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St Pauls International Projects 2018
Over the next few months four groups from St Paul's High School will be packing their bags full of aid for separate projects all over the globe.
Almost 50 sixth-form students, four teachers, four non teaching staff members and their school Chaplain will be taking part in the school's 2018 projects.
This week Mrs Bridget McConville will introduce new Chaplain, Fr. Seamus White, to the Kenyan project started 15 years ago by Fr Dermot Maloney in collaboration with St Patricks Missionaries, Kiltegan.
Miss Jamie Larkin and six students will travel with them to join host, Fr Martin Barry in Londiani, East Kenya. During their time there they will visit the many schools, clinics, churches and communities St Paul's have sponsored over the years, to see how their funds have been utilised to provide the basics we all take for granted including water storage tanks, running water, toilets (long drops), kitchens, desks, seats, even window panes. Many sweets, pens, football jerseys and footballs are distributed during visits. The Kenyan students are very keen to find out all about the education system here and our customs and they will share their culture through recitations, song and dance.
The group will meet with Sister Placida, a Franciscan sister in Kericho, who runs the 'Live in Hope Centre', a rehabilitation centre for young mothers with HIV, orphaned and homeless boys and also children learning to live with a HIV diagnosis.
This weekend coming Mrs Elaine Cahill, Mrs Maeve McShane and Mrs Patricia McAleavey will accompany 23 students to Brasov in Romania. This is the fourteenth year a large group of students from St Paul's have had the opportunity to visit orphanages, Residential Care Centres, hospitals, Daycare Centres for young adults with Special Needs and more. Massive improvements in the conditions and facilities of the Centres have taken place over the years and there is evidence of a focused educational programme to assist with the integration of young adults with Special Needs in society.
The students will spend a week visiting and interacting with the children and residents, distributing fresh fruit and vegetables, providing essential disposable healthcare products and anything else the centre may require at that particular time, may it be a fridge, bedsheets, curtains or a Robot (Industrial food processor). Last year St Paul's provided Robots for 8 out of 12 places visited. Many bags of children's clothes, football jerseys, babies hats and lots of books, toys and footballs will be distributed throughout the week.
During February Miss Karina Traynor and Mrs Michelle Morgan will travel with another six students to Kirovsk, Russia to visit School 7. In 2013 Newry & Mourne Council invited St Paul's to initiate a partnership with School 7, Kirovsk. Both schools now work together sharing educational experiences and different cultures on their annual exchange visit. Representatives from School 7 visited Newry and St Pauls in 2013, 2015 & 2017 and this will be the third visit to Kirovsk. School 7 is the top performing school in Maths and Physics in all of Russia and is listed in the top 10 Russian schools. It's a very proud community with a very ambitious young generation who see education as an essential route to a better life. They are very impressed when they visit us and see the contrast in provision and teacher pupil relationships.
In June Mrs Marion McMahon and Mr Kevin Kearney return to Prejmer in Romania, with another 12 students to work with the Peter Pan orphanage. The team plans to remove the old broken fence and play area that was built almost 10 years ago for a much younger clientele. They will replace with a new fence, shelter and picnic area suitable for the young residents there. St Paul's students will be expected to work hard with both grounds work and building work. This is the first time the Bessbrook school has taken on a construction role and they hope to adapt and develop this programme for future projects.
A school Spokesperson added "All projects require a vast amount of fundraising from the students and their families reflecting the school motto "Rooted in Charity", the hard work helps to develop the essential life skills required for success in today's society and it is rewarded with the experience gained from the adventure.
"We are very grateful to all the local community who have assisted in supporting the many events that have taken place, to all of those who have sent in very generous donations and to Newry, Mourne and Down Council who have initiated, supported and sponsored our Russian visit."
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Over 30 competitions were held for SRC students from all campuses at the recent annual Inter-Campus Skillbuild Competition organised by Southern Regional College.
The Inter-Campus competition, held at SRC’s Portadown Campus, was the first stage of the renowned SkillBuild Competition, and drew together students from all campuses of SRC. The SkillBuild competition is the largest multi-trade competition in the UK for young students and apprentices. It covers crafts including carpentry, joinery, beauty, bricklaying, hairdressing and plastering. Over thirty skills competitions took place on the day with industry experts judging the work and skills of the students.
Thomas Murnin from Cabra took gold in Brickwork and Jamie Hughes from Rathfriland took gold in Carpentry. Jack Lacey from Banbridge took bronze in Drywall systems and Adam Kernaghan took bronze in Painting and Decorating. Ethan Monaghan came third in CNC Miling and Joel Bell from Moneyslane won the Turning and Miling.
There was also an event for students from our local high schools. Over 100 students from over 20 schools took part in 17 events in crafts such as carpentry, joinery, bricklaying, hairdressing and catering . The competitors came from schools across the Armagh, Banbridge, Craigavon and Newry Area Learning Communities. The students attend the College as part of the School Partnership’s Programme where pupils from local schools attend SRC to study a range of vocational and academic programmes.
In the schools competition Dromore High School pupil Ryan Jess took gold in Brickwork. Adam Laffin from Rathfriland High School took gold in Joinery and Banbridge High School pupil James Hunter won the Plastering category.
To find out more about Southern Regional College courses visit their Open Days taking place in early March. For more information check out www.src.ac.uk.
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Young people from Newry, Crossmaglen, Dundalk and Armagh were out in force at the Young Enterprise NI’s annual Trade Fair at Rushmere Shopping Centre last week.
Young Enterprise NI – the leading business education charity – helps bring business to life for young people with its annual calendar of Trade Fairs held at shopping centres across Northern Ireland.
The trade fair gives the students’ companies the opportunity to showcase their products, bring them to market and test their sales skills by trading with the general public.
Rushmere Shopping Centre Manager, Martin Walsh said “We’re delighted to continue to champion this important initiative designed to support and inspire our young entrepreneurs by learning how to make a dent in a highly competitive retail environment.
“Northern Ireland is overflowing with young, innovative talent. It is vital that we provide them with an outlet to showcase their talents and assist them in building upon their knowledge in how to succeed in our current economic climate. Each year the standard gets better and better and at Rushmere Shopping Centre, we are proud to provide a platform to present their efforts.”
Speaking about the trade fair, Carol Fitzsimons MBE, CEO of Young Enterprise said “At each of the trade fairs, the students not only have to impress customers, but also a panel of judges, with a variety of awards up for grabs, including a Social Media award, Best Salesperson and of course Best Overall Company.
“As the trade fairs are taking place across centres in Northern Ireland over the coming weeks, we are extending the invitation to friends and relatives of these young entrepreneurs to come along and support their local Young Enterprise initiative. Each year the standard at the trade fairs improves and we are looking forward to seeing what the student groups have come up with.”
Young Enterprise is a charity, supported by the Department of Education and local businesses. This year’s prizes included support from the Department for Communities, to encourage student companies demonstrating commitment to social innovation across Northern Ireland.
Over 500 young people will be selling their very own products and offering shoppers something different to traditional retailers at various shopping centres across Northern Ireland as part of the Trade Fair tour.
For more information, visit YENI.co.uk to see how you can get involved with Young Enterprise through volunteering and fundraising opportunities.
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In a perfect launch to a new career Ruth Ferris from Southern Regional College’s Armagh Campus is set to experience a once in a lifetime opportunity after winning a 2-week placement to the United Space School in Houston, Texas.
Ruth Ferris, who lives in Bessbrook and is a former student at Newtownhamilton High School, entered the competition alongside fellow students from the School of Applied Science and Academic Studies at Southern Regional College (SRC) by submitting a 500-word essay and undergoing a challenging interview process.
Nine students were shortlisted and interviewed by SRC Management staff. This shortlist was then whittled down to three finalists with Ruth Ferris announced as winner at today’s celebration event held in the Armagh Planetarium.
The two runner-up students were also announced: Ruairi Daly from Keady, a former student at St. Patrick’s High School and Nicole Gates from Moy, a former student at The Royal School, Dungannon. All of the finalists are currently completing their A Levels at Southern Regional College – Armagh Campus.
Speaking at today’s event was Dougie Davidson from Thales and Denver Humphrey from Arralis.
At today’s event, Brian Doran, Chief Executive at Southern Regional College said “We are very grateful to our sponsors Fusion Space Technologies, Queen’s University Belfast and Thales for their support in ensuring that Southern Regional College continues to provide international and unique career opportunities for our students. Prestigious placement opportunities like these provide a great launch pad for their future careers.”
Southern Regional College is the only academic institution in NI who provides an opportunity for one of its students to attend the prestigious United Space School in Houston, Texas.
The United Space School is an interdisciplinary programme that annually brings together up to 50 students from 25 different nations to study at the University of Clear Lake in Houston. Under the mentorship of engineers, scientists and leaders in the aerospace industry, they come together to design their own ‘Mission to Mars’. Students also participate in a variety of space related activities at the Johnson Space Centre, the University of Houston Clear Lake, Rice University, Space Centre -Houston, the George Observatory at Brazos Bend State Park and the Houston Museum of Natural Science. The students are hosted by families residing in Clear Lake who work within the aerospace community.
This competition, now in its 4th year at Southern Regional College, was developed in association with Sinead O’Sullivan – a former A Level student at SRC who progressed to Queen’s University Belfast to study Aeronautical Engineering after she participated in the programme herself over 13 years ago.
The two week placements for the winning student is sponsored by Thales and Queen’s University Belfast.
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Students from St Paul’s High School are celebrating the completion of the ‘QuickStart Programme’ this week with local charity Young Enterprise NI.
The QuickStart Programme, supported by Ulster Bank, sees Year 8 students develop a marketable product and business plan under the guidance of Young Enterprise volunteer Nichola Mc Camley from Demenex Plant Hire Ltd and Ms Vicki Downing from St Paul’s High School. They have followed a detailed 10-week programme learning about entrepreneurship. The Quick Start programme is overseen by Ms Christine Fearon, St Paul’s HS. Ms Fearon commented: “This is a fantastic opportunity for our pupils to develop those skills which are so valuable in-school but also in the world of work. The QuickStart programme offered and highly executed by Young Enterprise NI and has been welcomed into our school this year.”
Young Enterprise NI brings together companies and classrooms, encouraging students to an exciting and be creative and begin to develop entrepreneurial qualities at a young age.
Carol Fitzsimons MBE, Chief Executive of Young Enterprise commented: “We are delighted to partner with Ulster Bank on our QuickStart Programme. QuickStart is a fantastic way for the students to gain first-hand experience of how business works while developing their entrepreneurship and employability skills. I look forward to seeing what the young people come up with.”
Young Enterprise NI is a charity and is principally funded by the Department of Education. For more information, including volunteering and fundraising opportunities please visit www.yeni.co.uk. For further details on Ulster Bank’s community initiatives, go to www.ulsterbank.com
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Students from the SRC BTEC level 3 Extended Diploma in Health and Social Care participated in a Caring Competition recently at the Model campus in Newry.
The students demonstrated their caring skills in Communication, Safeguarding and Health and Safety and presentations were made.
Prize winners included first place winner Sorcha Downey from Mayobridge, second place went to Tara Mc Kinley from Mullaghbawn and third place went to Ethan Cranston from Newtownhamilton.
Sorcha will now represent the SRC later in the year in the UK World Skills Caring Competition heats. Past SRC student and UK World Skills Champion Nikita Harron supported the competition and wishes Sorcha success as she goes forward to the heats.
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The Ulster University Business School has presented two Newry girls with Tourism awards.
Celebrating their success at the Ulster University Awards Ceremony were Catherine Jennings, a former pupil at Sacred Heart Grammar School and Sonya Rooney, also from Newry.
Catherine, who has recently graduated with a BSc (Hons) degree in Leisure and Events Management, won four awards. She was presented with the Tourism NI Event Management Award, the Origin Digital Award, the Special Olympics Event Management Award and the Bank of Ireland Digital Innovation Award at the annual Department of Hospitality and Tourism Awards held at the Belfast campus.
Sonya Rooney, who has recently completed an MSc in International Tourism Management, has won the Crosskeys’ Masters Award for attaining the highest marks in her dissertation.
Speaking at the Awards ceremony, Professor Una McMahon-Beattie, Head of Department, said, “In conjunction with our industry partners, the Department of Hospitality and Tourism is delighted to celebrate and recognise the excellence of our students. We are very proud of their achievements and are confident that with the current growth in the local and international agri-food, hospitality and tourism sectors, our graduates are well equipped to take on the challenges of managing and leading in these competitive market environments.”
A total of 14 major awards were presented.
Award sponsors included Origin Digital, Bank of Ireland, Consumer Council (NI), Da Vinci, Northern Area CIMA, Suki Tea, Hastings Hotels, Henderson Food Service, Belfast City Council, Tourism NI, Crosskeys and Special Olympics.
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Staff and pupils from St Paul's High School in Bessbrook have returned from their third visit to Kirovsk in Russia as part of a relationship forged in 2013 when the then Newry and Mourne Council invited the school to initiate a partnership with School 7 in Kirovsk, Russia.
The school shares educational experiences and explore their different cultures on the biennial exchange visit. The pupils and staff have were hosted by the pupils and staff from School 7 who made the visitors very welcome.
St. Paul’s students took part in several lessons, experiencing what it was like to be a student in Russia, at both the primary and secondary levels of education. Pupils in both schools showcased many of their talents, including dance, art and music. Participants even had the chance to take to the ski slope.
The pupils experienced how different the two cultures are but also how similar they are, even though they live many thousands of miles away.
The people of Kirovsk are a very proud people and they are delighted with the links they have with Newry, Mourne and Down. There is even a museum in School 7 and a section in their town museum dedicated to Newry and St. Paul’s H.S.
As one of the participants commented "It was a privileged to be part of such an adventure and a real mind broadening experience for all involved."
The visit even made Russian television which you can check out on Youtube at youtu.be
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Students at St Louis Grammar School in Kilkeel have launched a charity album in support of a local mental health charity at their recent Spring concert.
The Sixth Form Music Technology students recorded and produced two songs to raise mental health awareness and much needed funding for “Mind your mate and yourself” (MyMy) as part of a Music Technology project.
MyMy is a voluntary and community sector counselling organisation with extensive experience in suicide prevention and intervention. “They support families and communities dealing with various health issues as well as providing services that will help support individuals struggling with bereavement, self-harming, relationship problems, bullying, mental/physical health and financial issues. Very few communities are isolated from these problems and for some people experiencing such issues, they can often find aspects of their every-day life overwhelming.
The two songs that feature on the Album are ‘John Condon’, sung by Year 10 student Niamh McDowell, who is 2017 All Ireland Scór na nÓg solo singing champion, and ‘Video Games’ which was composed and sung by Year 13 student Aoife McQuaid. Both songs were performed and produced by Music Technology students with help from their teacher Mr Tim Brown. Both students are delighted to use these songs to raise awareness for this vital and worthy charity.
Year 10 student Niamh McDowell said, “I chose a song called ‘John Condon’, which I heard recorded by Niamh Parsons, and thought the lyrics were brilliantly captivating as its tells a story about a fourteen-year-old boy, the same age as myself, fighting in the first world war. The Music Technology students in school asked me if they could record and arrange the song for the album. I am so glad that the money is going to “MyMy” as issues such as suicide and mental health are prominent in today’s society and it’s good that more awareness is being raised.”
Aoife McQuaid who both wrote and performed the song “Video Game”, whose lyrics are linked to mental health issues, told us about the inspiration and meaning behind the song, “In a video game you are given instructions and can pause anytime. If it gets too much or if you make a mistake you can always go back and try again. But life is a game with no instructions and no pause button. The fear of being judged, the fear of failure and wishing that we could change the past are some of the greatest curses that we inflict upon ourselves. Holding on to these fears can cause so much anxiety and can make you feel worthless. The message in the lyrics is that everyone can feel this way, and that's okay and there is always someone who can help”.
Music Technology teacher, Mr. Brown, oversaw the recording and offering his professional experience and expertise in the mixing and editing stages of producing the tracks. A former professional musician with the famous 90’s group, “Boo Radleys”, he was able to give advice and musical guidance to the students at each stage of the production.
He said “I gave the students the task of producing recordings as part of their coursework. As we looked into the criteria the students decided to take it up a level and put the recordings into the public domain and raise money for a local charity. It demonstrates great initiative and compassion on behalf of the students. They organised the singers and musicians and took control of the recording sessions using our school studio. When I heard what they had done musically, and how they had applied their technical skills, I was blown away and was really impressed with what they had produced. The amount of musical talent in St. Louis is outstanding and these students are a credit to the school”.
Mr Martin, Principal, stated “It is important that we as a school are able to help those in need. We have a strong tradition of supporting charitable causes here in St Louis and I am pleased the students could use their talents in this way to raise money for Mind Your Mate and Yourself. I urge parents, students and the local community to get online and download the album!”
The songs will be released on iTunes, Amazon Music, and other download sites in the next few days and everyone is encouraged to download the songs to help raise awareness of MyMy.
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