Last Sunday's Gospel from John (15:1-8) of the 'true vine' has always appealed to me as a gardener and wine consumer (to share an insight to but one of my vices). The parable invites us to see God as the vinedresser, Jesus as the vine and we as the branches. It speaks to the importance of interconnectivity, and I think it is counter-cultural when we are encouraged to develop our independence rather than our interdependence. Here at Damascus, we are looking to grow and develop young people's social-emotional skills to enable them to engage most strongly in relationships and ultimately, community. I think this is a beautiful piece of scripture for that reason, at the heart of humanity, we are social beings and interconnected. In this community, we have the commonality of our Christian foundations, our vine, and we do best when we develop our skills to be able to collaborate together, restore relationships that are damaged, and recognise that sometimes aspects of our lives need to be" pruned" for us to flourish!!

Yesterday, as a result of the weather, we could not proceed with the BAS athletics; we will now work with the other BAS schools to determine if an alternative date can be found for us to re-schedule the event.

Last Friday night, it was a joy to witness our senior students' engagement with our College formal. Students were beautifully attired and behaved as they came together for the evening. With some trepidation, we allow our Year 12 students to invite a plus one, but these guests of our students have always been respectful and cooperative, and this was again the case on Friday night. Many of the "plus one's" are former students of the College who have moved off to other pathways, and it is always great to meet them again and hear of their success in the next phase of their lives. I thank Andrew Robertson, the House Leaders, and all the staff who enabled this event to proceed. Thank you also to parents for your patience and support in getting students safely to and from the venue.

Thank you to all those parents who have ensured students are now in their winter uniform. No doubt there have been trips to the uniform shop and adjustment to hem lengths, etc., over the past couple of weeks. Your efforts to support your students to meet the College uniform expectations are appreciated. If you have not had a chance to adjust hem lengths for skirts and pants, could I please ask that you do so as a matter of priority.

In many ways, this week is the calm before the storm. This week learning programs are progressing, with regular classes and other activities taking place concurrently. Next week Year 8 students head off on their camp with Core groups 1, 3, 5 & 7 heading off from Monday to Wednesday, and Core Groups 2, 4, 6, & 8 are heading off from Wednesday to Friday. Most students are excited about the prospect of camps, but this creates feelings of anxiety for others. We encourage families to talk to the College if their child feels nervous about the camp experience to put strategies in place to support their attendance. Non-attendance does not help the young person and can contribute to diminished well-being. If this is the case for your child, please discuss the matter with your TA, or House Leader or the College Counsellors through counsellors@damascus.vic.edu.au

Year 10 students also have a changed learning program for next week and will undertake either the Christian Personal Development Award (CPDA) or Work Experience.

On Monday 10^th, Year 9 students will take part in the STEM expo here at school where they will "speed date" a scientist.

NAPLAN testing for Years 7 & 9 students will take place next week from Tuesday 11th May to Thursday 13th May. NAPLAN is a national common assessment tool, and families are encouraged to explain to students that while it gives an indication of student progression, it is a single assessment on a single day and not to overemphasise its importance. At Damascus, we encourage all students to undertake the suite of NAPLAN tests; however, if you have specific concerns, please contact the College. Please also note that should your child be absent for a test without an official withdrawal, he or she will participate in the catch-up tests on Friday. YEAR 7 AND 9 STUDENTS NEED TO BRING A CALCULATOR for the Numeracy Tests on Thursday 13^th May.

For further information, please refer to the official letter circulated last week here.

The next Teacher Advisor Interview meetings are being held Tuesday, 18th May (3.30pm – 5:30pm); Wednesday, 19th May (8:00 am – 5:30 pm); Thursday, 20th May (3.30pm – 5:30pm)

The theme of the meeting is to AIM HIGHER. These interviews are at the forefront of our spiritual, pastoral and academic communication with families. It is expected that students and parents are in attendance. The interview will include a review of movement towards achieving goals set in first term, as well as acknowledging any concerns and setting pathways forward.

These meetings will be booked through PAM; we are just refining our learnings from 2020 to best support maximum family engagement and connection and provide more advice in our communication about booking.

With all these different comings and goings next week, we are not running our usual TA time in the morning. Students will head straight to Lesson 1, and rolls and notices will be delivered in class time. Particularly for Year 7 students and those students who are new to the College, this is a variation to our regular routines. These are all exciting learning opportunities in line with our intent of supporting holistic learning for the young people of the College, and I am sure it will be a great week.

As we move towards Mother's day on Sunday, we pray this week for our Mum's and the significant women in our lives. We gathered for Mass today in the John Shannon Centre before moving to the Damascus Event Centre for breakfast. I apologise to those families who were not able to attend due to limitations on size due to COVID restrictions. For all Mum's and significant women this week, we offer a prayer of gratitude. We ask that God bless and care for Mums and all women!

We also pray for Tori Belcher (Year 11) and her family this week as they grieve the death of Tori's stepfather. May they be comforted in their time of loss.

Until next week …

On 26th April, Top Designs 2021 was officially opened as part of the VCAA Season of Excellence. This year, Damascus was represented in the exhibition whose VCE Media work “The Beat 92.1” was selected amongst 92 successful entries from more than 1700 applications. We congratulate Jack on his well-deserved success. The Top Design exhibition, featuring Jack’s work, and work from VCE Product Design and Technology, Visual Communication and Design, Media and VET Creative and Digital Media, will be open until July 11.

We are thrilled to advise that our biannual College publication 'The Road' is OUT NOW, and this week will hit the mailboxes of our alumni and parent community.

The Autumn edition includes a host of articles including student profiles, event updates, student celebrations, anniversaries, sports reviews, awards and much more.

The beautiful front cover celebrates this year's 30th anniversary of The Final Hours, our College production that tells of the final hours of Jesus' life.

We hope you enjoy this Autumn edition of The Road.

The publication can also be viewed online via our website at : https://www.damascus.vic.edu.au/about-us/publications

As winter is soon approaching, we are pleased to advise that Damascus has a new scarf which will replace the current scarf. The current Damascus scarf obtained from Dobsons only, can still be worn as we transition to this new knitted scarf by the winter of 2023 (two year transition period).

As per attached picture, this new knitted scarf is lovely and warm, is two metres in length and has the Damascus colours on the two ends, similar to the Damascus jumper.

A reminder to parents, that the Damascus scarf is the only approved scarf to be worn by students.

At this stage, this new scarf can only be purchased at Crockers and is permitted with winter uniform only. The scarves will be available in store from week commencing 10 May, from Crockers, but you can pre-order online or instore today.

https://www.noone.com.au/school/damascus-college/product/damascus-college-scarf

This scarf is a welcome addition to the suite of uniform items available at Damascus College.

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**

CSEF eligibility

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

Criteria 1 – Eligibility

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

• on the first day of Term one, or;

• on the first day of Term two;

• Be an eligible beneficiary within the meaning of the State Concessions Act 2004, that is, be a holder of Veterans Affairs Gold Card or be an eligible Centrelink Health Care Card (HCC) or Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) holder, OR
• Be a temporary foster parent, and;
• Submit an application to the school by the due date.

* A special consideration eligibility category also exists. For more information, see: www.education.vic.gov.au/csef

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 one of (a) or (b) above.

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

School is compulsory for all Victorian children aged between six and 17 years of age inclusive.

For the purposes of CSEF, students may be eligible for assistance if they attend a Victorian registered primary or secondary school. Typically, these students are aged between five and 18 years inclusive.

CSEF is not payable to students attending pre-school, kindergarten, home schooled, or TAFE.

Eligibility Date

For concession card holders CSEF eligibility will be subject to the parent/legal guardian’s concession card being successfully validated with Centrelink on the first day of either term one (27 January 2021) or term two (19 April 2021).

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 benefit of the eligible student.

• Primary school student rate: $125 per year.

• Secondary school student rate: $225 per year.