Shining a Light on Our Teachers

Today, Australia celebrates World Teachers’ Day with the theme 'Shine a light on teachers.'

It is an opportunity to shine a light on the teachers who inspire, support and empower children and young people every day. Here at OLMC, we particularly celebrate and give thanks for our own teachers and the extraordinary contribution they make to the lives of our students.

From creating those wonderful 'lightbulb moments' to helping a young person find their way, teachers make a difference in ways both large and small, often in ways that are not immediately visible.

Recently, I had the privilege of participating in a student forum where a group of OLMC students were asked what makes our College special. Their reflections spoke powerfully about the impact of their teachers:

'You would find it hard to find a group of teachers who are as committed and work as hard as the teachers at OLMC.'

'Our teachers help us excel and explore.'

There can be few greater affirmations for teachers than to hear these words from the young people they serve. Today, we commend our teachers, thank them for their commitment and dedication, and celebrate the difference they make each day.

Celebrating our Year 12 Students

Last week, it was a privilege and a joy to celebrate with our Year 12 students and their families as they reached the conclusion of their school journey. The Graduation Mass and Dinner was a moving and joyful celebration, marking the culmination of 13 years of education.

Throughout this term, our Year 12 students have engaged with one another and with the College in a wonderful spirit of respect, gratitude and joy. This week, they began their examinations and we continue to hold them in our thoughts and prayers. We wish each of them every success and hope they approach the weeks ahead with confidence in all that they have learned and achieved.

Looking to the Future

Thoughtful and responsible stewardship of our College facilities has long been important to those entrusted with the governance and leadership of OLMC. As education continues to change, so too must the spaces in which our students learn, create, collaborate and flourish.

Work on our new Music Centre, Wellbeing Centre and Design Lab is now well underway. We anticipate that students will begin using the Design Lab from the start of 2027. This exciting new learning space will provide students with access to a range of contemporary technologies and design tools, together with facilities that enable them to move from ideas and concepts to creating and making.

It will be an exciting addition to our learning programs and another way in which we are preparing our students with the skills, confidence and curiosity they will need for their futures.

Finishing the Year Well

The beginning of November and the Melbourne Cup weekend often signal that the end of the school year is drawing closer. It is also a time when we begin to look towards the year ahead and consider the new possibilities it will bring.

I hope the four-day break provides our students and families with an opportunity to rest and recharge before the busy weeks ahead. For many students, it will also provide valuable time to prepare for upcoming assessments and examinations.

Excellence does not emerge on its own. It grows through commitment, dedication, preparation and hard work. Learning how to prepare well, establish good routines and use time wisely are important skills that will serve our students well beyond their years at school.

For our senior students, the examination period will be followed quickly by the Orientation Program, designed to prepare students for the next stage of their VCE studies. The program has been developed with their future learning needs at its heart. It will provide an introduction to course content and expectations, while helping students establish the study routines and habits that will support them over the summer break and as they begin Years 11 and 12 in 2027.

A Time of Remembrance

November is also a significant month of remembrance.

On 1 November, we celebrate the Feast of All Saints, followed on 2 November by the Feast of All Souls. These days invite us to remember loved ones from our families and communities who are no longer with us, to give thanks for their lives and to remember the many ways in which they have blessed and shaped our own.

On Wednesday 11 November, we mark Remembrance Day, pausing to remember those who have given their lives in the service of their country.

At a time when war and conflict continue to affect communities around the world, we also hold in our prayers all those who live with fear, displacement and the loss of loved ones, homes and security. We think especially of young people whose childhoods have been shaped by uncertainty and for whom the opportunities and security that education can provide are far from assured.

May this month of remembrance call us to gratitude for the lives of those who have gone before us and strengthen our commitment to building a world characterised by Courage, Compassion, Justice and Joy.

At this time of year, it is hard to miss Halloween celebrations. The name itself comes from All Hallows’ Eve, the evening before All Saints’ Day (1 November), followed by All Souls’ Day (2 November). Together, these days invite us to pause, remember and give thanks.

All Saints’ Day celebrates the saints and holy people whose lives show us what it means to make the love and Kingdom of God present in our world. Their lives remind us that holiness is not something distant or extraordinary. It is found in everyday choices to live with courage, compassion, justice and mercy.

All Souls’ Day invites us to remember with love all those who have died, particularly family members, friends and members of our community who remain close to our hearts.

In our Catholic and Mercy tradition, praying for the living and the dead is one of the spiritual works of mercy. While we do this throughout the year, November holds a special place as a month of remembrance.

As a Mercy community, we invite you to pause in November and remember those who have gone before us. You may also like to light a virtual candle at the tomb of Venerable Catherine McAuley, asking Catherine to join you in prayer.

Light a virtual candle

https://institute.mercy.org.au/about-us/catherine-mcauley/

Used with permission.

So we pray…

Loving God,
source of all goodness and light,

As the world around us bursts into spring
and the days grow longer,
we pause during this season of Allhallowtide
to remember that we belong to one family in you.

We give thanks for all the saints,
those whose stories are known throughout the world
and those whose goodness was known only to a few.

Inspire us, the Mercy community of OLMC,
to become everyday saints:
to choose courage over comfort,
kindness over judgement,
mercy over indifference,
and hope over despair.

Help us to work for justice,
to care for one another and our common home,
and to model the generous love of Jesus
in all that we do.

On All Souls’ Day,
we remember with love all who have completed their earthly lives,
especially our family members, friends
and those in our community whom we miss.

May they rest in your peace
and in the embrace of your endless mercy.

Strengthen our faith in the Communion of Saints.
Remind us that, in life and in death,
we remain one community,
held together by the enduring love of Christ.

Help us to honour those who have gone before us
by carrying their love, goodness and legacy into the world,
until we are all united with you.

We ask this in the name of Jesus,
who makes all things new.

Amen.

Venerable Catherine McAuley, pray for us.
Mother Ursula Frayne, pray for us.
Mother Basil, pray for us.

It was with a spirit of joy and gratitude that we celebrated the cohort of 2026. They have led the school with heart and spirit. Inspired by Catherine McAuley and the women who have shaped the OLMC story, we encourage our students to live the Mercy values, be outward-looking, and act with purpose in making a difference in their communities and the wider world.

This a powerful reminder that belonging to our College does not end at graduation. Past students regularly engage so thoughtfully with the College and highlights something deeper about a Mercy education: the values formed during their years at OLMC continue to shape who they are, how they lead and how they contribute to the world.

Catherine McAuley understood that Mercy was never intended to remain simply an ideal. Mercy is lived through action. Her life was characterised by an attentiveness to the needs of others and the courage to respond with compassion, hospitality, justice and hope. She did not wait for perfect circumstances before acting. She recognised what was within her reach and stepped forward.

We cannot always wait for the perfect plan, the perfect circumstances or the perfect moment. Instead, we can look to our own circle of influence and ask: What small, courageous act of Mercy is within my reach today? For an OLMC alumna, this might be expressed in many different ways and across many different paths, but the invitation remains the same: to notice, to care and to act.

To extend hospitality is to make room for another person. To seek justice is to listen to voices beyond our own experience. To act with compassion is to approach others with dignity. These are not simply values for our students while they are at OLMC. They are values we hope our alumnae carry with them for life. For an OLMC alumna, the future need not be measured by position, recognition or achievement. Rather, it can be a life distinguished by purpose, courage, compassion, justice, generosity and service. It is a life that notices others, remains open to different perspectives and recognises that each of us has the capacity to influence our community for the better.

Perhaps this is one of the enduring gifts of an OLMC education: the understanding that being an alumna is not simply about where you have come from, but about how you choose to go forward. Catherine McAuley’s example reminds us that Mercy asks us to do more than observe. It calls us to participate, to respond and to serve now and in the future.

To be an alumna of OLMC means carrying this same spirit of Mercy into the world. It means leaving OLMC not only with knowledge, friendships and memories, but with a deeply held sense that who we become matters, how we treat others matters, and what we choose to do with our influence matters.

We work with Elevate Education during the year to provide our students with strategies for time management, study skills, motivation and exam preparation.

Our work with Elevate Education provides us with access to their Parent Webinars. Upcoming webinars include:

• How To Help Your Child Alleviate Stress – Wednesday 11 November 6:30pm
• How You Can Build Resilience in Your Child – Wednesday 25 November 6:30pm
• How You Can Set Your Child Up for Success – Wednesday 9 December 6:30pm

To register for one or more of the webinars listed above, please click on the link here. Each 60-minute session comes with a recording and a range of resources.

This week the Year 10 Enterprise and Innovation students held their Market Day Stall. Over the past few weeks these students have been working in teams to plan, market and run their stalls, with all profits donated to McAuley for Women and Children.

Last term the Year 7 Humanities students demonstrated critical and creative thinking through their time traveller’s journals. This assessment task enabled students to reflect on their learning by imagining they had travelled back in time to witness events for themselves.

Below are two examples of journal entries describing the discovery of Mungo Man in 1974.

The sounds of our team shouting fill the air. Jim is telling me to come over here. Adrenaline is pumping as I am running. What’s happening? Did they find something? I can’t believe what is before my eyes. A skeleton is in the ground with its hands clasped together and a pink substance coating the dust. It is also quite tall for a human skeleton.

‘Are we going to take it back to the lab?’ I ask.

Wouldn’t it be rude to not ask the first peoples of the land? I wouldn’t be surprised if they don’t.

‘We definitely will.’ Jim replies.

That was unexpected. I bent down next to the male body and realized the dust is ochre. I feel so honoured to witness this. Mungo Man. That’s what I will call him. He was probably an important person because he looks like he has been laid with care.

‘Alright everyone, let’s start digging it out!’ Jim exclaims.

My moral compass is telling me this is wrong; but this is a historical moment in time. I should be grateful?

Annie N (7A)

Dear Diary,

I’m travelling through the windy desert breeze while riding my motorbike, trail of gas leading behind. It has most likely rained here in Lake Mungo. As I drive, I noticed the surface sand had been washed away, revealing (what looked to be) a human skull, uncovered from the ground.

Regarding my recent discovery of Mungo Woman, I believed that this human skull could most likely be a life-changing discovery. I stopped, carefully eyeing the human skull. As I approached, I realized that it was in fact an ancient human head.

This discovery was too important and momentous to hide, it must be researched and shared with the public. I contacted anthropologist Alan Thorne and they tediously and carefully excavated the site, revealing the almost complete skeleton of an adult male, covered in red ochre. This man had been suggested to be of high importance, given the way he had been laid in resting.

Mikayla T (7A)

Jemmah Ind
Humanities Learning Leader

It has certainly been a productive year in the English Learning Area and students are currently working on a range of different tasks in this final term of 2026. In Year 7, classes are writing an analytical essay on the film, The Hunt for the Wilderpeople before moving into persuasive speeches whilst Year 8s are preparing for presentations on The Book Thief. Year 9 students meanwhile are studying either Romeo and Juliet or Hive as well as getting ready for their upcoming exams in Week 7. Some work from Year 9 is included below. At Years 10 and 11, students are concluding their final units before preparing and revising for the English exams that commence in Week 6.

VCE English, Literature and English Language teachers are finalising their forthcoming VCE English Orientation programs which are designed to be an engaging introduction for students and give them a meaningful start for their VCE subjects. A major focus is to understand the world of the texts they will be studying, especially in English and Literature. In English, there will also be time devoted to exploring ideas relating to the Framework they will explore in 2027. In Year 11 this is writing about Adventure and in Year 12 it is writing about Personal Journeys. Students will also be encouraged to reflect on their own and others’ experiences and to use this to continue to develop their own unique voice when creating their responses.

This week all the VCE exams for English, Literature and English Language have been completed. We wish our graduating students all the very best for the rest of their exams and the future. We know that the critical thinking, reading and communication skills they have developed over the years in their English subjects will enhance their lives beyond school.

Thank you to families for supporting your daughters to read, view, engage, reflect, discuss, plan and write this year.

Examples of Year 9 work:

Purpose:

The following tasks allowed students to understand the universal themes present within Romeo and Juliet. Students created connections between the characters and their own lives through these transformative tasks.

Sample 1: Alice D 9B

For this task, students need to create a digital poster that could represent their interpretation of a modern day Romeo or Juliet.

Sample 2: Felicity B and Hannah S 9B

Students were required to create a pitch for their own film adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. This task displays student creativity and their ability to transform a text.

Sample 3: Hannah S 9B

Students were required to capture a conversational tone by acting as an “Advice Expert” to provide advice to a character of their choice. This task encouraged them to consider the motivations of characters and question if the tragic ending of the play could have been avoided.

Email from Romeo:

“Hey Advice Expert,

I feel so hopeless, I feel so stuck. Banished…banished! I have been subjected to a fate worse than death. My precious sweet angel Juliet, oh how she must suffer because of me! Fate is so cruel. I don’t know what to do. Do I write to Juliet and get her to run away with me? Should I ask Friar Lawrence for help? I feel so stuck!”

Please help,

Romeo Montague”

Student response:

“Dear Romeo,

We know and understand that what you are feeling is normal for a young man your age, though it is a bit more dramatic. However, we believe that, in the nicest way possible, the problem is you. Please settle down and give everything a break. Just enjoy being a teenager and stop finding the meaning of life in love! Sorry for being blunt.

Kind regards,

Our Advice Team”

Anne Morrison
English Learning Area Leader

A huge congratulations to our talented and courageous students and their dedicated teachers on another successful OLMC Art Show and the opening of the Caldow Collection! We are incredibly proud of the outstanding work produced this year and the creative risks our students took in sharing their ideas and artistic vision.

The event also showcased the wonderful Mercy hospitality provided by our Year 10 Food Production and Design students and staff. Food Assistants Marisa Brazzale and Janine Kerr played an essential role in ensuring our guests felt welcomed and well cared for throughout the event.

The artworks on display represent just one part of the creative process our students undertake. Through the design thinking framework, students make their creative development visible by investigating ideas, generating possibilities and considering how their work will connect with audiences, respond to client needs and communicate meaning. They also explore the environmental, economic and social impacts of their creations, helping them articulate the intentions and processes behind their work.

Bringing the Art Show to life requires considerable teamwork, collaboration and dedication by all the DAT staff. We love this chance to celebrate the achievements and efforts of our students. Our Design, Art and Technology (DAT) technician, Liam Milner, in particular has used his curatorial skills to ensure students’ work was presented thoughtfully and creatively.

Congratulations to all students whose work was exhibited, with special recognition to our 2026 Subject Award winners!

For more amazing works, be sure to visit our DAT Instagram page: http://www.instagram.com/DATOLMC

Mark Jenkinson
Design, Art and Technology Learning Leader

Need a quiet space to focus or extra guidance with your study? Join us for Homework Club every Monday and Tuesday from 3:30pm to 4:30pm in the Discovery Lab (located in the Library). Led by our dedicated Learning Diversity Team, Homework Club is open to all students across all year levels. Whether you need help with a tricky question or just want to finish your assignment before heading home, it’s the perfect place to get ahead on your schoolwork.

Come along and make study time stress-free! Everyone is welcome!

Learning Diversity Team

OLMC Parents' Association Lucky Fees Raffle – Tickets On Sale Now!

We are excited to announce that the OLMC Parents' Association Lucky Fees Raffle is now open! Tickets are available for purchase, with fantastic prizes on offer and all proceeds supporting the work of the Parents' Association.

1st prize $4000 Voucher for 2027 School Fees Or Shopping Vouchers to the value of $4000

2nd Prize $2000 Voucher for 2027 School Fees Or Shopping Vouchers to the value of $2000

3rd Prize Noone Uniform Vouchers to the value of $400

4th Prize Learner Driver Starter Pack to the value of $150

Be in the running to win some fantastic prizes, with additional prizes to be announced soon.

Get your tickets today!

Purchase your tickets here: https://www.trybooking.com/DQYIC

Raffle will be drawn at the College on Friday 20 November. Winners will be notified by phone and results will be in the College newsletter.

Thank you for supporting the OLMC community, and good luck!

Monica Agius
Community Development Coordinator
On behalf of the OLMC Parents' Association

OLMC Second-Hand Uniform Sale - A fundraising opportunity for the Exodus Community, West Heidelberg

Each year OLMC Parents’ Association support the Second-Hand Uniform Sale to raise much needed funds for the Exodus Community in West Heidelberg. The outgoing Year 12 students kindly donate many items of Summer, Winter and PE uniform.

This is a great opportunity to pick up any uniform items you may need for your child in 2027. There are many items in a variety of sizes available at only 50% of the retail price.

The 2026 Second-Hand Uniform Sale will be held on the following dates:

Friday 27 November 4.00pm to 7.00pm

and

Saturday 28 November 9.00am to 1.00pm

OLMC Heagerty Room, 39 Yarra Street, Heidelberg

Bookings are essential and will run in 15-minute time slots.

Bookings will open at 9.00am on Friday 13 November.

To book a time slot please go to https://www.trybooking.com/DQLEJ

or go to Trybooking.com and search OLMC.

Please note - Payment is by eftpos or credit card.

If you have any queries please contact Monica Agius, Community Development Coordinator.

T: 9455 7571 E: magius@olmc.vic.edu.au

Monica Agius
Community Development Coordinator

St Martin of Tours Primary School invite you to their Trivia Night on Friday 6 November. All funds raised will go towards St Martin's new senior playground.

St. John's Catholic Parish Heidelberg invite you to join with them in celebrating their 175th Anniversary Weekend on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November 2026.

Follow the official Our Lady of Mercy College accounts on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. We’ll be sharing regular news, student achievements and stories from around the College.