MRC Newsletter - Issue 7 - 22 May 2024

Prayer

A prayer to Mary Help of Christians

Mary, Help of Christians, watch over us with love. 
Intercede for us with your Son, to bless Australia.  Through your prayers and under your protection, may the light of Christ shine over our land.

May Australia be granted harmony, justice and peace.

Grant wisdom to our leaders and integrity to our citizens
so that we can be people of peace –

people who love and respect each other, and people who love and respect our land, Australia.

We make this prayer through Jesus, your Son.

Amen.

Principal's Message

This week holds special significance for our school community as we gather to honour the feast day of Our Lady, Help of Christians on Friday, May 24th. Our Lady Help of Christians is a revered title of the Blessed Virgin Mary, tracing its roots back to the 16th century in Italy when a church was dedicated to her under this title. Celebrated globally on May 24th, she is known as a powerful intercessor and protector, particularly in times of danger and distress. Since our establishment in 1973, Our Lady has been chosen as the patron saint of our school, embodying guidance and protection. Notably, she is also recognised as the patroness of Australia, deepening our connection to the nation. To mark this special occasion, we will come together for Mass at St. Patrick’s Church, followed by a school-wide assembly. Additionally, we invite parents, family, and community members to join us for Mass starting at 11:30 am. The festivities will continue with a soccer match during lunchtime, where our enthusiastic Year 12 students will face off against the staff in a friendly competition. Let's unite in celebration and gratitude for the blessings bestowed upon our school community.

Yesterday we received the Southern Region Aboriginal Message Stick, one of five travelling across our Diocese. Mercy Regional College will host this stick for the week before handing it on to St Brendan's Catholic Primary School, Coragulac. Four of these Message Sticks are being carried from school to school, symbolising the interconnectedness of all our school communities, from the Murray to the sea. 

In Aboriginal culture, Message Sticks were used to establish communication and transmit messages between different clans and language groups. They were often used to invite neighbouring groups to corroborees, initiation ceremonies, grant the right of entry to country, and invite participation in religious rituals. To commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Catholic Diocese of Ballarat, five Aboriginal Message Sticks were gifted to convey the message: "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer." (Romans 12:12).

Our governing body DOBCEL shared with us this explanation of the Southern Region  Message Stick:

The story of the message stick:  From the Murray to the Sea the Creator Spirit spoke to the Ancestors thousands of years before Abraham and Moses.  The Creator Spirit touched the sacredness of country and all that had been created, gifting the ancestors with the law to care for country, the waterways, the animals and to co-exist with all that had been created. 

The symbols on the message stick: The journey track represents the thousands of students, and school staff and the many great gifts shared along the journey.
The Southern Cross guides you as you travel in the four directions.
The four U designs represent the leaders in the regions gathering to share stories, ideas and support each other.
The two circles represent the river and the ocean waters. 

The message stick, pictured below with our Arts & Environment Leader Charlotte B. and FIRE Carrier Annabelle G., will be on display in the McAuley reception until we pass it on.

As part of the studies in Religious Education, our Year 12 and Year 7 students had the privilege of spending the day working with Sam Clear. Year 12 student Charlotte B. shared the following reflection with us:

As part of the Year 12 cohort’s third Seminar day, Samuel Clear was the guest speaker facilitating the presentations, sharing his personal experiences with his 15,000+ km walk Praying for unity. His presentation included some of both confronting and moving aspects of this journey. The day, broken into three sessions, focused on many broad issues of society that Sam encountered, including humility, passion, and conditions, and provided us with the understanding of how we can apply these valuable lessons to our own lives. The experience included countless engaging discussions and stories, including the injury that ended Sam’s AFL career, his subsequent pursuit of missionary work, and the encounters he made on his walk to pray for unity, that were sometimes awe-inspiring, but many others frightening and devastating. His journey to finding Adolfo again, one of those met along the way, was a much talked about, and inspiring outcome. The group had the opportunity to participate in fun practical activities that applied the idea of the ‘conditions’ that we use to determine how we treat people, and another where we discussed barriers we face toward change. Overall, the day was well enjoyed and a valuable opportunity for all involved, with interesting aspects everybody could partake in. 

The Right to Disconnect

The Fair Work Act 2009 has recently been updated to include provisions allowing employees the right to disconnect from work communications outside their designated working hours. This new provision will take effect from August 26, 2024. In schools, this includes communication from parents, students, colleagues, or others within the school community.

Mercy Regional  College has long recognised the importance of employees' right to disconnect. You will soon see the following message at the base of staff emails:

"Mercy Regional College staff access their work emails normally between 8:30 am - 4.30 pm and will endeavour to respond to emails within 24-48 hours. However, staff are not expected to respond during weekends, public holidays, term breaks for teaching staff, and individual work hours for part-time staff."

We ask all members of the school community to be aware of the new provision and to limit communication with school staff to school work hours. If you communicate outside of these hours, please understand that the College does not expect its staff to respond until their next workday.

State Budget Announcement 

Recently the Allan Labor Government announced a $400 School Saving Bonus for all school students in government schools regardless of income, but only for Health Care Card holders in Catholic and independent schools. This is deeply unfair. We believe the payment should be means tested for all students or apply to all students. It should not be based on which school you attend.  

This policy punishes families for choosing to send their children to a Catholic school. 

This school, the Diocese and the peak body, the Victorian Catholic Education Authority, are working hard to oppose this policy and we need your help. We need to show the Victorian Government that punishing families who choose a Catholic school is unacceptable. Please consider contacting your local Member of Parliament to express your concern. Parents and carers will have received a letter from me sharing the contact details of our local politicians to contact.

School Student Broadband Initiative

The Australian Governments School Student Broadband Initiative (SSBI) is available to families through to December 2025. Eligible families who sign up now, can still access over 18 months of free internet. The Australian Government initiative was designed to boost education opportunities and narrow the digital divide, with the Australian Government providing up to 30,000 eligible families with school age children with no internet at home access to free NBN under the SSBI.

Eligible Victorian families with students enrolled in Prep to Year 12, who do not have an active NBN connection (or had one in the previous 14 days) but can access a standard NBN service at their premises can become eligible with an application to the National Referral Centre. You can find more information about the NRC on Anglicare Victoria’s website available here: Student Internet Program - Anglicare Victoria or contact Jordan Smith at the DOBCEL Office at jsmith@dobcel.catholic.edu.au

In staffing news, we wish Mel and Luke Bourchier all the best as they take some well-earned long service leave until the end of Term. We welcome back Sharyn Grinter, covering Mel's classes, and Remi Donnison, covering Luke's classes for the five weeks.

Well done Georgia K., Khloe M. (U13) and Holly B. and Jess M. (U17) who have been selected for the Mininera & District Netball Association and Lara C., Indi C. (U17), Lyla G., Piper S., Pippa B., Charlotte H., Kiara L., Mckenzie D. (U15), Madi L., Olive W. (U13), who have been selected from the Hampden League for the Western Zone Championships in Ballarat in June.

With kindness,
Sharon Gillett - Principal

Learning at MRC

The phrase "knowledge is power" is often attributed to Francis Bacon, from his Meditationes Sacrae (1597).  

We invite all parents and carers to access the PAM (Parent Access Module) where there is lots of information and knowledge to be gained about your child's educational journey

Science of Learning

In every classroom there is a diverse group of students who learn in a variety of different ways.  Our teachers work tirelessly to ensure that the learning style of each student is catered for within their lesson plans.

Recently our staff have been delving deeper into the ‘Science of Learning’.  We have been looking at science-informed insights for building effective teaching and learning practices. This includes exploring the fundamentals of the Science of Learning, ranging from memory and cognitive load theory, to the changes in instructional practices that will deliver a greater impact. 

Science of learning draws together the research of many educational experts synthesising their ideas into a learning theory based on ensuring best practice and outcomes for our students.

Key concepts in the Science of Learning give consideration to 

• Biologically primary knowledge  and biologically secondary knowledge.  

Biologically primary knowledge includes things like basic social relations and problem-solving skills we have evolved to learn and do not need to be taught. In contrast, biologically secondary knowledge includes foundational skills  like reading, writing, maths, etc and the things we can only learn through instruction, for example, kicking a football.

• Domain-specific and domain-general skills. 

Domain-general skills overlap with biologically-primary knowledge but critical thinking and analysis are specific to domains such as maths, history etc.

• Working memory and long-term memory

Working memory is severely limited and can only handle small amounts of new information, making it a funnel to long-term memory. Understanding how the two types of memory interact is the key to reinforcing long term retention of knowledge.

• Cognitive load theory.

This is a theory of how human brains learn and store knowledge. Maximising intrinsic load (what we want the students to learn) and minimising extraneous load (other factors) is important to ensure effective learning.

Mercy Regional College is committed to providing your child with a learning experience that is rooted in the most up to date and scientifically based understanding learning.

Leanne Delahunty - Director of Learning and Teaching

Senior School

The General Assessment Test (GAT) is scheduled for Tuesday, June 18th. Year 12 VM students will exclusively undertake Part A of the test, while VCE students in Years 11 and 12, enrolled in Unit 3 and 4 subjects, will complete both Part A and B.

A comprehensive presentation on all aspects of the GAT will be provided to students, accompanied by the opportunity to engage in practice sessions with sample papers.

In tandem with their academic pursuits, Year 12 students are currently immersed in exploring potential career pathways during Mercy lessons this term. They are actively researching various courses and institutions, and initiating the groundwork for their VTAC applications. Guidance and support throughout this critical phase are readily available from Kym Penry, Mel Kavanagh, and Berni Sinnott.

Our senior students have been demonstrating commendable dedication during their study sessions. However, it remains crucial for them to augment their efforts with additional study at home, where they can benefit from a tranquil environment devoid of distractions. Following discussions with our students, it has become apparent that their phones and computers often hinder rather than facilitate effective studying.

As a community, we're committed to supporting our students in optimising their study habits. Encouraging them to cultivate an environment conducive to effective and efficient studying is paramount. Together, we can help guide our students to reach their academic goals with confidence and success.

Melanie Kavanagh - Learning Leader - Senior School

Barista Course

Last Tuesday, our Year 12 WRS-VCE VM students completed their coffee course, which was conducted through SWTAFE, Warrnambool. This course will allow the students to commence their coffee business. Operating this business will provide students with opportunities to achieve competencies in Work Related Skills and Personal Development subjects. The 10 students learnt all the facets of producing a great coffee. Each student will receive a certificate which will be beneficial for future employment.

Middle School

We are halfway through Term 2 and it has already been a very busy term for our students both inside the classroom and out.  As we approach the final weeks of Term, the winter weather means ther is more illness around. It is critical that students ensure their attendance at school is consistent and, if they are absent, are proactive about ensuring class notes, tasks and assessments are maintained.  Students are encouraged to check the Google Classroom if they are absent from school and / or email their teachers to ensure they do not miss anything.

Over the next few weeks your child will be completing assessments in most classes.  Now is a good time to check in with them to see how they are going and work together to put time aside at home to revise work or catch up on anything overdue. Please email your child’s teacher if you have any questions or concerns about their progress.  

Upcoming dates for your calendar:

Year 9 TAFE Try a Career Day is May 27. Students have already chosen their subjects of interest and should receive their allocations soon.  

Year 10 students currently completing a VCE subject will have exams in their classes starting next week.  

VCE Information Night is June 12 at 7pm (this is a Wednesday immediately after the King’s Birthday long weekend) and student interviews will be the following week.

Josiane Gardner - Learning Leader - Middle School

RIST Excursion

On May 2 & May 3, six Mercy students, Luke B., Ned T., Johno C., Josh F., George S. and Amelia P. attended the wool overview program conducted by RIST (Rural Industry Skills Training). 

Day one, we were introduced to the history of the wool shed at West Cloven Hills, Bookaar, whilst looking around at the old shoots and tiny front door. We then had a talk about the risks in a wool shed and different roles before the owners Nick and Mark demonstrated how to shear before allowing each of us a turn. 

Day two was a day full of rotating between being a shearer, wool classer and wool rouser. The day finished off by pulling apart a hand piece and learning how each part works. Great two days!

A couple of weeks later on May 15, we enjoyed our final day where we went to the property of Eastview in Caramut. We spent half the day in a working woolshed working as wool classers and rousers but in a faster environment than last time. After lunch, we went to a wool dealership to see the process of what happens after the wool is baled and put on a truck. This was a very interesting experience.

We would like to say a big thank you to Raelene from RIST who drove us around the countryside and organised all of our days. Also thank you to Nick and Mark at Bookaar for teaching us to shear and to Nick at Caramut for hosting us on your properties. Many thanks to Mrs Roache and Mrs Henry for organising this opportunity. We would recommend this program, we learnt so much. 

- Amelia P.

Year 9 Ag Excursion

On Wednesday 15th May students in Year 9 Ag/hort visited a nearby chook and beef farm Compadre Farms. Owners Ash and Lucy generously took us on a tour of their property showing us the 1000 hens they have on a pastured egg system. 

Ash and Lucy had an encouraging story to tell, sharing how they moved to the region from Geelong on a one acre property and yearned for more space to raise animals. The couple gave the students insights into their approach to business management, starting small and keeping things manageable before assessing if they want to upscale. They are hoping to introduce a farm gate store to sell eggs and beef products with a paddock to plate model in the near future. 

The students were fantastic, not afraid to ask questions relating to feeding requirements, collecting and selling the eggs and how they rotated the chooks across the paddocks every few days. Many found themselves in the company of the popular Maremma dogs brought onto the farm to help protect the chooks. 

As a bonus, each student had the opportunity to take home a dozen eggs before we returned back to school. A big thanks to Lucy and Ash for welcoming us and we hope to visit again to see how the farm changes over the years!

Year 10 Humanities

In Humanities recently Year 10 students have been working on annotating source material to identify different perspectives of the Kokoda Campaign in World War Two.  

They are developing their critical thinking skills, recognising reliability of evidence and bias, and developing empathy for other views.  

These skills are vital in helping our young people to analyse information, think independently and make informed decisions.

Junior School

At the official midpoint of the Term, we recognise that this is an opportune time to refresh and remind everyone of our home learning expectations at O’Keeffe. Whilst many students have mastered the organisation and time management required to have their home learning completed to a satisfactory standard and handed in on time, we also acknowledge that for many this can be quite challenging. We appreciate your ongoing support with this and ask that you continue to remind them of the importance in staying engaged with the home learning process. 

To further support this process from school, homeroom teachers have been working on helping students to complete a ‘home learning’ planner that recognises existing commitments and allows them to find pockets of time where they can complete any home learning. If your child is yet to bring theirs home to stick in the study or on the fridge, it won’t be far away…and you may just be asked to take a sneaky selfie to acknowledge that you have discussed it with your child and are able to support them with their plans!

As always, Mercy is a busy place, with many extra-curricular activities on offer for students. Over the coming weeks many of our O’Keeffe students will be involved in sporting activities and other events, and as a result may miss some classes. It is extremely important that students are aware of the expectation that they stay up-to-date with classwork and home learning tasks despite missed lessons.

As always, we appreciate your ongoing support in these areas.

Leah Sinnott - Learning Leader - Junior School

Year 7 French card writing

We extend our language skills by writing cards in French on special occasions.

Sapphire D. of 7A put a lot of imagination into creating a fabulous Mother's Day card and a quirky Easter card with removable eggs. Une artiste extraordinaire! 

Year 7 Science

Last week our Year 7 students were investigating the properties of Oobleck as part of their study of the States of Matter. 

Can you pour it? What happens when you tap it? Can you cut it? Is it a solid or a liquid? 

This investigation left many students with brightly coloured hands and quite a bit of cleaning up to do!

Community & Wellbeing at MRC

Digital reputation

This week, I join many families across the country in advocating for a significant change regarding social media usage among our youth. Social media entered our lives with little forewarning, and together, schools and families have worked tirelessly to educate, protect, and build an understanding of digital reputation. This effort is far from easy. A growing national campaign highlights a simple yet powerful message: "Let them be kids." 

Our young people have grown up in a world dominated by platforms such as TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram. Their daily lives are often intertwined with these digital spaces. Recently, I have read numerous heartbreaking stories about young people making serious mistakes online and unfortunately it is not foreign in our society. 

These accounts prompt me to think deeply about what more we can do to safeguard our children from making irreversible errors online. We run our MERCY classes with cybersafety education, guest speakers, display boards, have policies, conversations, police youth liaison visits, share articles, write newsletter articles. Although all of these are valuable in their own right, we often feel that our messages are not fully resonating with young people.

Within a school context, social media is a concern, issue and conversation that is raised on a daily basis. We have explicit teaching in this subject and also incidental conversations with our young people. We know education is the key and continually keeping the conversation going between adults and young people. 

This link will provide further information and insight into the digital world, articles, videos with leading specialists and resources.

https://mercy.vic.schooltv.me/newsletter/social-media-and-digital-reputationds

Together, let's work towards creating a safer digital environment for our children.

Emily Stephens - Assistant Principal, Wellbeing & Engagement

Thursday Painting at O'Keeffe

Many bright and colourful watercolour artworks have been made each Thursday lunchtime at the O’Keeffe Campus, as painting sessions with College Social Worker Chadley Peerman provide the chance for conversation and creative talent to flourish!

MRC Diversity & Inclusion Week

MRC Diversity & Inclusion Week began last Friday, and colourful cupcakes were available to mark IDAHOBIT Day. Each day this week we have recognised a different aspect of diversity.

Sports Report

Intermediate Girls Netball

On Tuesday 14th May, Mercy Regional College entered a Year 9 team and a Year 10 team in the HSSSD Intermediate Netball Competition held at Terang. 

Both teams competed extremely well against the other schools and were able to win all of their matches against them. This meant that MRC would go through to the next stage and compete at the GWR level later this term. The match up between the Year 9 team and the Year 10 team was an epic encounter with the winner having bragging rights over the other team. In a close finish the Year 9 team was able to get the win. 

We obviously can’t take two teams to GWR so this team will be selected from the MRC netball games completed so far this year, including both the HSSSD Competition and the BAS Competition. 

Thanks to Zoe Bouchier and Joanne Roberts for taking charge of these HSSSD teams at Terang. 

Intermediate Girls Football

On Tuesday 21st May our Intermediate Girls Football team traveled to Hamilton to play in the GWR Competition after winning the HSSSD Competition earlier this term. 

In difficult conditions the girls played Ballarat High School first up and were well beaten by a very strong team. Most of the BHS girls play in a local competition, whereas only a handful of our girls have played competitively in a girls football competition. 

Our second game wasn’t going to be easy either with us coming up against Emmanuel College. This was a much closer game with our girls keeping the opposition goalless, but they were able to score more points than us and won the game. 

Well done to the girls that represented MRC, and to Annabelle G. for coaching the girls on the day.

BAS Football

Round 3 played on 7/5/24

A great win against St Patrick’s College Blue played in great conditions. 

Mercy 7.14-56
St Pats 2.5-17

Goal Kickers: Tarkyn L. - 4, Daniel R. -1, Lenny S. - 1, Hamish M. - 1
Best Players: Tarkyn L., Wilba C., Lenny S., Daniel R., Eddie B., Mark L.

Round 4 played on 21/5/24

This was a battle between the two undefeated teams, held at Ballarat High School. After a close battle for 3 quarters Damascus College was able to pull away in the last quarter to record the win. We now have 3 wins and 1 loss from our 4 games and sit second behind Damascus College. We play the third placed team next week in an important game to hold on to second place. 

Damascus 8.3-51
Mercy 5.6-36

Goal Kickers: Tarkyn L. - 2, Ned M - 1, Charlie R. - 1, Xavier R. - 1
Best Players: Daniel R., Wilba C., Jonty L., Gus W., Aidan C.

BAS Netball

Our BAS Netballers had a win 48-24 against Ballarat High on Tuesday.

After a short training session with Sarah Wall the girls implemented the small things very well. They worked beautifully as a team and connected well with different combinations.

Faith at MRC

This Friday - Mercy Feast Day  

Many years ago, our school, Mercy Regional College took on a Patron Saint to celebrate as a Feast Day each Year.

Many Catholic schools are named after specific Saints but this was of course not the case for us. As our school evolved from the work of four different Parishes and the Diocese, it was decided that we would take on the Patron Saint of Australia, Mary Help of Christians which is traditionally celebrated on May 24th. 

Mary, Help of Christians was declared the Patron saint of Australia and our first Cathedral in Sydney is named for her. The infant Church in Australia had a special reason for turning to Mary. In those early and mostly priest less days, it was largely the Rosary that kept the faith alive. Catholic Australia remained faithful to Mary, and was the first nation to choose her, under the title of Help of Christians, as Patron Saint.

This year as we celebrate the fifty-first anniversary of Mercy Regional College, we pray to Mary Help of Christians to keep us safe and to continue on as an amazing place of education in the spirit of the Gospels. We celebrate what it means to be a uniquely Regional College and to be part of the Community of faith.  Friday May 24th is our Feast Day. It is a special Day for the school and therefore we mark the occasion with a Mass.           

Year 7 Retreat

Sam Clear spoke with year 7 students about his journey around the world praying for unity. His many injuries and obstacles did not set him back on his mission. Students learnt through his experiences about the conditions that apply to all our relationships and the importance of maintaining composure and controlling our emotional reactions. The day was structured in such a way that allowed for students to listen to Sam’s journey, with engaging photos and clips, and to respond to the many ideas presented in unique whole group games. The final session of the day was reflective and asked students to pray a ‘blunt prayer’ for their family, school or themselves. We hope that through this day students have been able to make a link with their own lives that they can carry forward. 

Melanie Bourchier - Director of Catholic Identity & Culture

Eco Justice Report

This Laudato Si’ Week, let us gather in community to contemplate and nurture seeds of hope for our suffering planet. This week is a reminder about the urgency of the Laudato Si’ message and the need for both personal and cultural transformation amidst our ecological and climate crises.This year’s Laudato Si’ Week theme is inspired by the symbol for Season of Creation 2024, “firstfruits.” Let us be seeds of hope in our lives and our world. 

Of the themes explored for Laudato Si week, two were chosen to be the focus at the McAuley campus, which included waste reduction and enhancing biodiversity. On Monday our VM - PDS students were involved in a restoration project of a garden at the front of the school. Planting included a number of native grasses and groundcovers and an indigenous wattle tree to symbolise future efforts at the school for ecological awareness. 

Tuesday saw a group of keen learners engage in a lunch time activity to sow seeds in preparation of national tree day and other plantings to happen across both campuses. Keeping with the themes of the week a selection of seeds were chosen from wattles, eucalypts, a banksia species and a threatened Victorian pea. The group did a great job in the many steps from sanitising containers to pre seed treatments like scarification and smoke treatment to making up the seed raising mix and now controlling the right conditions for germination. 

In addressing waste reduction at the school, last week a message was sent out to students encouraging them to participate in a Wrapper Free Wednesday. This initiative is simply bringing food to school that is not wrapped in foil, plastic or commercial packaging. The best type of Wrapper Free Food consists mainly of fresh food, so that it is healthy and nutritious, and of course environmentally friendly. The aim going forward is to continue initiatives such as these and share ideas in mercy and physical education classes. 

On Thursday a number of insect hotels will be finished and placed around the school to encourage a number of pollinators such as native bees. May 20 is World Bee Day which demonstrates the importance of these often undervalued and hard working insects, vital to food security, biodiversity and ecosystem health. These boxes were constructed with scrap material from building and construction and also broken branches from trees found around the school perimeter. 

A big thank you to all students and classes involved in these projects and supporting the themes of Laudato Si, especially ECO focused members of the MAD group. It's encouraging to see the interest that these topics and activities have facilitated and we hope to expand upon these this year and in coming years. 

Tom Kelly - Eco Justice & Sustainability Leader

Library News

The Locked Box Challenge

Last Friday, students at O’Keeffe Campus were invited to take on the Locked Box Challenge – a Library activity designed to test the critical thinking and problem-solving skills of the participants. 

The challenge is like an escape room but, instead of escaping, students needed to solve the clues and codes to locate the key, open the box and claim the prizes. The idea was to solve the challenge during recess and lunch on the same day. This turned out to be a very enjoyable and engaging activity on a grey, rainy day.

The participants, competing in pairs or teams were quite competitive but it was the seventh and final clue that unexpectedly proved to be the most puzzling. The winners were the pair who were the first to recognise that DCCC might not be an acronym but 800 in Roman numerals. 

Congratulations to Year 7 students Scarlet and Meg who took home the prize of vouchers and lollies from The Shed. Malke and Halle won the participation prize draw. Well done to all who joined in!

You are invited to Book Club - NEXT WEDNESDAY

Every term we invite parents, staff members, alumni and friends to the Mercy Book Club. We meet for informal discussion, food and refreshments.

This term we will be discussing a non-fiction title - A Brilliant Life by Rachelle Unreich.

"The powerful true story of a Holocaust survivor told by her daughter – a tale that reminds us of the resilience of the soul and the ability of the heart to heal.

A mother and daughter.
Love. Loss. Wonder.
The story of a brilliant life."

6:00pm Wednesday 29 May at the Terang Commercial Hotel.
All are welcome and you can RSVP via Trybooking here
There is no cost.
Contact jchristie@mercy.vic.edu.au

You can find us on Facebook at:
Mercy Regional College Book Club

New Books

In the MRC Library we have focused on building an inclusive and diverse collection that reflects both a local and global perspective. Some of the new books this term are featured in the booklet below.

This term there has been a focus on books related to STEAM and catering for students of all reading ability.

Jean Christie - Library & Resource Centre Coordinator

2025 Enrolments Now Open

O'Keeffe Campus Tours 2024

Careers

Check out the latest Careers Newsletter below:

Child Safety

Mercy Regional College is a child-safe community.

Child Safety Officers:

Contact them by email or on:
Phone - 55932011 (McAuley Campus) or 55925353 (O’Keeffe Campus)

Child Safe Standard 11

MRC has written policies about how you keep children safe from abuse and harm. They are easy to understand, and all staff follow them.

Mercy Regional College is dedicated to fostering a safe and supportive environment for all students. Central to our commitment is the implementation of policies on keeping children safe from abuse and harm and understood and followed by staff. 

In practice and complying with Standard 11, MRC  actively implements these policies for review and improvement:

• MRC Duty of Care policy
• VIT Code of Conduct
• MRC Complaints and grievance policies
• DOBCEL Pastoral Care and Wellbeing policy
• DOBCEL Digital Technology Policy and Agreement
• DOBCEL Risk Management Framework
• DOBCEL Risk Management Policy
  MRC Child safety and Wellbeing Policy
• MRC Safeguarding Children and Young People Code of Conduct Policy
• MRC Bullying Prevention (including cybersafety) Policy
• DOBCEL Identifying and Responding to Abuse 
• DOBCEL Child Safety Officer Role Description
• DOBCEL PROTECT Policies
• CECV Commitment to Child sSafety

Some evidence of practice and implementation include:

• Regular consultation on child safety with everyone involved at MRC is undertaken.
• MRC uses input from consultations and available information about creating child safety and wellbeing to help develop, review and update policies and procedures related to child safety. 
• MRC’s  policies and procedures cover all the Child Safe Standards and address the risks to the safety of children that are specific to the Mercy Regional College and its environment. 
• Policies and procedures are easy to understand and can be accessed easily.

Upcoming Dates and Events

Thursday 23 May
Paddock to Plate Excursion

Friday 24 May
Feast Day Mass

Monday 27 May
Unit 1 Exams begin
Unit 1 Legal Studies Excursion
Year 9 Try a Career Day
GWR Cross Country

Tuesday 28 May
BAS Football & Netball

Wednesday 29 May
Year 11 VM Fishing Excursion
O'Keeffe Student Book Club
MRC Book Club

Thursday 30 May
VET Animal Studies Excursion

Tuesday 4 June
BAS Football & Netball

Wednesday 5 June
O'Keeffe Student Book Club

Thursday 6 June
Year 11 into 12 Student Interviews

Friday 7 June
Frayne House Day

Wednesday 12 June
Pathways Information Session - 7pm

Community Notices

Sunday 16 June at 2pm

Theatre Royal

Experience the iconic programming of the Victorian State Concert Orchestra featuring a dynamic repertoire ranging from timeless classics to beloved tunes of operetta and musical theatre.
Tickets $20 per person available here: https://events.humanitix.com/vsco