11 August 2025

From Our Executive Principal

St Teresa’s College, Abergowrie

After two weeks at St Teresa’s College, I have begun the ‘on the ground’ work of facilitating the transition process between Townsville Catholic Education and EREA Colleges (the governing body of St Brendan’s). Project teams from both organisations have been working tirelessly behind the scenes to bring this once-in-a-generation opportunity to life. Pending canonical approval, the plan is for EREA to assume governance responsibility for St Teresa’s College at the start of next year.

This transition marks the beginning of an exciting journey, one that will create new opportunities for your son and for both colleges. These may include cultural immersions, shared camps, retreats, access to expanded resources, and enriched experiences for staff and students alike across both communities.

It has been a busy start at Abergowrie, with numerous visitors arriving at the College to explore future possibilities. These have included representatives from Clontarf, QCEC, and EREA Colleges—namely the Board Chair, Chief Executive Officer, and the Director– Corporate & Assurance. In a few weeks, we’ll also be welcoming 12 EREA College Principals from across the country.

As the partnership develops, I will continue to keep you informed about the emerging opportunities—particularly through the lens of what it means for the St Brendan’s community.

St Brendan’s College, Yeppoon

Last weekend, I was fortunate to spend a few days back at St Brendan’s. A highlight was undoubtedly the College Musical. What an outstanding performance, a true credit to the students, the technical crew, and the dedicated staff who have worked for months to bring this production to life. I hope many of you were able to witness our students’ incredible talent on show.

Congratulations also to the SBC students who received the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and First Communion over the weekend. While I was unable to attend the 5pm Mass due to travelling back to Abergowrie, I had the privilege of being present at the 9am Mass to witness this sacred celebration. These sacraments are significant milestones in the boys’ faith journey, and I commend them all. A special thank you to Mr Peers and all who helped prepare and support the students for this important occasion.

Last week, Mr Paul Horan provided the College Advisory Council with a snapshot of the first few weeks of Term 3, and what a term it has already been! From parent-teacher interviews and the musical, to sporting fixtures at all levels and joint workshops with St Ursula’s on respectful relationships, the College continues to offer an extraordinary range of experiences for your sons. We are a vibrant and dynamic community that lives out the Edmund Rice Education Australia touchstones each day.

Wishing you all the best for the fortnight ahead.

Warmest regards,
Robert Corboy
Executive Principal

From Our College Principal

I was going through my in-box and came across an e-mail from an organisation which sells “Character Development” programs to schools. The programs provide lessons and guidelines to teach empathy, concern and support.  The article noted that when implemented, these programs have a twenty percent increase in positive interactions between students, and between students and teachers. 

It got me thinking about those values and the fact that as a college we do not have a program that prescriptively teaches them – and yet, our boys overwhelmingly display them.  It is because character rarely needs to be taught - it just needs to be seen, it needs to be ever present, and it needs to be part of the culture of the organisation.  Tom Bennett, an English educational theorist, confirms that school culture is affected by human nature and human nature has been observed, recorded and studied for centuries. The studies tell us that we are social animals, highly conformist, have a deep need to belong to groups, look to others as a safe guide of what to do and how to act, and adopt ideas, beliefs and values at a faster rate the more people are involved.

Meaning, the more people you have in your school who display positive character traits, the more people you will get in your school displaying those same positive character traits. Again, Bennett notes,

“The school is not an archipelago of inert pebbles, remote from one another.  Ripples from one affect all others.  It is a churning motion of influence and feedback, of which we are all participants”.

So, who are some of the pebbles that cause the ripples of influence? One of them is TJ Van Der Walt.  The boys see TJ’s “word of the week” displayed on every large screen in each classroom.  They hear him deconstruct that word on the assembly and listen as he aligns the word to a significant figure who displays that exact quality. 

Kirra-Mun Doyle is another.  Kirra-Mun worked with Keely Marr and Rhonda Finley for the last few months painting a set of boots for ‘old boy’ Trai Fuller to wear in the NRL Indigenous round.  Kirra-Mun, called his design ‘Sitting in the Stars’. “Each dot represents a star, and the large purple designs symbolise people sitting together."  When the Dolphins take the field, Kirra-Mun’s boots will be proudly worn, with each step a tribute to tradition, storytelling and strength.  The design is simply stunning and shows what patience, connection and goals can achieve.

Steven Wickerson, while less publicly facing, is none-the-less influential.  Steven is a regular at the Eddie’s Van where he devotes his time collecting, packing and distributing food for those in need.  Steven has rarely missed a week in the last two years and his support for, and interactions with, make some peoples days a little brighter.

Certainly, the two boys I’m going to mention now, would not see themselves as having an influence on others. I’m talking about Slayter Marshall and Matterson Szepanowski, who were sponsors for their Year 7 little brothers at the Sacramental Mass last Sunday. Neither Slayter nor Matterson would have given it much thought, but their participation means more than they can know.

Now that’s character!

Kind regards,
Paul Horan
College Principal

The First Nations artists behind the boots | Dolphins

Teaching, Learning and Innovation

As we move into Term 3, our senior students are now entering a critical stage in their academic journey. This period brings with it a combination of rigorous assessment tasks and intensive revision sessions in preparation for the upcoming IA3 examinations, and then their final external assessments.

Last week, our Senior Mathematics students participated in intensive workshops designed to strengthen their understanding of complex concepts and refine their problem-solving skills. The workshop provided a valuable opportunity for targeted learning, exam-style practice, and feedback from their teachers. We commend the students for their commitment and hard work and wish them every success with their exams this week.

All students are strongly encouraged to take advantage of the extra academic support available through the College’s before- and after-school tutorials outlined below.

Semester One Awards Assemblies

This Wednesday, we will celebrate students for their academic and personal excellence in our Semester One Awards Assemblies. Across the school, 566 students have met the criteria for an Academic Award, recognising their achievement in their studies. Additionally, we will celebrate another 68 students who have met the very challenging criteria to attain a Learner Attributes Award.

Learner Attribute Awards – “Personal Excellence”

This awards system recognises students who consistently displayed a positive approach and attitude towards their learning. The attributes reflect the behaviours, skills, and dispositions that support students to achieve their best and contribute to a positive learning environment and school culture.

The four Learner Attributes are outlined below.

1. Preparation for Learning – The student displays organisational skills by being punctual, well-presented, and prepared.

2. Co-operation with Teacher and Peers – The student interacts with teachers and peers in a cooperative and respectful manner.

3. Engagement and Application – The student applies himself to the best of his ability, demonstrating effort and a positive attitude.

4. Completion of Home Learning – The student shows independence and self-management in completing home learning tasks.

To attain a Learner Attribute Award, a student must be rated as consistently demonstrating all four attributes by all their teachers on their term report cards. The Learner Attribute Awards operate as a tiered system of recognition. The criteria for each tier of award are shown below.

At the two ceremonies - Middle School and Senior School - we will recognise 45 students who have attained a Bronze Award and 23 students who have met the criteria for a Silver Award already this year. I sincerely commend these students for their exemplary approach to learning and look forward to seeing them work towards achieving the Gold Award later this year.

The final level of Learner Attribute Award each student attains will be determined after the final reporting period for 2025. Students will receive their physical badges at the first Academic Awards Assemblies in 2026.

I look forward to many other students attaining Learner Attribute Awards as the year progresses.

We look forward to celebrating the efforts and achievements of our students and thank the College community for their ongoing encouragement and support during this busy and important term.

Kind regards,
Peter Reddy
Assistant Principal
Teaching, Learning & Innovation

Sport

It has been a busy fortnight of sport at SBC with students competing in the RD Athletics trials, Capricornia Futsal Championships, NQ AFLQ finals all while being in the middle of our Interschool Rugby League season. The Interhouse Rugby League Competition has also kicked off with our junior teams taking to the field last week in their first round of matches.

CAPRICORNIA FUTSAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

Our Open Boys futsal team represented the college at the recent Football Queensland Capricornia Futsal Championships.

Finding themselves in a tough pool, the team was beaten well by a strong Chanel College team in their first game as they were slow to get out of the blocks. This left them with an uphill task of needing to beat Rockhampton Grammar by a margin of 4 goals to progress to the semi-finals. Showing great determination and character, they triumphed with a scoreline of 11 goals to 4. Their reward was a quick turnaround to face Holy Spirit College Mackay in the semis.

Picking up where they left off, the score was 3-2 in their favour midway through the second half. However, fatigue, along with good play from a strong Holy Spirit team meant they went down fighting on a scoreline of 6-3.

Congratulations to the boys who played with grit and determination, representing the college with distinction. Thankyou to Mr Hodgins for coaching the boys on the day.

NQ AFLQ FINALS

Our Senior AFL team travelled to Townsville last week to participate in the NQ AFLQ School’s Cup Competition. In their semi-final the boys were drawn against NQ heavyweights St. Augustine’s College. It was a spirited affair with both teams playing an attacking brand of football. We dominated for the first three quarters, however failed to capitalise on the scoreboard. To their credit, St Augustine’s held tough and were able wrestle the momentum back in the final term to hold on for a narrow victory, 34 – 23. Although disappointed at what might have been the boys regrouped and steeled themselves for a tough 3rd place playoff game against Ryan Catholic College.

With lessons learnt from the first game, the boys came out firing against Ryan asserting their dominance from the first bounce. With Liam Cook serving it up to our midfield on a platter we never looked troubled as our intensity, skill level and work rate could not be matched. It was a great way to finish the carnival with the boys winning 60 – 13.

Special mention to Jesse McWhinney who was awarded our Most Valuable Player after an outstanding performance in the final. Congratulations Jesse!

Thank you to the coaching staff of Mr McElhone, Mrs Jones and Mr King. Your contribution was very much appreciated.

RD ATHLETICS

Last week saw our Track & Field athletes take on the best in the district at the Rockhampton District Athletics Trials where they were vying for selection to compete at the Capricornia selection carnival later this term.

There were outstanding performances in what was an action-packed couple of days at North Rockhampton State High School, many of our students placing and recording personal bests across multiple events. A full list of results can be seen below.

Congratulations to all competitors for your efforts throughout the carnival and best of luck to those who were successful in gaining selection in the district team.

STUDENT ACHEIVEMENTS

Australian Futsal Representation

Year 10 student Hunter Herron has returned from a tour in China with the Australian U15 Futsal team. He was able to immerse himself in the culture and thoroughly enjoyed the challenging conditions and level of competition. Hunter’s leadership qualities were on full display after being awarded the captaincy for the tour.

Congratulations Hunter, keep up the good work!

All Australian AFL Selection

Xavier McWhinney recently returned from representing QLD at the U15 National School Sport AFL Championships held in Brisbane. Throughout the carnival Xavier’s Qld White team took on sides from Tasmania, Victoria, New South Wales and the ACT. He played a pivotal role across the half back line, responsible for orchestrating his teams’ attack, whilst also locking down the opposition in defence when required. After some good performances Xavier was rewarded with selection in the U15 All Australian AFL Team.

Congratulations Xavier, an amazing achievement!

Kind regards,
Damien McLuskie
Director of Sport

Careers

QTAC applications for university entry in Queensland for 2026 are now open. All Year 12 students aiming to start university in Queensland next year must apply through QTAC (the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre). The QTAC application system allows you to apply to up to 17 institutions with a single application by listing your course preferences. All students who are eligible for an ATAR have been added to a dedicated QTAC TEAM to access webinars, information on scholarships, accommodation, and open days, please ask your son about this TEAM.

For students considering universities outside Queensland, applications must be made through the respective state's University Admissions Centre (e.g., UAC for NSW, VTAC for Victoria).

Applicants should monitor QTAC and university websites for key dates, supporting document requirements, and any course-specific criteria.

How to apply

Here are six steps to applying with QTAC: 

1. Research Courses: Explore and research the courses you’re interested in, including their entry requirements, prerequisites, and any additional admission criteria.
2. Create a QTAC Account: Register for a QTAC account online, where you can manage your application, track your progress, and receive updates.
3. Choose Preferences: Select up to six course preferences in order of your most desired to least desired course. Ensure you meet the prerequisites for each course.
4. Complete the Application: Fill out the online application form, providing all necessary personal details, academic records, and any supporting documentation.
5. Submit your Application: Submit your application and pay your application fee to ensure your application is processed. Payment can usually be made online through the QTAC portal.
6. Monitor Your Application: Keep an eye on your QTAC account for updates, offers, and any additional steps you may need to take, such as responding to offers or providing additional information.

Key Application Links

• Application Services (QTAC):
  Use the QTAC Application Services portal to create your account, submit your application, manage course preferences, upload documents, and respond to offers. Review guidance on navigating the QTAC portal and check troubleshooting FAQs if needed. 
• Events & Open Days:
  Explore the QTAC Events page for 2025 university, TAFE, and training open days across Queensland. These events offer opportunities to tour campuses, attend information sessions, and ask questions directly to staff. qtac
• Fees:
  QTAC application fees and other important financial information can be found on the Fees page. Note deadlines, as application fees increase after 30 September 2025 (from $70 to $150 for late applications). 

ATAR Registration Requirement

All students aiming to receive an ATAR must register through the official QTAC ATAR Portal. This account registration is essential, as it is the only way your ATAR will be released to you on 18 December 2025. Make sure to set up your account in advance, using a personal email address you will have access to after graduating school.

For further guidance please email careers@sbc.qld.edu.au

SBC CAREERS NEWSFEED

SBC Careers Newsfeed

For the latest local and regional career opportunities (apprenticeships, traineeships, casual and holiday work included), work experience opportunities, school-based career information sessions, updates from Queensland Universities, QTAC, school-based university programs, industry trends information, events, and the world of work, subscribe to the SBC newsfeed.

St Brendan's College (sbccareers.com.au)

Careers Newsfeed

CAREER RESOURCES

If you are looking for resources and information, make sure you visit our SBC careers website.

Click here to visit the SBC Careers website

CAREER MEETINGS

If you, or your son would like further information or would like to meet with me to discuss career pathways, please send an email to Rebecca Lang with your available times and we will arrange a meeting langr@sbc.qld.edu.au or use the "Book an Appointment" link on the SBC Careers Website. 

Regards,
Rebecca Lang
Director of Pathways

From the Library

BOOK WEEK IS NEARLY HERE!!

Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA) Book Week is on this term in Week 6.

The annual Book of the Year Awards aim to promote quality literature for young Australians, support and encourage Australian writers and illustrators of children’s books and celebrate contributions to Australian children’s literature.
You can check out the Children's Book Council of Australia's shortlist titles below...

COME AND CHECK OUT THE LIBRARY WEEK 6 FOR BOOK WEEK 2025 - AUG 18 - 22

Author & Illustrator, Jess McGeachin designed this year's artwork.

Jess McGeachin, "has captured this adventurous spirit in his artwork, which features a whimsical map filled with imaginary characters inviting readers to embark on fantastical journeys, inspiring them to travel through the worlds that books open up.  Imagine, explore, and create your own adventure”.

BOOK WEEK ACTIVITIES AT THE LIBRARY

Come and play a life-sized board game!!

Contact the library if you have any questions.

Elizabeth Varley
Librarian

Rodeo

Calling All Helpers

The St Brendan’s College School Boys Rodeo is just around the corner, and we need volunteers to help make this unique event a success! From setting up designated areas to lending a hand on the day, every bit of help counts. Be part of the action and support our boys in the only school-based rodeo in Australia! Register your interest below...

THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPONSORS

Regional Visits

We are coming to ROMA, CHARLEVILLE AND QUILPIE!! We would love to catch up with you there!

DONATIONS PLEASE!

Our horse riding club is growing, and with more riders comes the need for more gear. If you have any old stock or fender saddles in safe, working condition that you no longer use, we would love to give them a new home. Saddles are a big expense, so your donation would make a huge difference to our riders.

Pick Up and Drop Off

A reminder that the following procedures are in place for the drop off and collection of students

FREE WEBINAR

Register via the following link:
http://stbrendans.qld.schooltv.me/webinar/qld-digital-media-literacy-safety-part-III

Learning Support

Tuckshop

College App

Android download is available by CLICKING HERE.

Apple user download is available by CLICKING HERE.

Timetable

Study Groups & Clubs

Term 3 Date Claimers

The 2025 College calendar is available to support your planning.

Access it through Parent Lounge or via the website using the following link:

Old Boys Foundation

Community

R.C.I.A. (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults).

Are you interested in learning more about the Catholic Faith?  Do you know someone who is interested in becoming a Catholic?  Are you a lapsed Catholic, feeling a yearning to "return Home"?  R.C.I.A. is active in the Capricorn Coast Catholic Parish. 

For more information please contact the Parish Office on 49336171 or Sue on 0447742484.  

Valued Sponsors