Summer 2008

Another year over, and what a quick one at that! Once again, the students and staff of Mercy College have been involved in a multitude of activities. Students have participated in Geography, History, Art, Biology and French field trips. 4th Years participated in Compute TY, enjoyed a return visit to Carlingford and of course, put on a marvellous version of High School Musical, which ran for four nights in March. First Year Business students worked on enterprising ideas, as did the 4th Years. Our 5th Year LCVP students took advantage of our new link with Office Depot to learn about the world of work.

Seachtain na Gaeilge allowed us to celebrate the Irish language with quizzes and dancing among other activities. Our participation in the School Completion Programme saw students put on a Hip-Hop display at Easter, while the Drama Club produced "Pride and Prejudice" in May. Mercy Melodies gave parents, students and guests a wonderful evening of musical entertainment, while a visit to the foyer of the school is a treat on the eyes, with beautiful pottery on display courtesy of the Art department, and wonderful embroidery from Home Economics.

Guest speakers throughout the year came from a variety of colleges and professions as part of the Careers programme. Students also heard about the work of the Defence Forces on United Nations duty, about the impact of the Holocaust and on issues such as mental health and homelessness.

School life in the 21st Century extends far beyond the classroom, not only in terms of travelling to places like London and Cork but in the terms of the services on offer in the school. Among the student supports offered in Mercy College are the Breakfast Club, subsidised lunches for all students, the Homework Club and after-school study. We encourage all students to benefit from such programmes.

Since last summer we have added three interactive whiteboards, seven digital projectors and thanks to the fund raising efforts of the Parents' Association we are in the process of purchasing a defibrillator. With the two science labs completed in the autumn, we turned our sights to further building improvements. Through the Dormant Accounts funds we applied for a new library and cafeteria. We also applied for a Book Cafe through the JCSP, as well as the JCSP library. As part of the Summer Works Scheme we have also applied for new toilets. It is unfortunate that the downturn in the economy has meant that all of the above are on hold, with the Minister for Education cutting the Summer Works Scheme and no word yet on our other applications. It seems that the promises made this time last year in the run up to the general election were just that • promises! With numbers increasing in the school, space is at a premium and we will continue to fundraise to achieve our strategic plan.

The Mercy College extended family expanded with the arrival of Ms Fiona Byrne's baby daughter Ava. We wish them both well. As the year draws to a close we say a fond farewell to Ms Cait McAlister and Mrs Kay Coyle, both of whom have given wonderful service to the students of Mercy College, always pushing the girls to achieve at a high level. We wish them health and happiness in the future.

As the year draws to a close, may I extend my grateful appreciation to all of the Mercy College staff who make the activities outlined in the pages which follow possible. Without their energy, enthusiasm and commitment to the girls in their care none of it would be possible. May I take this opportunity to wish our exam classes every success in June and to wish every member of the school community a healthy and happy summer break.

Cait McAlister

I have enjoyed my final years - all 23 of them in Mercy College during which time I've had the good fortune to teach many wonderful students whose generosity of spirit and loyalty to one another was remarkable. It is always a pleasure to meet former students, and hear of their success. This success is testament to the professionalism, enthusiasm and dedication of the teachers in Mercy College whose work on behalf of the students has been an inspiration. Personally, I greatly appreciate the friendship and support I've found among colleagues. I shall miss both students and friends alike, the hard work and the fun times. My best wishes to all in the future and thank you for the memories.

Cait Mc Alister

Capuchin Day Centre

During March, a visitor from the Capuchin Day Centre came to the school to talk to us about what they did in the community. We raised over €200 by selling cakes and we donated the money to the Capuchin Day Centre.

Shauna Byrne, Bronte

Breakfast Club

.....Update.....

This year's Breakfast Club has been a huge success. It has gone from strength to strength. Our breakfast club assistant Monica Adams does a great job getting the girls off to the right start each morning with a good breakfast. Our numbers have really increased this year, with on average 30 girls joining us each morning. Join us any morning from 8.00am to 8.50am. Choose from toast cereal, fruit, yoghurts, orange juice, apple juice, and tea and start your day the right way!

Ms M Boyle and Linda Devitt

History news

The History department has been very busy since its trip to Poland. Seniors enjoyed their trip to Kilmainham Gaol before Easter. Junior students travelled to Omagh for a tour of the Ulster Folk Museum. Good luck to all the exam classes.

Ms T Niland

Balscadden Bay

On the 23rd April, the 5th year Geography students went on a Geography field trip to Balscadden, Howth with Ms Keogh and Ms Conneely. Our project was based around Coastal Transport and deposition. While we were there, we measured the beach gradient and threw oranges into the water. At this point we thought that our teachers had finally lost the plot!! So why did we throw oranges into the sea? We did this to test the rate and direction of the longshore drift and while we were at it, we counted the breaking waves to see if they were constructive waves. We also took photographs from different places along the beach and drew sketch maps. Thankfully, the weather was great and the sun was shining, we enjoyed ourselves so much that we are all looking forward to our next trip.

Sinead Maguire, 5th year

High School Musical

This year the transition year students from Mercy College and Chanel College performed "High School Musical". We started rehearsals just before Christmas and we went to Chanel College once a week to practice with Ger Nolan, the Choreographer. Auditions were held in January. Gradually, the group got smaller and smaller until finally, the lead roles were cast. As the weeks went on, it all started to come together and by the time the first show came along, we all knew exactly what we were doing. The show started on Monday 3rd March with our final performance on Thursday 6th March. On the Monday, we did a matinee performance for the local primary schools and a show each evening. Judging by the applause we received each night, the show was a resounding success. We didn't want it to end. Great friendships were forged between the two colleges and we have great memories of all the shows. We would like to thank all the teachers for their help, in particular Ms Rooney and the Directors Carol, Jimmy and Sarah.

Sara Kenny

The WorlD of Work

Part of the course involves work experience. We go out for two weeks in December and two weeks in March. The main idea behind work experience is to show students what it would be like to work in potential career areas. Many enjoyed their work experience but many disliked their choice of potential career, it really is a learning curve and it does influence our future choices for both subjects and careers.

Stephanie Carr, Rachel Cantwell and Yvonne Mc Loughlin

Budding Web Designers

We went to DCU for a course on web designing. Along with other schools, we spent a week learning about web design. The instructors were very understanding and taught us how to do HTML codes and how to make a lovely presentation about our own web page in Mercy College. At the end of the course each student received a certificate with a grade on it. Leanne Kinsella won an overall prize for the best web design. From the experience, we gained a lot of confidence and became

more computer literate.

flip flop

On 3rd May three volunteers from 4th year went to Northside Shopping Centre to sell flip flop badges. The collection was in aid of Serve. Serve is an organisation that helps gender equality and impoverished women in countries like Brazil and Thailand. As part of our marketing strategy, we dressed up as giant flip flops to get peoples attention and to be perfectly honest, we caused quite a flap!!

Shauna Farrelly and Rebekah Wright

SNakeS and Ladders

Every Thursday morning we go over to St. Catherine's Primary school to help with paired maths. We play all different type of number games such as dominos and snakes and ladders. We spend ten minutes playing a game with a group of pupils and then move on to another table.

The kids were really nice and fwienedly, ibutplpkeinaleldchitldren,tthey er d sa o t were no prizes to behativeheraet gn the end of the session. We loved every minute we spent there and would love to do it again.

Sarah, Amy and Rebecca

mini-company

This year's mini-company classes were excellent groups. The first group worked very hard in producing the 2008 calendar, which was a great success. Due to the demands of the play, the second group decided to take a more practical approach and really used their entrepreneurial spirit by marketing and selling delicious pizzas and great goody bags. They visited local businesses to source supplies for the products and worked really hard to make their mini- companies work.

Ms M Boyle

Samba Drum

When we entered the hall, we saw loads of drums, tambourines, cowbells and shakers. We were all given instruments to play.

Mind you it took quite a while to get the rhythm going and we did sound like a "bag of cats" to start off but eventually we sounded really good. We had four parts to learn, the first was the call, the second was the entry, the third was the middle and the fourth was the end. It was hard to get the timing right but after many attempts, we got it right. At the end, we put on

a show for anybody willing to hear us!!

Shauna Farrelly and Rebecca Gilligan

MerCy hiTS loNDoN

For this year's school tour, the girls of Mercy College headed for the bright lights of London for a fun packed weekend.

And what a weekend we had!

First we started off with some shopping in Covent Garden, where the Disney store was practically bought out. We nearly had more teddies than pupils coming back on the bus with us. Then we toured London and learnt a thing or two. The main thing that it was not Jesus who built London ..... Next we headed for the Oh so scary London Dungeons where even the doormen frightened the life out of us. One or two of us got cold feet but the rest made it through it and came out alive to tell the tale! After the frightening afternoon we all needed a rest so we headed to our hotel for a well-earned break and took it easy that night with a trip to the cinema and McDonalds.

The next day, we explored the science museum and some of us got to travel into space, well as near to space as we will ever get! Then back to the shops for some retail therapy. That afternoon we got to go to the West End show - The Lion King. What a show it was. From start to finish the lions, elephants and all sorts of wild animals entertained us. It was such a fantastic experience, and one we will remember for a long time.

On our last day we got to mix with celebrities in Madame Tussauds. Poor Posh Spice didn't look at all happy at the way we were crowding around David! Some of the girls got to have a Big Brother experience in the diary room where they sang and danced as if they were really on the show. After all that excitement we headed for an afternoon of shopping, just in case we didn't get enough the two earlier days. Then it was a very tired group that headed off to the airport that afternoon. All in all it was a fantastic tour, all the girls were brilliant and made us really proud. A special thanks to Ms Dwyer, Ms Kelly and Ms Doherty who helped make the tour possible.

Ms M Boyle

From homework to Hip Hop and more

The school completion programme is in full swing and this term saw the introduction of Hip Hop. Just looking at the girls made me feel exhausted. Hip Hop is on every Friday in the school from 1.30pm to 2.30pm in the hall. Any more interested Hip Hoppers are very welcome to come along.

The Homework Club for 1st year students is a great success. Students get support and help from Ms O' Regan and Ms O'Toole. It takes place every Wednesday and Thursday from 3.55pm to 4.55pm. Next year we hope to expand on the success of the Homework Club by opening it to both 1st and 2nd year students.

SCP has also sponsored the Drama Club's presentation of Pride and Prejudice, the photos show the dedication and hard work put in by students.

Other initiatives that the SCP were involved in were: the breakfast club; basketball after school; arts and crafts project; the new attendance tracking system; literacy and numeracy equipment; sponsorship of students to take part in the Astro Park Easter Camp and sponsorship of various school trips.

If anybody wants to contact me, Linda, feel free to do so. Have a great summer. Linda Devitt

The School Business Partnership

This programme aims to give students an insight into the world of work and work ethics. It offers the opportunity for a business to build sustainable links with the school community. Mercy College has been partnered with Office Depot (Viking Direct) and Louise Wade, Head of Human Resources is the company co-ordinator for this project.

LCVP students in 5th year have been attending the Skills at Work Programme. Since the beginning of the programme in March they have attended sessions on Business in the Community, A Day in the Life of Office Depot Employees and CV Workshops. The LCVP students are looking forward to continuing on the programme in September 2008.

Ms A Dunwoody

Trip to Paris

The students of Heaney visited Paris at the end of January along with Mrs Dunwoody and Ms Monica Heade. They stayed in Disneyland Paris and visited both of the theme parks. Laura, Ciara, Sarah, Robyn and Catherine also travelled into Paris to visit Notre Dame, the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, the Champs Elysees and many other historical places of interest. It was a fantastic trip, one they will never forget.

fairTraDe Coffee Morning

Martin Luther King said "Before we leave the breakfast table we've already depended on half the world. We're not going to have peace on Earth until we realise that".

In Ireland as well as many other countries across the world, Fairtrade is becoming an important way of ensuring that producers in developing countries get a better deal. The first two weeks in March was "Fairtrade fortnight" so we decided to have a Fairtrade Coffee morning. Teachers and students of Lee brought in Fairtrade coffee, tea, hot chocolate, flapjacks and juice. The two classes Willow and Heaney as well as their teachers were invited. We listened to music and had a great time. We hope to do it again next year.

Ms O' Regan, Catherine, Angela and 2nd year class Lee

la ViSiTe

On the 7th May Mercy College welcomed the French Theatre in Schools production of "La Visite". The four native French actors (three jeunes homes et one jeune femme) spared no energy in their lively portrayal of numerous different characters, whose comic gestures and facial expressions triggered much laughter in the audience of eighty students, from 1st to 6th year. A big BRAVO to the seven jeunes actrices who each volunteered to play a role. Elles s'appellent Lisa Cassidy, Sinead Cumiskey, Claire O'Reilly, Kelly Bruen, Sandra McCormack, Simone Byrne and Sarah Purcell. They all performed with great panache.

MERCI also to those students who were pounced on without warning and yet agreed to take to the stage. Elles s'appellent Beth Valente, Kirsty Fox, Blathnaid Martin, Lee- Anne Gilsenan and - after lengthy persuasion during which an actor had to use all his Charme Francais and all his Force Physique - Shauna Farrelly!!

Oscar winning performance of the day however must go to the 3rd year students who - faced with the terrifying option of saying either OUI or NON - gave a master class in how to blush deeply, then more deeply, then more deeply in 60 seconds flat. Quelle actrice! Quelle performance! Julia Roberts Attention! (Hazel has made it known she wishes to remain anonymous).

All in all the students thought the whole play was trés amusant, trés comique and are already looking forward All in all the students thought the whole play was trés amusant, trés comique and are already looking forward to the return next year of Monsieur Xavier and his Troupe Theatre to perform their new Piece de Theatre.

Mr Hogan

Going to the DoGS!!

On the 23rd January, 2nd year students in Bronte went to the DSPCA in Rathfarnham. The DSPCA was founded in 1840 and was originally known as "The Cats and Dogs home". Here all types of animals are cared for, from cats and dogs to birds, pigs and goats, and any other animal that needs care and attention. First we watched a video about the DSPCA. Unlike many homes for unwanted animals, we heard how animals can stay there for as long as they need to. The animals are allowed to roam around and some are in isolation. The DSPCA receives a grant from the Government but they rely on donations from the general public and business to keep them going. Most of us left there wanting to adopt an animal.

Charlotte Dwyer, Bronte

Lee Willow Drama

The girls from Willow and Lee performed Lee / Willow Drama a wonderful version of the Nativity play in December for family and friends. They have been busy writing their own play and making masks and costumes for their end of year performance on 22nd May. Well done girls.

T Niland

aMeriCaN SCraPBook

The Students of Willow and Lee have been participating in an American Scrapbooking Course since January. This course involved gathering pictures of special occasions and presenting them in a decorative way on a 12 x 12 page. Students had to learn to use different types of stencils, stampers and cutting dies to create different effects. Each student created a personal photo album which is a beautiful record of special occasions in their lives. Many thanks to the School Completion Programme which made this course possible.

A special thanks to Rosemarie O'Kelly who introduced this creative art to us and has guided us through a most enjoyable and addictive course.

Anna Dunwoody

Sport MerCySPORTS

The school year of 2007/2008 has been very eventful in Mercy, with a large number of girls involved in Athletics, Cross Country, Gaelic Football, Soccer, Volleyball and Basketball.

SOCCER VOLLEYBALL

The school competed in four age categories in the FAI schools league with Volleyball was very popular with the girls and they did extremely well having each team reaching the playoffs. In our first year of the competition all girls just played for one season. The 2nd year team reached the All-Ireland playoffs must be commended for their hard work and look forward to next year. in the J6 and J4 competitions. It is hoped that Mercy will be challenging for top spots next year.

CROSS COUNTRY/ATHLETICS

A large number of girls competed in the North Leinster Cross Country in January. The 1st year team of Jadine Brennan, Michele Gribbin, Roslyn McCarthy, Iesha Healy, Kelly Callan and Nadine Duffy had great success winning the U-14 B Team Event. In the summer term many 1st year girls did athletics every Monday after school. All the girls competed in Santry Stadium on May 7th and did very well with some very tough opposition.

BASKETBALL

Mark Ingle successfully coached the U-16 to a Dublin Schools Title. The U-14 team made up of 1st and 2nd Years also were Dublin Finalists. All of these girls are also very active throughout the year in the DCU Mercy Club.

1st Year Cross Country Team

The school fielded an U-14 Gaelic football team which was coached by two 5th years Leanne May and Sinead Cumisky. The girls beat St. Mary's Killester but unfortunately were knocked out by Holy Faith Clontarf. A lot of these girls have now joined up with Parnells GAA club which is very encouraging for next year.

I would like to thank all the girls who came to training and represented Mercy College throughout the year. The year was full of great matches and lots of FUN! Best of luck to all girls competing for clubs and county throughout the summer. I hope to see all girls back involved in Mercy Sports in September and lots of new faces as well.

Ms Fitzgerald

MerCy SPorTS Day

TEACHERS MAINTAIN THEIR UNBEATEN RECORD DESPITE THE EFFORT OF IRISH INTERNATIONAL KERRIE RYAN

One of the highlights of a brilliant sports day is the 6th year challenge soccer match with the teachers. Yet again, the teachers were victorious with a 2 - 1 win over the students. Only two players were sent to the sin bin, Michael for a hand ball - claiming it was an accident and Kerrie for kicking the ball at the Principal!! Despite the students getting a dubious penalty, I must commend the teachers, all nine of them for their bravery for standing on the goal line when the penalty was being taken.........the ball still went in!! Many thanks to the 26 students and nine teachers for taking part. I will be available for refereeing next year despite the heckling from the crowd !!!

Paula Downes

Music EvErywhErE

On the 1st May the choir travelled to Cork for their annual visit to the International Choral Festival. We travelled to Cork by train and stayed in Jury's Inn. That evening we were able to explore the real Capital city, according to Mr O' Mahony, and as he thinks he is the boss, we just had to humour him!! That evening we went to City Hall to see the choir MUSIC INTIMA. They are a very prestigious choir from Canada and we thoroughly enjoyed the performance.

The next morning was spent preparing for the choir competition. Before we left for City Hall we had an impromptu performance in the lobby of the hotel for a group of business people that were staying there. In City Hall we performed Beidh Aonach Amarach, and the Rhythm of Life. We were delighted with the performance and look forward to next year.

It'S Zoo tIme!

On Wednesday 23rd April, 3rd year students from Joyce and Shaw accompanied by Ms Walsh visited Dublin Zoo. The weather was perfect and everyone enjoyed the day. Highlights of the trip were seeing the latest addition to the elephant family, the recently christened "Budi", watching the feeding of the sea lions and of course the antics of the chimpanzees and gorillas. Apologies to any passers-by who may have been frightened by the scary masks peering out the bus windows on the return journey.

First yEar EntrEprEnEurs

Congratulations to both Elm and Beech, 1st year for their enterprising ideas. Ideas ranged from jewellery, candles and a variety of food products. Well done girls. Ms S Maloney and Ms M O'Leary

CoNGraTUlaTioNS To first Year STUDeNTS!

A record number of First Year students entered The Dublin City University Essay and Art Competition "College Enhances Chances". All were awarded certificates. Laura Cahill (Essay) and Amy McGrath (Art) were selected to represent Mercy College in the Schools' final. Amy won the overall prize of a Digital Camera for her Art work.

Transition Year and Fifth Year students represented the school at a recent Debating competition in DCU. They attended a debating workshop and then were given a week to prepare two motions. Thanks to Gemma Smyth, Rebecca Gilligan, Sarah Murphy and Caroline McCormack for their courageous and inspiring performance.

As the class of 2008 enter their last few weeks before their Leaving Certificate, it is interesting to note how many students this year have applied for College courses on the CAO or PLC route. They have certainly taken the advice of "keep your options open" seriously. They have applied for a myriad of courses at every level following "their hearts" and thereby their own interests and personality.

Good luck to them all in the coming exams and in life. Support and care are

always open to them as present or past pupils.

Deirdre Teeling (Guidance Counsellor)

UNiTeD NaTioNS Peacekeeping

As part of the CSPE Action Project the girls in Eliot got their project on the

way when they invited Sergeant John O'Reilly from the Defence forces to come and speak of his experiences working abroad on UN peacekeeping missions. The girls enjoyed listening to him and asked a lot of questions.

They all learned a lot from the day.

PareNTS aSSoCiaTioN

Many thanks to all the students who sold tickets for the Easter raffle, the money will be used to buy a defibrillator and to train the staff in the use of it. Anything that can save a life is well worth the money, so a big thank you for your generosity. Many thanks to Linda, Jacinta, Bernadette and Kathleen McCall for all their hard work. The 6th year graduation was a great success and a special thanks to 5th year LCVP students who helped, it will be your turn next year. Not forgetting Monica who makes the best sandwiches!! It was also a pleasure working on the 4th Year High School Musical, it was brilliant.

We really need new volunteers to join the Parents Association, we would make you very welcome and we really do have a lot of fun!! So please, any volunteers should give your name to the girls in the office. We would also like to thank Chanel College Parent's Association and Jackie Whelan (HSL) co-ordinator for a brilliant night, our turn next year - see we do have fun so join up now!! Have a great summer.

Carol Coffey

HOLOCAUST rEMEMBErED

As part of our 5th year RE course this year we studied the holocaust. Last autumn we took part in the crocus project by planting crocus bulbs in the school grounds. The Holocaust Education Trust of Ireland gives the participating schools crocus bulbs to plant in memory of the 1.5 million Jewish children and thousands of other children who died in the Holocaust. The yellow flowers symbolize the yellow stars all Jewish people were forced to wear under Nazi rule. In Ireland the crocus flowers at the end of January - in time for Holocaust Memorial Day. The crocus project started in Ireland, but it is quickly becoming an international project. Our crocuses bloomed this Spring and in coming years will continue to remind us of what we have learned.

In 2nd and 4th year the students learned about a school in Tennessee which set up the Paper Clip project as a memorial. The second year students created a Paper Clip Display in which every student in the school was invited to take part. The display is housed in our RE room.

Two of our students, Caroline from 5th year and Beth from 2nd year attended the Holocaust Memorial Ceremony in the Mansion House in January.

As well as taking part in these events, Ms Quinn arranged for a survivor of the Holocaust to come and speak to 4th and 5th year students about his experience. On Thursday, 8th May, Tomi Reichental did just that. Tomi explained to us in great detail about his childhood in Slovakia. At the young age of nine, Tomi and his family were sent to Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. It was here that Tomi spent the next seven months of his life, which could only be described as "hell on earth". During these long, horrible months, Tomi's grandmother passed away, a day he said he will never forget. At the end of Mr Reichental's emotional talk, there was time for questions. Most of us were left speechless by this man's past, but the few of us who could bring ourselves to ask questions did so. The answer to one of those questions was the most valuable thing anyone could hear. Mr Reichental was asked "Is there something you would like us to take away from this talk today?" His response was "You now live in a multicultural society, with a lot of foreign nationals living here. The Holocaust did not start with someone being bullied or murdered, it started with rumours and whispers. The only way we can stop this from recurring is by having respect for each other and treating everyone equally." I think this is something we can all apply to our lives.

Carolyn Conlon 5th Year

Seachtain na Gaeilge 10ú -14ú Mártha

Thug an tseachtain deis ar leith do dhaoine oga an teanga a chloisteáil a úsaid chomh maith le cúpla focal nua a fhoglaim. Bhí roinnt imeachtaí ar siúl sa scoil i rith seachtain na gaeilge:

Tráth na gceist Boird

Cluíchí ranga

Ceol ghaelach

Filíocht

Táimíd fíorbhuíoch de Stiofáin Ó Cionnaith a tháinig go dtí an scoil chun CÉILÍ a dhéanamh leis and gcéad bhliain agus an dara bliain.

Bhain gach duine sult as an bhféile arís I mbliana!

Leanne Gilsenan & Ciara Wynne 1st year - Cedar

FIELD TRIP The classrooms outdoors

Sixth year students enjoyed an Ecology field trip to Newbridge Demense in Donabate. They examined plant & animal populations in the woodland.

SCieNCe laBS

Students are enjoying classes in a clean, modern environment. We wish to thank our students for their help moving, unpacking, checking invoices and getting organised.

P a i r e D reaDiNG

Over the past number of years the Paired reading programme has been a great success with both adults and children. Adults and students read together in a relaxed and non competitive environment. It allows for true co-operation between students, school and community. We are indebted to the members of the local community who give so willingly of their time and enabled us to run this programme. As always new volunteers are always welcome. Ms P Moran

MErcy awarDs

The Sr. Mary Gonzalez Perpetual Trophy for best Maths result in LC Christina FabeLurin

Best Junior Cert Results 2007 Amy Delaney

Best Leaving Cert Results 2007 Jennifer Hurley. Jennifer is now studying Arts in St Patricks College

Dr Patricia Lenane

Left Mercy in 1987. Went to UCD studied Medicine, She is now a Paediatrician, Specialising in Skin Disease, Attached to Mater & Temple St. Hospitals

Overall Student of the year 2008 Caroline Carney

Newly elected Head Girl: Emma Roche, and Deputy Head Girls Shaunna Dwyer & Samantha Hatton

Northside & PrejUDiCe

Pride and Prejudice comes to the Northside, so a change of title was required. The Drama Club has been rehearsing very hard to perfect their lines for their performance of "Northside and Prejudice". The drama is based on Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice but with a modern twist. We had an absolutely brilliant time performing and we hope that the audience had a blast!! Hopefully, there were some talent spotters in the crowd and Hollywood will be our next stage.

Beth Valente

Girl powEr!!

The Student Council meets Tuesday during lunch. Issues discussed included the current Discipline and Homework Policy. These issues were also discussed at staff meetings throughout the year. 4th year Council members were anxious to secure lockers and this was discussed with management and they were organised in October. The issue of uniform was the centre of much debate. The Council have begun to investigate the possibility of adding a "sweatshirt" type jacket to the uniform. Initial research was disappointing as students felt they were too expensive, more work is needed on this issue. The Council linked up with the parents association to distribute tickets for the annual school raffle. An exciting development this year were our links with the student council in Chanel College, Ms Somers (HCSL) was very involved with this initiative. Well done to all the girls involved in the Council.

Ms E Conneely Student Council Liaison Teacher

Fifth year Guidance

5th years have had a busy year - shadowing days in Dublin City University, the discover the DCU Workshops, a visit to FAS Opportunity Exhibitions in Croke Park and career talks with DIT and Aware.

Students applying to the CAO have had three sessions on application procedures and how to research etc., As the CAO is a process that begins in 5th year and continues until July 1st of 6th year (the final date for change of mind). Students have also begun to research PLC courses. There are so many courses out there. The World is Your Oyster girls, you are artists of your own life!! Have a great summer.

Ms E Conneely 5th year Guidance Counsellor

GirlS MeeT BoyS

Student Council members for Mercy College met the Council in Chanel during lunch time during March. Both schools were interested in doing research into "Bebo" and other social network sites. The issue of bullying on these sites was a concern. Both schools devised a survey to be completed by 1st, 2nd and 3rd year students regarding the above. Surveys were also carried out in two local Primary Schools. Results were presented at a very enjoyable meeting in Scoil Caitriona in early May. Members will present the results to students in September.

Emma Roche and Samantha Hatton 5th year

Edited by: Paula Downes

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