November 2015 ENCOMPASSThe magazine of the Santa Sabina College community IN HARMONY CONCERT IB DIPLOMA DOMINICAN PREP PROGRAMME IMMERSIONS BEGINS ENCOMPASS CONTENT 04 GROWING MINDS 32 YARNING UP Lecture Series - Growing Learners and Dr Herrett joined a delegation of Growing Wisdom Principals visiting Queensland's most remote schools 06 IB DIPLOMA PROGRAMME Santa Sabina is seeking candidacy for 36 MUSIC TOUR the IB DP Our choir performed a concert series throughout Italy 08 MARY BAILEY HOUSE Exploring the Early Learning Centre 38 DOM'S DAY Our annual St Dominic's Day 10 PREP YEAR Celebrations Our inaugural prep class began in 2015 12 42 COLLEGE FOUNDATION 18 LEADERSHIP TEAMS The Foundation aims to generate philanthropic support for the College Focus on our Del Monte student leaders PYP IN ACTION 50 BEYOND THE HSC 20 SHAKESPEARE FESTIVAL Careers networking evening with Our second year as a candidate university experts and ex-student school for the PYP Middle school students bring mentors Shakespeare to life 51 NOW ADD HONEY 22 WOMEN IN ENGINEERING Senior students attend UNSW Ex-student Robyn Butler's (1983) new film engineering camp 52 DOMINICAN JUBILEE 24 ART HISTORY TOUR Celebrating 800 years of the Dominican Students discover European art and Order history from a range of eras 54 WHERE ARE THEY NOW 26 MEET THE TEAM News from our Alumni Technological and Applied Studies (TAS) faculty 64 REUNIONS A snapshot of ex-student reunions 30 IN HARMONY Music excellence and creativity at the Sydney Town Hall 47 AROUND THE PLOT The magazine of the Santa Sabina Dominican Ex-students' Assosiation ENCOMPASS No. 20 · November 2015 · EDITOR Yvette Graniero · DESIGNER Mathew Guy · PHOTOGRAPHIC EDITING Brian Walker Encompass is the magazine of the Santa Sabina College community. © 2015. The entire contents of this publication are the exclusive copyright of the publisher. Written permission must be sought from the College Principal before any material for this publication, either in whole or in part, is published, broadcast, recorded, photocopied or otherwise reproduced in any way, for any purpose whatsoever. Encompass is published by Santa Sabina College, 90 The Boulevarde Strathfield 2135 PHONE: 9745 7000 WEBSITE: www.ssc.nsw.edu.au 2 ENCOMPASS PRINCIPAL’S WELCOME Welcome to the 2015 edition of Schillebeeckx OP, writes about Encompass. It is a tremendous a ‘golden thread’ that ‘runs challenge to capture in one through the Dominican family magazine the richness and story, from Dominic down to diversity of the Santa Sabina the present day’. This is not culture. Yet even as you glean a simple re-telling though of each page, spending longer an old story; it is a dynamic on some than on others, you realization in the context of can discern a common thread our own times. As we enter connecting us all as members the Dominican Jubilee (7 of this Dominican community. November 2015-January The thread interweaves 2017), celebrating 800 years individual and collective since the Dominican Order was Welcome to the 2015 stories – of school days, special proclaimed, may we continue edition of Encompass events, lasting friendships, to be inspired by ‘Veritas’ – to intellectual training, faith speak and live the truth. development – all grounded in the spirit of Dominic. The late Dr Maree Herrett Dominic theologian, Edward College Principal 3 GROWING MINDS ENCOMPASS Our digital natives or children of the As well as curiosity, schools need to screen just expect that time and space and offer learning that is complex and GROWING all things fun are literally at their fingertips challenging. Learning that is too easy – before they can even read and write. In leaves students bored; too hard and they LEARNERS preparing our children for that uncertain get very frustrated. The ‘just right’ amount future, we need schools different from of challenge can happen in a classroom In our digitally networked world where those that prepared their parents and where the teacher knows the students both knowledge and 'friends' are grandparents. We need schools that well, is supportive, and an expert in their accessible at the click of a mouse, have foster a culture of inquiry – of curriculum field. Challenge involves more than just kids outgrown school? Dr Herrett explored knowledge, research, effective assessment, academic matters - challenging ideas the provocative question - “Do kids need social support, connectedness and safety about gender, culture and race are integral schools or do schools need kids” - as part ….in other words, we will be inquirers of to growing learners and citizens of the Growing Minds lecture series in the needs of our students. March. And the last aspect of schooling, but We have to ask lots of questions, and to perhaps the most important, is the idea of ‘The world we live in is changing at a encourage our students to do the same. schools as centres of community. For many remarkable speed. Think back a decade The question "why?" is one of the most families, schools are the closest thing to and many aspects of life today didn’t exist. dangerous things you can ask, because a traditional community, and for students The internet has only been in general it takes you into uncertainty. And yet, schools are often that stable, constant in use for twenty years; Facebook for about the irony is, the only way we can ever do their lives, especially when faced with very twelve, and Twitter for about six years. anything new is to step into that space. real personal and family challenges. Kids And it’s not just about technology – social The best questions are the ones that need schools where they feel a genuine issues not least of which is the rise of create the most uncertainty. Being curious, sense of belonging, and where it’s ok to be fundamentalism and its intriguing appeal asking questions, experimenting, taking a different kind of kid.' for otherwise well-educated Western risks, accepting challenges and finding young people is a challenge we must solutions is the only way forward through Dr Maree Herrett stare down. Who knows what tomorrow 'the rabbit hole' we call teaching and will bring - except it will be different from learning. today. what do we want to be when we grow up? 4 ENCOMPASS GROWING MINDS RIGHT SEDI BLABO. VENT RA- TIA CORITAT ECUSTIS GROWING WISDOM In January 2015 Pope Francis to see more clearly what we hold in Each scholar shared a sacred text participated in an interfaith conference common. New avenues will be opened relating to peace and the focus of in Colombo. In his address he said: for mutual esteem, cooperation and the evening was on achieving peace indeed friendship.” through dialogue and understanding of “As experience has shown for (inter- the sacred texts of Judaism, Christianity religious) dialogue and encounter to Our Growing Wisdom evening on 3 and Islam. be effective, it must be grounded in a June provided an opportunity for all full and forthright presentation of our participants to engage in this process of There could be no more pertinent time respective convictions. Certainly, such mutual understanding that Pope Francis to be educating our students for the dialogue will accentuate how varied our so fervently advocates. wisdom borne of mutual respect and beliefs, traditions and practices are. dialogue, and Santa Sabina College is But if we are honest in presenting The interfaith conversation was taking a lead in growing such wisdom. our convictions, we will be able between Rabbi Jordan D. Cohen from Ontario Canada, Dr (Sister) Trish Ms Helen Smith Madigan OP, Executive Director of the Religious Education Coordinator Dominican Centre for Interfaith Ministry, and Mehmet Ozalp, Theologian and Associate Professor at Charles Sturt University. a common word between us a coversation on peace 5 IB PROGRAMME ENCOMPASS Planning to commence Year 11 2018 IB Diploma Santa Sabina College is seeking candidacy for the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Programme Programme (DP). Santa Sabina College has century. The IB Diploma has local and global projects applied for candidacy to an international perspective of significance, while their offer the International across all areas of curriculum. capacities to think, question Baccalaureate Diploma. It also requires students to and analyse are honed The Diploma Programme maintain a breadth of study, through the study of ‘Theory is a comprehensive and leading to enhanced future of Knowledge’. rigorous two-year course of options. The IB Diploma study, undertaken in Years Programme is recognised The IB Diploma 11 and 12. It is chosen by a worldwide for providing the Programme’s aim to develop range of students, nationally academic challenge required internationally-minded, and internationally, and is for university success. creative and critical young an alternative to studying people, aligns with the the NSW Higher School As well as its academic Mission and Strategy of Certificate. rigour, the core of the IB Santa Sabina College. Diploma makes it a unique Our 21st century world, The decision follows a educational programme. with all its challenges and very thorough process of Students complete an opportunities, needs young investigation about how extended essay in an area people who are outward- ABOVE Helen Bitossi best to meet the needs of of particular interest that looking, curious and IB DP Coordinator our senior students. The they have researched. They discerning. College believes that the engage in CAS (Creativity, IB Diploma helps prepare Action and Service) that students for life in the 21st sees them involved in 6 ENCOMPASS DISCERNING SCHOLARSHIP LIMELIGHT CONCERT Santa Sabina hosted the Limelight Australian Music Day on Sunday 26 July. The College was alive with performances from four new commissioned works by young Australian composers as well as student compositions from many schools around Sydney and as far away as Cairns.