We know it all too well that Taylor Swift has arrived in Australia and will present her highly anticipated Eras Tour in Sydney this weekend. And while I would’ve, could’ve, should’ve secured a ticket, I like many Mercy Girls, am also a victim of the Ticketek online queue.

Despite my own misfortune, I am sure that it is beyond many of your wildest dreams to see Taylor Swift perform not just the 1, but ten albums, a showcase of her extraordinary talent that has captivated the hearts of several generations.

I certainly hope Sydney is ready for it, and that all Mercy Girls attending the concert have their outfits ready, whether they be bejewelled with sequins, or your best dress and cardigan. I am looking forward to seeing photos of everyone’s style, and I know that everyone in attendance will be enchanted the moment Taylor walks onto the stage at Accor Stadium.

At its heart, the Eras Tour is a celebration of friendship and togetherness. Taylor addresses gender inequality and promotes female empowerment in The Man, encourages swifties to embrace their individualism in Shake It Off, and connects to audiences in the universal Love Story.

Her willingness to be authentic in her music and public persona resonates with many of her fans, especially young women. By declaring that it is ok to be true to yourself, flaws and all, is a very positive message. Recognizing our individual strengths and challenges, leads us to measured risk taking and therefore improved self-confidence.

From the talk in the playground the last few weeks and the playing of Taylor’s songs on our public address system between classes, it’s not difficult to recognise that she is a role model for many of our girls. Her business acumen alone is worthy of praise.

I hope that everyone who is going to the concert thoroughly enjoys themselves and sees a prime example of female empowerment at its best!

Open Day

OLMC will host a record number of prospective families at our College Open Day on Sunday, 3 March. While this crowd might not quite be as large as the 320,000 people attending the Taylor Swift concert, I am looking forward to witnessing the passion for learning and excellence that is shared by all Mercy Girls and OLMC staff. Attendance for students in Year 8 and Year 11 is compulsory and there will be hundreds of girls from other year groups also assisting.

Be sure to tell your friends with daughters currently in Year 5 that enrolments for Year 7 2026 will open on this day. Prospective families can register to attend by clicking here. 

On Open Day, the P&F supports the College by providing a BBQ for our guests and students. We are calling for helpers who can assist with setting up, cooking, service and packing up on the day. This is a great way to meet other parents and represent the College parent community. If you are able to assist, even for a short period, please click here to register.

Opening College Mass

On 10 February, we gathered together as a community to celebrate our Opening College Mass. Thank you to Father Robert Reidling for leading us in prayer and encouraging us to open our hearts and show mercy, our focus value for 2024.

We were privileged to be joined by the Sisters of Mercy Parramatta, Sr Margaret Jones, Sr Margaret Sheppard and Sr Patricia Bolster. Caroline Thompson from Mercy Partners was also in attendance to celebrate with us, as was Sophie Ryan, OLMC Board Member and Danielle Hayes from Mercy Works.

It was a lovely occasion where we could celebrate our faith and set our intentions for the year ahead.

HSC Celebration of Achievement Assembly

The College held our HSC Celebration of Achievement Assembly on Tuesday, 6 February. As a community, we welcomed back graduates from the Class of 2023 and acknowledged the outstanding achievement of the girls.

In particular, I congratulate Katherine Baker, named ATAR Dux for 2023. Katherine  achieved an ATAR of 98.75. I am proud to announce that 20 students in the cohort achieved an ATAR equal to or above 95 and 40 students achieved an ATAR equal to or above 90.

In addition, six students were placed on the State’s All-Round Achievers’ List, Dora Abicic, Katherine Baker, Stephanie Catania, Ella McGirr, Freya Scothern and Simone Tanna. Three students were placed in the Top Achievers’ List having received State Rankings. These included Selena Madrio (4th place in Business Services), Dora Abicic (2nd place in Croatian Continuers, and Subanki Sakkthivel (5th place for Tamil Continuers, Class of 2024)

These young women have made themselves, their Class, their College, and their families proud by their outstanding achievements. We share in their pride and congratulate each and every one of them for their hard work and determination in their academic pursuits.

It is with great pride that we share with our community our new publication, OLMCelebrates – HSC Results and Achievements 2023. 

Twilight Swimming Carnival

It was a pure delight to attend the College’s Swimming Carnival held last night at SOPAC and it was great to see so many parents in attendance to support their daughters. I am sure you will agree that it was full of colour, sportswomanship and great House spirit. The Year 12 theme of the day was ‘Pyjamas’ and our girls dressed up in creative and colourful attire to reflect this. Congratulations to Mercedes who won the Championship House and to Clare who won the Spirit Shield.

Year 7 Start to the Year

The start of a new school year brings with it many events and activities and our Year 7’s have been particularly busy. The House Welcome Evening was a wonderful example of our community coming together. It provided an opportunity for our new Year 7 students and their parents to meet each other and hear about what the girls have been up to in their first few weeks of high school. 

Mercy Tree Beneficiary

The Mercy Tree is a social justice initiative of OLMC Parramatta. In 2024, the OLMC Parramatta community, through the Mercy Tree, is raising funds to bring health services and education directly to the people living in some of the remotest and poorest villages in Maucatar, Timor-Leste.

The Maucater Health Project is a Mercy Works program/partnership with the Hospitaller Sisters of Mercy. The Project aims to help 22 villages in Maucater by improving their quality of life through direct access to health services and education.

 Funds from the Mercy Tree Gift Fund will focus on:

• A Mobile Health Clinic which will travel to remote villages to provide much-needed health services including the treatment of illnesses, screening and surveillance of those at high risk of chronic disease, rapid laboratory testing and education on STD’s and HIV. The clinic will also train village health volunteers to monitor the communities in between mobile clinic visits.
• A Dental Hygiene Program that aims to educate school-aged students in dental hygiene and nutrition. Empowering children with the knowledge to maintain good oral hygiene practices, the program aims to support dental health educators and professionals, facilitate dental screening and workshops and provide dental supplies for participating schools.

This initiative not only extends a helping hand to those who are less fortunate, but it also embodies the spirit of mercy, kindness and generosity that are fundamental to our College ethos. In 2024, as we focus on the value of Mercy, I encourage you to support this initiative to ensure the continuation and expansion of this most important project. I encourage you to donate by clicking here. 

OLMC Connect

I am proud to report that our new Co-curricular program was launched last week. All families would have received an email outlining the program and instructions on how to register for co-curricular activities. I strongly encourage every student to be involved in OLMC CONNECT.

Students thrive when they have opportunities to explore their passions, talents and interests outside of traditional academics. OLMC Connect is the embodiment of this philosophy, fostering personal growth, leadership skills and a sense of community.

I hope your daughter/s is looking forward to discovering new passions and fostering a lifelong love for learning with OLMC Connect. Should you have any questions about our new OLMC Connect co-curricular program, please contact the College using the email olmcconnect@olmc.nsw.edu.au.

P&F Cocktail Party

I look forward to seeing many parents at our annual P&F Cocktail Party this Friday, 23 February. The evening will commence at 6.30pm and provides an opportunity to meet new members of our community and reconnect with old friends, as well as the chance to walk through our beautiful new Brigid Shelly Northern Wing. Please note that registrations have now closed for this event.

I thank all in our community for your involvement and support of the many and varied events and activities of the past few weeks, and hope for you all a blessed Lenten Season as we approach the our Easter break.

Mother Mary of Mercy, Pray for us

Lucie Farrugia
Principal

Lent

As we continue on our Lenten journey toward Easter, we are reminded to continue to pray, repent and think of others. Project Compassion continues to run at school, and we invite all students to make donations which will be passed on to the Caritas Australia appeal for use in communities here in Australia and overseas.

This week’s focus is on Samoa:

Leaia and her family do not have access to a reliable source of clean water and their home is not connected to a piped water system, so they had to rely solely on rainwater collected in old fridges which was never really clean for drinking.

Imagine living without access to clean water. So much of what we do at home involves water - bathing, washing up, cooking and drinking. We are incredibly privileged and we often forget the harsh realities that individuals in our global community face.

Watch her video here: https://www.caritas.org.au/project-compassion/leaia-story/

Reflection Days

We commence the 2024 series of Reflection Days with Year 8 who will go to Mt Schoenstatt on 20 March. Further details to come.

This is a compulsory school day where the girls are taken off-site to engage in activities, prayer and reflection.

On Friday, 16 February, the Year 12 Dance class travelled to Seymour Centre to see Callback 2023.

Callback is an annual showcase of exemplary performances and compositions by HSC students of Dance. The event celebrates dance as an art form and is hosted by the NSW Education Standards Authority and the NSW Department of Education.

 Our Year 12 dancers were excited to attend the showcase and left the theatre feeling inspired and motivated to continue developing their own practical dance works.

The start of the term saw the Wellbeing team ensuring all our students, particularly those who are new to our community, feel welcome. On Tuesday, 30 January, we welcomed Years 7, 10 and 12 to the College and we ran several activities to provide students with an opportunity to develop a greater sense of purpose and wellbeing.

Year 7 spent time with their Year 10 Big Sisters learning how to read their timetable and navigate the College. My congratulations to Year 10 who displayed great care and leadership in their interactions with Year 7 girls.

Year 12 attended a presentation by Susie Edmunds from Inner Directions. This provided an opportunity for students to reset and refocus for the start of the year, learn practical strategies to manage a positive mindset and maintain motivation, develop skills on how to cope with setbacks, failure and disappointment and build self-awareness skills for resilience and confidence.

On 31 January, we welcomed back Years 8, 9 and 11 and ensured that they too felt settled into the new year. Since that time, we have been busy with several events all of which have been designed to build connections, either with students' Homerooms, their House or Year group. This was particularly evident on College Photo Day, where each of the Heads of House took great care to design activities that would promote a sense of self for each individual, as well as a connection with others.

Year 7 attended Activities Day on Friday, 9 February after the Opening School Mass. It was wonderful to see the girls not only having fun but also extending the hand of friendship to others. The work of Ms McNulty and Mrs Chand in coordinating the day was truly appreciated by all staff and students. 

The Year 7 House Welcome evening on Monday, 12 February provided an opportunity to officially welcome Year 7 into their Houses. The event proved invaluable for parents/carers of our new Year 7 students as it allowed them to meet others, as well as their daughters' teachers.  

On Friday, 16 February, Year 10 engaged in their Wellbeing Day. The day was designed for Year 10 to gather as a Year group and build stronger relationships by connecting with their peers, teachers and community enabling them to thrive in their senior years. Furthermore, the day aimed to foster a sense of belonging, strengthen interpersonal skills and promote overall wellbeing.

The theme of the day was Thrive - Connect – Explore. By emphasising the importance of positive connections and community, the day contributed to a healthy, resilient and socially adept student body, laying the foundation for success in both academic and personal endeavours. The Year 10 cohort was challenged to think about what was important to them and what would be their driving values throughout their senior years. Mrs Christine Roumanus and Mrs Antonija Mustac guided students through a series of engaging activities and challenges, culminating in the group's unanimous decision to stand for Respect, Connection and Faith. These values provide a building block to allow everyone to share their unique perspectives and strengths. 

In the weeks ahead, we look forward to meaningful lessons during Community Time on a Tuesday as well as the following upcoming events:

1.       Compulsory Cybersafety Evening for Year 7

On Monday 26 February, Year 7 parents/carers and their daughters are invited to listen to a presentation by Susan McLean. Susan is passionate about keeping young people safe online and provides education programs to schools and other key stakeholders. She aims to empower people to use technology with respect and responsibility. She also has many resources for parents that assist in keeping their children safe. We encourage parents/carers to connect with Susan via Facebook page and Twitter, and to utilise the parent portal of the eSafety Commissioner as a resource.

2.       Year 8 Wellbeing Day - 12 March

Our Wellbeing Day will be run by Susie Edmonds from Inner Directions and will provide an opportunity for the girls to build skills in self-awareness to manage thinking, emotions and actions. This interactive workshop will help them with practical strategies to interact positively with others, build confidence and step out of their comfort zone.

Following Homeroom, the girls will move to the Ailsa McKinnon Community Centre for the day. PE Uniform can be worn by all students but please ensure this meets the uniform regulations. Girls are allowed to bring a sports bag on the day as they will only need their diary, pencil case, recess, lunch and water.

Please feel free to reach out to the College if you have any questions or concerns as we are here to work in partnership with you to support your daughter.

Ann-Marie Heard
Director of Wellbeing

Once again, there has been a very strong interest in Public Speaking for 2024, with 155 girls registering to compete.

The first events begin very soon. CSDA begins on Friday, 1 March and our entrants are Georgia Baissari and Aarna Gaur (Year 7), Riya Kanade and Eva Kukucka (Year 8), Elissa Abboud and Miriam Chacty (Year 9), Ysabel Daelo and Bianca Mina (Year 10, while A’ishah Ali, Lizzy Butler, Tara Quinn and Avni Mathur are our representatives in the Senior section of the competition. Special thanks to Ysabel, A’ishah and Lizzy who are competing in a division above their Year level.

Over the next two weeks, Gabby Fleming and Lohita Gollavilli (Year 11) are participating in the Lions Youth of the Year competition. The demands of this event are significant: a forty-minute interview in front of a panel, a prepared speech and two impromptu speeches with no preparation time. Entrants are also required to show wide school and community involvement. Both girls are worthy entrants and we wish them luck.

In addition, in less than two weeks, Isabella Bousimon (Year 9) will be contesting the Parramatta Rotary Public Speaking competition. As always, our girls work hard and perform well in every competition we enter.

All girls will receive their competition allocations this week. Throughout the year, students are notified at least three weeks before their event is due. Good luck to all the girls competing in 2024.

Christopher Ostrowski
Debating and Public Speaking Coordinator

Open Dance Ensembles launch in Week 5 and are open to all students from Years 7-11.

These groups meet weekly before school and are run by external dance tutors. Students learn new movement skills and create a group dance routine. This is performed in our annual Dance Extravaganza showcase in Term 4.

Each ensemble focuses on a different dance style. See the 2024 timetable below.

Registrations for the Open Dance ensembles can be made through the new electronic Clipboard platform. Please note that there is a fee of $200 for each ensemble to cover tutor expenses for the year. Open ensembles will run from Term 1, Week 5 to Term 4, Week 1.

You can view all of our Sporting information on the OLMC Sports Page - https://myolmc.instructure.com/courses/39/pages/olmc-sport

Sport trials/selections and Gala days – OLMC Connect

Our new Co-Curricular Program, OLMC Connect, is now up and running. Information for all co-curricular activities, including sport, is available via the Clipboard platform. Parents and students can access this platform through the links below.

Through the Clipboard platform, students and parents can select any sporting event. This includes Gala day trials, OLMC Carnival nominations, PDSSSC and NSWCCC Sporting selection nominations. Specific details regarding events, including if there is an associated cost, will also be available. Students can select OLMC trials and Carnival nominations, while all other selections require parental sign in.

A summary of co-curricular activities and sporting events offered during Semester 1 is available via Clipboard. Clipboard offers access to activity selection, payment and parental approval of these activities where required.

Students can access Clipboard by clicking here. Parents can access Clipboard by clicking here. 

For further information, please email stuart.guthrie@olmc.nsw.edu.au

NSWCCC Sport Selections

If any students play state-level representative sports and would like to be considered for NSW Combined Catholic Colleges selection trials, then please choose the corresponding Sport via Clipboard. 

Some sports have individual trials, while others have team trials through Parramatta Diocese (PDSSSC).

You can view all the sports information on the CSNSW Sport page or the PDSSSC page.

For further information, please email stuart.guthrie@olmc.nsw.edu.au

Saturday Netball

Saturday Netball registrations are now available for students who wish to play for OLMC at Eastwood Ryde. All registrations must be completed online by clicking here, as well as completing the co-curricular registration through Clipboard by Friday, 23 February. Please note the netball season runs from 6 April - 7 September. Information regarding this has been sent to all students via email. 

For families that qualify for the Active Kids Rebate, this can be used for registration. Please note that you will need to register for an Active Kids Rebate before you register for netball.

It is a requirement that all players purchase the OLMC Netball Uniform, including the OLMC Tracksuit.

Netball Australia uses an online system called PlayHQ. All registrations and payments go through their PlayHQ system.

Saturday Soccer

Saturday Soccer registrations are now open via Clipboard. Games are held on Saturday mornings during Term 2 only. Our Home venue is Fairfield Rd Park, Yenoora, but teams may play at different schools/venues around Sydney and Mittagong.

If anyone is interested in playing for OLMC, then please select Saturday Soccer on Clipboard. Payment is made via this platform. 

The closing date for registration is 21 March.

Stuart Guthrie
Sports Coordinator

On Open Day, the P&F supports the College by providing a BBQ for our guests and students. We are calling for parent helpers who can assist with setting up, cooking, service and packing up on the day. This is a great way to meet other parents and represent the College parent community. If you are able to assist, even for a short period, please click here to register.

Opening Hours  

The Uniform Shop will be open Monday to Thursday, from 8.00am–9.30am and from 3.00pm–4.00pm on Monday and Wednesday (school days only, no booking appointment necessary). 

Online purchases can be made via the Online Uniform Shop and all orders will be delivered to the Student Centre for collection by students.  If parents/carers have completed an online purchase, please remind your student to collect the items from the Student Centre.
 
Terms 1 - All girls are to wear the  summer uniform. 

Terms 2 and 3 - All girls are to wear the full winter uniform. 

Winter Uniform Fittings 2024

Junior Uniform

Appointment times will be available online from the beginning of March until early April for the junior uniform fittings. The booking system will be open next week and appointments can be booked online via the Uniform Shop. 

Senior Uniform

Tights and optional long-sleeve blouse will be available to purchase from the Uniform Shop.

For uniforms enquiries, please contact the Uniform Shop on 8838 1275 or uniformshop@olmc.nsw.edu.au