Dominican College PPTC Transfer Arrangements 2017-18

Registration for the 2017-18 GL Transfer assessment opens on Monday 15th May 2017 and closes on Friday September 22nd. The entrance assessment will be on Saturday 18th November.

Ms Ronan, Dominican Principal, will outline the arrangements for this year’s entrance assessment on Monday 15th May in the school assembly hall at 7.00 PM. Pupils from P6 and their parents are welcome and invites have been issued to our Primary schools.

A further meeting will be held in September 2017 (date to be confirmed) and prospective pupils will have the opportunity to visit the school after this date.
Registration packs will be available from May 15th and information for downloading the packs is available on the school website, click here.

 

  On Friday afternoon our school chaplain, Fr. Raymond McCullagh, led our Year 12 pupils and their parents in a special service of thanksgiving as they began their study leave ahead of their GCSE examinations.

Fr. Raymond prayed that pupils would see their five years of study and friendship would reap rich rewards as they embarked on their examinations and contemplated next year’s studies.

Using the famous image by William Holman Hunt entitled “The Light of the World”, Fr. Raymond challenged pupils to see what was missing from the image. On realising that Jesus was standing by a door without a handle, he urged them to see that only they can allow Jesus access into their lives as the only handle is within. He encouraged them to see that only Jesus can provide the answers to our deepest questions and encouraged our pupils to believe in themselves throughout their coming exam period and beyond.

Concluding the service, our Year 12 Co-ordinator, Mrs Heaney, gave the year 12 pupils an inspiring speech about how they : “Always have been and always will be more than a grade to us”. She encouraged them to continue to seek the support and help from their teachers, to attend all revision classes and to see that returning to Dominican is the best option for them. Mrs Heaney thanked all the parents for their support for the school and praised the fine young Dominicans that their young people had become.

The school library is open each day throughout the exam period for our leavers to study. Pupils are reminded that they must be in school uniform for all study sessions and for all exams.

GCSE results will be issued on Thursday 24th August and each of our Year 12 pupils has been allocated an interview time and date beginning on August 24th.

Good luck to all our Year 12 and examination pupils over the coming weeks.

We hope to see you all back in DCP for AS in September 2017 to complete your Dominican journey.

Below are some images from Friday’s service.

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 On the evening of Wednesday 10th May our school chaplain, Fr. Raymond McCullagh, led our Year 14 pupils and their parents in a special Leavers’ mass as our class of 2017 began their study leave ahead of their A level examinations and begin to contemplate life beyond the walls of DCP.

Fr. Raymond welcomed pupils and parents together for the first time since September 2010 to celebrate the culmination of the journey that had begun and to appreciate the fine young Dominican men and women they had become. He encouraged pupils to remain an integral part of the Dominican family – this message was reiterated by the friends association who recruited our class of 2017 as members of our recently established Friends of Dominican College association. To commemorate the class of 2017 as our centenary leavers each pupil was given a special centenary badge.

In a special ceremony of light pupils and parents passed on the gifts of faith, justice, wisdom and truth and learned that every ending is a new beginning; pupils also reflected on how everything they learned was learned in the company of others.

Using the famous image of Christ washing the feet of his disciples, Fr. Raymond reflected on his own time in Ethiopia meeting with lepers. He told the class of 2017 that they had to go out into the world and see that there are no “untouchables” and that they must love all equally as we are all loved equally by God. He challenged our U6 to live out this example of unconditional love and to show the C21st the vision of St Dominic and St Catherine, and as opposed to people who “use their feet to trample over others”, he urged our U6 to see that: “with your feet firmly planted in the ground you can do great things with humility, faith and love”.

Reflecting on his own ordination 24 years ago and his own leave taking of St Malachy’s 30 years ago, Fr. Raymond concluded by asking our U6 pupils to be all that God calls them to be and to “always come back to DCP as we always love to hear your stories and see where the road ahead leads you”.

Ms Ronan thanked all those who had made the evening such a success, especially the Music and RE departments who had helped lead the pupils in word and song.

Concluding the service Ms Ronan spoke of the honour and privilege of working with such a fabulous year group in this our centenary year and thanked parents for “entrusting us with your most special gifts- your children”.

She encouraged our class of 2017 to always see themselves as members of the Dominican family and encouraged then to remain in close contact with the school through groups like the Friends association.

The school library is open each day throughout the exam period for our leavers to study.

Pupils are reminded that they must be in school uniform for all study sessions and for all exams.

Good luck to all our Year 14 pupils over the coming weeks and every success in their work and life beyond DCP.

Below are some images from Wednesday’s service.

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Surf. Eat. Pray

Jono Griffin from The Surf project spoke to our senior pupils at assembly today about this inspirational and innovative initiative which he set up almost four years ago.

The Surf Project, now based in Portrush and linked to the Methodist church, is a fully accredited Irish surf school with the unique aim of brining individuals and groups together to surf together, eat together and most importantly to pray and reflect together on key issues involving young people.

The maxim of the group is to encourage young people to “Live life to the full” and that to do so is to live God’s way. As well as the surfer’s quest of searching for the perfect wave, the group believe that young people need a space and time to reflect on key real life issues such as identity, hope, fear, self –esteem and love and the group aim to help connect people back to God and, in the process, enhance personal, social and spiritual welfare.

More than a 1000 young people have taken part in the surf project over the past year and it is hoped that a link can be established with the school allowing Dominican pupils to avail of this superb initiative.

The surf project can be contacted :

Phone- 07887634680
Web – www.thesurfproject.org
Email – info@thesurfproject.org