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FUTURE STUDENTSA S P I R E E X C E L L E A D

175THANNIVERSARYPrincipal’s Welcome

A Ministry of Mercy Education Ltd ABN 69 154 531 870

FEBRUARY 2021

YEAR 7TRANSITION WEEK

WACERESULTS

NEW DANCE SUBJECT

INTERHOUSE SWIMMING CARNIVAL

Welcome to this newsletter in our 175th year marking the arrival of the Sisters of Mercy in Western Australia and the founding of this College. It is a milestone year!

175 years ago, six sisters aged between 22 and 41 led by Mother Ursula Frayne arrived in the Swan River Colony. They arrived in the heat of summer coming from the much cooler climate of Ireland. They left families in Ireland knowing they may never return. To make life more difficult, accommodation had not been organised for them, so they had to find their own.

School opened on 2 February,1846 with planks, bricks and packing cases as furniture. Instead of the 4,000 students Bishop Brady had told them needed an education, on this first day only 1 student arrived! From this humble beginning the College grew to what we know today. Ursula Frayne and the pioneer sisters began a legacy that we continue in 2021 and we will pass to future students.

The Sisters of Mercy have always been committed to excellence and supporting students to achieve their full potential. In this newsletter you will read about our students’ academic achievements in 2020. We are very proud of their results. At Mercedes, we are always keen to introduce new subjects to meet the needs of our students. This year Dance has been introduced in Years 7 and 11.

As well as excellence in the academic field, Pastoral Care is also a key feature of an education at the College. Enjoy reading about the Year 7 Transition Programme that is designed to assist students transition from primary to secondary school.

I hope you enjoy this newsletter. Please take the opportunity to participate in any of our 175th Anniversary events such as the College Fete open to the wider community.

Mrs Kerrie FraserPrincipal

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On 2 February 1846, the first purpose-built school in Australia to be founded by a religious congregation, and Western Australia’s first permanent school, opened its doors to just one student and by the end of the year, there were 100.

This pioneer building is still standing near our Victoria Avenue gates opposite St Mary's Cathedral in what has now become the heritage precinct of Perth's CBD. Yet as remarkable as these dual records may be, it is what has unfailingly taken place on these grounds in the last one 175 years that has shaped and defined the spirit of Mercedes College, steeped in a shared living of the Mercy values and traditions.

In 2021 we celebrate 175 years of Mercy Education! To discover more or celebrate with us visit; www.mercedes.wa.edu.au/175-anniversary/

175th Anniversary

WACE Results

Mercedes College congratulated its 2020 Year 12 student cohort on their ATAR results at the Excellence Assembly on Friday 26 February, 2021.

Despite the challenges thrust upon our Year 12s last year, our students achieved some outstanding results in their exams. We are pleased to announce our median ATAR of 88.75. This was well above the state score of 83.75 and an improvement on our score in 2019 of 84.45. 27 of our students achieved an ATAR of 95 and above. This was up ten from 2019.

The highest ATAR score was achieved by Annabelle Michelon with 99.15 which is very well deserved.

We also had wonderful achievements from students in Drama, English, Italian as a Second Language with Certificates of Excellence as follows; Mikaela Zuiderduyn (Drama and English), Tara Collis (English), Madeleine Cook (English), Georgia Gillibrand (English), Annabelle Michelon (Italian as a Second Language). As well as 17 Certificates of Distinction and 31 Certificates of Merit

These results are a testament to the hard work of our students who faced every challenge this year. We wish for them all the very best their future pathways.

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It was not the start we all expected but our new Year 7s displayed great resilience with the changes to the schedule that were implemented in their first week of school.

Together with their Year 10 Peer Mentors, who they had already been introduced to the previous year, they enjoyed two days packed full of fun and interesting activities from mastering their locks on their lockers and enjoying the cupcakes on offer, to exploring some of the more hidden places around the College in the ‘Amazing Race’. This helps students orientate themselves around the buildings and more importantly imparts some of the rich history that the College holds.

With their camp cancelled due to the COVID-19 restrictions they were all very excited to start their formal classes two days later. This proved to be very fun and interesting. From playing dead in their Drama class to more serious matters of expectations in their Science class.

Our staff were on hand to teach the girls about our Code of Conduct, explaining student timetables and just giving the Year 7s a helping hand.

Year 7 Transition Week

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New Dance Subject

They get to present ideas and movement through a variety of genres, styles, and forms, as it provides a unique way in which to express our cultural view and understanding of the world.

We are thrilled to add Year 7 and 11 Dance to our Arts subjects and to give girls the opportunity to study Dance as an academic subject here at school. We are sure it will become a very popular subject choice!

For a long time, Dance has been a popular highlight of co-curricular life with many of our girls dancing outside of school. This year we have introduced it as an ATAR subject for our Year 11s and an Elective for Year 7s. This subject is 50% practical and 50% written, and thus very similar to other ATAR Arts subjects such as Drama, Music, Media, Design, and Visual Art.

Dance at Mercedes College is part of the Performing Arts which is dynamic and powerful. It encourages artistic creativity and the use of our imagination. It is physical art form and Dance can offer an opportunity for our students to achieve an elite level of movement skills.

Our girls are developing inter-relationship skills between practical and theoretical aspects and how to make and perform movement with an appreciation of it's meaning.

STEM Program

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The STEM Challenge provides the opportunity for students to apply content to real world problems in order to further develop important skills. Using design thinking with aspects of the scientific inquiry process.

Students explore topics and problems such as concussion in sports, engineering and the marine environment, health outcomes for the elderly and the use of drones as a tool to assist others.

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Bright New Textiles Studio

Materials Design & Technology at a senior level enables girls to put all their creative skills into action, drafting patterns, dying and embellishing fabrics, then using all these skills to construct garments of their own choice, reflecting their own personalities, ball gowns included!

The new Textiles Studio enables everyone to spread out their fabrics, be inspired, explore new ideas and most of all use their hands to create something that they are eager to wear and proud to show off.

This year we have been lucky enough to take possession of a new purpose designed Textiles Studio, to complement our other Home Economics facilities. With a wall of windows, an abundance of natural light and a view overlooking the College oval it certainly is a place for inspiration and creativity.

From the smiles on the faces of Year 7 students as they uncover their sewing machine for the first time, to the design innovations of the senior girls, as they use the creative side of their brain and embark on working at a little slower pace away from their ATAR subjects, there is never a moment when the room isn’t alive with a sense of energy.

Our Year 10 students are developing their research, designing, practical sewing and collaboration skills as ‘Costume Crew’ members for our 2021 College Production ‘Annie’. They work in conjunction with the production staff to design and construct some of the costumes that adorn the stage annually at the Regal Theatre. From this experience we have seen many girls further their love of sewing and costume design and go on to study at WAAPA.

A Musical Weekend

Our Music rehearsal weekends are always a fantastic way for our ensembles to start the year, with our Instrumental Music Weekend held at the end of Week 2, and Choral Music Weekend held at the end of Week 3.

Rehearsals were held across both Mercedes and Trinity College campuses, with over 300 students involved. The sessions are a great opportunity for the students to make a solid start on their repertoire for the year in a more intensive rehearsal setting, and we were thrilled to have so many students participate.

Highlights included the combined Wind Orchestra, Wind Ensemble and String Orchestra and the combined Chorale learning and memorising an entire movement of Vivaldi’s magnificent Gloria.

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The 2021 Interhouse Swimming Carnival was held on Tuesday 23 February. The atmosphere was electric with House spirit and competitiveness on display at all times. The team novelty events also proved to be a great success with some fearsome performances from the ‘crocodile relay’ race in the dive pool. There was plenty to celebrate with the Year 12 glamours costumes and all the outstanding performances from all age groups.

Congratulations to Wright House for winning the 2021 Swimming Carnival. It was fantastic to see all House members’ willingness to get competitors into every race. This is a credit to the House Teacher Leaders and the House Prefects.

Interhouse Swimming Carnival

Overall winners:1st Wright2nd McDonald3rd Cooper4th McAuley5th Frayne6th Serisier

Novelty winners:1st Cooper2nd Wright3rd McDonald4th McAuley5th Serisier6th Frayne

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Upcoming College Events

2021 Diary Dates (Year 7, 2022 Enrolled Families)

Saturday 28 August

Monday 15 November

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MYAT Testing / Parent Information Session for 2022 Year 7

Year 6 Orientation Day

Interviews for enrolments for Year 7 2024 are being conducted this Semester for sisters of current and past Mercedes students. If you have forgotten to enrol your younger daughter, please contact Mrs Julie Lamb on 9323 1340 or enrol online via the College website at www.mercedes.wa.edu.au as soon as possible. Applications for Year 7, 2022 and 2023 are also welcomed.

Open Day | Tuesday 16 March

The Open Day Tour provides an opportunity for parents to hear from the Senior Leadership Team and enjoy a tour of College facilities led by some of our Student Representative Leaders. We offer two sessions; 8:30am or 11:00am. The 8:30am session also offers families a morning tea, where you will have the opportunity to speak with some of our Senior Leadership members and teachers. Please register via the College website; www.mercedes.wa.edu.au/open-morning/

Mercedes College Fete | Sunday 21 March

The Mercedes College Fete is a way to bring the school community together and celebrate the College's 175th Anniversary. The P&F committee are still seeking donations across a number of areas. Check the Fete Facebook page or email fete@mercedes.wa.edu.au for details.

Annie | Friday 30 July to Sunday 1 August

Mercedes College presents Annie the Musical. Coming soon to the Regal Theatre. Tickets will be available for purchase via ticketek.com.au /