Focus Newsletter - Term 1 Issue 5 - 2025

Acting Principal Leader

We are now deep into our Lenten journey for 2025 and as we approach the events of Holy Week, we are challenged by our faith to reflect on the struggle and suffering that Jesus experienced as he walked the final days and hours of his journey towards the inevitability of the Cross. Though very few of us will be faced with the ultimate sacrifice that Jesus so willingly embraced, we all carry burdens and crosses in our lives, many of which are suffered in silence and have no obvious resolution or respite. It is these experiences of being human that Jesus invites us to place before the Cross at Easter as we reflect on the darkness of Good Friday and the light and hope of Easter Sunday. We are reminded to be open to the signs of resurrection that are all around us, even in the darkest corners of our lives and our world. Acts of courage, generosity, and solidarity reveal the strength of the human spirit and the presence of God, even when all hope seems lost.

During the upcoming holidays, we will also pause as a nation to reflect on ANZAC Day, remembering the men and women who have served, and continue to serve, in times of war and conflict. We remember their courage and sacrifice, and the freedoms they secured for future generations.

Several years ago, renowned ABC journalist Caroline Jones reflected on the connection between Easter and the ANZAC story: 

“Easter holds the assurance that, in each "death" - in the small setbacks or the big crises that come to everyone - there may be, against the odds, shoots of new growth. It is in the light of Easter that we can see the defeat of Anzac as a victory. It's difficult to explain to anyone else, but Australians know the truth of it. Yes, Gallipoli was a terrible loss. Yet in its sacrifice were sown the seeds of our national identity, pride and wonder that they gave their lives for us. Easter and Anzac both appear to be absurd failures, yet both offer the sustaining promise that, at the darkest hour, there is always hope.”

May this Easter season be a time of deep reflection, inspiration, and grace for us all as we place our trust in the risen Jesus.

As most parents would already be aware – Term 2 commences with two staff development days, the first being used for collaborative planning for new NESA Curriculum documents, and the second day for the System Secondary Formation Day: Encountering Jesus (new Religious Education curriculum) and the Year of Jubilee 2025. This event involves all staff from every secondary school in the Parramatta Diocese. Students will return for Term 2 on Wednesday 30 April. Students will return for Term 2 in full winter uniform, complete with blazer and tie.

Brian Edmonds
Acting Principal

Acting Assistant Principal - Pastoral Care

As we come to the close of Term 1 for 2025, I would like to congratulate the students on their efforts in their study, especially Year 12 who have had their HSC assessment block over the last two weeks. I would also like to thank all of our community for raising funds for Project Compassion.

School Attendance
A reminder that satisfactory school attendance is one of our conditions for participation in school representative sport and extra-curricular activities such as excursions. The attendance of all students who nominate for school, PDSSSC and subsequently NSWCCC representative teams will be checked by the Assistant Principals before squads/teams are selected and announced. Students with poor attendance will not be included in these teams and a process of monitoring and review will be applied until the attendance rate of the student/s in question has improved. As the students are well aware, the same attendance rules apply to several of our elite competitions including the NRL Schoolboy Cup.

Personal Presentation
As we start next term and move into our winter uniform, I want to remind students and parents that hair must be neat and tidy. Hair must be of natural colour. Extremes of length or fashion are not acceptable. Student hairstyles that are not acceptable include – mullets, shaved sides, long or swept fringes, shaved lines, rat tails and all large tufts. Boys’ hair should be no longer than collar length and the fringe must be above the eyes. The school reserves the right to make rulings on the acceptability of any student hairstyles. It is expected that boys will be clean-shaven at all times. Students that do not comply with these guidelines may be sent home.

Catholic School Identity Survey
Finally, I would like to thank all the parents that have completed the Enhancing Catholic School Identity Survey. We reached the number of surveys that needed to be completed for the parent voice to be included. As we journey towards the Easter season, we are reminded of the incredible hope and joy that the Resurrection of Jesus brings to our lives. Easter is more than a single Sunday celebration—it is a season of renewal inviting us to live with hearts full of gratitude, faith, and love. Thank you and have a happy and holy Easter.

Victor Hunt
Acting Assistant Principal

Assistant Principal - Learning, Teaching and Innovation

Our Patrician community is blessed with staff who deeply care for our students and who are incredibly generous in the giving of their time to assist students to attain their personal best. I wish to take this opportunity to thank our exceptional staff for their application to all aspects of College life. I would also like to acknowledge our students for their engagement with their learning in Term 1, 2025. The following message is deliberately unambiguous and has been consistently repeated to the students throughout the term; Academic Effort, which is attainable by ALL students, is the expectation of every student, in every class, every day.  I am very pleased to say that the majority of our students have accepted this challenge throughout Term 1 and have either met or exceeded expectations. I trust that you all have a safe and enjoyable holiday.  God bless.

Heath Borg
Assistant Princpal

Religious Education and Mission

Mother’s Day Mass
Mother’s Day is more than simply a day to give a gift or flowers to our mothers. It is an occasion to thank God for the gift of our mothers and mother-figures and to also acknowledge all the mothers in our community that have passed away.

We will be celebrating our Mother’s Day Mass at 9:00 am on Thursday, 1st May, at St. Patrick's Church, Blacktown. We are inviting all mothers, grandmothers and those who are mother-figures in our College community.

If you would like to attend the Mother’s Day Mass, please complete this form by Monday, 28th April.

Students attending the Mass will be required to be transported by their parents/carers to and from St Patrick's Church. We would ask that all students and families arrive at the Parish Church by 8.45am to ensure that Mass starts promptly at 9:00am. At the conclusion of the event, parents/carers will need to transport their son/s back to the College. Students should then sign in at the front office before going to class.

If you have any questions, please direct them to Mr Anthony Pope, Acting Religious Education Coordinator, on apope@parra.catholic.edu.au

Year 8 Reflection Day
Our Year 8 students participated in their Reflection Day on Friday, March 28, at the College. Their focus was on God’s love and forgiveness, and our call to brotherhood.

The students reflected on the Parables of the Lost Coin, Lost Sheep, and Prodigal Son to deepen their understanding of Jesus’ teaching about forgiveness and reconciliation. They participated in an Ignatian Examen to deepen their awareness of where God is present and working in their own lives, and where they might need to seek His guidance. Finally, they participated in some games and activities to deepen their friendships with their peers.  A highlight of the day for many of the students was the sausage sizzle lunch.

We are grateful to Mr Adnan Saleh (Year 8 Student Formation Leader), Mr Alan Niulesa (Year 8 Assistant Student Formation Leader), Ms Ellen Lombo (Faith in Action Team Coordinator), the Year 8 Homeroom Teachers, and the Administrative and Grounds staff for facilitating the day’s program and preparing the food.

School-Based Sacramental Program
We are proud to be able to offer the school-based Sacramental Program this year for any students who wish to receive the Catholic Sacraments of Baptism, Reconciliation, First Eucharist, and Confirmation. We have already received expressions of interest from ten families, for which we are most grateful. Families wishing to take up this opportunity are encouraged to contact Mr Greg Beacroft at the College by phone on 8811 0300, or by email at gbeacroft@parra.catholic.edu.au .

Project Compassion
This is the last week of the Project Compassion fundraising drive.  For the Catholic Church, Lent is a period of preparation for Easter through Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. Project Compassion is the primary charitable cause for the Australian Catholic Church at this time.  We encourage any families, who are able, to give generously.

This year we will be using the Project Compassion Schools Online Donation Platform. This means you can donate directly to our school's Project Compassion total online safely. You can do this by clicking on the link below or using the QR below.

https://schools.projectcompassion.org.au/o/patrician-brothers-college-blacktown

You can read the FAQs for more information here: https://schools.projectcompassion.org.au/faqs

Thank you for your support.

Thursday Morning Mass
Thursday Morning Masses will resume in Week 2 of Term 2.  All students, staff, and parents/carers are welcome to attend.  Parents and carers are asked to sign in at the College Reception office before going to the Chapel.

Breakfast Club
Breakfast Club has expanded this year, and now runs on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 8:00am until 8:40am.  Our Faith in Action Team serve breakfast cereal, fruit, cheese toasties, and juice.  All students are welcome to join us for breakfast at the Senior Cafe.

Happy Easter
For our Church, Easter is the highlight of the year. We have spent the last six weeks of Lent preparing for the events of Holy Week.  Through the Crucifixion, Christ shows us the fullness of His humanity by enduring betrayal and suffering death. Through the Resurrection, He reveals His divinity and the promise of salvation that we will all share.  In our Religious Education classes we have been reflecting on the Gospel passages relating to the Passion and the Resurrection during the last week; and on Friday we gathered as a College community for a Stations of the Cross Liturgy.

We wish all of our students and their families a very happy and holy Easter.

Anthony Pope
Acting Leader of Learning Religious Education

Dean of Knowledge Management and Analytics

Keep Learning Alive During the Holidays
While the holidays are a great time to relax and recharge, they can also be the perfect opportunity to keep your brain active in fun and stress-free ways. Learning doesn’t have to stop just because you are on school holidays.

Reading a good book, exploring a new hobby, or watching educational videos can all help keep your mind sharp. Even simple things like journaling your holiday experiences or trying a new recipe can build valuable skills.

If you're feeling ambitious, this could be a great time to catch up on subjects you found challenging or get ahead for the next term. Just a little bit of learning each day can make a big difference!

So enjoy your break, but don’t forget that learning can happen anywhere, anytime.

Mark Robinson
Dean of Knowledge Management and Analytics

Pathways and Partnership Update

Year 11 LEAD the way to UNSW 
On Friday 28 March, nine Year 11 students participated in the UNSW Gateway Leaders Program with students from five other schools. The day began with a leadership workshop run by UNSW Gateway University Ambassadors called “Who am I as a leader?” Students explored individual values, purpose and passions for social impact and explored the kind of leader they want to become.

The second workshop was run by the incredible Jo O’Reilly who asked our students “How do we communicate with purpose?”. Jo is an accomplished professional speaker, former comedian and has worked extensively with UNSW and the AGSM to develop leadership skills and potential in all kinds of people. Jo’s workshop was a practical and inspiring workshop that explored what it means to have a leadership presence that aligns with your values and purpose. Students were reminded that leaders do not always have to have the loudest voice and that we all have leadership potential.

Our students were incredible role models on the day, actively involving themselves in all activities and networking with students from different schools.

Patrician Brothers’ College Blacktown is a UNSW Gateway partner school. For more information about the opportunities and academic support that are offered to students of UNSW Gateway partner schools, visit their website here: UNSW Gateway | Early Admission Pathway | UNSW Sydney

Marie Lane
Pathways and Partnerships Leader

Resource Centre Update

Working Wednesday
This term in the Resource Centre Mrs. Lane and myself introduced Working Wednesday - An initiative focused on students dedicating their free time to working on assessments, homework, study, resumes and careers.

Working Wednesday encompasses our silent study period and the Resume workshop with Mrs. Lane at lunchtime followed by Homework Centre on Wednesday afternoons from 3:00-4:00pm.

We’ve run Working Wednesdays for the last 3 weeks of term with great success and are excited to continue this initiative into the following terms.

E-Resources
While trying to keep busy over the holidays, students are reminded that they have access to a large range of E-Resources that can be used for more than just school activities.

SORA and Wheelers (ePlatform) have an extensive list of fiction books, magazines, graphic novels and Manga which are available to students within CSDP at any time and completely free when accessing with their school information.

Clickview is also available to students, both for educational materials as well as TV shows and movies and again, is completely free to use.

Links to all E-Resources can be found on the Patrician Brothers’ E-Library, which students can access through the star icon on compass.

Happy Holidays
I hope all students enjoy the school holidays and take this time to relax to come back for Term 2 rested and ready to continue learning. A happy Easter season to all those in our school community and I hope this time is filled with love and purpose however you celebrate.

Beth Head
Senior School Assistant - Resource Centre

Languages News

Buongiorno a tutti,

What an eventful and productive Term 1 we have had in the Languages Department with our students.

It gives me great pleasure to share the successful results of our Year 7 and Year 8 competitions with Education Perfect. From April 7 to 9, our boys were challenged to answer as many questions correctly using the EP platform in Italian to enhance their knowledge and understanding of the language they are learning. Participants earned a point for every question answered correctly and demonstrated phenomenal discipline, commitment, hard work and dedication.

Congratulations to the winners: 

• Aryan Patel, 1st with 1251 points
• Veer Raval, 2nd with 1241 points
• Willjan Umali, 3rd with 1065 points
• Vikaash Baskaran , 4th with 921 points
• Riley Williams, 5th with 873 points

The Languages Team recognized their achievements with each boy receiving a prize.

We wish all in our community una Buona Pasqua (a Happy Easter).

Marina Murazzo
Languages Coordinator 

Merit Awards

Sports Report

PDSSSC Volleyball
Last Thursday our Intermediate team took out the Gold medal in the PDSSSC grand final against Maronite College of the Holy Family, winning two sets and drawing one. The game was played with traditional Patties blue and gold spirit, strength and strategy. The boys' community spirit and brotherhood was put to the test but they rallied together to beat a formidable Maronite College of the Holy Family team, determined to avenge their grand final loss to us last year. This victory marks a two year winning streak for our school, as Patties establishes its profile in the sport. Our Junior Volleyball team must be commended for their silver medal victory in this grand final, making history for their division. Congratulations to Intermediate coach Ms. Smith and Junior coach Mr. Stride. Special mention for our senior team coached by Mr. Manu who made the semi-finals and just missed out.

Amal Smith
Coach

PDSSSC OzTag
Patrician Brothers' College triumphed Over Maronite College of the Holy Family and Bede Polding College in the PDSSSC Junior & Intermediate OzTag Grand Final. In the Junior Grand Final, PBB emerged victorious with a dominant 7-2 win over Maronite College of the Holy Family. From the start, PBB played a man short with just seven players on the field. Captain Bernie Irvine helped to secure a couple of crucial moments in the game to seal the 7-2 victory. Special mention to Taiden Sandry who got injured in the second half but was a key player scoring tries to keep us ahead when we were down to 6 players for most of the second half. 
In the Intermediate Grand Final, PBB clinched a memorable 10-8 victory over Bede Polding College. PBB raced to a commanding 7-2 lead at halftime. As the second half unfolded, Bede Polding College refused to go down without a fight, closing the gap and making it 10-8 with just minutes remaining. However, despite Bede Polding's best efforts, PBB held on to win 10-8. With a captain like Caleb Zahra at the helm, PBB has firmly established itself as a team to watch in the years to come. A well-earned victory for both our Junior and Intermediate teams — one that will go down in PDSSSSC Oztag history.

James Bunoza & Chelsea Te'Ariki
Coaches

Years 4 to 6 Rugby League Day

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