Marcellin College Newsletter

Message from the Principal

Fakaalofa lahi atu, Kia Ora, Malo e lelei, Talofa lava, Taloha ni, Ni sa bula, Kamonaso, Kia Orana, Ni Hao, Namaste, Ram-Ram, Salām, Sanibona, Magandang, Ola, Fakatalofa and warm greetings to all.

Although this year has certainly been an unexpected journey for all of us, we have been blessed with caring and dedicated students/ākonga, staff and families/whānau. As families, you have all contributed to a very successful year for Marcellin College, serving together in a Christian community and we are very grateful for your trust, care and support for our school. Together we are becoming the best. Ngā mihi, ngā mihi, ngā mihi nui.

Important dates for the year ahead can be found on the school calendars we will be sending out this week, though I would like to draw your attention to the following:

3rd February – NEW Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 only in full school uniform (arrive by 8:40am)

4th February – ALL Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 Team Building in mufti (arrive 8:40am)

7th February – School Closed Waitangi Day

8th February – All year groups in full school uniform (arrive by 8:40am)

25th February – Dedication Mass – all whānau are invited

A reminder that from 2022, all Year 11,12 and 13 students will wear the senior uniform, which means the change to the white shirt and tie earlier and an earlier change of skirt for the girls. Our refreshed tie design will be arriving at The Warehouse on Pah Road around mid-January so please reserve buying uniform until then. A new waterproof soft-shell school jacket will also be arriving which I am sure will be very popular with students too. There is a notice in this newsletter and a reminder will be sent out in January.

As we journey through Advent, it is a time to reflect on the most important event in human history, the Incarnation; the coming of our Lord to earth. May we always be grateful to be his people. As he watches over us, enjoy some family time and rest in readiness for our journeys next year.

On behalf of all staff at Marcellin College, we wish you a Blessed Christmas and look forward to seeing you in 2022.

Ngā mihi nui whānau,

Dean Wearmouth

Principal                                                                           

Important Notices

Key Dates for 2022

3rd February – NEW Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 only in full school uniform (arrive by 8:40am)

4th February – ALL Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9 Team Building in mufti (arrive 8:40am)

7th February – School Closed Waitangi Day

8th February – All year groups in full school uniform (arrive by 8:40am)

25th February – Dedication Mass – all whānau are invited

Uniform requirements for 2022

Following student/ākonga and family/whānau feedback from 2022 all Year 11-13 students will wear the full senior uniform. This provides three years of wear for students rather than changing in Year 13 for one year.

 

Learning and Curriculumn

Ako/Learning

School Loan Devices are NOW DUE to be Returned

Reports

Special Character:

During this beautiful Advent season we take time to reflect on the coming of our saviour, Jesus Christ. There will be an Advent Wreath in our homes or in our Churches, symbolising this time when we prepare for the birth of Christ at Christmas.

The Four Sundays of Advent contain themes which help us to focus our attention on what is important in our preparation.

The purple of three of the four advent candles represent preparation. The rose colour represents our joy as we draw nearer to the birth of Christ.

• Hope is the theme of the first Sunday of Advent as we acknowledge that our hope for our lives and for eternal life rests in Jesus alone.
• Peace is the theme of the second Sunday of Advent and is a time for us to look deep into our hearts, into scripture and into prayer to see that Christ truly tells us, ‘’My peace I give you, my peace I leave with you.”
• Joy is the theme of the third Sunday on which the rose or pink coloured candle is lit. It represents the baby leaping in Mary’s womb and the joy that Christ’s presence brings to our world and our lives.
• Love is the theme of the final Sunday of Advent and we look to Christ as the one who ultimately deserves our love and adoration, the one who has first loved us and who loves us enough to come into our world in order to save us. This Sunday of Advent causes us to think about Christ’s great act of saving love on the cross and his resurrection that we might live in love with him forever.
• The white candle represents Christ, the light that comes into our world and into our lives to dispel all darkness and fear.

As we contemplate Christ entering into our humanity this Christmas, may it be a peaceful, joyous time for all of us. As we celebrate with loved ones all that Christ has done for us throughout 2021, may we look forward in hope to Christ accompanying us all on the journey that we will take during 2022.

We pray that all members of our community will be filled with the hope, peace, joy, love and light that only Christ can give and that we will all share these beautiful blessings with others, knowing that we are called to allow the light of Christ to shine through us to everyone around us.

Community:

Middle School Prizegiving 2021

We celebrated ākonga success very differently this year. With gathering restrictions still in place for Auckland schools, we had three separate Middle School prize giving events take place on Thursday 9^th and Friday 10^th December. Despite not being able to welcome whānau and friends to the events, they were still joyous occasions celebrating both sports and academic achievements. Congratulations once again to all our award recipients for your hard mahi this year. Whakamihi!

The Marcellin College top academic students for 2021 are:

Year 7 – Kyle Bendall

Year 8 – Alaynah Kaifa

Year 9 – Krizette Ramos

Year 10 – Tyler Oroanu 

The winning whānau for 2021 is MacKillop.

Recordings of the events have been sent to award recipients and whānau, and the professional photographs can be viewed using the links below.

Year 7&8 Prize Giving – https://www.bcphotography.co.nz/mrcmspg2021

Year 9 and 10 Prize Givings – https://www.bcphotography.co.nz/marcellincollegeyr9-10prizegiving2021

IF YOUR CHILD IS DOING SOMETHING FANTASTIC OUTSIDE OF SCHOOL TIME, WE WOULD LOVE TO HEAR ABOUT IT AND SHARE IT WITH THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY –  EMAIL YOUR STORIES (AND PHOTOGRAPHS) TO: office@marcellin.school.nz