Dear Families and Friends,
As the College’s leader, I am always excited about the start of a new academic year. Learning from the bumps and challenges of the previous year, letting go and starting the new year with a clean slate. I know that 2024 will hold challenges, celebrations, joy and heartache for all within our community. Importantly, these things will give every one of us the opportunity to grow, give our best and strive to reach our full potential. This opportunity reflects our College value of Excellence.
As a College, all that we strive for is underpinned by our values of faith, excellence and service. At our Opening College Liturgy and Assembly last Monday 5 February, my address focused on the value of Excellence. Excellence at La Salle College means “empowering every individual to discover their unique potential by cultivating an environment that encourages our learners to have the courage to always try and give their best and strive to reach their full potential”.
All members of our community are responsible for upholding that value. I challenged all students, staff and parents to consider how they could demonstrate excellence by ‘being amazing’ through:
- Creating opportunities to give our best.
- Celebrating our successes and unique abilities.
- Recognising that we are life-long learners and there are continuous opportunities for growth.
- Being passionate about helping others to excel and strive to reach their full potential.
- Working in partnership with and supporting others to explore new endeavours.
- Collective excellence – making real life connections as a community to impact global issues.
- Respecting and appreciating every individual’s uniqueness.
- Goal setting – making decisions and acting in a way that promotes and fosters the wellbeing and best interest of the individual and the wider.
In the early weeks of this Term, I have been inspired by our students and staff as I have seen their 'excellence in action'...
High achievers
The Opening College Assembly gave our school community the opportunity to celebrate the academic excellence achieved by the Class of 2023, a tradition that has featured on the College calendar since the late 1990s. Since then, the first assembly for the year has been an opportunity to acknowledge and celebrate excellence and hard work. It is designed to be a moment of celebration for the recipients but also a moment of inspiration for all the students currently attending the College. Congratulations to our High Achievers and to the Class of 2023. We need to celebrate academic excellence; however, it would be short sighted to let excellence be defined by this standard construct. Students require many skills and values, including building meaningful relationships in the workplace, socially and at home, in order for them to demonstrate excellence.
Onsite Program
Many years of research conducted by the Gallup Organization suggest that the most effective people are those who understand their strengths and behaviours. These people are best able to develop strategies to meet and exceed the demands of their daily lives, their careers and their families. (Gallup – Clifton Strengths). Another statement by researchers from the Demographics Group presented by Bernard Salt believes that students in the 2020s will need to develop skills in the future that will shift and shuffle… the skillset that today’s students need is the ability to be flexible and to pitch their skillset. As such today’s students’ need to be self-confident and sociable.
The College’s Onsite program provides our young people with the challenge of developing their confidence within the College and in the workplace. On Tuesday 13 February, the Onsite Induction was held at the RISE in Maylands. It was a very successful day with a variety of information provided to prepare our students as they embark on a learning program that will enable them to spend time within the workforce in an area of interest. I am grateful for the dedicated work of co-ordinator, Mr Alf Di Pino, the Onsite team and the many local businesses within the community. The generosity of the organisations that support our Year 11 and 12 students in this remarkable program, allows for the development of skills and confidence within a very different learning environment.
Year 12 Ball
It was a privilege to attend the Year 12 Ball on Friday 2 February 2024 at Optus Stadium. Undeterred by the extremely hot temperature, the Year 12 students and their partners had a wonderful time as they took to the dance floor. Not only did our Year 12s look fabulous in their formal attire and have a wonderful time, but they demonstrated their excellence through their respectful manner, which was acknowledged by Optus Stadium and the official photographers. As a community, we should be extremely proud of the way our Year 12 students represented the College, their families and themselves on the evening. My sincere thanks to Mrs Tanya Manning (Leader of Wellbeing – Year 12) for her organisation of the Ball and all staff who attended the evening.
Year 7 Experience
Navigating the challenge of starting high school has been the focus of our Year 7 students and their parents over the last few weeks. I know how overwhelming this can be but under the guidance of their Leader of Wellbeing- Ms Melissa Huston and other staff the Year 7s have taken those challenges in their stride. They have put their best foot forward and been very busy.
This week from Monday to Wednesday (12-14 Feb) all of the Year 7 students participated in the Year 7 Experience at Woodman Point Recreational Camp and at the College. I was privileged to be able to spend some time with the students and was delighted to witness the new friendships and the care they exhibited for one another. The Year 7 Experience is one of many learning opportunities that enables our students to develop their self-confidence, collaboration and cooperation skills. This year, it is complemented by a cross-curricula Transition program. This program aims to provide students with the necessary skill set to assist them with their transition to life as Lasallians. I am looking forward to our Year 7 ‘I am Lasallian’ Showcase evening later this term, to witness their growth in Term One.
Find your amazing...
It has been a busy start to the year, and I am grateful to the staff, parents and students for all of their efforts in putting their best foot forward. As the year progresses, I am so looking forward to witnessing how all within our community accept my challenge and put their excellence into action throughout the College in 2024.
God bless!
Ms Giovanna Fiume | College Principal
