Today is Ash Wednesday, which marks the beginning of Lent. The forty days preceding the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Globally, the Catholic community are being marked (sprinkled in COVID safe times) with ashes from the earth as a sign of humility. It is also a day that, as a school, we launch Project Compassion with our student population.

Damascus focuses each year on supporting Caritas Australia for awareness and fundraising. Caritas is the international aid and development agency of the Catholic Church in Australia. Each Lent, Caritas launches its Project Compassion appeal- a practical way of bringing to life our campaign of Christian service. Lent sharpens our awareness of prayer and the importance of doing good work and acting selflessly and with compassion.

Representatives of each TA will work to bring Project Compassion to life in our community in 2022 and seek the support of students and families as Lent progresses.

Our young Damascus rowers proudly represented their College in the Head of the Lake regatta on Sunday. Students got off the water proud of their best effort, each acknowledging that they had done their best. Rowing Coordinator, Paul Blanchfield and Rowing Logistics Coordinator, Hamish Walsh and the exceptional team of Damascus coaches continue to build on a culture of students doing and being their best, which was very evident on Sunday. Congratulations to all Rowers, Coaches, support staff and volunteers for their enormous efforts, not only yesterday but their entire 2021/2022 season to date. The boy's program has one more week of rowing training and then competing at State Championships this weekend, whilst the girl's program will continue through to Head of the Schoolgirls Regatta, finishing on the 20th of March. We wish you all well.

As part of the process for the appointment of a new Principal at Damascus College, we are seeking input from the community to inform the selection process. Students, staff and school community members are invited to contribute to this process by responding to the following questions:

1. What are the strengths of Damascus College that you believe need to be maintained?
2. What challenges do you believe need to be addressed in the next five years?
3. What specific qualities/characteristics do you see as vital for the position of Principal of Damascus College?
4. What other comments would you like to contribute?

Families are invited to contribute to this process by responding to the above questions in this form. The survey will remain open until Wednesday the 9th of March. An invitation to participate can be found here.

I remind families that the Enhancing Catholic School Identity (ECSI) survey is open and ready to accept your responses. Families received an email last week from the College with information on how to access the survey, including login details and an information sheet. The College is very appreciative of the time that you are committing to complete the survey. Your responses, along with the responses of students and staff, play a vital role in our self-understanding as a Catholic Education provider. For more information, please click on the link below:-

Community Consultation Letter

On Friday, the Victorian Government removed the requirement for the compulsory wearing of facemasks in secondary school settings. They are still required on buses and public transport and should be carried by students at all times. Face masks are still encouraged when social distancing cannot be maintained. Damascus College encourages and supports those who feel safer wearing facemasks at all times; please reiterate that if your child would like to continue wearing their mask, they should do so.

Congratulations to Year 11 student Alexander Logan for recently completing his Queen Scout Award, which is considered the pinnacle of Venturer achievements. Queen Scouts are tested in the areas of leadership, outdoor activities, personal growth and community involvement. Alex also recently received a service award in the Lake Boga Australia Day Awards to assist in planting a garden at the Lake Boga community garden. Well done, Alex, a wonderful achievement.

Tomorrow, Thursday, 2^nd of March (rescheduled), we venture to the Eureka Swimming Pool for the annual House Swimming carnival. Students must wear their PE uniform to school but may wear an appropriate coloured House top, supporting their House. Students will travel by bus to and from the venue; however, to alleviate the pressure on buses, students will have the opportunity to make their own way to Eureka Pool. This will need to be recorded when you complete the PAM permission online form. As with every school day, the Swimming Carnival is a compulsory activity for all students and provides an excellent opportunity for students to be their best! Not everyone is a talented swimmer, but there are a diverse range of activities to encourage student participation.

It is not uncommon for students to pressure parents and guardians not to attend school on sports days, but it is imperative that parents stand firm and point out that community events are an important opportunity to learn and build both team and school spirit. Our focus throughout our sports program across the College is on participation. The team with the greatest level of participation has invariably been recognised as the overall winner at the carnival. Students that do not attend school on Thursday without a legitimate reason will not be eligible to attend College formals or extra-curricula activities. Unfortunately, due to social distancing requirements, we are unable to have parents attend the event. If parents would like their student to be dismissed from the pool, they must tick the box in the PAM permission form to indicate this; otherwise, students will be brought back to school for regular dismissal.

Damascus has seen four students, Megan and Keira O'Beirne and Jarryd and Brayden Joyce, progress to their respective semi-finals for the Rob Benoit trophy in BAS tennis, and we look forward to following their progress over the next few weeks.

Our heartfelt condolences and prayers are with the Petrie family at their tragic time of loss; Julian (Staff), Anne, Jessica, Emma and Luke and their extended family, on the sad and sudden passing of James Petrie – their loved son, brother and family member.

We also keep Leanne Perks (Staff) and her family in our thoughts and prayers this week, on the passing of Leanne's Mother in Law last Friday and the Lavery family, Mitchell and Joshua (both Year 7), on the passing during the week of their beloved Grandmother, may they rest in peace.

This week, as we move between seasons, I share an autumn reflection by Michael Leunig. Leunig's insights into the world are beautiful, and I borrow this one from his website as a beautiful snapshot of this season of change.

Until next week…Chris

Ballarat Police are concerned with the recent large gathering of young people at Victoria Park last weekend and the potential dangers for young people should future events occur.

It appears the gathering was organised via social media and shared widely which resulted in hundreds of young people attending.

What resulted was the gathering getting out of control with fights occurring, binge drinking and damage to property resulting in police attending. Several arrests were made, and further enquiries are still ongoing.

Police would like parents to be aware of any parties or gatherings their young people may be attending and ask themselves if the event is safe or not. Is the event being held at a private house or a public reserve. Is there likely to be adults in attendance? Is it likely that alcohol will be available? Is your child openly talking about the event or are they evasive with the details? Do they have a safety plan in pace of who to call if things go wrong and the party is no longer safe? Are you available to pick them up at short notice?

Police have no issue when young people attend parties if they are safe, but when there is a very real risk to persons or property, the event is no longer a safe social gathering. Let’s all do our bit to keep our young people safe.

If parents have any concerns about a party or gathering their young person is planning to attend, they can contact Ballarat Police on 53366000, Ballarat Eyewatch Facebook page, or the Police Assistance Line on 131 444.

Victoria Police also run the Partysafe Register which allows parents to register a party they are hosting. You can register a party via the Service Victoria App, Police Assistance Line or by attending at your local police station. https://www.police.vic.gov.au/party-safe

Des Hudson

Leading Senior Constable

Ballarat Police Youth Resource Officer

Auditions began last Thursday to kick off the process for this year's school production of Clue.

Based on the iconic 1985 Paramount movie which was inspired by the classic Hasbro board game, Clue is a hilarious farce-meets-murder mystery. The tale begins at a remote mansion, where six mysterious guests assemble for an unusual dinner party where murder and blackmail are on the menu. When their host turns up dead, they all become suspects. Led by Wadsworth – the butler, Miss Scarlett, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock and Colonel Mustard race to find the killer as the body count stacks up. Clue is the comedy whodunit that will leave both cult-fans and newcomers in stitches as they try to figure out…WHO did it, WHERE, and with WHAT!

Over 70 students from all year levels will prepare and strut their stuff before the audition panel. The final audition date is Monday 28 Feb with the final casting hoping to be sorted and announced in the coming weeks. Rehearsal will begin Mid- March.

On Friday night the Art Gallery of Ballarat hosted the awards evening for the 'Next Gen 2022' exhibition. Four Class of 2021 Damascus College students are featured in the exhibition, with Sparky Sainsbury winning the Award for Excellence for their work 'Perceptions of a Human'.

You can see the Next Gen Exhibition at the Art Gallery of Ballarat until April 24th, and we congratulate Sparky, Phoebe Yandell, Samuel Payne and Charlotte Grimes for their selection in this great event.

A tradition that has been an annual feature of College life since Bishop Connors came to Ballarat was held again on 1^st March with Bishop Paul Bird. The student leaders of Damascus College and Loreto College gathered at the St. Patrick’s Cathedral on the day before the beginning of Lent to acknowledge their role in their colleges. Bishop Paul challenged the school leaders to follow Jesus’ witness and to reach out to those most in need this lent. Bishop Paul expanded on the title of Pope Francis and reminded the gathering that the one of the pope’s ancient titles is Servant of the Servants of God. He offered this as an idea of leadership that might be emulated by the student leaders of the colleges. They, too, could see their roles in terms of service to their communities at the service of God.

The ceremony was a simple celebration of the Mass, moving from the font, recalling our baptismal commitment in a Rite of Blessing and Sprinkling, to the lectern and the proclamation of God’s Word and finally around the altar for Eucharist. The dismissal included a blessing of the Ashes that would be used by the colleges in Ash Wednesday ceremonies the following day. The launch of Project Compassion was conducted after communion and before the final blessing with the assistance of local Caritas director, Jillian Hogbin. Bishop Paul joined the students in the garden of the cathedral for the traditional Shrove Tuesday pancakes.

It was great to see events return to some normality last Sunday at the Head of the Lake Rowing Regatta at Lake Wendouree.

It was a huge event for the Damascus Rowing Program and it was wonderful to see the support cheering on crews from the sidelines.

The Damascus community is proud of the efforts of each Damascus crew on Sunday, you did an amazing job. We wish all the crews the best of luck in preparing for the State Championships this weekend and the Head of Schoolgirls in mid-March.

We are running Webinar 2 on the 9th of March and there is still time to register to attend this FREE webinar:

Next Webinar – Wednesday 9th March @ 7pm (AEDT)
Time Management & Beating Procrastination​​

Here’s what we will be covering in this session:

• How to avoid fights over homework and study;
• Strategies to ensure your child is balanced, stress free AND productive;
• The most common causes of procrastination and how to avoid;
• What types of work the top students prioritise to get top marks.

I've also taken more than one strategy or tip from each webinar, applied them and found them a win - plotting fun first and doing tasks (practice that song once on the guitar, study that section) rather than time (20mins of guitar or 1 hour studying) are two of my favourites. 

Our Parent Support Programme is a FREE optional add-on for client schools. If you would like to invite the parents from Damascus College to the webinar, we have prepared some promotional packs that you can simply copy and paste.

Register here for free.

Congratulations to Year 9 student Armani Anderson, as she has recently become the quickest Under 16 female in Victoria, with a time of 12:28.

Armani recently competed and won the Victorian Track & Field Championships, 100 metre event, and will now compete in the Nationals in Sydney next month, to see if she is the fastest in Australia.

Good luck Armani, fantastic effort.

Last Friday we welcomed back past student Maggie Toohey, Class of 2014, to present to students on the Western Bulldogs Youth Leadership Project.

This Project is a dynamic leadership program for young people in the West, age 14-16 years. It develops a range of life skills that shape strong, community-minded young leaders, providing opportunities to make meaningful contributions and connections to their local community.

Maggie works for the Western Bulldogs in Ballarat, as a facilitator of the Youth Program, an Engagement Officer with schools and still manages to study Teaching full time at university.

It was a pleasure to welcome you back to your old stomping ground today.

Registrations are now open and more information can be found by emailing foundation@westernbulldogs.com.au

Residential Carers Needed!

Background

Residential Carers work as part of a care team providing full-time live-in-quality care for vulnerable young people who are unable to live at home.

We’re looking for over 20 Residential Carers to establish a homelike, caring and nurturing environment to assist young people to develop a sense of security and trust in Ballarat and Horsham.

The Residential Carers in this role will be responsible for:

• contributing to an environment that provides a sense of safety, structure, acceptance and security at all times for the young people and for Carers
• addressing the therapeutic care needs of each young person within their Residential Care home
• ensuring that the young people’s rights and interests are protected at all times and act as effective role models
• supporting the young people to maintain important links with their family of origin, friendship networks and the local community.

RESIDENTIAL CARERS NEEDED

Parents, we’re looking for Residential Carers who can support vulnerable young people in out-of-home care.

Residential Carers provide care and support, and give young people in care the opportunity to build positive relationships which they’ll treasure beyond their care placement.

What’s involved?
Being a Residential Carer is almost like being a parent or guardian for young people who are unable to live with their own family – you’ll be doing school runs; supporting young people to connect with friends, family and community; cooking and cleaning; and providing that care and support which every young person needs. This includes being a vital part of a focused therapeutic approach to a young person’s care.
The role will call for commitment, compassion and a desire to help the young people in our care who are experiencing challenging and complex circumstances.

Watch a video to learn more, or apply here: www.catholiccarevic.org.au/resicarevideo

CAN YOU SUPPORT YOUNG PEOPLE IN OUT-OF-HOME CARE?

CatholicCare Victoria is opening three new Residential Care homes for vulnerable young people in Horsham and Ballarat.

We’re looking for over 20 Residential Carers to provide care and support for the young people moving into these homes.

Residential Carers provide a safe, secure and structured environment for young people who are unable to live at home with their own family.

As a Residential Carer you’ll be doing school runs; supporting young people to connect with friends, family and community; cooking and cleaning; and providing that care and support which every young person needs. The role will call for commitment, compassion and a desire to help the young people in our care who are experiencing challenging and complex circumstances.

Watch a video to learn more, or apply here: www.catholiccarevic.org.au/resicarevideo

Congratulations to Year 11 student Alexander Logan for recently completing his Queen Scout Award, which is considered the pinnacle of Venturer achievements.

Queen Scouts are tested in the areas of leadership, outdoor activities, personal growth and community involvement.

Alex said that he has been on the unit council planning activities, completed courses in Unit Management, Leadership and First Aid. He also organised camps (with risk assessments), went rock climbing, canoeing, kayaking, hiking and camping.

Alex also recently received a service award in the Lake Boga Australia Day Awards, for assisting in the planting of a garden at the Lake Boga community garden.

Well done Alex, a wonderful achievement.

We would like to remind students and families within the Damascus College community or the procedure for bush fire preparedness.

Fire danger ratings and warnings are used in Victoria to provide clear direction on the safest options for preserving life.

Schools and children’s services listed on the DET Bushfire At-Risk Register (BARR) will be closed when a Code Red fire danger-rating day is determined in their Bureau of Meteorology district. Our school has been identified as being one of those at high bushfire risk and is listed on the BARR.

Where possible, we will provide parents with up to four days’ notice of a potential Code Red day closure by letter and SMS. A Code Red day will be determined by the Emergency Management Commissioner no later than 1.00 pm the day before the potential closure. Once we are advised of the confirmation of the Code Red day we will provide you with advice before the end of the school day.

Once confirmed, the decision to close will not change, regardless of improvements in the weather forecast. This is to avoid confusion and help your family plan alternative care arrangements for your child. It is also important to note that:

• No staff will be on site on days where the school is closed due to a forecast Code Red day.
• Any planned after school activities at the campus will be cancelled.
• School camps will be cancelled if a Code Red fire danger rating day is determined for the Bureau of Meteorology district in which the camp is located.
• As a bus co-ordinating school all bus routes will be cancelled.
• Depending on which Bureau of Meteorology district is impacted bus route cancellations may affect our school.

On these Code Red days families are encouraged to enact their Bushfire Survival Plan – on such days children should never be left at home or in the care of older children.

For those of us living in a bushfire prone area, the CFA advise that when Code Red days are forecast, the safest option is to leave the night before or early on the morning of the Code Red day.

As part of preparing our school for potential hazards such as fire, we have updated and completed our Emergency Management Plan and our emergency evacuation drills will be conducted as scheduled.

Please note that we have not had a code red closure to date, a ‘code red’ is only used for days of extraordinary and extremely dangerous conditions.

What can parents do?

• Make sure your family’s bushfire survival plan is up-to-date and includes alternative care arrangements in the event that our school is closed.
• Ensure we have your current contact details, including your mobile phone numbers. Keep in touch with us by reading our newsletters, by checking our website http://www.damascus.vic.edu.au and facebook page.
• Most importantly at this time of year, if you’re planning a holiday or short stay in the bush or in a coastal area, you should check warnings in advance of travel and remain vigilant during your stay.

• Talk to your children about bushfires and your family’s bushfire survival plan.

• You can access more information about children’s services closures on the Department of Education and Training website – see http://www.education.vic.gov.au/about/programs/health/pages/closures.aspx

For up-to-date information on this year’s fire season, visit the CFA website at www.cfa.vic.gov.au or call the 24-hour Victorian Bushfires Information Line on 1800 240 667.

The tool is ready for your response.

The Enhancing Catholic School Identity Project (ESCIP) is with us. ESCIP offers a tool to help us understand the Catholic culture of our college. But how is Catholic identity described in the tool? In recent weeks we have introduced the scales that are used in the tool. Last week an email link with details about access to the survey and instructions for its completion were made available.

Thanks to the thirty families that have already completed the survey. Those who have started the survey but still need to complete it are asked to do so soon. If you have not yet begun, this is a good time. Please make time as soon as possible to complete the survey and contribute to our understanding of Catholic identity.

If you no longer have the email from last Wednesday 23^rd February please contact Assistant Principal for Catholic Culture, Tony Haintz t.haintz@damascus.vic.edu.au, who can provide the details.

Conveyance Allowance

To be eligible for a conveyance allowance, individual students will be assessed under the following criteria:

1. Attend a school/campus located outside the metropolitan conveyance allowance boundary
2. Attend the closest appropriate school/campus at which admission is permissible
3. For students attending specialist schools, this will be determined by the specialist school’s Designated Transport Area (DTA) in which the student resides
4. For students attending government schools, this will be the closest school/campus appropriate to the age and gender of the student (e.g. primary, secondary, single sex)
5. For students attending non-government schools, this will be the closest school/campus of the recognised denomination for conveyance allowance purposes.
6. Reside 4.8km or more from the school/campus (shortest practicable route calculated by the school attended at the time of application from the student’s home to the school/campus)
7. Be of school age (between five and 18-years-old at the time of application), and a resident of Victoria
8. Be enrolled and travelling to school three or more days per week.

Students’ circumstances can change during their school years (e.g. moving residence or changing schools/campuses). Change of circumstances affects eligibility and a new application must be submitted with each change of circumstance.

Private car
A private car conveyance allowance is not available if the journey could have been made using a public transport service or free school bus.

• Where there is more than one student in the vehicle, there are two rates claimable: ‘furthermost’ and ‘additional.’
• Where there is more than one student in a vehicle, and they attend different schools, the amount claimable is based on the distance travelled to school by each student. That is each student must be the subject of a separate application and the student attending the furthermost school is identified as the ‘furthermost’ student; each of the other students must be claimed as ‘additional’.
• Rates are calculated according to the distance (measured in kilometres) from home to the campus attended using the Department’s standard measurement method; for details of the rates claimable, refer to Appendix 1 Conveyance Allowance Rates
• It is assumed that all students from the same family will travel in one car therefore only one family member may claim furthermost student allowance.

Pro-rata adjustment of reimbursement (time fraction)

Where students change school, transport mode and/or address that affect the payment of conveyance allowance, pro-rata payments are made, having regard to the number of days of actual attendance. It is the responsibility of each school to report any mid-semester student changes and the required pro-rata adjustments that are required.

Late payments
Late (past year) applications cannot be accepted or paid.

Any inquiries relating to this allowance or to any bus travel matter may be directed to Tracey Williams at the College office Phone: 5337 2222.

** FAMILIES ARE REQUIRED TO SUBMIT A NEW CLAIM FORM EACH YEAR** FORMS ARE AVAILABLE FROM THE FRONT OFFICE

Below are the criteria used to determine a stud ent’s eligibility for the Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF).

Criteria 1 – General eligibility

To be eligible for the fund, a parent or carer of a student attending a registered Government or non-government Victorian primary or secondary school must:

• on the first day of Term one
• on the first day of Term two

For the list of eligible financially-means tested cards refer to the CSEF Policy:

https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund/policy

Parents who receive a Carer Allowance on behalf of a child, or any other benefit or allowance not income tested by Centrelink, are not eligible for the CSEF unless they also comply with the above.

Criteria 2 - Be of school age and attend school in Victoria

For the purposes of CSEF, students may be eligible for assistance if they attend a Victorian registered primary or secondary school. CSEF is not payable to students attending pre-scho ol, kindergarten, home schooled, or TAFE.

Special Consideration

A special consideration category exists for

• Families on a bridging visa, temporary protection visa, in community detention or are asylum seeker families
• Student’s in temporary out of home care arrangements, including statutory kinship care

For more information, see https://www2.education.vic.gov.au/pal/camps-sports-and-excursions-fund/guidance/eligibility

Eligibility Date

For concession card holders CSEF eligibility will be subject to the parent/carer concession card being validated successfully with Centrelink on the first day of either term one (31 January 2022) or term two (26 April 2022).

PAYMENT AMOUNTS

CSEF payment amount

The CSEF is an annual payment to the school to be used towards camps, sports and/or excursion expenses for the ben efit of the eligible stud ent.

• Primary school student rate: $125 per year.
• Secondary school student rate: $225 per year.

The CSEF is paid directly to your child’s school and will be allocated by the school towards camps, sports and/or excursion costs for your child.

For ungraded students, the rate payable is determined by the student’s date of birth. For more information, see: www.education.vic.gov.au/about/programs/Pages/csef.aspx

HOW TO COMPLETE THE APPLICATION FORM

NOTE: ALL SECTIONS MUST BE COMPLETED BY PARENT/LEGAL GUARDIAN

1. Complete the PARENT/CARER DETAILS section.

Make sure that the Surname, First Name, and Customer Reference Number (CRN) details match those on your concession card. You will also need to provide your concession card to the school.

If you are claiming as a temporary Foster Parent or a Veteran Affairs Pensioner, you will need to provide a copy of documentation confirming your status as a temporary Foster Parent or provide your Veterans Affairs Pensioner Gold card to the school.

If you are seeking special consideration, mark this in the form and provide a copy of the relevant documentation.

2. Complete the STUDENT/S DETAILS section for students at this school.

3. Sign and date the form and return it to the school office as soon as possible. The CSEF program for 2022 closes on the 24 June 2022.

Forms are available through the front office or online Camps, Sports and Excursions Fund (CSEF) application form (education.vic.gov.au)

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the season of Lent, and is the first of the forty days of Lent leading up to Easter. The forty days refer to the time Jesus spent in the desert after being baptised in the Jordan by John and before beginning his public ministry.

During the season of Lent, Christians traditionally engage in three practices:

• Prayer
• Fasting
• Almsgiving

Wednesday morning we started the day with an extended TA where students participated in a liturgy where they listened to the Gospel of Matthew, learnt a bit more about Lent and had time for prayer. Members of the SRC then came to distribute the ashes, a symbol of the life-cycle where we are continually dying to the old ways and rising to newness. The ashes being placed on our foreheads are a sign of our repentance and our willingness to change our lives for the better where we turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel.

Today also marks the beginning of Project Compassion, a time when we reflect on the needs of others, those marginalised and less fortunate than us, and act through prayer, fasting and almsgiving to reach out and help.