Celebrating Academic Excellence

On March third, the St. Michael school community gathered in the cafeteria for breakfast to celebrate students who worked diligently to earn an overall average of 80% or higher in the previous school year. Students in grades 10 to 12 gathered during their first and second period classes to take a moment to celebrate their academic success over breakfast, with administration and members of staff dropping in to celebrate how proud they were of all the success and work these students have put in.

In previous years, the St. Michael’s community would have gathered in the evening — a time that is sometimes busy with outside of school commitments for many. By updating the school tradition this year, staff saw more engagement and participation from both the students and staff who might miss out on the celebration.

The purpose of gathering for breakfast allows all to celebrate student success in areas where students might not traditionally receive praise. Each student who received the highest overall average for each course was acknowledge with a certificate. The school Chaplain, Mr.  Minardi, would call students up by name to have them celebrate their God given gifts with all present (including vice principals Mrs. Lindsay and Mr. Villella who would have handed them the appropriate certificate).

This yearly tradition motivates students to both continue to strive for academic success and (for the first time this year) allows for other students to see how striving for academic excellence is rewarded. In accordance with the Catholic school improvement learning cycle (CSILC) for the school year, staff wants to ensure that all students can thrive in their academics as well as other aspects of school life. All in attendance had a great sense of school pride and community.

Looking ahead to the academic awards for the 2025-2026 school year, it seems evident that breakfast would be an appropriate new take on the school tradition. As it takes a village, many thanks go towards the awards committee who organised the event, the hospitality team who prepared breakfast, StMicTV's AV team for the lighting and visuals, and the guidance and administration team for their support in events like these. Staff is looking forward to celebrating all of the students hard earned success in academics again next year.