Cardijn Connect W7, T4 2023

Last Friday night, the Marian Year 12 graduating class bid farewell to their high school journey at a gala celebration at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre. Dressed in elegant attire, students gathered with their families and friends to celebrate their achievements amidst the glitz and glamour. It served as both a farewell and a platform to recognize outstanding achievements and contributions. The evening was a testament to the determination and resilience of the graduating class and a celebration of their remarkable journey. Congratulations to the Class of 2023 on this unforgettable milestone! 

Photos from the evening are now available to download and purchase:

Event Photography (formal photos): Visit site

Tyler Marsland Photography (arrivals and roaming): Visit site

The Galilee Year 9 Sending Forth Ceremony was a significant event, symbolising the transition of students into a new phase of their educational journey. As the ceremony concluded, students were metaphorically sent forth, ready to embrace new challenges and opportunities. The event encapsulated the school's commitment to nurturing well-rounded individuals and preparing the Year 9 cohort for the adventures that lie ahead in their senior schooling.

On Sunday 26 November, the 2024 Cardijn College Captains and Mission Captains flew to Perth for the Marist Youth Ministry Student Leader Gathering, alongside four other Marist schools from both WA and SA. We are extremely grateful for the opportunity to build connections with other leaders from around the country and develop our Marist leadership skills under the guidance of Brother Tony Leon. 

We participated in a range of sessions, including alternative engaging prayers and integrated team-building activities which provided opportunities for growth both personally and as a leadership team. We explored our vision for Cardijn College in 2024 and developed stronger connections with one another over the three days. We are grateful to the College for supporting our leadership formation and are even more excited to lead this community in 2024. 

Some key takeaways we took from attending this event include:

“During this leadership gathering experience, I developed new relationships with student leaders from Sacred Heart College, Bunbury Catholic College, Newman College, and St Joseph’s School. This required me to step outside my comfort zone and be curious towards others’ needs and interests. My main takeaway was building greater trust in my fellow year 12 Cardijn leaders.” - Austyn Riddle 

“I really loved how this camp allowed me to explore my faith in a safe space where I could connect with other young people. It was fun being able to form relationships with people who are in similar positions to me, as well as grow closer to the other 2024 Cardijn leaders. The outdoor activities were really engaging and helped me feel more connected in my faith to the land and environment.” - Jasmine Dillon

“This leadership gathering has taught me to be curious of others and the world around me by choosing to ask questions and ponder, rather than being judgemental, which I hope to implement in my leadership moving forward. It’s important to take time to consider everyone and their circumstances, something we were able to practice and learn about from Brother Tony.” - Kayla Talbot

“My main takeaway from the Marist Student Leaders Gathering was that being uncomfortable in certain situations is okay, and these moments will help me build my leadership skills. Pushing personal boundaries and stepping out of your comfort zone can help you grow trust and respect for the people around you which is something the 2024 leaders and I have really enjoyed exploring together. - Tillie Zeitz

The MarValla Café 2023 has seen continued success in the provision of opportunities for students to gain important “real life” work experience. A committed group of students, supported through the Marist Centre, have further developed their barista, customer service, food handling and social skills throughout the year.

The cafe initiative, introduced in 2020, has continued to be popular with coffee-loving regulars during recess every Friday morning. 

Not only does the café provide exceptional coffee and baked treats each week, but this year, under the leadership of our talented Art and Business teacher, Mrs Marianna Mastrapasqua, Marist Centre students engaging in Business and Enterprise have introduced the “Marist Gems” artistic line of handmade earrings, keychains, all occasion and Christmas cards. This has become a popular addition to the café and has provided a platform to promote the variety of talents amongst our students. 

MarValla Café students and staff are proud to have donated all the profits directly to a variety of local charities over the past four years. Organisations such as Food Bank SA, RSPCA, Meals on Wheels, and KickStart for Kids, have been the recipients of donations from MarValla Café. 

2023 has been a particularly successful year for the café. Profits generated throughout the year have totalled $4500. An important aspect of the MarValla café curriculum is the ability to acknowledge the important Marist charism of Family Spirit and showing service and love toward others. Students research, visit and speak with local charities and have chosen to divide the money between several important organisations.

BrainChild  is a national charitable organisation that has been assisting families since 2010. They support and educate those who have children who are affected by brain and spinal cord tumours. Ambassador, Jimmy Harrington, visited the Marist Centre to talk about his fundraising walk around Australia and to accept the $1000 donation from the MarValla Café.  
HeartKids is a not-for-profit organisation solely focused on supporting and advocating for all people impacted by childhood heart disease. Several students in the Marist Centre have received support from HeartKids. $1000 was donated to this important organisation.

Ronald McDonald House creates, finds and supports programs that directly impact the health and wellbeing of children and their families. Accommodation, respite services and learning programs are available for children and their families when they need it most: right in their own communities. $1000 was donated to the Ronald McDonald Charities.

Share the Dignity:  It’s in the Bag is one of Australia’s most loved Christmas appeals, where everyday Australians are encouraged to put together Adult, Teen or Mum and Bub bags filled with essential items, and maybe some everyday luxuries and a handwritten note, to donate to someone in need for Christmas. Students from the Marist Centre went on a “shopping spree” and donated $1000 worth of items to this appeal.  

St Vincent de Paul Cardijn College Wishing Tree: Each year, the Cardijn College community provides gifts for children and families in need within the Noarlunga parish area. $500 worth of gifts were purchased from MarValla Café profits. 

In a culinary showdown, Year 12s formed teams RED and BLUE to engage in a friendly competition, crafting contemporary canapés and mocktails for a staff end-of-term function. The intricate event required meticulous planning, safe work practices, and a keen eye on modern food trends.

Year 12 students used the opportunity to showcase their culinary skills in their final practical at Cardijn College. Despite the complexity, the teams delivered seamless processes, creating food masterpieces in mini sub-teams.

This out-of-hours commitment involved collaborative efforts as teams prepared an array of enticing tastes for official taste testers—their teachers! With over 30 RSVPs, the staffroom underwent a transformation into a restaurant-style dining room, setting the stage for a sit-down event.

The highlight of the evening was the culinary face-off, with teachers voting for their favourite team - RED or BLUE. The competition was fierce, but the BLUE team clinched victory with their winning menu. The event not only showcased the talents of our Year 12s but also brought a celebratory and fun end to the term.

🌱 Our Year 3 and 4 Magic Harvesters have been busy this term harvesting, preparing our garden beds for the new summer/warltati (Kaurna) planting season and sowing a variety of seeds and seedlings. 

🧄 Students have collected rocket seed, harvested enormous bulbs of garlic and planted cucumbers, corn, pumpkin and tomatoes. 

Last week our Year 9 Italian classes visited Santopalato Cooking School. The students learnt to make a variety of different pasta shapes under the guidance of Italian chef Pino and his wife Lorena. The students accepted the challenge to a tortellini-making competition and made such good tortellini that would make a nonna proud.  Everyone had a great time and enjoyed eating the delicious pasta prepared by Pino and Lorena.

Eight Middle Years leaders from Faulkner House recently visited the Adelaide Day Centre for Homeless Persons, engaging in various activities to support the community. From crafting Christmas hampers to loading trucks with essentials, two students shared their reflections on this impactful experience in this recap.

"On Monday the 27th of November the Faulkner middle years leaders went to the Adelaide Day Centre for Homeless Persons, our new House Charity. The girls had split off from the boys into multiple groups. Jess and Lily went upstairs to sort football cards and toys and make books. Lila was with Miss Ryan making boxes, stamping the wrapping paper and wrapping the boxes for the Christmas hampers. During the two hours we stayed at the centre, I had put wrapping paper on many of the boxes and filled many care packages with fresh fruit and veg from the centre's garden and bread donated from one of the bakeries nearby."
Paige Smith, Year 9

"The four boys, Seth, Coa, Pedro and Elijah worked as a team loading and unloading the trucks full of pallets into the shed in preparation for the 2500 Christmas hampers that are delivered across Adelaide. We unloaded around 50 pallets full of canned food. We then went back to the main centre to re-load the truck with boxed food. We were lucky enough to speak to some of the homeless people and hear their stories. We learnt how the Adelaide homeless shelter supports those in need and how our donations and support help so many people. A massive thanks to Mr MacDonald and Mr O’Neill for organising and planning the day and Ms Ryan for coming with us."
Seth Chamberlain, Year 9

Marcellin's Year 10 STEM students participated in a unique F1 in Schools program in Semester 2. Using Computer Aided Design and Computer Aided Manufacturing, they crafted CO2-powered dragsters, which were raced on a 20m track. Congratulations to winners Jarrah and runners-up Ed and Khamron, for their achievements in this engaging STEM initiative.

The Marcellin Campus wrapped up the term with a delicious End of Term BBQ Breakfast. Hosted by the Marcellin staff, the event celebrated achievements and strengthened the sense of unity within the school community. As we bid farewell to 2023, Marcellin Campus looks forward to more moments of togetherness and connection in 2024.

At a recent assembly held at Marcellin Campus, students were celebrated as their achievements this semester were formally recognised. Congratulations to all students who received awards for their outstanding achievements and dedication. Your hard work and commitment have truly set a commendable standard for excellence.

As we honour these achievements, we reaffirm our commitment to fostering a culture of success and recognition at Marcellin Campus. 

After finishing their final assessments and exams, our Year 11 students on the Marian Campus started looking ahead to next year by engaging with Orientation Days to prepare them for the exciting Year 12 journey ahead! Over two days, students met with Year 12 teachers to learn more about their chosen subjects for 2024 and strategies for success in each area. Our Study Supervisors ran some great sessions around the SACE and tips for organisation, while on the second day students participated in a fantastic interactive presentation from UniSA designed to test student knowledge about university study, the ATAR and the differences between school and tertiary learning. Hearing from our SACE Coordinator, Mr Burrows, and our Director of Students, Mr Lloyd, helped students to clarify their goals for next year and understand what makes the Year 12 experience special!