Year 9

Year 9 Personal Development Day

The first PD Day (the exact dates of both of them elude me), called ‘What is a Bloke?’ took place over a number of weeks as each Homeroom’s outing took place on a different day. As my class made its way through the bucketing rain (this isn’t dramatic licence, it really was pouring) to our intended destination, the Phoenix Park Community Centre, we all had different feelings about the day to come, some of optimism, some of trepidation. Mine was one of scepticism: whenever the words ‘Personal Development’ are mentioned, my mind always conjures up the image of a conveyor belt full of people each in turn being given a personality from a pile of mass-produced identical ones. Whether this was to be the case today I was yet to see. We arrived at our port of call for the day and were eventually permitted into the relative warmth of the building. We were then portioned a few minutes to settle in while the day’s activities were set up. The building and its furnishings had a practical style about them that meant while it wasn’t somewhere you’d call home, it was a relatively pleasant and comfortable place to spend a day. The furnishings and design of a building however, are not enough to win me over, after all, they spend a lot of time designing and fitting prisons... Once we had all settled in, we were shown a few short scenes from some television shows that were to relate to the issues discussed throughout the day. We were then split into two groups, one headed by one Mr Hale and the other by one Mr Bourbon. Then, in said groups, we discussed several issues relating to gender stereotyping, communication and expanded on issues touched on in the videos we were shown. We remained in these groups throughout the day and continued discussion and activities based around the above issues until it was time to go. The day proved to be very constructive as it has proved the basis of what I hope will be a breakthrough in youth communication. The second day was based at the same location with similar issues to be discussed, the main differences: 1. It involved another school and 2. It involved both Year levels in full. This was obviously a daunting organisational task but it came together rather well. The combined Year 9s were split into groups of 16, eight from each school. The main objective of the day was to expand on the previous PD Day’s discussion issues of genderstereotyping and communication in a different environment. The day, as I mentioned earlier, came together well, not only allowing us to discuss the above issues freely, but it also gave us the opportunity to socialise with people from another school.

Andrew Donegan

9 Dunstan

Back Row : Troy Williams, George Santaltzis, Anthony Newlands, Thomas Bloom Third Row : Matt Collis, Paul Sansalone, Joshua Junkeer, Patrick Smith, Eric Kydd, James Tolson, Rory Higgins Second Row : Jeffrey D'Souza, Cameron Van De Laarschot, Jason Fatone, Neil Chen, Lawrence Colman, Nicholas Hooker, Robert Saliba, Ms Sandra Troise Front Row : Daniel Gordon, James Nicoll, Minh Nguyen, Dimitri Koutrouvelis, Daniel Conway, Nicholas Gill, Sean Irving Back Row : Mason Nicola, Leigh Dimitropoulos, Michael Petruccelli, Nicholas Weller, Alex Bressan, Anthony Hale Third Row : Luke Lally, James Comerford, Carey Watkins, Christopher Howard, Jamil Molinaro, Rocky Lomacchio Second Row : Peter Holmes, Gerardo Sison, James Meade, Aidan McInerney, Jason Tiso, Mackinley Cheng, Mr Joseph Di Ciccio Front Row : Samuel Williams, Adrian Hulston, Michael Gemanel, John Creedon, Benjamin Dwyer, Joel Pollard Absent : Mark Gomizel

9 Jerome

Back Row : Christopher Hyland, Simon Finlay, Adam Kovarik, Jack Morwood Third Row : Alessandro Marino, Nicholas Parton, James Jade, James Francis, Corey Glenister, Christian Zuanetti, Jonathan Benco Second Row : Patrick Paczkowski, Andrew BouGhosn, Alexander Phillipos, Jacob Gotch, Daniel Lawlor, Adam Speirs, Joel Phillips, Mr Ian Smith Front Row : Tomasz Trojak, Slaven Drnda, Christopher Shaw, Peter Grouios, Andrew Campbell, Dominic Stephens, Paul Ryan Back Row : Andrew Donegan, Alan Stedman, Lloyd Gallery, Michael Ryan Third Row : Jay Stanford, Demian Myers, Matthew Allan, Adrian Tinney, Charles Herd, Mark Nowak Second Row : Kristian Campbell-Tennant, Timothy Gardner, Andrew Corteling, Christopher Soumplis, Thomas Baker-Lovell, Thomas Sargeant, Mr Mark Leslie Front Row : Jesse Brown, Christopher Koh, Nicholas Davies, Alexander Roberts, James Cleary, Daniel Price Absent : Ravi Arora, Sam Faneco

One of Those Days

Now, as I get to school, I hear the late bell ringing Running through the yard, I hear the choir club singing As I get to the office, I can hardly speak Because it’s the 3rd late pass that I got this week So to my first class I run don’t walk All I hear are my runners and the scratching of chalk And when I get to the room, I hear the teacher say “Mr Gemanel, I’m happy that you could join us all today” I try to sit down so I can take some notes But I can’t read what the person next to me wrote And if that wasn’t enough, to make my morning complete As I try to get up, I find there’s chewing gum on my seat And with the seat stuck to me, I bravely raise my hand And say, ‘Excuse me miss, can I go to the bathroom, ma’am’ The teacher got upset and she screamed out “NO It’s off to Mr Bourbon’s office you go” Michael Gemanel

Congratulations to Academic Achievement Award winners Semester 1:

Matthew Allan 9H, Alex Bressan 9B, Andrew Campbell 9J, Neil Chen 9D, Kieran Davies 9V, Andrew Donegan 9H, Slaven Drnda 9J, Jeffrey D'Souza 9D, Christopher Howard 9B, Christopher Koh 9H, Christopher Merrey 9M, Peter Nicholls 9M, Anthony Pane 9S, Michael Petruccelli 9B, Alexander Phillipos 9J, Christopher Pritchard 9V, Christopher Shaw 9J, Adam Smith 9M, Adrian Tinney 9H, Samuel Williams 9B, Bradley Wood 9R French Student From La Réunion

At the beginning of Term 3, we had an exchange student from la Réunion, a small French Island off the coast of Sth Africa. Maxime Caperan came to school here to learn English during his holidays and not as an exchange student. Max stayed here for 6 weeks living with the Davies who are friends of the family. “Maxime was quite shy. He had a good understanding of English and was easy to talk to. It was exciting to see how well he adapted to our country. It was such a privilege to have Maxime come from a completely different country where they don’t speak English. It was interesting having an exchange student in our French class. It was a new experience having a conversation with him. It was cool to learn about a new culture and to hear French from a real French person. I learnt that the way French people are portrayed in the movies isn’t true-they aren’t up themselves. Max was very funny and was always joking. He showed us a video of his home country. Before Maxime came to De La Salle, I never knew La Réunion existed. He told me that he went to a Lasallian school that was co-ed…….. I learnt that he was great company and that we liked the same music….. It was good to learn about life outside Australia from Maxime as I’ve never been overseas. Max plays the bass guitar and is into rock music. He was a bit of a skater person. His stay was too short He can come again any time.” Reflections of the Year 9 French class

Year 9 2003 Life in Year 9 De La Salle has had its many ups and downs. I, always the optimist, intend to concentrate on the ups for the time being and—always mathematically minded—in chronological order for your reading pleasure (if you do not enjoy reading things in chronological order, feel free to read through this report at random). The year started amid fresh smiling faces and the odd complaint of ‘There is no way that was six weeks’. After a brief period where we got used to the difference in recess and lunch times (some people think coming back from America confuses the old body clock!) and the addition to our busy lives of Tuesday afternoon sport, Year 9 settled down nicely. Many new challenges faced us but there were also many old ones such as athletics, where the Year 9 boys gave it their all in both training and competition. Mission Action Day was a great success where Year 9 can proudly say they as a year level, raised the most (that's right they even beat the Year 7s!). And of course the rock eisteddfod where there was yet again another boom of Year 9 boys busting to join. Along with these now well-known challenges there were also many new ones. For instance we could actually choose our elective subjects and therefore were not able to complain about them as loudly as before. The Red Cross door knock appeal brought forth many young Lasallians to the street where they tirelessly worked to raise much-needed funds and delivered a grand total of over $1,100. Year 9 went to a new camp in the Barmah state forest where we were forced to face the horror of not only no T.V. but actually having to cook, clean and basically manage ourselves for a week (predictably, some of the future economists among us decided to save time and skip the whole cleaning business). We were also met with the challenge of not one, but two personal development days, one with Star of the Sea College, in which we learnt about modern male and female images in our society and what it was to be a man. Both days were a success, (a fact evidenced by the lack of a violent riot about the mysterious disappearance of the Year 9 social). And of course there was the introduction of exams, a prospect that caused several minor heart murmurs (and, strangely, one case of temporary blindness which cleared after the 2-week exam period). Personally I admit to having enjoyed the exams and the extra 3 hours of sleep it offered. Although in the last 441 words (now 444) I have only given the briefest of brief of overviews of life in Year 9 at De La Salle College I hope I have given you some insight into what we have been through (we are currently setting up a fund for trauma victims and all donations are welcome, please contact Peter Nicholls 9 Miguel if you wish to make a contribution). As for me I have enjoyed this year at De La Salle and have every intention of making an appearance in the Blue and Gold for an appraisal of Year 10 De La Salle next year. Peter Nicholls

9 Roland

Back Row : Michael Lane, Samuel Dowling, Matthew Kennedy, Damon Douglas Third Row : Brendan Chung, Matthew Collins, Joshua Cassar, Bradley Wood, Jake Ellis, James Woodlock Second Row : Nathan Stewart, Christopher Lobo, Benjamin Difabrizio, Michael Keating, James Watson, Adam Miller, Thomas Briglia Front Row : Timothy Maddocks, Dylan Howell, Beau Coyle, Ryan Scanlan, Timothy McCurdy, Simon Frazer Back Row : Christopher Merrey, Sam Fairbrother, Aaron McLay, Thomas Coultas, Peter Apostolopoulos, Peter Nicholls Third Row : Fraser Paterson, Gerard Nolan, Sean Leoszko, Scott McCulloch, Kevin Walker, David De Luca Second Row : Mark Quamil, Mitchell Gilmour, Charles Cattermole, Benjamin O'Neill, Daniel Reid, Anthony Stabelos, Ms Susan Robertson Front Row : Matthew Peterson, Andrew De Mesa, Michael Kann, Solomon Al Haj, Mitchell Lyons, Adam Smith

9 Vincent

Back Row : Kieran Davies, Mitchell Smith, Nathan Roberts, Jack Saunders Third Row : Anthony Vanzella-Riggio, Callum Richards, Benjamin Simpson, Liam Carolan, Christopher Brodie, James Esposito, James Marasco Second Row : Steven Zoumis, John Tsaousidis, Patrick Suhodobnik, Michael Torrisi, Stephen Monteleone, Mr Chris Fleming Front Row : Luke Pelly, Christopher Pritchard, Alexander Smyth, David Hunter, Samuel Dillon, Michael Davis, Christopher Espino Back Row : Andre Pentifallo, John Moore, Dominic Harkins, Simon Brown, David Millar Third Row : Lachlan Graf, Anthony Pane, Timothy Arbon, Stephen Wall, Liam Costello, Dominic Smith, Julian Hirst Second Row : David Quamil, Steven Hogan, Timothy Clinch, Jordan Adams, Sean Morrison, Mr David Ellul Front Row : Joseph O'Connell, Leigh Pryor, Benjamin Robson, William Carey, Luke Semmel, Joe Maher, James Moloney

Year 9 Coordinator's Report

The theme for Year 9 2003 was Commitment and Cooperation. The Year 9 students asked to make this year one to remember, by committing to do their best in their academic work, building positive relationships with the staff and other students in Year 9 and involving themselves in at least one extra curricula activity within the school. It is very satisfying to report that the students of Year 9 responded to these challenges in a positive manner, throughout the year. I would like to express my gratitude to the Year 9 Homeroom staff — Mr Peppe Diccio, Ms Sandra Troise, Mr Mark Leslie, Mr Ian Smith, Ms Susan Robertson, Ms Carmel D’andrea, Mr David Ellul and Mr Chris Fleming. They are amazingly energetic, possess great enthusiasm for their work and demonstrate their genuine concern for the welfare of their boys, every day. There is much work that they do on a one-to-one basis with students to ensure that they are supporting them through challenging times. This is the first year that we have had 8 Homeroom groups in Year 9 and I feel very fortunate to have started this year with such a great team. I will take this opportunity to express my gratitude to Br Tim and Peter Riordan for their continued support and encouragement. They do much to create the positive atmosphere which permeates the school community. The class leaders possess a number of qualities which reflect the entire Year 9 group. They have been most generous with their time, have demonstrated a diligent approach towards performing their duties and have been prepared to cooperate with staff and other students to the best of their abilities. Congratulations to Sam Williams and Carey Watkins (Year 9 Benilde), Thomas Bloom and Jeff D’Souza (Year 9 Dunstan), Alan Stedman and Nicholas Davies (Year 9 Hegarty), Alex Phillipos and Joel Phillips (Year 9 Jerome), David De Luca and Kevin Walker (Year 9 Miguel), Thomas Briglia and Bradley Wood (Year 9 Roland), Simon Brown and William Carey (Year 9 Solomon), Sam Dillon and Benjamin Simpson (Year 9 Vincent). I believe that they have learnt much about themselves in their roles as leaders this year. The Year 9 students have achieved much this year. However, I would like to comment on their outstanding spirit of generosity. This trait first became evident this year during the 'Red Cross Calling' Appeal in March, where over 100 Year 9 and 10 students raised $1,700 dollars in an afternoon. The entire group raised approximately $11,00 dollars for the Lasallian Missions during the Mission Action Campaign. Finally, I commend the boys for their efforts during the Sacred Heart Mission canned goods drive, which raised a significant quantity of items. The Personal Development Program provided some of the great highlights of the year. All Year 9 classes participated in a unit of work entitled, ‘Building healthy relationships’. As part of this unit, they attended ‘What Is A Bloke’ seminar day. This day gave them an opportunity to explore what it means to be male and to look closely at their listening and communication skills. They were able to participate in small group discussion and role-play. The boys are to be congratulated for their mature approach and willingness to involve themselves in all aspects of the day. During Term 3,Year 9 students were also involved in Personal Development Day with the Year 9 students from Star Of The Sea College, Gardenvale. This was a great day and the feedback from our students was most positive. As Coordinator, it was great to see them working in such a sincere and respectful way with the staff and students they encountered on the day. This a great group of young men; they possess many traits, not the least being their care and compassion for each other. I wish them well as they prepare for Year 10, the first Year 10 group at Kinnoull campus. It has been my pleasure to work with them throughout the year. Mr Richard Bourbon

Year 9 Leaders

Back Row: Tom Bloom, Simon Brown, Alan Stedman, Middle Row: Dave Deluca, Kevin Walker, Mr Richard Bourbon, Bradley Wood, Alex Phillipos, Jeffrey D’Souza, Front Row: William Carey, Sam Williams, Nick Davis, Joel Phillips, Samuel Dillon, Absent: Carey Watkins, Tom Briglia, Benjamin Simpson