The Frayne Speech Festival is hosted each year by a different Mercy school and provides a wonderful opportunity to celebrate the skills and talents of students in a variety of different types of public speech. It was with great joy that we welcomed nine Mercy schools to OLMC on Friday 30 August to participate in the Frayne Speech Festival. We also welcomed members of the Mercy Ministry Companions Board and Mercy Education Limited, along with Principals, teachers and students. The festival created a great buzz of excitement at OLMC.
Congratulations to the Voice Choir and Debating teams who placed first in the festival. To all who represented OLMC, we offer our thanks and congratulations; the students were all excellent ambassadors for the College.
Last week the Parents’ Association held the annual Father’s Day Breakfast. It was wonderful to see students share some breakfast and conversation with significant men in their lives. Some of our students shared with us what makes their Dad special. There were a few laughs and it was great to see the bond between fathers and daughters. Thank you to the Parents’ Association who each year work tirelessly to provide opportunities for community engagement and also raise money to support the school. We are blessed to have such committed and dedicated parents.
Parent Teacher Student Interviews for Years 7-9 will be held next week online. As always, we encourage all families to take the opportunity to meet with teachers to both celebrate the successes of your child and to discuss next steps to support their growth. This is an important opportunity for us to come together as partners in your child’s learning growth and development.
I have recently shared with staff the idea that we are currently in a liminal place: the space between the old and the new. We are working to determine what the new means for us and how we will move forward to ensure that we are preparing young people for the future that they will live and work within. This week we held the first round of our parent consultation for the development of the next Strategic Directions 2025-2029. Thank you to all those who participated and engaged with the process. The voices of parents, students and staff are critical to the discernment process.
Mercy Day will be celebrated on Thursday 19 September. This is one of the most significant days in our year. It is a time when we pause to acknowledge and celebrate the wonderful legacy that has been gifted to us by the Sisters of Mercy. The Student Leaders from all year levels take a role in the preparations, encouraging all to be involved. The day also raises money for the very important work done by Mercy Works, who support communities around the world who are struggling with poverty and poor access to health care and other vital services.
Mercy Day is a great day of celebration, fun and food. It is a moment in time when we can appreciate all that it means to belong to the OLMC Mercy Community. I cannot stress enough how important it is for our students to be part of the day.