: $225 per year.

The CSEF is paid directly to your child’s school and will be allocated by the school towards camps, sports and/or excursion costs for your child.

For ungraded students, the rate payable is determined by the student’s date of birth. For more information, see: www.education.vic.gov.au/about/programs/Pages/csef.aspx

HOW TO COMPLETE THE APPLICATION FORM

NOTE: ALL SECTIONS MUST BE COMPLETED BY PARENT/LEGAL GUARDIAN

1. Complete the PARENT/CARER DETAILS section.

Make sure that the Surname, First Name, and Customer Reference Number (CRN) details match those on your concession card. You will also need to provide your concession card to the school.

If you are claiming as a temporary Foster Parent or a Veteran Affairs Pensioner, you will need to provide a copy of documentation confirming your status as a temporary Foster Parent or provide your Veterans Affairs Pensioner Gold card to the school.

If you are seeking special consideration, mark this in the form and provide a copy of the relevant documentation.

1. Complete the STUDENT/S DETAILS section for students at this school.
2. 3. Sign and date the form and return it to the school office as soon as possible. The CSEF program for 2022 closes on the 24 June 2022. Please submit your application prior to 3.00pm on the 24 June.

Forms are available through the front office or online Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) application form (education.vic.gov.au)

For a number of years now Damascus College has supported the FIGHTMND cause through the VCAL students raising funds for the cause with their “Ice Bucket Challenge” event.

This term the college will continue their support for people who suffer from Motor Neurone Disease and their families by selling “Big Freeze 8” beanies to students and staff.

The College has already raised an amazing $4000.

Beanies can be purchased for $25.00 with cash or card payments from the front office.

Thank you to everyone for supporting this worthy cause.

Students will be encouraged to wear their beanies during the last 2 weeks of term 2.

“It’s time to Beanie On, Play On.”