Year 12 Graduation and Awards Ceremony

On Wednesday evening, 19 October, our Year 12 students celebrated their final chapter at the College. Students, family, and friends gathered at the beautiful St. Patrick’s Cathedral for the Graduation Liturgy, Awards Presentations and Graduation Ceremony.

The liturgy commenced with Father Con and a selection of the students leading in prayer. They asked God to guide them and their peers to use their gifts and talents to achieve their goals, and to have the strength to overcome any obstacles that they may face in the future. The liturgy concluded with Father Con blessing all of the Year 12 students.

Our Lady of Mercy College Choir, led by Mrs Tanya Kavanagh, sang An African Blessing, arrangement by Andrew Chihn, after which the official Presentation of Awards Ceremony commenced.

Please find here an overview of the awards presented during the evening and their recipients:

College Colours

The following students were awarded Academic Colours in recognition for their excellent academic achievements and efforts;

Lauren Cronin

Daniella Iuculano

Jessica Marzano

Luke McAtee

Neveiah Parravicini

Zakary Sutherland

Zoe Younger

Students who were awarded Community Colours for the outstanding contributions they have made to the College community were;

Zane Basso

Lauren Cronin

Isabelle Crump

Jessica Marzano

Amberley Milne

Ethan Nankivell

Jack Nankivell

Ryley Wastell

The next group of students were awarded Faith Colours for their contributions to faith-based initiatives at the College;

Lauren Cronin

Ashleigh Godwin

Jessica Marzano

Amberley Milne

Ryley Wastell

Students who receive all three Colours are presented with Honours. This year, two students attained this prestigious award; Lauren Cronin and Jessica Marzano.

Year 12 Awards

Jessica Marzano Mercy Values Award Amberley Milne Christian Service Award

Ryley Wastell Long Tan

Academic Excellence Awards

Zane Basso Excellence in Applied Information Technology

General

Albie Barnden Excellence in Materials Design and Technology:

Wood General

Georgia Carbone Excellence in Human Biology General

Jarrod Clifton Excellence in Certificate III Information Technology

Lauren Cronin Excellence in Certificate II Hospitality

Aurora De Swardt Excellence in Maths Applications ATAR

Rennan Dwyer Excellence in Certificate II Creative Industries

Bryce Facey Excellence in Accounting and Finance ATAR

Ashleigh Godwin Excellence in Economics ATAR

Kane Italiano Excellence in Building and Construction General

Leah Italiano Excellence in Certificate III Sport and Recreation

Daniella Iuculano Excellence in English ATAR

Jessica Marzano Excellence in Literature ATAR

Religion and Life ATAR

Luke McAtee Excellence in Chemistry ATAR

Mathematics Specialist ATAR

Physics ATAR

Lenny Mutai Excellence in Materials Design and Technology:

Metal General

Ethan Nankivell Excellence in Music ATAR

Mia Nandapi Excellence in Human Biology ATAR

Chloe Scott Excellence in Certificate II Outdoor Recreation

Max Smith Excellence in Maths Essential General

Zakary Sutherland Excellence in Applied Information Technology

ATAR

Modern History ATAR

Sophie Taylor-Rule Excellence in Certificate III Business

Paige Thornton Excellence in Religion and Life General

Rose Torrisi Excellence in Certificate III Music

Chelyce Wastell Excellence in Certificate III Early Childhood

Education and Care

Linda Xiao Excellence in Psychology ATAR

Michael Yates Excellence in Maths Methods ATAR

Zoe Younger Excellence in English General

Psychology General

Visual Arts General

Major College Awards

Academic Distinction

Presented to Year 12 students who have achieved 14 or more A grades across Year 11 and 12 or their equivalent in General and VET Courses.

The recipients of Academic Distinctions are:

Kiara Iannello

Luke McAtee

Neveiah Parravicini

Michael Yates

Zoe Younger

Proxime Accessit

Awarded to the student who has achieved the second highest academic result in Year 12, in the General and ATAR pathways.

The student receiving the Proxime Accessit for the General Pathway is:

Georgia Carbone

The student receiving the Proxime Accessit for the ATAR Pathway is:

Michael Yates

Sporting Excellence Award

The Senior Sporting Excellence Award is presented to students in Years 10, 11 or 12 who have achieved outstanding results whilst representing the College and have shown a high level of leadership and sportsmanship. This year the Senior Male Sporting Excellence Award goes to Taj Timewell.

Dux

Awarded to the student who has achieved the highest final academic results in Year 12 in General and ATAR pathways.

The Dux for the General pathway is: Stephanie Musitano The Dux for the ATAR pathway is: Luke McAtee

Marcellin Champagnat

This award is given to one student, from any year group across the College, in recognition of their resilience and endeavour to be the best they can be despite the many challenges they have faced.

The winner of this award is: Zakary Sutherland

Mercy Education

Presented to a Year 12 student who has demonstrated leadership in the Mercy tradition and espoused the core values of Mercy Education. This recipient is an excellent example of what it means to follow The Mercy Way. They have been a member of the Ministry Team, reading and singing at various liturgies throughout the year. This person has embraced many opportunities to assist younger students through The Smith Family Buddy Reading program, the MaqLit reading program and as a Peer Support Leader in Year 10. They consistently treat all members of the College community with respect and compassion and contribute regularly to the fundraising activities held at the College, such as Give a Damn, Give a Can and St Vinnies Christmas Appeals. This person has also been an excellent leader as College Captain.

This award is presented to: Amberley Milne

Ursula Frayne

This award is given to a Year 12 student who has displayed leadership qualities and contributed to the College’s co-curricular programme. The recipient tonight, has represented the College in Debating, Philosothons, and Ethics Olympiads. They were also part of the Green Team, and a Peer Support Leader. However, it is this person’s contribution to the area of Performing Arts that is most notable. They have been involved in musical productions since commencing at the College and participated in a variety of instrumental ensembles. They have also held the position of College Captain for 2022.

This award is presented to: Ethan Nankivell

O’Meara Shield

This award is named after the foundation principal of our College, Ms Denise O’Meara and recognises a Year 12 student who is characterised by their overall commitment to the College pillars of Embracing Life, Nurturing Faith and Inspiring Learning. This year’s recipient has represented the College in a range of co-curricular activities including: debating, Tournament of the Minds, choir and a number of College productions, They have willingly shared their expertise with younger students by coaching debating and Tournament of the Minds teams. They have been involved in the Ministry Team as an Extraordinary Minister and assisted at numerous liturgies. This student has been recognised for their outstanding results across a range of learning areas by attaining numerous awards for Academic Excellence and Certificates of Merit. Finally, this person has demonstrated strong leadership skills by being elected to a range of roles culminating in their appointment as College Vice-Captain for 2022.

The winner of this award is: Lauren Cronin

Congratulations to all award recipients.

After the Award ceremony the evening continued with the Graduation Ceremony.

Principal Mr Rob Crothers welcomed all the guests and spoke to the students for the last time.

Students Zoe Younger and Aidan Meango shared their reflection on their Mercy Journey with all.

Aidan said: "Today, 19 October, 2022, we the Class of 2022 graduates. A six-year journey coming to an end. Sure, we have this wonderful celebration and sure we were farewelled at the final assembly but neither of these events come close to reflecting the struggles, the joys and the absolute bitter-sweet relief of this moment. We’re graduating. We did it. We survived high school."

Zoe said: "This may come across as cheesy, but I like to think of our year group as pieces of a puzzle. We’re all different and not every piece fits together, but we all have our place in the picture. Now that it has come to an end, each of us have our own goals and our own futures. I’ll never forget this journey we have shared together, and I’m so grateful to my peers and teachers for making high school such a memorable experience."

College Captains, Amberley Milne and Ethan Nankivell, took the opportunity during their address to thank the staff and teachers;

"It would be remiss of us not to mention and thank the people that helped us get here tonight. To the teachers of Our Lady of Mercy for your dedication and hard work that has allowed us to grow into stronger, better people. Another big thank you goes to our parents for the roles they have and will continue to play in our lives.

To our Head of Year, Mrs Vivienne McKenzie, for her work in shaping who we are today. We know that there have been times in the past six years that we have made you want to pull your hair out, and others still where we are lucky you had the mercy to let us live. There are simply too few words in the English language to express the degree to which we are indebted to you, and the only way we can repay that debt is to try through our lives to make you proud. In summary: Mrs McKenzie, sorry for who we were, and thank you for what we have become.

And finally, we thank our peers. We are thankful that we had the privilege to spend the last six years with you and to graduate with you this evening. Looking at our cohort, it is clear that everyone has grown so much since Year 7, and as we go out into the world, we can safely say that the world will be better for it. So congratulations to the Graduating Class of 2022 for fighting the fight that is high school and coming out on top."

They then invited their peers to stand up and recite a commitment to following The Mercy Way together:

"As graduates of Our Lady of Mercy College, we are part of a long tradition of Mercy Education, which has at its core, the teachings of Jesus Christ.

We promise to be ever mindful of The Mercy Way, in the many settings in which we find ourselves.

May the values of respect, compassion, hospitality, justice, service and courage be reflected in our words and actions.

May we follow Catherine McAuley’s example of a living faith, burning brightly.

May we endeavor to embrace life, nurture our faith and be inspired to become life-long learners.

Finally, in the words of Catherine, may we “resolve to do good today and be better tomorrow”.

CONGRATULATIONS to all graduating students. The entire College community is extremely proud of all your efforts and achievements throughout your learning journey at Our Lady of Mercy College.

We wish you every success in the future and the best of luck.