Dear Parents

We are a multicultural college and last week, on our Secondary Campus, we celebrated our diversity and learned from each other as students and staff were immersed in displays of dance, art, dress, music, language and food from all over the world.  Cultural Week was the initiative of Cultural Prefect, I’arna Pio, who with the support of the Heads of Clan, organised the week of activities.

The GBC Athletics Carnival was held on Tuesday.  Our College is modest in size compared to others in the competition and our students always remain true to our Values of Respect, Integrity and Courage to produce superb overall results.  Congratulations to Liliana Titley, Peyton Pratt, Heath Rotbauer and Eamon Alexander on setting new GBC records.  Our 9 Years boys team was awarded overall 1^st Place and Age Champions were awarded to Liliana Titley (9 Years Girls), Eamon Alexander (10 Years Boys) and Leila Alexander (13 Years Girls).

Next week, our Year 6 students will present their Sustainable Development Expo on Monday.  This is the culmination of an integrated unit across a range of subjects including Maths, Science, HaSS, Digital Design, English and Art.  This expo will showcase the work of our Year 6 students and support the SolarBuddy program.

On Tuesday, parents have the opportunity to witness the talents of our Primary and Secondary College musicians at the Music Ensemble Showcase which is being held at the University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ) Springfield Campus Auditorium.

Also on Tuesday, six of our College’s Year 12 students will be chopping off their hair in front of the College and raising funds in support of people impacted by cancer. Every ponytail chopped (or head shaved) will make a difference in the lives of people affected by cancer. The leaders have already reached an impressive $5,895 of their $10,000 fundraising goal and are striving to raise as much money as possible. All funds will go towards essential cancer support services, prevention programs and lifesaving research. You still have time to support the student leaders by donating to this worthy cause. Simply click here, select one of the leaders, and make your donation.

I encourage all of our students, Primary and Secondary, to consider entering the Maha Sinnathamby Ideas and Imagination Award.  For those who may have entered in the past and not been successful, and for those entering for the first time, I challenge you to take inspiration from Maha Sinnathamby himself, who kept refining his idea, never giving, up until his dreams were realised.  This is a fabulous authentic learning opportunity, provided only to students in Springfield, to be innovative, imaginative and creative with ideas that may very well influence the city we live in.  Further information can be found here.

If your student is not returning to The Springfield Anglican College next year (2023), it is important that you give the College a full term’s notice to avoid incurring fees as part of the College Enrolment Agreement.  If your student is not returning, please contact the Enrolment Officer by phone or email: enrolments@tsac.qld.edu.au.

This morning we woke to the news of the passing of Her Late Majesty, The Queen.  She has been a faithful Christian disciple, always patient, humble and selfless in service to others.  As an Anglican College, we join the worldwide Anglican Communion in giving thanks for her life.  May Queen Elizabeth II, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy and love of God, Rest in Peace.  Amen.

My best wishes
Steven Morris

Dear Parents

Among all the joyful College events of recent times, such as Book Week and Cultural Week, it comes as rather a sobering turn to find ourselves in Child Protection Week. It’s never too pleasant to consider children coming to harm, but one of the messages coming out of this particular week for me is the need for young people themselves to know their options and to understand what to do if they should find themselves being mistreated or at risk. An equally important point for students to take from this week is to know how to look after their friends and classmates if they suspect something’s not quite right with them.

Self-care and peer support strategies are key aspects of this week’s ‘RU OK?’ Day (see www.ruok.org.au/every-day-resources). Students and staff have been encouraged to have conversations where we can check in with each other, because it is always possible that while we are feeling good, the person next to us is not. One conversation may be all it takes to stop someone from making a poor decision with lasting consequences. It should come naturally to look out for the people around us in our TSAC community because a core value of our College is to follow the way of Jesus, and it is readily apparent from the Gospels that Jesus was very good at identifying people in need, and addressing those needs directly rather than ignoring them (e.g. Luke 17:11-19).

We hope that our work within pastoral care and chaplaincy to constantly emphasise the need for students to look out for both themselves and their friends will sink in because there are always practical, real-world consequences for our choices. Like many, I was shocked to learn of the terrible car crash in NSW recently, where five young people died. As we head towards the end of the school year, and students begin to start thinking about the party season to come after assessments are over, it is so essential that our Seniors in particular encourage each other to keep making good decisions – decisions that reflect the values they have learnt at home and school, centred around the words of Jesus that we are to love our neighbours as ourselves, and surrounded by the knowledge we are each deeply and unconditionally loved by God.

Peace in Christ,

Rev. Jonathan Kemp
College Chaplain