Issue 13 2023
‘You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.’
Jerimiah 29:13
From the Principal
This week is an incredibly busy and exciting one for the College. There are a number of significant academic, cultural and sporting events on this week which reminds me, once again, of the amazing breadth of opportunities that are available to our students.
Thank you to all those grandparents, parents, families and friends who joined us for the Book Week Parade and Grandparent's Day. It has been a great celebration of learning, community and family, and it was wonderful for the Primary students to get involved in such an enjoyable event that encourages and promotes a love of literature and reading. Many thanks to our staff for their efforts to celebrate the day and dressing as a book character. Thank you also to the parents for helping the students bring their favourite book character to life and to those who supplied something scrumptious for morning tea. It has been a great community day.
Congratulations to the large contingent of students, staff and parents who travelled to Coffs Harbour last week to compete in the NCIS Athletics Championship. It was a fantastic day of competition with many students achieving personal best performances. A number of students were victorious in individual events and age championships, while 59 students have been selected to represent at CIS - an absolutely remarkable outcome. Well done to all involved and special thanks to the staff who supported a very long day that began before the sun was up and ended after it had gone down.
On Friday evening last week, the students in Years 9, 10 and 11 Drama put on a fabulous performance in The Lindsay Walker Centre of two very clever and well crafted pieces. The Drama Showcase evening was orchestrated by the very talented Mrs Mechelle Anderson. For a number of the Year 9 students it was their first performance on the big stage, and they were brilliant! Congratulations to all involved.
Our Emmanuel Concert Band also ventured north to compete in the Gold Coast Eisteddfod last week. The competition is held in very high regard and involved more than 50 schools. Our EAC students really held their own and the judges comments were terrifically complimentary. Most importantly, the staff involved said the students were incredible ambassadors for the College, holding themselves to the highest standards both on and off the stage.
Our Senior and Stage 3 Debating teams have both progressed to the semi finals of the HICES Debating Competition. This is a state wide competition for Independent Schools with each division consisting of approximately 70 teams, so it is an amazing achievement for EAC to have 2 teams in the semi finals. We wish them the very best of luck in their upcoming debates.
I invite all of our families and trivia buffs to book a table for the Friends of EAC Trivia Night on Saturday 9 September at 6.30pm in The Lindsay Walker Centre. This year’s theme is ‘ At the Movies’ and so maybe you could borrow or adapt your child’s Book Week Parade costume and join in the fun. It is always a wonderful night with lots of great laughs. A huge thank you in advance to Steve Carigg and the Friends Committee for all their work in getting the event together.
Mr Robert Tobias
Principal
What's On
CALENDAR
For your personalised Calendar of Events, simply log in to Parent Lounge HERE.
Stay up to date with EAC announcements and news by following us on Facebook HERE.
SchoolStream APP
Canteen orders, absentee notices, important notifications and more can all be found on EAC's app, SchoolStream which you can find out more about HERE.
WEBSITE
The EAC website is a treasure trove of valuable information including forms, publications and in depth information, all of which are available HERE
WHAT WEEK IS IT?
To help clarify our College Weeks, we've created a printable quick reference guide available HERE.
Off The Deputy's Desk
We are so fortunate to have such a rich and eclectic community of students and staff at the College who ensure that life at school is never dull, and no two days are ever the same. As well as the events Mr Tobias has mentioned above, this fast fortnight has also seen EAC play host to another two visiting school groups from Japan, our Year 10s and 11s enjoying outdoor adventures and so much more.
Our Year 10 Outdoor and Environmental Studies (OES) students recently spent an two adventurous days trekking the Ballina coastline and camping at Flat Rock . The experience put to test the skills students have learned as part of their curriculum. Students explored coastal habitat, gained hands on experience in the operations of recreational facilities and trekked all the way back from Flat Rock to the College with all their belongings. It was wonderful to see students arrive back at EAC so exhilarated after their long walk.
It was also wonderful to see our Primary students enjoy the cultural immersion with our visitors from Clover International School and St Margaret's Rikkyo Elementary Japan, developing their language skills and introducing them to such Australian culinary delights as lamingtons and Vegemite. Our St Margaret's friends even joined in the Book Week festivities and were delighted to be part of such a highlight of our national calendar here in Australia.
As well as visiting students, EAC has also welcomed visiting teachers from Japan. Teachers from the Lexis English School travelled to EAC to observe teaching and learning in action and spent time immersed in some of our English and STEM lessons. The teachers were highly complimentary of EAC's teachers, our College grounds and how highly engaged our students are in their learning. Thank you to all our staff and students who have made all our visitors feel so welcome.
This week also saw the second of our Experience Days for students commencing Year 7 in 2024. Existing students from EAC were joined by friends new and old from other schools who will be starting at EAC for the first time next year. These experience days help students assimilate and better understand the shift from Primary to Secondary. Science was a highlight for many as well as the pizza lunch!
It is these opportunities to be involved in so many varied pursuits that ensure life here at EAC is always exciting.
Mr Francis McGuigan
Deputy Principal
Sports Report
NCIS Athletics Championships
EAC put in a huge performance last week at the NCIS Athletics Championships in Coffs Harbour. We had 112 students ranging from Years 2 to 12 make the trip down and compete against students from all of the other independent schools on the North Coast. Of the 112 who went, an astonishing 55 qualified to represent NCIS at the NSWCIS Athletics Championships! A huge achievement for our College and it reflected in the final point scores with EAC claiming second place in both the Primary and Secondary overall points scores. Based on the size of our College, we clinched first place in each of the percentage point scores. A huge congratulations to all the students who were wonderful representatives of our College, and a special thank you to our athletics coaches Mr Zenon Kowalczyk and Mr Graham Lees for their efforts in preparing our students for this event. We wish all of the students travelling to CIS in Week 10 the best of luck.
- 1st: Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School (798 points)
- 2nd: Emmanuel Anglican College (776.25 points)
- 3rd: Bishop Druitt College (672 points)
- 1st: Emmanuel Anglican College
- 2nd: Chrysalis Steiner School
- 3rd: Sathya Sai College
- 8-10 Girls: Eve Drew (2nd)
- 8-10 Boys: Ted Garbett (3rd)
- 11 Girls: Charlotte Ashdown (2nd) & Kyella Ryan (3rd)
- 11 Boys: Matthew Rullin (2nd)
- 12+ Girls: Stella Du Plessis (1st)
- 12+ Boys: Bowie Blakeney (3rd)
- 1st: Lindisfarne Anglican Grammar School (1,439.52 points)
- 2nd: Emmanuel Anglican College (1,173.43 points)
- 3rd: Bishop Druitt College (1,053.26 points)
- 1st: Emmanuel Anglican College
- 2nd: Chrysalis Steiner School
- 3rd: The Armidale School
Mr Mike Ryan
Leader of Sport and Coaching
Eve Drew - SSA Swimming Championships
Good luck to Eve Drew, Year 4, who will represent New South Wales in the School Sport Australia Swimming Championships held at Sydney Olympic Park Aquatic Centre this weekend.
Eve will be competing in the 8-10 Years Girls 50m Butterfly and the Open Girls 200m Individual Medley.
From everyone at EAC, we wish you well and can't wait to hear how you go!
Jett Beck - Australian Cross Country
Good luck to Jett Beck, Year 10 who will be competing in the Chemist Warehouse Australian Cross Country Championships on Saturday 26 August, in Canberra.
Jett will represent NSW in the 15 Years Boys division following his efforts at the NSW All Schools Championships earlier this term.
Another terrific achievement that we are all excited to follow along with. Go Jett!
Netballers Nail It
Held on Friday 11 August, Phase 1 of the Far North Coast Schools Cup Tournament saw EAC’s four teams take on a strong selection of local schools, including Trinity, St Mary’s Casino, The Rivers and Woodlawn.
Our Stage 4 girls team worked hard, taking on Woodlawn to try and finish top of their pool but weren’t quite successful this year. Thank you to Ms Selina Atkinson, the super coach who has worked hard with most of this group for 2-3 years now. It really shows on the court.
In a giant pool of 7-8 teams, our Year 8 Boys team finished second. A narrow loss to Trinity in the first round can possibly be attributed to the excess of coaching direction from all sides of the court. In hindsight, a tad confusing. Mrs Miller, Mrs Wagland and Ms Campbell all highly invested with something to say, as always.
Year 9 and 10 girls achieved above and beyond their expectations, only losing one match all day. Special thanks to Olivia Rose, Year 9 and Mili Docherty, Year 10, who kindly volunteered to umpire, helping out other schools in between their own matches and Ms Ellesse Morrissey for her coaching prowess - the lady of so many skills!
Year 9 Boys played an amazing day of netball against teams who were all in Year 10 but still finishing second in their pool. It was the closest pool all day and boys from the top three teams were regularly making a pest of themselves at the clubhouse to check out how the competition had fared and what the standings were. Mrs Miller might’ve made a few ‘reconnaissance' visits too…
Our second successful team to make it through were the Year 10 boys. Having nearly taken it all the way to Sydney when in Year 9, they were ready to dominate, but a draw to the lower placed Richmond in Round 2 gave them a fright. Nevertheless they did Ms Campbell proud by playing smart and clean netball. It’s all about passing and it’s nearly like they’re starting to realise Ms Campbell’s game plan might work.
Extra thanks to all the coaches mentioned as well Elise Edmiston and Lily Davies, Year 11, for umpiring. Shout out to parent/grandparent helpers Siteri Docherty, Tiff McIntosh and Wendy Liddle. The scoresheets can become items over which epic arguments arise and without their help, I have no doubt there would have been some (also responsible for the highly valued coffee run).
Year 8 Boys and Year 10 Boys will play the North Coast Regional Finals on 14 September in Ballina for a chance to make the State Finals in Sydney.
Ms Brigette Campbell
Leader of House Purcival, Teacher of Japanese (Secondary)
Year 8 Boys (Second Place)
- Hamish Redden
- Finley Thomson
- Harrison Hunt
- Micah Pullen
- Josh Muzzolini
- Finley Safranek
- Sam Carrigg
- Max Salmon
- Henry Fleeting
- Tom Bazar
Year 10 Boys (First Place)
- Jack Carrigg
- Kaelan Matuz-Jacobson
- Jack Lawson
- Max Wiggins
- Noah McIntosh
- Jack Safranek
- Luke Bond
- Harry Cass
- Lewis Carroll-Burgess
- Kalani Franklin (absent)
Top of the Arts
Gold Coast Eisteddfod
Congratulations to the Emmanuel Concert Band for achieving a Bronze Award at the 2023 Gold Coast Eisteddfod.
The band performed brilliantly and received positive feedback from the adjudicator.
The students who attended are commended for the positive manner in which they represented the College on the day.
Mr Adam Holmes
Concert Band Leader
THANK YOU ST MARGARET'S RIKKYO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, JAPAN
With smiles and memories to cherish, we say sayonara to our new friends from St Margaret's Rikkyo Elementary School in Japan.
This is our fourth school group visiting from Japan to take part in EAC's English Immersion Program and each group has enjoyed a wonderful time. The vibrant cultural exchange enriched us all, fostering lifelong connections. From shared lessons to joyful play, these experiences promote a better understanding of other cultures and allow for new friendships to be made.
Here's to hoping our paths cross again.
Ms Jennifer Buddee
Teacher of Japanese and International Student Coordinator
EAC STUDENTS SET TO ROAR
Congratulations to the large contingent of EAC students cast in the Ballina Players' upcoming production of 'The Lion King'.
We wish our young stars all the very best as they commence rehearsals and we look forward to supporting you when performances commence later this year.
Hakuna Matata!
Mind Matters
Checkmate Chatter and Debating Duels: EAC Teams Gear Up for Action!
Next week our EAC chess and Secondary debating teams will gear up for their respective competitions. The teams have been busily practicing in a bid to shine and bring home a win.
A special shoutout to our victorious Primary debating team who were triumphant in their recent contest. Check out the full recap in the 'Primary Pulse' section of this newsletter.
Good luck Team EAC!
HERE TO HELP
G.E.T.R.I.D. OF CYBERBULLYING
Friday 18 August 2023 marked Australia's National Day of Action against Bullying and Violence.
At EAC, we say "Bullying. No Way!"
To celebrate this year's theme, #GrowingConnections, students wrote messages of affirmation and support on orange handprints and 'planted' these in our Primary playground and learned about the importance of safe and supportive environments where all students can feel accepted and respected. Well done Mr Dan Walsh, Teacher of Year 6, for leading this great initiative.
One continuing concern in our community is curbing the huge impact of cyberbullying. Check out this great 1 pager that illustrates a quick 6 step approach to G.E.T.R.I.D. of cyberbullying.
Mr John Noble
Guidance Counsellor
BODY IMAGE POSITIVITY
A recent topic of interest amongst students has been the rhetoric around body image positivity. How often are your young ones comparing their body shape with others, feeling unhappy with their appearance or feeling they want to change their body weight or shape? As a parent, you can have so much influence on your child’s body image by being a positive body image role model, listening and talking with your family members and focusing on the whole person and not just upon what they look like. To learn more about this important topic head over to Butterfly or RaisingChildren.net.au.
PARENTING RESOURCE TIPS
Are you looking for practical ideas to support your child's journey to independence and adulthood? Leading Australian parenting website www.raisingchildren.net.au publishes a great newsletter titled 'Parenting Teens'. You can subscribe to the newsletter HERE.
SUSTAINABILITY CENTRAL
TREE PLANTING DAY ROUND UP
This week our Year 10 Outdoor Education students took part celebrations for Australia's National Tree Day and progressed our EAC sustainability goals by planting more than 120 native plants with the help and support of EAC's Maintenance crew and teaching staff.
Some of the plants were generously donated by our neighbours Bunnings Ballina who also gave jute matting and soaker hose to support the growth of the trees. Ballina Shire Council also donated mulch and plants, enough to enable us to establish a row all the way along the road. This will hopefully reduce traffic noise and pollution as well as support native pollinators.
We planted a finger lime, mulberry and native gingers in the market garden as well as kangaroo paws and some larger native trees.
Thanks to Maintenance staff, Mr Trent Gasnier and Mr Wayne Richardson, who gave generously of their time and have committed to looking after the trees as they become established.
Library Lowdown
WHAT A WEEK!
Book Week 2023 was so much fun! It was great to see Secondary dressed up on Tuesday and Primary today. And didn't the teachers go all out with their costumes! The way our College embraces this terrific event is so inspiring and our students benefit so very much from all this excitement about BOOKS!
Thank you to everyone who participated in annual Book Swap today. We have raised more than $250 for new resources for our Joan Pickup Library.
One of my highlights from the day was watching grandparents having fun helping their grandchildren in Kindergarten create their penguin masks in preparation for Meerkat Productions' performance of 'Frank's Red Hat' happening next week. So many giggles and beautiful memories made.
Ms Jasmin Jordan
Library Resource Centre Manager
Canteen Counter
CHANGE FOR THE BETTER AT THE COLLEGE CANTEEN
The College Canteen is continuing is change agenda to become more sustainable and offer even more nutritious and delicious choices.
Our current focus is maximising our sustainability options for the packaging of the drinks we have on sale. You may have already noticed changes on SchoolStream and an updated menu is now available on website HERE.
Stay tuned for more changes as we continue to deliver our pledge to make our College Canteen a positive example of sustainability in action here at EAC.
Friends of EAC
AND THE WINNER IS...
Some of the great prizes up for grabs at the Friends of EAC Trivia Night have just been announced.
Thank you to our fantastic sponsors for their support including Friends of EAC's presenting partner, Morgans Ballina.
AWESOME ALUMNI
AND IT ALL STARTED AT EAC...
Thomas Lane graduated with the Class of 2020 and has just been recognised as one of the best craftsmen in Australia.
Since graduating, Thomas has been undertaking an apprenticeship in joinery and travels regularly to Brisbane to complete his technical training at TAFE. In 2022 Thomas was given the opportunity to participate in WorldSkills Australia.
Like the Olympics, WorldSkills Australia competition begins at grass roots level, with events held in 34 different regions around Australia. Competitors are able to progress to national and international levels, ultimately performing their chose skill in front of more than 200,000 people. 50 trades and skills from seven skill clusters are represented at a WorldSkills competition. Competitions are designed by industry and skills experts who assess an individual’s knowledge, practical competence and employability skills against a set of strict criteria.
Thomas competed initially in Brisbane achieving first place and so qualifying for the national competition which was held in Melbourne last week. At the national competition Thomas performed brilliantly, received a silver medal and is now celebrated as the Top 2 best joinery apprentice in Australia.
Thomas' parents credited EAC with supporting Thomas' talent saying "We are extremely proud of what he has achieved and to think it all started in a woodwork class at EAC."
Mr Mason Brenton
Leader of House Smith and Teacher of Industrial Technology (Timber) and STEM
Early Learning Centre Corner
BIG SCHOOL BECKONS
With all the hype associated with Book Week, our Early Learning Centre students were only too happy to be swept up in the excitement and join in. The highlight of our week has surely been participating in the EAC Book Week Parade at the HUGE Lindsay Walker Centre with all the big kids. Thank you to all our families for going the extra mile this week to prepare costumes and coming along to enjoy the show.
Ms Nicole Wilson
Director of the Early Learning Centre
Primary Pulse
DEBATING VICTORY ROUND UP
Our Primary Debating Team has advanced through to the HICES semi finals, achieving an impressive victory against Hunter Valley Grammar School where they passionately negated the argument around ‘Compulsory Introduction of Financial Literacy in Australian Primary Schools’. Fuelled by dedicated training and armed with compelling arguments, our students will next face off against St Luke’s Dee Why in the Semi Final where they will be affirming that ‘Australian Primary Schools Should be Required to Enforce One Technology-Free Day Per Week’. Congratulations team and good luck!
Mr Dan Walsh
Debating Team Coach and Teacher of Year 6
BEAUTIFUL BREATHWORK
During last week’s ‘Go the Extra Smile’ Wellbeing Week, all Year 6 students participated in a dedicated Breathwork Workshop.
Teacher of Year 6
Secondary Scoop
OUR SENSATIONAL SECONDARY STUDENTS
Last week I had the opportunity to speak to each of the students in Year 11 about their leadership vision for Emmanuel Anglican College. It was wonderful to listen to the students reflect on the College’s Culture of Living, Leading and Learning and speak about the inclusive environment at the College. All the students were motivated to not only strive to make the College a better place but recognise the importance of managing their studies.
On Tuesday the students who nominated for a House Captain position, spoke to their peers within their House and voting occurred. They also presented their speech for the other leadership positions at Year 11 Camp this week. All students recognised in their speeches the importance of 'servant leadership' and that leadership is not about them having a position in the College, but about serving others. I would like to congratulate all the students for their vision for the College and willingness to apply for these positions. All of the Year 12 Class of 2024 cohort have already demonstrated their leadership as part of the peer support program this year and will continue to as they move towards their last year of schooling.
Tuesday also saw the Secondary College recognise Book Week. This year's theme 'Read, Grow, Inspire' is so important to Secondary students. It has been reported in the media that only 20% of teenagers read in their free time and the proliferation of digital technology is impacting literacy rates. The recognition of the importance of reading in Secondary helps to not only promote a love of reading but also support the students who will be participating in the 'Write a Book in a Day' competition which will be held in September.
We also welcomed students commencing Year 7 at EAC in 2024 to their second experience day this week. Students had the opportunity to trial a number of subjects as well as connect with our graduating Year 12s who shared what they wished they'd known when they were in Year 7.
A big thank you to all the teachers who attended Year 11 Camp this week. The students went to Coffs Coast Adventure Centre and spent time together reflecting on their time at EAC so far. It was a wonderful time for them to challenge themselves physically before they begin to prepare for their end of year examinations.
It is fantastic to see so many students get involved and support others with the many events that we hold here at EAC. 'Well done' to the Secondary students at EAC!
Ms Amanda Middleton
Director of the Secondary School
AWARD WINNING ADVENTURES
Congratulations to our Year 9 Duke of Edinburgh Bronze Award students who completed their qualifying adventurous journey this week.
Award nominees set off for Camp Kokoda located near Maroon in Queensland.
Camp Kokoda promises 'pristine natural beauty' and 'heart pounding adventure challenges' and it delivered all this and more!
Our students handled themselves, and the challenges, with grit, determination and grace. I was proud to lead each and every one of them.
Ms Ellesse Morrissey
Duke of Edinburgh Leader
BREAKING BREAD IN THE NAME OF HISTORY
Year 12 Ancient History 'proved' their lessons his week by baking bread with the help of Mr ben McRae in the Hospitality space.
Students were challenged with creating Pompeiian style bread similar to that discovered in Pompeii. This ties in with our revision of our core topic 'Pompeii and Herculaneum'. A few different styles of bread were baked in the end but they were all delicious.
Mrs Jennifer Holmes
Leader of Curriculum (HSIE) and Ancient History teacher
JUST FOR SHOW A JUSTIFIED HIT
The memorisation of lines, fine tuning of character, blocking, stage directions and costume choices for the Year 9 and Year 11 Drama students came to a wonderful conclusion with last Friday's matinee and night performances.
Just For Show was a production of two plays, with Year 9 in 'The Collectibles' by Richard Yaxley and Year 10 in 'The Actor's Nightmare' by Christopher Durang. The show was made possible with a backstage crew of Year 9 and 10 students who came into the production having not seen the rehearsals. The show was all technically produced on the day with these students quickly learning the cues and the operation of equipment. A most impressive crew and a testament to our young people at the College. Thank you Finn Allen, Lillian Whitby, Hannah Vidler, Ashlyn Stevenson, Angus Carter, and Archie Cook; I could not have done it without you all!
Congratulations to our stars Harper Ainsbury, Jade Matsumoto, Eva Gallagher, Holly Hemsworth, Maddie Jewell, Summer Campbell, Macey Elliott, Angus Bohn, Emerson Leyden, Indi Barron, Zoe Latimer, Koko Le Roy, Cassidy Curnow, and Shyanne Wilkins.
Special thanks to the EAC Executive Team, Maintenance, Ballina Players, Ms Heidi Craig, and Jackson's Technical Services.
We are hoping to make Just For Show an annual event, showcasing the work of our Drama students at the College, building on this year's show in terms of lighting, sound, set construction and much more.
Mrs Mechelle Anderson
Teacher of Drama
Northern Rivers News
