Dacchi Dang: Artist as Explorer

Widely regarded as one of the most important Australian artists to emerge from the Vietnamese diaspora, the work of Dacchi Dang will be featured as the inaugural exhibition at the Newington College Concordia Gallery.

All members of the Newington College Community are invited to attend the event, which will run from Tuesday 21 August until Friday 31 August 2012. The exhibition will be open daily from 10.00am to 4.00pm. The official opening will take place on Friday 24 August between 6.00pm and 8.00pm.

In this survey of his work over the past four years, Dang presents an array of landscapes and portraits exploring the experiences and memories of the Vietnamese diaspora in Australia.

Seventeen: Year 12 Visual Arts BOW Exhibition

On Wednesday 5 September the Year 12 Visual Arts students will be showcasing their 2012 Bodies of Work at the Concordia Gallery. These works are the culmination of many, many hours hard work and all members of the community are encouraged to experience the pieces for themselves. The exhibition will be open from 6.00pm-8.00pm, and will be officially opened by the Headmaster Dr David Mulford at 7.00pm.

For more information, please contact the Head of Visual Arts Mr Andrew Thompson by email at athompson@newington.nsw.edu.au.

POSTPONED—Women’s Evening

This year’s Women’s Evening has been postponed until Friday 12 October. We hope you will all be able to join us on this night! All previous details remain unchanged.

A reminder also about the upcoming Trivia Night on Friday 7 September. There will be all types of quizzes, games, and great prizes. An antipasto platter will be provided to start and tea and coffee will be available, however please bring drinks and anything else you and your team members would like to share. Seating is in tables of ten, so please come and join us for an evening of brain teasers, laughs and prizes.

Rollanda Rosenstrauss
Vice President of the P&F

Service Learning: Boys out of Uniform for Nepal

The Newington College trips to Nepal have run since 1996 under the leadership of Mr Michael Davis and Ms Joanne Heaume (pictured above). This year Newington College will be undertaking the seventh trip to Nepal under the leadership of Mr Greg Pike and Ms Kate Shepherd.

In the past Newington College raised money for projects and academic scholarships to help the pupils of the Hermann Gmeiner Schools. SOS Children’s Villages and Hermann Gmeiner Schools are an independent, non-governmental international development organisation, which has been working to meet the needs and to protect the interests and rights of children since 1949.

In addition to the support of the Hermann Gmeiner Schools, this year Newington has undertaken a new initiative to aid the Kushudebu Public Health Mission Nepal (KPHMN), in the Himalayan region of Nepal. Boys and staff will be working on the refurbishment of one of the Health Centre’s buildings. There is very little transport in this region. Sick people have to walk or be carried to the nearest Health Centre.  Ang Tshering Sherpa, the guide of the last Newington Nepal tour, set up this Health Centre to help women who face complications during childbirth. Death during child birth is still too common in rural areas of Nepal. It is hoped that when this building is refurbished the Health Centre will be able to attract more staff to provided additional medical service to this region.

Both health care and education in Nepal are amongst the worst in the world.

The boys shall be raising funds for both the academic support and building materials to renovate the Health Centre. This is an excellent opportunity that Newington is providing for boys to gain an insight into the heath needs of rural Nepal and return with a sense of making a positive contribution to the lives of others.

The boys need your help to do any of this. There will be a mufti day on Monday 3 September 2012. We ask each boy to donate $2 and show they support by coming out of uniform. 

For those interested in finding out more about these organisations, please follow the links below.

Mr Greg Pike

http://www.kushudebu.org.np/programnactivity.php
http://www.kushudebu.org.np/newsnevent.php#44
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SOS_Hermann_Gmeiner_School
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SOS_Children%27s_Villages
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nepal
http://hdrstats.undp.org/en/countries/profiles/NPL.html
http://www.food-nepal.com/

Neil Perry’s Mac and Cheese

For all those Masterchef Tragics who wondered by how Celebrity Chef Neil Perry made his famous “Mac and Cheese” on last week’s All Stars Finale, we have the answer! Neil Perry is, in fact, a notable Old Boy of the College and this very same recipe was featured in The Black and White Cookbook: Recipes from the Newington College Community. 

The Cookbook will make the perfect Father’s Day gift for a proud Newington dad, and is a welcome addition to any bookshelf. For other warm winter recipes and tantalizing treats, order the complete copy today!

Senior Farewell Concert

The Senior Farewell Concert has become a significant event in the Music Department calendar. This concert is a meaningful way to acknowledge the contribution to Newington of our Year 12 musicians. Our five major ensembles, the Symphony Orchestra, Symphonic Winds, the College Choir, Stage Band and Chamber Strings, will each perform 15-20 minutes of repertoire in our most ‘traditional’ concert setting of the year.

Repertoire will include movements from Haydn’s Farewell and Dvorak’s 8^th  Symphonies, the first movement of Johan de Meij’s Lord of the Rings, Alfred Reed’s El Camino Real, the Artie Shaw Clarinet Concerto, Elgar’s Serenade for Strings and a mixed bag of gospel, pop and folk choral works.

If you enjoy being inspired by the amazing talent of our most advanced ensemble musicians, this a concert not to be missed. Click here for your invitation.

Mark Scott
Head of Music

Educational Access Schemes

Most institutions that participate through the Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) have an Educational Access Scheme for applicants who’ve experienced long-term educational disadvantage due to circumstances beyond their control or choosing, which has seriously affected their educational performance. A long-term educational disadvantage should normally be experienced for a period of at least six months.

Boys in Year 12 that wish to lodge an application should see their Head of House. Applications should be lodged with UAC by Friday 28 September 2012. Further details may be found at http://www.uac.edu.au/eas/.

Julia Shea
Head of Curriculum

Year 8 Japanese Swordsmanship

On Friday 3 August, Year 7 and 8 Japanese students had the privilege of meeting Bill Temm, a Master of Japanese swords.

Bill amazed us with the handling of the “Bokken”(wood) and “Katana”(steel) and taught us about the discipline and training that this combat sport entails. He explained how to hold the sword and showed us his techniques. Bill also told us that you must not fight unless threatened and that swords are lethal weapons.

Descendent from a samurai family from Kamakura, Japan, Bill now teaches the art of Japanese sword fighting around Sydney.

Overall it was an enjoyable display of an age-old discipline that is being kept alive by teachers such as Bill.

Georgio Platias (8/JN)

Simon Longstaff at the Centre for Ethics

On Wednesday 1 August Dr Simon Longstaff delivered an engaging lecture to the College community on the topic of “living an examined life”. The lecture was featured as part of the Newington College 2012 Centre for Ethics public program.

Dr Longstaff is a philosopher whose focus is in the field of applied ethics encompassing the wider community beyond academe. He has been Executive Director of St James Ethics Centre since 1991. Established in 1989, the Centre is an independent not-for-profit organisation, which provides a non-judgemental forum for the promotion and exploration of ethics.

The lecture provided an insight into the thinking of the Executive Director—he encourages the process of integrating ethical considerations into the strategic thinking of the management community. Dr Longstaff prides himself on his past experiences and says, ‘Having experience as a youth’ has allowed him to identify the needs of his clients.

Dr Longstaff then delved deeper into the complications of living an ‘examined life’, and where correct actions and ethics can become convoluted.

“When it is two good actions, is where it becomes difficult” he professed. It is when two conflicting actions both have beneficial consequences, he explained, that we must examine life.

Dr Longstaff was devoted to his ‘ethics’, meaning ‘what ought one to do with a time pressure’. He talks simply at the motion of fundamentalists where they abide by only a set of rules, hence alleviating the pressure to ‘examine.’ Certainty is sought after in society and it is that which we must abandon. He contended that we must be able to make decisions in the light that we do not fully know the consequences.

Longstaff then continued into an examination of ‘economical ethics’, which is another way for us to make things into black and white. As an example, while we are now justifying reduction of obesity by its costs, we should rather look at it from an ethical perspective. ‘Economic ethics’ is a construct that we now employ to justify our ends.

Longstaff concluded with a consensus statement that we are not to expect too much from each other. Everyone has their own set of ethical values that they use to make decisions, and they should not be condemned when something goes wrong. He teaches to answer truthfully and not to rationalise self interest and instinctive action by using ethical codes.

The next free Newington College Centre for Ethics lecture will feature Political Commentator Annabel Crabb, leading a discussion on ‘Media and Ethics in a Hyper Connected World. Contact Newington College Reception on 02 9568 9333 or contact@newingtoncollege.nsw.edu.au to reserve a place.

Andrew Zhao (11/MO)

Photo Above: Andrew Zhao, Zachary Scott (11/JN) and Tomas Meaney (11/PR).

National Hoodie Day: AIME

AIME National Hoodie Day 2012: In support of young Indigenous Australians

Students are being given the opportunity to support the Australian Indigenous Mentoring Experience (AIME) on Friday August 31. To participate, students can pre-purchase an AIME Hoodie from nationalhoodieday.com. Proceeds of the purchase go towards funding AIME’s programs that contribute to Indigenous success through increased school completion rates. Friday August 31 is National Hoodie Day—all students with AIME hoodies are permitted to wear them over their uniform for the day. Click here for more information.

History Classics Tour

In the recent holiday Mr Chambers, Mr Pyne and Mr Scali led a group of thirty students to classical Italy and Greece. The boys were keen to see for themselves the sites they’d so often heard about or studied and were always going to squeeze every temporal drop out of the tour.

Beginning in Rome, they covered the Roman Forum (Mr Chambers was very excited to be in the House of the Senate), Trajan’s Column and the Colosseum. The following day, we visited the Vatican and St Peter’s Basilica, as well as the famous Spanish steps and Piazza Navona. Edmond Cheng (11/FL) was so infatuated with the local gelato that he had more than twenty of them in total!

From Rome we moved down to the Bay of Naples, which is dominated by the imposing Volcano, Vesuvius. Highlights included Pompeii, Herculaneum, Solfatara, The Archaeological Museum and, of course, the beautiful island of Capri. We were treated to a boat ride around the island and not only did we visit the Blue Grotto, we even dived off the back of the boat for a swim! From Naples, we then took a ferry to Sicily. On the crossing we watched the Euro Football final and Mr Scali could not hide his disappointment when Spain defeated Italy. In Sicily we visited the beautiful cathedral of Monreale and en route to Agrigento our bus broke down. To make matters worse, the replacement bus broke down! This only strengthened the group’s resolve to make the most of every minute and on Mount Etna, and we went as high as we could in specially built vehicles. Many of us enjoyed our stay in Taormina, where, after visiting the theatre, we had a great swim, followed by more impromptu street football with the locals.

Leaving Sicily after five days, we flew on to Greece. Mr Chambers and Mr Pyne loved the new Acropolis museum and returning from it to the hotel, we stopped in at a chocolatier. Courtesy of the Iannuzzi family everyone availed themselves of the good things on offer there. After a brief stay in Athens, we moved to sites such as Marathon, Delphi, Epidavros, Myceanae and Olympia and mixed these visits with regular dips in the sea outside our hotel. We learnt so much about Greek theatre, warfare, Homer, medicine, politics and the ancient Olympic Games. Because of this incredible trip, we can all appreciate a great deal more about what the classical world has to offer. A great tour and one that we will never forget!

Theodore Iannuzzi (11/MO)
Stefan Rajcevski (11/PR)
Mr Mark Chambers 

Success at City to Surf

Last Sunday saw the Newington City2Surf Team battle gale force winds and 70,000 other participants in the annual journey from the City to Bondi Beach.

With a team consisting of 33 staff, fathers, sons and mothers the Newington team finished 7th out of 67 teams in their category. Whilst it was nice to record a solid result, the main intention was to get a little fitter, strengthen our community and raise some money for Angel Flight.

In all it was a great success with a solid turn out for the first year and raising over $1,000 for our selected Charity.

A few of our parents sent in some photos from the day, please scroll down to take a look.

If you would like to be involved next year keep an eye out closer to the time, or contact Mr Troy Stanley tstanley@newington.nsw.edu.au.

Troy Stanley
PDHPE Department 

NEWINGTON TEAM LIST

Pathways to the Future

Focus on Year 12

University Application information for:

• Elite Athlete and Performers Entry Schemes
• University Scholarship Programs (Click here for more info)
• ATAR Bonus points information

Year 12 – UAC Applications 2013 NSW/ACT

Unsure of what you need to apply for University Admissions 2013? Click here!

Online applications NOW OPEN. Click here to apply.

ATAR Bonus Points Information

The directory undergraduate bonus points reference edition 2013 is a new resource that has just been made available to Year 12 boys for 2013 university entry. The booklet provides an overview of Bonus ATAR points at the various institutions per HSC subjects and other schemes including Elite Athletes and Performers and Educational Access Scheme. Click here to get a copy.

What are Bonus ATAR Points?

Universities allocate bonus points in certain circumstances. Examples include performance in relevant HSC subjects, elite athlete and performers’ entry schemes, living or attending school in an area defined by the university, and consideration through Educational Access Schemes (see below). Bonus point schemes are different for each university, and often for each course at the same university. This means that your selection rank can be different for each course you list in your course preferences. For most Year 12 applicants, their selection rank for each preference is their ATAR. However, if universities allocate bonus points to you, then your selection rank for a preference = your ATAR + bonus points. Click here to read more.

If you would like to make further enquiries or to make an appointment, please contact me on 02 9568 9429 or email: jbreden@newington.nsw.edu.au. For boys at school, please drop by the Careers Office located on Level 1, above Prescott House locker area at the back of the Le Couteur Wing (Library).

Mr Jamie Breden
Careers and VET Coordinator

From the Chaplain

Happiness or Joy?

So there I was yesterday; Sunday morning and sitting in the little simple bush church, three hours north of Sydney. The preacher flicks onto the screen a photo of the victorious All Blacks embracing after Cory Jane’s try. I must say as a Kiwi and die-hard All Blacks supporter that certainly had my attention. The next slide was a photo of the disconsolate Wallabies walking off the field, heads down and arms hanging loosely at their sides.

The point of his sermon was the difference between happiness and joy—and how, even my delight of yet another All Black victory over the hapless Wallabies would fade. Well yes it will—eventually. But point taken—joy and superficial pleasure are two very different things and they are often confused to the detriment of our sense of fulfilment and satisfaction in life.

In the congregation, on this occasion, was a dear old lady who had just celebrated her 90^th birthday. There had been a get-together the previous day in the church hall where friends and family had gathered. She is a true saint this lady. Life though has thrown its fair share of challenges in her direction. Her first born son had died at four months and her husband died at the age of 38. She was left to bring up four children on her own, and in latter years there has been ongoing turmoil in the lives of her children. Yet through it all this dear lady has kept a strong faith in God and a firm commitment that life is meant to be lived for others in a welcoming and loving way. Her family homestead (your classic Aussie farmhouse with a hardwood veranda running right around the entire house) has always been open to any who were in need. So many of the people who had gathered to honour her on her 90^th birthday had enjoyed the welcome and shelter of her care and love.

I have had the privilege of knowing this lady well and have known her since the late 1970’s. She just emanates a sense of joy and peace despite the personal hardships that have come her way. And of course the preacher yesterday did allude to this lady and her life as the perfect example of a life of substance lived with true joy.

For most of us life will be a mix of good times and tough times—God promises that His constancy and loving presence is available for us all yielding a deep joy that is beyond human understanding:

“…in all things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us…nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our LORD.” (Romans 8:37-39)

 David N Williams
Chaplain

News from Archives, Alumni and Foundation

From the Archives

A hundred and fifty years ago this month, a crucial step towards the establishment of Newington College was taken.

In August 1862 the Education Committee of the Wesleyan Methodist Church held its quarterly meeting in the Centenary Chapel in York Street, Sydney (pictured). The Committee already had significant responsibilities; they oversaw not only the Church’s Sunday Schools but also a network of Day Schools providing rudimentary primary education to boys and girls in and around Sydney under the Denominational Schools system.

At this meeting, however, the Committee considered a detailed proposal from the Reverend John Allen Manton for the establishment of a “Collegiate Institution” to provide a higher level of education for boys and young men, embracing “…all the branches of a sound commercial, classical and mathematical education”.

Manton’s proposal was not entirely new to the Committee members. He had outlined it in December 1861 and, consequently, the Committee had circularised the Methodist circuit superintendents to seek donations and information about how many boys would probably become pupils. The Sydney District Meeting had supported the scheme and Manton had investigated possible sites for the new school, with a dilapidated mansion at Silverwater emerging as the favoured option.

A positive reception to the proposal in August 1862 was helped by the fact that key members of the Committee, such as its Chairman, the Reverend Stephen Rabone, were already strong supporters of the concept. The Committee approved Manton’s proposal, with the result that it would go forward to the Church’s Australasian Conference, which was to be held in January 1863.

David Roberts
College Archivist

Sport

Basketball

NSW All Schools won GOLD at the recent Australian Schools Basketball Championships, beating Queensland
70—54 in the championship game. Rex Nottage has coached the NSW team to victory for four years in a row now.

Chiir Maker (10/FL) and Lewis Holey (12/MO) (pictured above) both played in the NSW team and with Maker scoring 29 points and gathering 17 rebounds in the final he was named MVP of both NSW and the entire tournament.

Both Lewis and Chiir were selected in the Australian Schoolboys (only 3 players from NSW made the final ten). Congratulations to both boys on their outstanding achievement.

Rugby

Tepai Moeroa (11/JN) has been chosen in the 28 member Australian Schools Rugby Union Squad which will Tour Fiji and New Zealand later in the year.

The team will play against:

• Fiji Presidents XV – 22^nd Sep @ Nadi
• Fiji Schools – 25^th Sep @ Nadi
• New Zealand “A” – 29^th Sep @ Auckland
• Samoan Schools – 2^nd Oct @ Hamilton
• New Zealand Schools – 6^th Oct @ Auckland

Tepai has been chosen from his AAGPS competition performances for Newington College, representing NSW 1 at the National Rugby Championships and Australia “A” versus Tongan Schools.

We wish Tepai all the best for the tour.

Rowing

James Chapman (ON ’97) represented Australia in the London Olympic Games in Rowing in the Men’s Coxless Four event. The crew had a great regatta, setting a new World’s Best Time in their heat and then eventually finishing with a silver medal in the final behind the very strong British crew.

Jesse Coyle (12 LE), represented Australia in the World Junior Rowing Championships last weekend in the Men’s Junior Coxless Fours event. The crew made it into the B-Final and eventually finished a close third place, giving them 9^th place overall.

Water Polo

Newington Firsts Premiership goalkeeper Anthony Hrysanthos (11/ME) is currently in Europe with the Australian Born ’93 team. He was rewarded for his great performances in the week Hamburg Cup, being named the goalkeeper of the tournament. The team now travels to Syros, Greece for the Vikelas Cup against Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Serbia and Greece.

Meantime, another goalkeeper, Newington Old Boy James Clark (ON ’08) performed admirably for the Australian team that finished a credible 7th at the London Olympics. He was a member of the Newington 2007 Premiership winning 1st Grade team and he will now continue his university studies at Los Angeles based college, University Southern California.

Also at the London Olympics, popular former Newington U14 coach Courtney Mathewson was an integral part of the United States gold medal winning women’s water polo team.

Well done to all.

Newington Artist of the Week

This week our Artists come from Year 12. Below are images from their bodies of work which will be showcased on Wednesday 5 September at the Year 12 BOW Show in Week 8.

Campbell Nugent (12/KL) created his stenciled image using 9 separate stencils and acrylic paint on board.

Dityo Bramantyo (12/ME) used charcoal on paper in his self-portrait.

From the School Nurse

Shoulder dislocation is a common sports injury that I see.

The shoulder is a ball and socket type joint and is a very mobile joint. Unfortunately because of this mobility it is more prone to dislocation then other joints.

The ball is the top of the humerus (upper arm) and the shallow rim is the shoulder blade, like a golf ball sitting on a tee.

The joint is supported on all sides by ligaments called the joint capsule and the whole thing is covered by the rotator cuff. The rotator cuff is made up of four tendons attached to muscles which reinforce the shoulder joint. There is a thick band of cartilage lining the rim which helps to deepen the socket called the labrum.

The head of the humerus can dislocate in the posterior however 95% are anterior (forward) dislocations. This causes acute pain and often the feeling of the shoulder ‘popping out’.

The person usually holds the affected arm slightly away from the body and is unable to touch the opposite shoulder.

Sometimes they will complain of pins and needles or tingling through the arm to the hand.

The dislocated shoulder is ‘relocated’ by a Doctor or experienced physio. If it doesn’t relocate easily or the person is in a great deal of pain, they need to be taken to hospital for pain relief. An x ray is always taken to ensure that there is no fracture. Once it goes back into place the person feels much more comfortable although an ache in the shoulder is felt.

Afterwards the arm is supported in a sling and ice applied regularly for 48 hours.

Rest from sport and any activities that aggravate the injury is essential for recovery. Physio is important for healing and strengthening.

Complications of a shoulder dislocation are:

• Recurrent shoulder dislocation
• Fractures and soft-tissue injuries
• Hill-Sachs lesions are impaction fractures in the head of the humerus. Larger Hill-Sachs lesions are associated with recurrent shoulder dislocations.
• A Bankart lesion is a fracture of the rim of the cartilage of the socket. It is an indication for surgery.

Approximately 80-94% of patients younger than 20 years at the time of the initial dislocation have a recurrence.

A shoulder subluxation is one where the head of the humerus only partially comes out of the joint and slips back in, often by itself.

Sister Margaret Bates
mbates@newington.com.au

A Message from the Head of Secondary

“We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their colour.”

– Maya Angelou quotes (American Poet, b.1928)

Diversity is Newington’s strength

Maya Angelou’s quote is a wonderful reminder of why Newington College is truly blessed. The College offers such an exhilarating array of opportunity and I commend all our young men on their amazing capacity to engage in such an exciting cross spectrum of activities. Last week at assembly, we vividly saw just a snapshot as we celebrated the depth of our ‘Creative Arts’ programme; from music to drama to visual arts. When one further considers our rich ethnicity, some 42 cultures in all, our diversity is only more enticing for anyone keen to embrace a truly modern world!

SMS for Absence & Late Notification Reminder

We are now near the end of the fifth week of the new system. The official daily roll is now marked electronically in the first 10 minutes of Period 1. If your son misses this roll call, he must register his late arrival at the absence office and receive a late slip. The time is documented and automated messages are sent, in a batch, indicating our records for lateness or non-attendance for that day. Please use this convenient system to reply to the SMS in place of written notes. Please direct all feedback to rthomas@newington.nsw.edu.au.

National Success

I commend Lewis Holey (12/MO) and Chiir Maker (10/FL) on being selected in the Australian Schoolboy Basketball Team. Coached by our Rex Nottage, both Lewis and Chiir proudly helped NSW win the National Championships and were thrilled to be named in the side. On a similar note, we congratulate
Tepai Moeroa (11/JN) who was named last week in the touring Australian Schoolboy Rugby Union side to play Fiji and New Zealand later this term and Jesse Coyle (12/LE) who represented Australian in the Coxless Fours at the Junior World Rowing Championships in Bulgaria!

Finally, I wish our Year 11 and 12 students every success as they sit their Preliminary and HSC & IB Trial Examinations. Hard work can make a difference over these next weeks!

Dr Andrew Hirst
Head of Secondary

Forthcoming events:

Sunday 9 September – Year 7 Chapel Services 9.30 & 11.00am
Tuesday 11 and Wednesday 12 September – Science and Technology Festival
Friday 14 – Tuesday 18 September inclusive – Compulsory Annual Outdoor Camps
Thursday 20 September – Valedictory Day & End of Term
Thursday 20 – Sunday 23 September inclusive – Cadet Promotions Camp