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Headmaster’s Report
It is with immense pride that I present the 2014 Trinity College Annual Report.
Mr Ivan Banks Headmaster
We began by acknowledging the efforts of the Class of 2013. Many of our students performed exceptionally well, being granted entrance into their preferred course either at university or training institutes (TAFE).
We had ten students; Nikolai Alexander, Matthew Antonas, Thomas Coltrona, Blake D’Souza, Joshua Galvin, Thomas Hunt, Connor Nagle, Peter Perry, Sheldon Russell and Christian Sivwright, achieve a Certificate of Commendation. These certificates are presented to students who achieve a minimum of 20 A grades across their Year 11 and Year 12 course units.
One student; Thomas Hunt, achieved a Certificate of Distinction for English. These certificates are presented to students who achieve in the top 0.5% of all students studying a particular course. A total of 15 students were inducted into our elite club for boys achieving an Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR) of 97 or better; Nikolai Alexander, John Carbone, Thomas Coltrona, Blake D’Souza, Joshua Galvin, Jacob Higgins, Thomas Hunt, Thomas Maxfield, Connor Nagle, Peter Perry, Zachary Rhodes, Sheldon Russell, Daniel Salleo, Nicholas Scott and Ryan Soares. Thomas Coltrona was also a worthy recipient of a UWA Fogarty Foundation Scholarship. This scholarship is the most sought after and prestigious scholarship that UWA offers to undergraduate students. There are only ten awarded state-wide, seven for metropolitan students and three for regional students. Recipients of the UWA Fogarty Foundation Scholarship to study at UWA are selected based on academic excellence and outstanding achievements in at least three of four categories; leadership, community involvement, the arts and sport.
The UWA Fogarty Foundation Scholarships offer Western Australia’s brightest and most committed students a full scholarship for the entirety of their undergraduate degree, including honours.
Thomas Coltrona (’13)
New Staff
Due to staff movement we welcomed a number of new staff for 2014; Mr Christopher Brennan (RE), Mr Jonathan Brown (Maths), Ms Ann Clarke (Music), Ms Michelle Daly (English), Ms Donette Firkins (Special Education), Ms Rebekah Harris-Miller (S&E), Mr Nick Marston (Science), Mr Chris Morris (S&E), Mr Martin Tucker (Head of Junior School), Mrs Rosa West (English). During the year, Mr William Brock (Education Assistant), Miss Vanessa Curtin (IT), Ms Katriese Dalgety (S&E), Mr James Dawes (Maths), Miss Anna Greene (Maths), Mrs Lynn Jacobs (Maths), Ms Terri-Ann Lennox (Assistant Bursar), Mr Ben Russell (PE), Miss Deborah Smit (Speech Pathologist), Mr James Quinn (Junior School), Ms Sonia Scordo (S&E) and Mr Dayne Whalen (Grounds) all joined the staff.
Edmund Rice Education Australia
As a school in the Edmund Rice tradition we are proudly part of EREA. Being part of this network of schools allows us to access a number of formation opportunities for staff and students and gives us a connection with similar schools throughout Australia.
Strong Schools Safe Kids Project
The year 2014 marks the conclusion of a four year partnership with the Child Health Promotion Research Centre at Edith Cowan University. The Strong Schools Safe Kids project has been used to evaluate the effectiveness of Trinity’s pastoral care and build capacity for action in future years. This project has proven to be instrumental in assessing the climate of our school in relation to bullying and antisocial behaviours. Some of the key priorities over the project have included; greater awareness and capacity for cybersafety, improving the physical environment of our College to improve student safety, fostering even stronger relationships between older and younger year groups to improve positive bystander behaviours, and improving the capacity for action amongst our parents and staff as a valued partnership of our community. College leaders were exceedingly pleased to review the independent data that has been collected over the four years. Successful increments were achieved in areas that were already at high standards at the establishment of the project. These independent results support our belief that Trinity College is a very safe and supportive environment which provides an outstanding level of pastoral care for our students.
Our Four Pillars
We offer a well-rounded education based proudly on our Four Pillars:
1. Faith Based Education
Our faith-based education has a threefold approach: head, heart and hands. The Religious Education program for Years 7-10 and the Religion & Life courses for Years 11 and 12 cover the head aspect. The heart approach is lived in our extensive retreat programs while the hands approach is practised in the generous and enthusiastic participation of students and staff in our extensive Christian Service programs. The appreciation of Religion & Life as an endorsed Curriculum Standards and Authority course continues to grow. Our senior boys have the opportunity to study the Religion & Life course, counting towards their ATAR (Australian Tertiary Academic Rank). The Middle School curriculum continues to offer appropriate and challenging term tests and investigations for students which enhance the Catholic Education program. Years 7-10 students see a pathway for the Religious Education program leading into ATAR Religion and courses for university bound students and the general courses for non-ATAR bound students, in Senior School. Our students continue to perform well in the Archbishop’s Religious Literacy examinations.
Our Catechesis activities; Masses, liturgies, retreats, Quest and Kairos are enjoyed and well-supported by our students. We gathered together as a full community to celebrate the Eucharist on four separate occasions; our opening school Mass in February, Ash Wednesday, the Feast Day of Blessed Edmund Rice and for the Feast of the Assumption. All of our year groups regularly gathered together for Mass. As a staff, we commenced and concluded this year with the Eucharist and we thank Fra Oscar for his presence at Trinity and for leading these liturgies. In January, 18 of our Year 12 students were trained to be Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist and in October we held our Graduation Mass and Ceremony celebrated by Fra Oscar. As a community, we continue to offer the Rosary every Wednesday morning and Fra Oscar celebrates Eucharist with the school community on Friday morning.
Support for the needs of others in the wider community continues to grow. This year a record amount of money was raised for the Indian missions through Unfair Day and the Fun Run. Through donations received for Project Compassion we continue to support Caritas work with poor and marginalised communities worldwide. St Vincent de Paul and the Christian Centre for Social Action benefited from the Quest retreat food drive and the Winter Sleepout sponsorship. Students collected food items for The Shopfront drop-in centre and for Christmas Hampers for St Vincent de Paul. Students individually and in groups took part in Street Appeals for various charities and fundraising events for the LifeLink Appeal, Mt Sinai Edmund Rice School, Leukaemia Research and the Hunger Project. Staff and students supported Br Ollie’s
Joshua Adams (12.4) sings at the Mass for MH17 in St Marys Cathedral
Wheelchairs for Kids by loading containers during the year whenever help was needed. Our retreat program provides opportunities for our students to explore their personal spirituality and gives our senior students a chance to provide leadership to their peers and younger students. This is especially evident in the Kairos and Quest retreats. The Year 7 Becoming Brothers Retreat is supported by 36 Year 12 senior ministers who mentor a group of Year 7 students throughout the entire year.
Our Christian Service program continues to provide many opportunities for our students to serve others and to learn from these experiences about living out their faith. Twelve Year 11 students took part in the 2014 Kimberley Immersion, a unique opportunity to relate with indigenous communities.
Nine Year 10 students have taken up the challenge of giving service to some of the poorest people in the world through the India Pilgrimage, and have begun preparing through regular weekly meetings for this experience.
Year 12 Class of 2014 were outstanding in their willingness to volunteer in the service of others, with 42 students completing their Senior Project, all of these far exceeding the 40 hours required. Half of the students were involved in more than 150 hours of service. This year there were four outstanding students who each completed over 380 hours: Morgan Hindle (12.4), Jarrod Hall (12.5), Joshua Adams (12.4) and Matthew Youens (12.2).
Many Year 12 students volunteered for Edmund Rice Camps, Red Cross Soup Patrol and took part in Edmund Rice Outreach activities such as the Winter Sleepout for homeless people. Commitment to Faith leadership was very strong with 86 students involved in either the Quest retreat as Cadre leaders, as senior ministers to Year 7 students, as extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist or as Kairos retreat leaders.
Through the programs from Year 7 to Year 11, students learn the basic principles of Christian Service, becoming a person who is aware of the needs of others, always responding to a need when we see it, building relationships with people whom we serve, reaching out to those most in need, being challenged by going beyond our comfort zone and doing more than what is expected. They give service to the environment, family and neighbours, children in local primary schools, elderly people, people with disabilities and marginalised groups. Through all these experiences, our boys grow into socially aware and compassionate young men. Our Year 6 boys visit aged care facilities as well as Br Ollie Pickett’s workshop as part of the Wheelchairs for Kids program. Our junior vocal ensemble also travelled to different aged care facilities to perform for the residents.
I thank those staff who teach Religious Education or who lead the Catechetical experiences. To share publicly one’s own faith and spirituality is often very difficult and as a school we are blessed with a group of staff who take this responsibility seriously. All our students are exceptionally generous when asked to support specific courses but the efforts of the Junior School boys are absolutely fantastic. They raised money for Princess Margaret Hospital, Wheelchairs for Kids, an orphanage in Vietnam and the missions we support through our India Pilgrimage as well as over $2300 for the Finn Allen (9.3) appeal.
Year 11 Student Council Raffle for LifeLink
2. Academic Education
At Trinity we strive to provide the highest level of teaching and learning that we can. Whether in Year 4 or Year 12 our teachers are dedicated to each student realising his potential. Our students have performed well in both the NAPLAN and the WAMSE tests, with our results being consistently above the state and national averages. We supplement our academic program by entering students in a variety of state, national and international competitions. Congratulations are extended to:
Jaydon Almeida (8.1): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Joseph Bonavita (10.7): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge (perfect score)
Nicholas Bradford (8.1): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Callum Brady (10.1): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge
Samuel Carbone (10.1): Distinction in Science Olympiad (Physics), High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge (perfect score), High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition and a Credit in the Australian Intermediate Mathematics Olympiad
Thomas Cavanagh (10.4): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge as well as a High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Jack Clear (8.6): High Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Luca Crevacore (8.5): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Callum Dewsbury (11.5): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Yiming Dong (11.4): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition and a Distinction in Science Olympiad (Chemistry)
Robert Drljaca (11.6): Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Joseph Eng (8.6): High Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Louis Everall (12.2): Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Daniel Fitzgerald (8.2): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Leon Formato (9.1): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge
Kaya Foti (8.7): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Reece Gherardi (12.1): High Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Oliver Guazzelli (11.4): Distinction in Science Olympiad (Chemistry)
Jeremy Hansen (8.4): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Lachlan Harders (11.6): Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
James Henshall (8.2): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Jack Harris (12.4): Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Basil Gerad Cyril (8.7): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Daniel MacMillan (9.2): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge
Farruh Mavlonov (10.7): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge
Reilly McClure (8.2): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Isaiah Morich (12.2): Distinction in the Business Educators of WA Competition
Luke Nardelli (8.7): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Joshua Naylor (10.3): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge
Justin Ng (8.8): Distinction in the Australian History Competition Zeke Okely (10.1): Winner of the 2014 Young Travel Writer Competition
Harrison Pell (8.3): High Distinction in the Australian History Competition
David Pham (8.8): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Joshua Pham (7.4): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Damian Pisano (8.4): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Darcy Port (11.5): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition and a Distinction in Science Olympiad (Physics and Chemistry)
Joshua Reaper (8.4): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Thomas Rowney (10.5): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Michael Storer (12.5): High Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
William Tan (8.7): High Distinction in the Australian History Competition and a High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Samuel Throssell (9.3): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Challenge, High Distinction in the Australian History Competition and a High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Thomas Trefry (12.5): High Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Benjamin Tricoli (8.3): Distinction in the Australian History Competition
Jordan Tyson (8.7): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
Jose Villegas (11.3): High Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Samuel Watson (12.3): High Distinction in the Australian Geography Competition
Shaun Zhu (12.3): High Distinction in the Australian Mathematics Competition
The Year 10 team in the RoboCup Soccer competition won the state competition and travelled to Brisbane for the national competition where they finished fourth. Samuel Carbone (10.4) was a representative for Curtin University at the FIRST Robotics Competition which competed in Sydney. Thirty students competed in the National Computer Science School (NCSS) coding challenge with three students achieving a perfect score.
Joseph Teakle (11.6) was awarded first prize in a National Short Film competition, Focus on Ability. He travelled to Sydney to accept the award which included $15,000 of fitness equipment for the College.
Mr Martin Tucker and Mrs Ricki Boe with winners of the Clued Up Kids Competition Mr David Pigram with sons Jesse and Leroy sing at the NAIDOC Assembly
3. Cultural
Providing opportunities for students to be involved in areas such as music, art, dance and drama is a priority at Trinity. Through both the formal curriculum and optional activities the boys can develop skills in these areas. Many of these activities have a performance base and our students have been part of school based concerts, the Performing Arts Festival for Catholic Schools and many others.
The concert at the Quarry Amphitheatre, along with the Junior School, Middle School and Senior School concert nights, was well attended with a wonderful standard of entertainment provided.
Yiming Dong (11.4) was invited to attend the National Mathematics Summer School. Shaun Zhu (12.3) was invited to the UWA Excellence Camp. James Heald (11.2) represented the College at the United Space School in Houston. Samuel Carbone (10.4) came first in the prestigious Gemini Observatory astrophotography competition with his proposal about the space object NGC 7727.
Our English Department invites authors and story tellers to the College to share their experiences with our boys and I know that our students enjoyed the Young Writers Days and the Youth Literature Days. Our top Year 9 and Year 10 students participated in a UWA Showcase of Modern Mathematics. A number of our science students experienced the Gravity Discovery Centre and the Dryandra and Stirling Ranges. Trinity College received an award from the School Drug Education and Road Aware Authority for the continuous delivery of the Keys for Life Pre-driver Education Program and our commitment to the safety of young people in Western Australia.
Andrew Bottega (12.3) attended the National Schools Constitutional Convention at Old Parliament House in Canberra, Conor McCarthy-Rymer (10.6) participated in the Sir Charles Court Young Leaders Program at Curtin University and Brendan Jackson (11.6) was selected on the Premier’s Anzac Tour to Malaysia. James Heald (11.2) and Jack Newman (11.7) attended the WA Schools Constitutional Convention at the Constitution Centre in West Perth with James being selected to attend the National Convention in March 2015 in Canberra. During the year Trinity was represented by two teams in the United Nations Evatt Trophy competition and Stratos Sarris (10.6) participated in the UNYA Crisis Point convention at UWA. Isaiah Morich (12.2) was the recipient of a Certified Practising Accountants (CPA) Outstanding Student Award.
Our Junior School gifted and talented team achieved first place in the both the state and national competitions run by the Law Society of WA entitled Clued up Kids. Willem Lamers (6W) won the Perth Primary Schools’ Speaking Award. The PL Duffy Library Resource Centre The library continues to be a central and pivotal part of the College community. It offers the boys a welcoming and dynamic place to meet for quiet research, reading, playing interactive board and computer games and for using the extensive services provided. The library staff invited several guest speakers to address the students, including Mr Josh Catalano (MasterChef), Mr Blair Bayens (paramedic), Mr Jon Madd (magician) and Mr James Roy (author). This year Book Week, with the theme Connect to Reading, was hugely successful with activities and competitions organised to promote the love of reading and literature. During the week the winners of the Br Gerry Faulkner Creative Writing Competition were announced in the Junior, Middle and Senior School categories. Congratulations to the winners on the high standard of their entries.
Italian Italian still continues to be the foreign language that we offer to our students. In November a most successful Italian Week was organised bringing many aspects of the Italian culture into the school including food, art, movies and sport.
The Aboriginal music program took a slightly different direction this year with more of an emphasis on writing song lyrics, composing music and individual performances. Nixon Hamlet (12.3) coordinated an authentic cultural dance with nine other Aboriginal students and performed at the NAIDOC Assembly. Jesse Pigram (10.7) and Rashawn Reuben (10.5) wrote and performed the song Country Boy along with the Didge Boys for the NAIDOC assembly and the College Presentation Night.
This year the Art Department held not only exhibitions of our own students’ work, but invited Greg Ash and Naomi Grant to display their work for our students and community to enjoy. Six of our students had their artwork selected for the prestigious Angelico Art Exhibition which showcases outstanding artworks produced by students in Catholic schools, with Joshua Naylor (10.3) being awarded second prize overall in the 3D category.
This year there was a boost in numbers in the Junior and Secondary School Dance programs, with GIG experiencing their highest level of participation ever with 28 boys selected after 60 boys tried out for auditions. Ms Elise Kukulka has coordinated both dance groups with a renewed focus on hip-hop, break and urban styles. The BIG and GIG students both performed well in the Term 3 Dance Drama Showcase and then represented the College with pride in the dance section of the Performing Arts Festival for Catholic Schools. The energy and dedication of these boys continue to impress audiences of parents and public alike.
Drama at Trinity continues to go from strength to strength. We were pleased that we could offer WACE Drama for the first time, and the production of 12 Angry Men was wonderful as were the two evenings of drama that were held. The Drama Club continues to prove popular with over 25 boys in Year 7 participating at lunch time and many of the Drama students from Years 9-11 achieved excellence in various sections of the Performing Arts Festival for Catholic Schools.
Junior School Almost all our Junior School boys participated in the Performing Arts Festival for Catholic Schools and it is pleasing to report that many of the Junior School choirs received Honourable Mention awards. The Junior Vocal Ensemble was the winner of the Liturgical Music Shield. A number of other students competing in individual events also performed particularly well.
Senior School The Zenith Award is presented to the Metropolitan Catholic Secondary School that is judged to have performed best at the Performing Arts Festival for Catholic Schools. In 2014, Trinity College received this award for a record eleventh consecutive year. Congratulations are extended to the Senior Chorale (Sacred Choral Music), Trinity/Mercedes Chorale (Secondary Choral Singing), Swing Band I (Big Band/Jazz Combo), Baroque Trio (Instrumental Ensemble), Kayvan Gharbi (10.2) (Instrumental Solo), Adrian Soares (12.5) (Secondary Piano/Solo Duet), Joshua Adams (12.4) with Shania Lee Eliassen from Mandurah Catholic College (Secondary Vocal/Solo Duet), Joshua De Souza (11.3) and Yew Zhi Tan (12.2) (Instrumental Duet). Michael Waller (11.5) was also presented with the Roberta Chapman string scholarship.
Instrumental Music Captain Adrian Soares (12.5) and Chorale Captain Joshua Adams (12.4) with the Zenith Trophy
This year we were privileged to host the National Boys Choir of Australia and St Andrew’s Choir (Singapore) and our students worked with a number of local and national musicians. Many of our students or groups are asked to perform at significant community events, where they continue to make us proud.
4. Sport
Sport is an important aspect of the education of young men. Through sport they have an opportunity to learn more about themselves and others. They learn to develop resilience in defeat and humility in victory. We have a clearly stated philosophy that every student must play a summer and winter sport for Trinity and I believe that it is this commitment to their fellow students that assists in developing the Trinity Spirit for which we are renowned.
Success in sport should never be measured in terms of silverware in the trophy cabinet. Rather, it is each student’s participation and enjoyment that speaks of the success of our sports program.
Junior School Our Junior School boys are fully involved with JPSSA swimming, cross-country and athletics carnivals, as well as the summer and winter sports programs. Junior School students were also involved in the WA School Sport Volleyball Cup and the Ian McRae AFL Cup. A number of students continued with the Fundamental Movement Program allowing them to acquire the skills and confidence to compete with other students.
Senior School At assemblies I was pleased to acknowledge the students who represented Trinity at various sports and to be presented with the Blackwood Cup (basketball) and the Br Carrigg Shield (volleyball).
Many of our students excelled on the sporting field representing Western Australia or Australia in their respective age divisions.
Athletics: Josh Baker (10.7), Alistair Carlson (12.7), Isiaah Caton (11.5), Simeon Leatherland (10.5), William McDonald (10.5), Samuel Throssell (9.3), Thomas Throssell (8.4). Archery: Lachlan Rogers (9.3). Basketball: Samuel Cannell (10.2), Bailey Cole (12.4), Mitchell Hampson (12.4), Benjamin Pears (7.8), Jatin Poonia (8.8). Baseball: Aidan Austen (7.1). Cricket: Darius D’Silva (11.1), Corey Evans (12.4). Duathlon: Matthew Smith. Football: Mason Nicolaou (10.1), Jesse Pigram (10.7), Brandon Starcevich (9.1) (all Australian U/15 team). Freestyle wrestling: Thomas Barns (8.8) (national champion). Futsal: Zaiden Milosavljevic (10.6). Gymnastics: Aaron Antonas (9.6), Matthew Roberts (4B). Hockey: Marcus Di Filippo (11.2) (Australian representative). Indoor cricket: Kai Hickey (10.3), Jesse Messere (8.6) (Australian representative). Kayaking: Anthony Carbone (10.2) (Australian representative), Timothy Feasey (8.4). Lacrosse: Alexander Pennefather (8.8). Open Water Swimming: Callum Lauriston (9.4). Rowing: Ryan O’Connell (12.4), Luke Salerno (12.2). Rugby Union: Thomas Norman (10.3), Joshua Spittal (10.3). Road cycling: Michael Storer (12.5) (Australian representative). Soccer: Jackson Lee (7.6), Raymond Teakle (8.1), Max Thorniley (8.5). Surf Life Saving: Lachlan Meldrum (9.3). Swimming: Liam Martin (8.5), Ethan Regan (6W). Tennis: Jerome Iaconi (7.8). Taekwondo: MacKenzie Spiers (8.4) (Australian representative/oceanic champion). Triathlon: Aidan Richards (11.6). Volleyball: Leon Formato (9.1), Nichollas Montero (9.4). Wakeboarding: Callan Starr (12.3). Water Polo: Alexander Bogunovich (12.2) (Australian representative). Joshua Reaper (8.4), Thomas Rigoll (12.2). Yachting: Liam Pabbruwe (7.2).
A number of Old Boys continue to follow their sporting dream and are involved in sport to a very high level.
Other important areas of the life of Trinity College Year 12 Activities
The year started with a series of Year 12 seminars that looked at enhancing memory and exam performance. Some of this material was also related to parents at the Parent Information Evening. The theme for the ball was The Blue Lotus from the graphical Tin Tin novel. The scenery of an expansive Shanghai Harbour and glittering dancing dragons was certainly a spectacle to behold. On Graduation Day the morning commenced at a breakfast with an introduction to new TOBA President, Peter Torre (‘89), and final assembly followed in the evening by the Graduation Mass and Dinner. These graduation events honour the conclusion of our Year 12 students’ secondary schooling.
Student Leadership
As a year group, the 2014 Year 12s showed great leadership. Whether the boys were prefects, Year 7 senior ministers, members of Cadre for the Year 8 Quest retreat, Kairos leaders or one of the many boys to complete their senior project, they donated hundreds of hours of community service and provided wonderful role models for the younger students. Head Prefect, Brayden Keizer (12.1), and Deputy Head Prefect, Andrew Bottega (12.3), provided exemplary leadership for the prefects and the wider school community. Brayden enjoyed the Edmund Rice Education Australia Captains Conference held in Brisbane at the beginning of the year. The prefects performed admirably in leading the cohort and relative year groups in the areas of academia, sport, Christian Service, music and socials.
Year 11 Activities
In Year 11 2014, a significant emphasis was placed on encouraging students to seek out opportunities where they could live out the mantra of being a Man for Others. Students were constantly prompted to make contributions to the service domain of our Faith Pillar, and sought out opportunities such as Edmund Rice Outreach, soup patrol, street soccer at Wellington Square, Winter Sleep Out and the list goes on. Mason Anderson (11.4), Sheldon Dias (11.7), Liam Fernandes (11.3), Rory Kendell (11.7) and Jesse Vivante (11.5) were active through the Trinity College community, raising funds and awareness for the World’s Greatest Shave. Collectively, the boys raised approximately $5000 for the Leukaemia Foundation, whilst Spencer Staltari (11.5) raised approximately $3000, taking up the challenge of the Ride to Conquer Cancer. Our Year 11 Student Council drove various initiatives over the course of the year, ably supported by Mr Craig Adams, to raise awareness and funds for LifeLink. The Student Council, with the support of the College community, raised approximately $4000 for LifeLink, the Archbishop’s charity.
The willingness of so many of our students to openly witness their faith and values and display solidarity towards the marginalised members of our community leaves me in awe, and so very proud of our young men.
Year 10 Activities
The students coped well with the transition from being a part of the Middle School, to the responsibility and focus required to cope with the academic rigours of Year 10. Their challenge has been becoming more aware of the wider community of which they are a part and their place in it. Throughout the course of the year, the students were privileged to hear from a variety of dynamic and cognitively provoking speakers as a part of the personal development and wellbeing and the pastoral care group program. The excursion to the RAC bstreetsmart road safety education event highlighted to the students the consequences of decisions that they make. The service learning opportunities for the students were abundant, and it was great to see many students take up opportunities such as being a roadie on the Quest retreat, the Winter Sleep Out and soup patrol, whilst many of them are now successful applicants for the India Pilgrimage and to be a peer minister on the Quest retreat as a Year 11 student. It was wonderful to hear of the success of the Trinity and Mercedes ‘carnival’ social and the ‘famous people and characters’ social and how engaged the students were in the Emmaus retreat.
Year 9 Activities
Year 9 is always a key year in the emotional and physical development of our young men, and always proves to be a busy year for all involved. In Term 2 the traditional ballroom dancing lessons with Mercedes College, culminated with the final themed social held at Mercedes. The boys’ conduct at this social was exemplary, and set the tone for most of the year. During Term 4, all the boys were part of the Galilee retreat – an important part of their spiritual growth. The students enjoyed their first experience of contributing time to Trinity’s Christian Service program with time spent at a number of metropolitan primary schools. A number of our Year 9 students attend a service learning and leadership program at Iona College. This year group has rallied behind Finn Allen (9.3), a student from this year group who has contracted acute myeloid leukemia. Through various mediums that have aimed to keep Finn’s spirit high and have been instrumental in the various fundraising campaigns. Tennessee Buti (9.2), Daniel MacMillan (9.2) and Euan MacMillan (9.3) attended the United Nations Youth Australia Young Leaders Day at UWA.
Year 8 Activities
In 2014 the planning for the Year 8 Quest retreat began in earnest. The Quest retreat is part of the faith formation program and induction into the traditions and expectations of being a Trinity College student. Supported by the Year 11 peer ministers from Trinity and Mercedes, the retreat provided the Year 8 students with an opportunity to explore and further develop their relationship with God. The retreat encapsulated the College mantra of our students becoming ‘Men for Others’. As a building block for the rest of the year, the students enacted what was discussed and experienced during Quest on Grandparents’ Day in May. This was a fantastic opportunity for all students to show their grandparents and guests what Trinity College is truly about during a lavish morning tea organised by the College Auxiliary. The Year 8s further fundraised in the lead-up to the social with Mercedes in September, and again during pastoral care group activities in October. These funds were donated to the Finn Allen cause. With respect to our pursuit for improving the wellbeing of our students, the Year 8s continued to provide data on the ClimateSchools-Combined (CSC) Research Study conducted by Curtin University, with the aim of further advancing mental health resources available to our youth. These resources will be made fully available to our students as a result of our commitment to the study.
Year 7 Activities
Although the majority of our Year 7s were new to Trinity College they quickly settled into the routine of secondary school. In Term 1 the Becoming Brothers retreat was a highlight as was the Term 1 picnic and games afternoon and Term 3 crazy hat social, both with Mercedes College. Our Year 7 students learnt to embrace a new wave of technology in the classroom and peered into the world of electronic curriculum as they embraced the one-to-one laptop program. The Science Department, in conjunction with our Religious Education Department conducted an environmental awareness exercise entitled Sustain our Swan, which all the students enjoyed. A number of Year 7 students assisted with the re-launch of Conservation Volunteers in conjunction with Rio Tinto and the WA State Government. A number of students were active in raising money for a variety of causes: The Hon Malcolm McCusker awarded Matthew Cirocco (7.8) a Kids Who Gave Award plus $1,000 to the $1,400 that Matthew raised for the Hunger Project and Samuel Minniti (7.1) and Hayden Brady (7.3) raised $2,000 for Telethon.
Junior School
Once again, the Junior School students enjoyed the challenges of their Year 5 camp at Forest Edge in Waroona and the Year 6 camps to Kalgoorlie and Dwellingup. A large number of our Year 6 students enjoyed the astronomy camp. Each of these camps provided opportunities for the boys to undertake innovative learning experiences and develop new friendships in an environment outside the classroom. Our Year 6 chess team finished third in the A division of the interschool chess competition whilst our Years 4 and 5 won their respective divisions. On a personal level Sri Dharmapuri (6.W) excelled at the state level in chess. As well as extending the curriculum off-campus, a number of exciting incursions occurred including Silver Threads, African drumming, SciTech and the National Boys Choir. There has been a continual review of the current curriculum to align our offering with the Australian curriculum and programs like Mathematics extension, new spelling programs and problem solving all add to an exciting curriculum. The Mothers’ Day Mass and morning tea and the Fathers’ Day breakfast continue to be highlights of the year as is the strong relationship forged with the Trinity-Terrace Old Boys’ Association.
The Mary Rice Learning Centre, named in honour of Blessed Edmund Rice’s daughter, is a learning centre where students can be challenged to extend themselves and achieve their best. Their programs fall into two broad categories. For the gifted and talented students the programs included Academic All Stars, Hale School Philosothon, da Vinci Decathlon, Future Problem Solving and Voice Australia. For those students needing educational support the programs included QuickSmart Numeracy, Soundway Literacy, Mulifit, Spelling Mastery, Working Out with Writing, Dyslexia Talisman and speech therapy. The staff assisted a number of students with organisational and behavioural issues, supervised exams and worked closely with teachers in classrooms. Learning support is always flexible, appropriate and directed towards our students achieving their best. Moving forward this year the Year 7 Lunch Club and a speech therapist were introduced into the curriculum. The Lunch Club aims to give boys a place to socialise. Many boys did not know anyone when they arrived at Trinity and had no social networks. At the club they play games, build Lego, run competitions and get to know each other. The engagement of a part-time speech therapist will give further support to students.
Careers
While attending to all the usual career education activities, staff members have concentrated this year on assisting students to identify their strengths and develop lifelong learning habits. Students continued to participate in 13
career carousels and expos, personal development and wellbeing classes, UMAT preparation seminars, engineering insights, university life and scholarship seminars and enjoyed personal interviews. Parents and Old Boys have also been valuable partners in this process and their assistance has been appreciated.
Vocational Education and Training
Not every student desires to further his study at university and for many students secondary school will lead into traineeships, apprenticeships or study at one of the training Institutes. This year, 71 students were supported in this aim with an opportunity to study certificate courses. As a school we offer four certificate courses at the College and offer a further five outside Trinity. This year we had 12 students blending school work with workplace learning.
Aboriginal Education
The Aboriginal Program at Trinity College is continuing its strong commitment to engaging students in all aspects of their education. With the continued development of Gold, Silver and Bronze Club, individual tutoring and regular attendance to homework classes we have seen a remarkable shift in engagement and success from our Aboriginal students. Through the positive building of relationships and connections amongst staff and students the Aboriginal students are demonstrating pride in their culture through their musical and cultural talents. They had four key performances this year. The first was the launch for Reconciliation Week at the State Reception Centre at Kings Park. A number of our Aboriginal students made school visits to Good Shepherd Primary School, Embleton Primary School and Trinity Junior School where the boys performed and gave tutorials to groups of primary students about the musical instruments (didgeridoo and cajon) and their various sounds. Two of our students played the didgeridoo for the official opening of the Catholic Carnivale. Our NAIDOC assembly was particularly successful due to the talent of our didgeridoo players and in particular the production of a song written by Jesse Pigram (10.7) and Rashawn Reuben (10.5) called Country Boy. The dance was an authentic cultural performance directed by Nixon Hamlet (12.3) which demonstrated their own ties to the land. Thanks to Mr Steve Richter and Mr Russell Prior for their tuition and expertise with the orchestration of the performance for NAIDOC and Presentation Night.
Nixon Hamlet (12.3) represented the College as Athletic Captain for 2014 and this resulted in a large number of Aboriginal students participating in the Athletics Carnival and the boys did exceedingly well.
Most of our senior students apart from those doing ATAR are involved with traineeships with BHP Billiton, Cummins Diesel, Leightons, AFL SportsReady and SMYL and continue to work well in their work placements.
The excellent support, encouragement and opportunities that are provided by Australian Indigenous Mentoring Education (AIME), the Australian Indigenous Education Fund (AIEF), Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA), Colibri Pty Ltd and the Indigenous Youth Leadership Program (IYLP) enhance ongoing enthusiasm and commitment towards the education of our Aboriginal students.
Nixon Hamlet (12.3) at the PSA Athletics Carnival
Astronomy and Space Science
The observatory, which is at the heart of our Astronomy program, is still very popular. This year the observatory was upgraded with a new mount and primary mirror re-silvered. We were pleased to see James Heald (11.2) represent the College at the International Space School in Houston and Samuel Carbone (10.1) coming second in the Gemini Astro Imaging competition. Astronomy students had a Skype link up with the Gemini observatory and astronomers in Alaska. Our high altitude balloon experiments and the advanced rocketry weekends have been continuing this year and our Astronomy students toured the universe in virtual reality with an Occulus Rift.
Parent Involvement
The level of parent involvement is a hallmark of the Trinity community. The Auxiliary and Council provide a wonderful service to the wider Trinity College community, as do all the ‘Friends of …’ groups, and the Parent Ball is still the hottest event in town. WA’s Police Commissioner, Karl O’Callaghan, was the guest speaker at the Auxiliary morning tea – a more engaging speaker would be hard to find. This year we have worked hard to further strengthen our sense of community spirit. Morning tea for parents has been provided following each year group Mass throughout the year and a group of parents has provided meals for those in our Trinity College community who might be in need of support through illness or bereavement. Many activities are supported by ‘Friends of …’ groups and I thank them for their involvement in the College. The Parent Council supported the Robyn Rishani Cybertalk, the Parent Ball and the opening Sundowner. A new initiative this year was a set of talks for each year level entitled The Journey of the Adolescent Soul. In this program participants explored the issues involved in various stages of the adolescent boy’s journey to manhood.
Old Boys
Trinity College enjoys a most rewarding relationship with TOBA. The Old Boys have been significant in providing an additional scholarship to the secondary school and the continuation of their monthly Junior School award for displaying School Spirit is also greatly appreciated. Events like the Golf Day, the Sportsmen’s Lunch, Brendan Ryan (’91) Cup for winter sports, the Steve Leahy (‘78) Cup for the summer sports and the many reunions have kept Old Boys connected with their alma mater.
The Golden Heritage Club for those students who left Trinity more than fifty years ago continues to be well supported. I know that our current Year 12 students appreciated being part of their Term 1 Mass, and the members enjoyed being interviewed by the Year 6 boys about their old school days. It is indeed fitting that these men, mostly from the Terrace, now feel more at home with the change of the name to Trinity-Terrace Old Boys’ Association.
This year there was a changing of the guard when Darren Taggart (’83) stepped down after a wonderful eight years as president. The College looks forward to working with Peter Torre (’89) as the new president of the TOBA.
Facilities
Following the launch of the College Master Plan, planning for the first stage has been finalised with approvals from MRA for the contraction of the new Multipurpose Centre. However, before construction starts our Uniform Shop and outdoor courts will be relocated to the northern edge of the property. Approvals for this have been granted and this development will commence during the Christmas holidays. The College has been negotiating with the relevant authority to change the shape of the new land on our northern boundary from a triangular shape to more of a rectangle. These discussions are proceeding well and we hope that a change of title will be issued early next year.
Minor works this year have included the upgrade to Mann Oval, including 8000 cubic metres of sand, new reticulation as well as pathways and lighting, improved reticulation to Centenary Park and an extension to the front car park.
At Dwellingup we continued with our upgrade and two new transportables were installed: one as a caretaker’s residence and the other as a dormitory.
Thank You to the Clergy
My thanks are extended to all the clergy who have played a role in the College, and I especially thank Fra Oscar Aguilera who, as our College Chaplain, makes himself available for Masses, sacramental programs and retreats and his support and presence are greatly appreciated. Thank You to our Parents
Trinity College can be very proud of its parental involvement. It is a credit to the College that we are blessed with a group of parents who believe that the education of their sons deserves their involvement. The value of having such extensive support from a large number of parents must never be underestimated. Many of them take on an additional burden of leadership within their groups and I thank them for the extra time and energy that this involves.
Thank You to our Staff
Trinity College is blessed with an extraordinary staff. I am constantly in awe of the number of opportunities that our staff members are prepared to initiate and undertake for our students. Many of these opportunities occur during weekends and over the holidays when our staff would usually be with their own families. We must never take their efforts and dedication for granted. I thank the staff for their unending generosity and professionalism.
Farewell
Each year we say farewell to a number of staff who begin a new chapter of their life. I begin by saying a very sincere farewell to four staff who are beginning their retirement: to Mrs Janine Wyatt, who has been our Junior School librarian for 27 years, to Mrs Helen Iddon, who was our Assistant Bursar for the last 16 years, to Mrs Hilda Agar, Uniform Manager for the last 16 years and Mr Ross Jacobs, Maths and RE teacher for the last eight years. We also say goodbye to Mr Brendan Chapman, Ms Katriese Dalgety, Ms Michelle Daly, Mr James Dawes, Mr Adrian Good, Miss Anna Greene, Mr Jacob Marai and Mr Jim Shackleton. During the year we said a fond farewell to Ms Marieke Aan Den Boom, Mr Michael Brook, Mrs Pamela Butler, Miss Vanessa Curtin, Ms Shirley Fullam, Mrs Lynn Jacobs, Mr Christopher Lovelock, Mr Nick Marston, Mr Adrian Menzies, Ms Samantha Pekaar, Mr Joseph Tamigi (’89) and Mrs Leanne Wilson.
Conclusion
As 2014 draws to a close, we can look back on another busy and productive year, one where students have been encouraged to realise their potential. I fervently pray that we continue to work together: clergy, parents, staff and students: to provide the best education for every student in our care. I firmly believe that we are well-placed to continue to provide a first-class authentic Catholic education for the students of Trinity College.
Mr Ivan Banks Headmaster
